Lucas Hall, a state trooper from the Shaftsbury Barracks who posted support on social media for the Jan. 6 riots in Washington, D.C., has resigned.
Public Safety Commissioner Michael Schirling issued a statement Wednesday morning, detailing the trooper’s decision.
“Late last evening, prior to the anticipated conclusion of the investigation into his conduct related to the Capitol insurrection, Lucas Hall resigned his position,” Schirling said. “His unconditional resignation was immediately accepted. The details of the investigation will be forwarded to the Vermont Criminal Justice Council pursuant to Act 56 for consideration of sanctions, including decertification” as a police officer.
“God Bless America!!!!” Hall posted to Facebook last Wednesday. “Cheers to the great Patriots in Washington, D.C. The time has come… Let’s gooooo!!!”
When a commenter replied, “there are going to be riots,” with a sad face emoji, Hall responded, “it might be war… We are beginning to see good, law-abiding citizens stand against a corrupted government.”
The next day, Schirling suspended Hall without pay, opened an internal investigation, and issued a public statement about the measures the department had taken.
Schirling said Friday he had received many complaints about Hall’s suspension.
“While I’m not actively looking at social media, I have been surprised by the number of calls that have come in to the Department of Public Safety complaining about the suspension of the trooper yesterday,” Schirling said. “We have received calls also in support of that action, but the surprising part was the calls in the other direction.”
Hall could not be reached for comment. His partner created a GoFundMe page the morning after his resignation to help the family financially while Hall is out of work. She says Hall’s comments were “taken out of context,” and were posted before the situation in Washington became violent.
“Luke is a proud American,” she wrote on the page. “He believes in law and order. He believes in the Constitution. He respects and loves those who serve and protect this country and his brothers and sisters in blue. He is a son, a brother, a friend, and most importantly, a great dad to two young children.”
Hall’s on-duty performance has been questioned several times. In one instance, the trooper’s court testimony conflicted with video footage of a drug arrest. As a result, the charges against the suspect, who had been facing 10 years in prison, were reduced substantially.
In a 2018 arrest, Hall pulled over a woman who was coming from a wedding and dressed in formal attire. While taking her into custody on a charge of drunken driving, Hall pulled her out of her car and threw her to the ground, according to a judge’s ruling.
The woman suffered a concussion and developed migraines after the incident, and could not pursue her teaching certificate while charges against her were pending. Several months ago, the judge dismissed the misdemeanor case in the “interest of justice.”
After reviewing the posts last week, Attorney General TJ Donovan said Hall had lost his trust, and called for his resignation or termination.
“It is one thing for a private citizen to say something on social media,” Donovan said in an interview last Thursday. “It is entirely different and unacceptable for a public peace officer, a law enforcement officer whose power is given by the people of this state, to advocate and condone the violent overthrow of our government and an assault on our Capitol.”
