[P]rosecutors have cleared a Vermont State Police trooper, who shot and injured a Pownal man who refused orders to drop his shotgun, of wrongdoing.
The Vermont Attorney General’s Office and the Bennington County State’s Attorney’s Office said in a joint release Thursday that they have completed separate reviews of the shooting and will not be prosecuting Trooper Thomas Sandberg.
According to police, Bernard Rougeau, 48, of Pownal, was shot by Sandberg outside his home after he refused orders to drop his shotgun on Oct. 18.
Law enforcement officers were called to Rougeau’s home that night after receiving emergency calls that he was drunk and suicidal.
According to court records, shortly before Rougeau was shot he told his mother that if police do shoot him it would be “good, that’s what I want.”
At a press conference following the shooting, state police investigators said Sandberg shot twice and struck Rougeau in the torso area with buckshot.
Rougeau was airlifted to Albany Medical Center in New York for treatment and later released.
He was arraigned in November and charged with aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, reckless endangerment and interference with access to emergency services in connection with the incident.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges and is currently held for lack of bail at the Springfield prison awaiting trial.
Neither Assistant Attorney General John Waszak, who conducted the review for that office, nor Bennington County State’s Attorney Erica Marthage could immediately be reached Thursday for comment.
Typically, after officer-involved shooting prosecutors hold a press conference and release a detailed report explaining their findings. However, in this case, since criminal charges remain pending against Rougeau that didn’t happen.
“In accordance with the Vermont Rules of Professional Conduct, neither the Attorney General’s Office nor the Bennington County State’s Attorney’s Office will, at this time, comment further on the specific findings of their reviews,” the prosecutors did say in the statement issued Thursday.
“The Offices may release additional information related to their decisions if and when the criminal charges pending against Mr. Rougeau are resolved.”
