A former Williston police officer who a prosecutor previously said had shown a “clear pattern of profiling and bias” has been permanently banned from obtaining certification to serve as a law enforcement officer in Vermont.
However, exactly what Travis Trybulski did to warrant that ban has not been publicly spelled out.
After Trybulski signed a stipulation with the Vermont Criminal Justice Council in which he withdrew an objection to the ban, the Council voted 13-1 on Tuesday to enact it.
The lack of detail prompted one member of the council to question whether enough information was being provided to the public.
Evan Meenan, deputy director of the Vermont Department of State’s Attorneys and Sheriffs, voted against accepting the stipulation with Trybulski. He said during the meeting that his concern wasn’t with the permanent revocation of Trybulski’s certification, but that the agreement doesn’t say what occurred.
“Five, 10 years from now if someone is reading this, those additional facts that would actually support a finding of willful bias enforcement based on someone’s demographics are just not summarized in this stipulation,” Meenan said.
The revocation of Trybulski’s certification stems from violations of Williston Police Department policies dealing with fair and impartial policing and conducting traffic stops on Feb. 4, 2021.
The stipulation adopted Tuesday does not reference the race of any parties, or provide much detail about the stops. A one-paragraph summary indicated that Tybulski left a welfare check to respond to another call regarding a person knocking on the door of a residence and not leaving.
Eventually, the stipulation reads, police stopped a vehicle and Trybulski “secured voluntary consent from the operator of such vehicle to search the vehicle despite no reasonable suspicion or probable cause to believe that there were any controlled substances or any other items related to potential criminal activity in the car.”
Trybulski, who signed the stipulation last week, could not be reached Tuesday for comment. It was not clear from virtually viewing the meeting if Trybulski took part, though he didn’t speak during it.
“Both parties understand that (Trybulski), by entering into this Agreement, does not stipulate to the accuracy, tenor, or implications of the facts asserted herein,” the seven-page document states.
Criminal Justice Council Chair William Sorrell, speaking after the meeting, said he shared Meenan’s concerns upon initially reading the stipulation. He ultimately supported the resolution after the council debated for 90 minutes, including about half behind closed doors.
“What you heard in the discussion, at least on the part of some, (was) ‘Why isn’t there more flesh on the bones of the allegation,’” Sorrell said. “The explanation was this was a negotiated settlement and one must assume from that it was a give and take.”
Assistant Attorney General Jacob Humbert negotiated the stipulation with Trybulski or his representative, Sorrell said.
The council could not secure a penalty greater than the permanent certification revocation, even if it had rejected the stipulation, he said.
Sorrell said Trybulski had been dismissed from the Williston Police Department “some time ago.”
Williston Police Chief Patrick Foley was out of the office Tuesday afternoon, according to a person who answered the phone at the police department. He did not return a message left for him.
Trybulski was the subject of a Brady letter in March 2021 written by Chittenden County State’s Attorney Sarah George. Prosecutors prepare the letters, which can end officers’ careers, to inform defense attorneys about possible credibility and integrity issues.
George wrote that as a result of an internal investigation regarding a “pattern of misconduct” by Trybulski, prosecutors’ ability to rely on his testimony in cases had been “significantly undermined.”
“Specifically, the incidents highlighted in the investigation show violations of the Fair and Impartial Policing policy through a clear pattern of profiling and bias,” George wrote. “Therefore, I am unwilling to call him as a witness and will not accept any criminal cases from him going forward.”
During the Democratic primary campaign for Chittenden County state’s attorney, Trybulski marched with Ted Kenney, George’s opponent in the race, to promote Kenney’s campaign.
In addition to the permanent revocation of Trybulski’s certification in Vermont, his decertification will be reported to the International Association of Law Enforcement Standards and Training National Decertification database, which houses the National Decertification index.
