[V]ermont State Police identified Sgt. Eugene Duplissis as the trooper who fired his gun on a man suspected of aggravated assault early Saturday morning.
Duplissis shot and wounded John-Victor Wetherby, 33, during a confrontation in a house in Rockingham after an hours long manhunt. Police were searching for Wetherby after he allegedly was involved in an assault in Bellows Falls shortly after noon on Friday.
Duplissis, who has been with the Vermont State Police since 2001, is a member of the tactical services unit, which was called to Rockingham Friday afternoon to aid in the search for Wetherby.
Police initially believed Wetherby was barricaded in the Hyde Street home in Bellows Falls he is alleged to have committed aggravated, but later found that he had fled.
Wetherby was eventually tracked to a vacant home on Cota Heights Road in Rockingham. He allegedly broke into the resident and found an antique double-barreled shotgun, according to police. Police say he cocked the firearm as law enforcement approached.
Police described the suspect as aiming a firearm at officers during the confrontation.
Duplissis fired his weapon at Wetherby, injuring him. Police have not specified how many shots he fired, but say he fired “multiple” times.
Wetherby was treated for a “single graze-type” wound at Springfield Hospital, before he was taken into custody on suspicion of aggravated assault and violation of probation. He is currently lodged at Southern State Correctional Facility with no bail.
This is the second time in just over a year that Duplissis has been named in an officer-involved shooting. He was one of nine police officers who fired on a bank robbery suspect in a standoff outside Montpelier High School last year. There were no charges against the officers involved in that fatal shooting. Nine officers fired at the suspect, Nathan Giffin, who was armed with a BB gun.
The Vermont Attorney General’s Office and the Windham County State’s Attorney will investigate the officer’s use of force. According to Vermont State Police spokesperson Adam Silverman, Duplissis will be on administrative leave for at least five days and will be on administrative duty once he returns to work.
In general, Silverman said, Tactical Services Unit members tend to respond to situations like this.
“It’s important to note that members of the Tactical Services Unit face a greater potential than other members of the Vermont State Police of having to engage armed, dangerous suspects – because these are the exact types of calls that the TSU is designed and dispatched to handle,” Silverman said.
Experts who reviewed use of force in multiple Vermont officer-involved shootings last year said there were “questions that need to be asked” concerning the justification. The experts recommended a system for reviewing use-of-force instances that involves a grand jury.
Duplissis said Sunday he was not able to comment on the incident.
“We are thankful that the suspect was able to be taken into custody without any further danger or harm to police, to the public, or to the suspect himself,” Vermont State Police Col. Matthew T. Birmingham said in a statement.
