Support Chief Doucette Against Spurious Accusations

Bennington Police Chief Paul Doucette has been wrongly accused of racism and professional misconduct by individuals and organizations looking to advance a political agenda and their careers.

This all came about because a state representative in Bennington, Vermont (Kiah Morris) was allegedly harassed by an individual named Max Misch who has been identified as a "white supremacist" and anti-Semite. The Bennington Police Department investigated the allegations, and while the statements and actions of Mr. Misch were deemed by many to be offensive, they did not rise to the level of a criminal act. Accordingly, the Vermont Attorney General declined to press charges against Mr. Misch.

The subsequent outcry from certain individuals and organizations resulted in a follow-up investigation of Mr. Misch into whether he violated Vermont's new ban on purchasing standard capacity firearms magazines, in this case, rifle magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds. The Bennington Police Department had already investigated these allegations and had determined that the magazines purchased in Vermont in excess of 10 rounds were purchased LEGALLY before the effective date of the law. As no law was broken, the Bennington Police Department did not disclose this information.

Mr. Misch allegedly traveled to New Hampshire after the law went into effect and purchased magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds, and allegedly returned to Vermont with them in violation of the new law. This was determined by a subsequent investigation by the Vermont State Police, and an arrest was made pursuant to these actions, NOT the purchase made prior to the law going into effect which was what the Bennington Police Department investigated, and correctly concluded no law had been broken.

There are now calls for an investigation into the Bennington Police Department and Chief Doucette. The Attorney General has recommended an outside investigation rather than his office investigating. The reasoning for such is unknown, but many suspect that it is because he knows that the Bennington Police Department and Chief Doucette will be exonerated, and the Attorney General does not wish to face the political backlash. Instead, he wishes the citizens of Bennington to foot the bill for an expensive and unnecessary investigation that will tell us what we already know - the Bennington Police Department investigated the allegations, found no violation of the law, and accordingly did not arrest Mr. Misch for illegally purchasing standard capacity magazines.

The hallmark of a good law enforcement agency is that it enforces the law without bias. What Chief Doucette's detractors are faulting him for is ensuring that a man's rights were respected during the course of investigations, and when the investigation showed that no crime was committed, that the person was not dragged through the court of innuendo where allegations carry the same weight as convictions.

NONE OF THIS IS AN ENDORSEMENT OF WHAT MAX MISCH MAY HAVE SAID OR DONE, but it is representative of the same ethical treatment by law enforcement we would all hope for if we were accused of wrong doing.

Please contact Bennington Town Manager Stuart Hurd at (802) 442-1037, and Vermont Attorney General T.J. Donovan at (802) 828-3171 to politely express your outrage at these events ,and the unfounded allegations against Chief Doucette and the Bennington Police Department.