Rep. Martin LaLonde, D-South Burlington, will chair the special committee tasked with investigating whether Franklin County’s two top law enforcement officials should be impeached, House Speaker Jill Krowinski, D-Burlington, announced Tuesday morning.
The committee’s vice chair will be Rep. Mike McCarthy, D-St. Albans, according to Krowinski. Both LaLonde and McCarthy sponsored the House resolution, H.R.11, that established the special committee and was approved by the body last week.
The other members of the seven-member panel are Rep. Matt Birong, D-Vergennes; Rep. Karen Dolan, D-Essex Junction; Rep. Carolyn Branagan, R-Georgia; Rep. Tom Burditt, R-West Rutland; and Rep. Kelly Pajala, I-Londonderry.
House leaders announced earlier this month that they would pursue impeachment of John Lavoie, Franklin County’s state’s attorney, and John Grismore, its sheriff.
Conor Kennedy, Krowinski’s chief of staff, said Tuesday that the committee is still working out its schedule, but he said he expects it to start meeting within the next two weeks.
The committee members “bring a wealth of experience and dedication to this crucial task,” Krowinski said in the release. “Their expertise in legislative matters, legal affairs and commitment to upholding the integrity of Vermont’s law enforcement system will be invaluable in conducting a comprehensive and unbiased investigation.”
LaLonde is the chair of the House Judiciary Committee, and McCarthy chairs the Government Operations Committee.
“I have heard from many people in my community, and throughout Franklin County, who are deeply troubled by the reported behavior of the state’s attorney and the charges and investigation faced by the sheriff,” McCarthy said on the House floor last week.
Allegations came to light earlier this month that Lavoie repeatedly harassed and discriminated against his employees in the State’s Attorney’s Office and cultivated a hostile work environment. The longtime prosecutor and first-term Democrat has repeatedly refused to resign despite public calls from politicians and other state’s attorneys to do so.
Grismore has also resisted calls to resign since he was caught on video last August repeatedly kicking a handcuffed detainee when he was serving as a sheriff’s deputy. The Republican, who was first elected sheriff last fall, is also being investigated by the Vermont State Police for alleged financial wrongdoing discovered during an audit of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office.
Committee members will “diligently review all relevant evidence, interview witnesses and carefully assess the allegations” against both men, Krowinski said Tuesday.
She also encouraged “citizens with relevant information to come forward.”
The committee will be able to meet during the summer while the Legislature is not in session. If panel members recommend impeachment, the Legislature would need to reconvene so the House could set forth articles of impeachment and take a vote.
The Senate then would oversee an impeachment trial.
Such action could take place during a special session this summer or fall, Krowinski has said, or come January, when the Legislature returns for the 2024 session.