Updated at 7:10 p.m.
A police officer resigned from the Vermont Criminal Justice Council and the Bristol Police Department on Wednesday after saying “you’re fucking here illegally” as a migrant worker testified before the council that morning.
Michael Major, who represented the Vermont Police Association on the 24-member council, interrupted the migrant worker, who was speaking in support of a revised fair and impartial policing policy.
The worker, who identified himself as Eduardo, spoke about the urgency of approving the policy, which immigrant rights advocates have long pushed for. The council had planned to vote on it Wednesday but postponed the decision due to new concerns raised by the Vermont Association of Chiefs of Police.
“To many of you, waiting a long time might feel normal, but for us it’s very different. You know this plays into our everyday lives, the reality of dealing with the police is different (for us),” Eduardo said through a translator. He added that migrant workers, many of whom are undocumented, are often reluctant to go to the doctor when they are sick, for instance, because they fear being reported to immigration authorities.
A speaker appearing at the meeting remotely with their camera turned off then interrupted, saying, “You’re fucking here illegally and you’re worried about being safe. Oh yeah.”
Bill Sorrell, the governor-appointed chair of the council, intervened to say, “Who’s ever stating that opinion, it’s not welcome, and wait your turn and don’t interrupt please.”
After participants asked for the person to be identified, Major named himself and apologized for his remark. He also claimed that he had not been addressing Eduardo.
“It wasn’t directed towards the discussion. I was having a discussion with my daughter. I apologize … extremely,” he said. “And it should not be reflected on the person that was talking at the time.”
After council members spoke up to criticize the comments — and question his explanation — Major apologized again and announced his resignation from the council. Later that day, he resigned from his part-time patrol officer position with the Bristol Police Department, according to Police Chief Bruce Nason.
“Mike called me earlier today, I have accepted his resignation,” Nason said in an email.
“Major’s comments do not reflect the views of the Bristol Police Department or the officers that seek to make the Bristol Community safe and welcoming to all.”
Major was hired by the Bristol department in March 2020.
He remains employed as a part-time deputy with the Chittenden County Sheriff’s Office, Sheriff Daniel Gamelin told VTDigger by email Wednesday evening. Major, who previously worked in the department but left in 2018 after making an unsuccessful bid for sheriff, was re-hired by Gamelin in February 2023.
Later Wednesday, the criminal justice council issued a written statement condemning Major’s remarks, saying “the impact of his words was devastating.”
“The Council wishes to reiterate that Mr. Major’s words are not representative of the Council nor of law enforcement in the State of Vermont,” it said in the statement.
After Major made his remarks and before he announced his resignation, several council members interjected to express their dismay. Erin Jacobsen, who represents the Office of the Attorney General on the council, was the first to do so.
“I feel just really discouraged, disturbed, saddened by that comment, Mike Major,” Jacobsen said, calling herself “outraged” and saying she did not find his explanation credible. “Those kinds of comments have no place in this kind of forum. It’s especially damaging when we are here discussing a fair and impartial policing policy. The point of view that you just raised calls into question community trust of law enforcement.”
Another council member, Karim Chapman from the Life Intervention Team, said, “This feels like racial profiling.” Identifying himself as “a Black man in America feeling the fear of being pulled over,” Chapman continued, “this really hits home for me.”
Tim Lueders-Dumont, who represents the Department of State’s Attorneys and Sheriffs on the council, jumped into the conversation to say that his department believed that Major should consider resigning from the council. He said that if he were serving as a prosecutor and heard an officer utter such a remark, he would consider issuing a “Brady” or “Giglio” letter, often considered the scarlet letter of policing.
Later in the meeting, Kelly Price, a vice president of the Vermont Police Association, said the organization’s president had asked him to “express our extreme disapproval of the statement that was made earlier.” Price said the VPA planned to address the matter internally.
Shortly thereafter, Major spoke up again.
“I just wanted to apologize again to the council,” he said. “And I’ve heard everything the council has said, and I will be resigning my position with the council effective immediately. I cannot apologize enough that it was not directed at the speaker or any member on the council, and I just wanted to apologize again. And sorry.”
To that, Sorrell responded, “All right. Well, perhaps this has all been a teaching moment for any number of council members and others.”
Major’s remarks continued to hang over the council’s gathering.
Heather Simons, executive director of the Criminal Justice Council, responded later to apologize to the community and to tell Major he was no longer welcome at the Vermont Police Academy.
“I would imagine that you are mortified and if you’re not then you have even more work to do,” she said. “But the extent of the damage you have caused today I’m certain that you don’t understand.”
She said that all of Major’s colleagues in law enforcement would have to help repair the harm that he had caused, adding, “This is a really kind of a tragic day for process and for showcasing the progress we are making.”
Will Lambek of Migrant Justice, a nonprofit representing immigrant farmworkers statewide, told VTDigger after the meeting that the organization believed Major’s comment was “a clear and painful reflection of the racism that still exists in this state.” It points to the importance of passing the fair and impartial policing policy, Lambek added in a message.
“How can any immigrant in Vermont hear those words and not fear that the police will turn them over to [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] or Border Patrol if given the chance?” he wrote.
Several council members who represent advocacy groups also reached out to VTDigger to comment on the matter.
Cassandra Burdyshaw, who represents the Vermont Human Rights Commission on the council, denounced the “derogatory” comment as “wholly inappropriate” and said it underscores the urgency of revisiting the fair and impartial policing policy, which the commission is committed to advance.
“No person is illegal; each deserves respect, whether voicing their opinion at a meeting or interacting with law enforcement in Vermont’s communities,” she said in an emailed statement.
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly described Michael Major’s employment status. He is a current employee of the Chittenden County Sheriff’s Department.
