Updated at 11:31 p.m.

Mike Touchette has resigned as commissioner of the Vermont Department of Corrections, according to Secretary of Human Services Mike Smith.

The news comes two weeks after Seven Days published an investigation into the state’s only prison for women. The report found a pattern of sexual misconduct, drug use and retaliation at the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility in South Burlington.

“The decision to step down was not an easy one, as I continue to believe that we have been on the right path in making necessary changes and updates to our system of care for all in corrections,” Touchette told Seven Days in a written statement. “At this point in time, I feel that I need to find a better balance between my career and personal life.”

Smith said Wednesday that Touchette had tendered his resignation on Monday afternoon, explaining that fallout from the investigation had “taken an enormous toll on him.”

“He’s a human being,” Smith said. “He just felt that it was best for him and best for his department that he resign.”
The secretary said he had not asked for Touchette’s resignation and had not yet determined whether he would have asked the commissioner to continue serving. In an interview late Wednesday, Gov. Phil Scott said that he also had not asked Touchette to resign.

“I can’t say that I was shocked, but maybe more surprised at this stage,” the governor said, adding that it remained unclear whether Touchette was responsible for any wrongdoing at the department he ran.

Scott said that he had spoken briefly with Smith on Tuesday about the crisis in the state prison system. “He did offer that things are going to get worse before they get better,” the governor said.

Touchette first joined the department three decades ago as a corrections officer. He worked his way up the ranks to deputy commissioner and, in November 2018, was appointed commissioner.

According to Smith, Touchette has invoked his right as a longtime state worker to return to a classified job within the government. It was not immediately clear what position he would fill.

Smith said Wednesday that Deputy Corrections Commissioner Judy Henkin would lead the department until he named an interim commissioner. The secretary said he had contacted several people to gauge their interest in the role. “In this interim period, I want somebody in there that preferably would be [from the] outside,” he said.
Smith plans to make initial recommendations to the governor later this week about immediate steps the department could take to improve staffing and training. He also expects to announce an independent investigation to be conducted by an outside entity that could take as long as 120 days. Smith said that a permanent commissioner would not be named until that review is completed.

The secretary said that he did not immediately announce Touchette’s resignation on Monday because he expected to be unavailable Tuesday and wanted to ensure that he could answer questions from the press about the personnel change. VTDigger.org first reported the news Wednesday morning. Smith then notified Agency of Human Services staff by email.

“I want to express my gratitude for his years of service, continued service and commitment to the Department of Corrections,” Smith said in the email. “Many people have expressed their admiration for Mike, and their appreciation for the work he has undertaken to make the Department better and more successful.”

Scott said that while he did not know Touchette well, he had been “impressed with his background — that he came from the rank and file and worked his way up.” The governor added, “In the last couple of days, there have been a number of people from the community involved with corrections who have come forward and praised him for the work that he’s done.”

Touchette had been contemplating his role in the department since Seven Days’ investigation of Chittenden Regional was first published. At a forum last week in Burlington, he said he had considered resigning but had decided to stick it out.

“I have not done anything wrong,” Touchette said. “I stand by everything that I’ve done as commissioner. I’m very proud of the work that we’ve done. We have a lot more work to do.”

Though the commissioner initially suggested to Seven Days that he had been unaware of allegations of drug use by a supervisor at Chittenden Regional, subsequent reporting demonstrated that he had, in fact, been informed. The newspaper later reported that a former corrections officer had complained to Touchette about the abusive behavior of a senior DOC official. That official remained on staff for another four years.

Soon after Seven Days published its initial investigation, Smith temporarily removed the South Burlington women’s prison from the DOC chain of command — essentially relieving Touchette of his responsibility to run the facility. Henkin, the deputy commissioner, was tasked with overseeing Chittenden Regional from the secretary’s office.

Late last week, Touchette confirmed to Seven Days that the leaders of another prison, Northern State Correctional Facility in Newport, had been relieved of duty. On Wednesday, the newspaper reported allegations that an inmate who died at the Newport prison earlier this month had repeatedly implored nursing staff to help him in the hours before his death.

In his written statement, Touchette said he was “proud of the many accomplishments that I have either [led] or been involved in.” He said he had “worked extremely hard, along with many others who share my same vision for the needed changes to our current systems,” adding, “My hope is that those people will carry on my vision.”

University of Vermont police chief Lianne Tuomey returned in November from more than four months on paid personal leave, only to quietly retire and take a new campus job, the university said Tuesday.

Tuomey may not stay in her new post as "senior advisor for safety and security" for long. On December 2, the City of Glenwood Springs named her one of four finalists for a police chief position in the Colorado resort community of 10,000.

Tuomey visited the town earlier this month for a candidate "meet and greet," according to the Post Independent, which ran a photo of her chatting with locals at a Glenwood Springs community center.

The deadline to apply for the job was October 19, according to an online job listing.

Updated at 9:03 p.m.

In a stunning turn Monday, Mayor Miro Weinberger announced that the woman he had just named acting chief of the Burlington Police Department has been replaced — for operating a social media account under a fake name.

Deputy Chief Jan Wright informed the mayor that she had occasionally used a Facebook account under the name “Lori Spicer” and discussed the police department on the page.

The mayor's office announced Wright was out as acting chief just hours after she was named to replace chief Brandon del Pozo, who himself resigned Monday after admitting he briefly using an anonymous Twitter account to troll a critic.

Attorneys for men claiming excessive force by Burlington police contend that Brandon del Pozo lied under oath in written testimony related to their civil litigation.

The former Burlington police chief resigned Monday after revelations last week that he used an anonymous Twitter account to mock a critic, then lied about it repeatedly during an interview in July with Seven Days.
Del Pozo is a named defendant in pending civil lawsuits filed in U.S. District Court by black men who allege excessive force by Burlington cops in two separate incidents last year.

During discovery in the cases, the plaintiffs' attorneys asked del Pozo a series of questions about his social media accounts, including which accounts he’d used and whether he had deleted any.

In an October 30 response, in which del Pozo "swore to the truth of the information," the chief did not disclose the since-deleted @WinkleWatchers Twitter account he used in July and wrote that none of the accounts he used have been deleted, according to court documents made public Monday. 
The former chief was also asked to list all legal actions, including any “administrative proceeding,” to which he was a party.

Del Pozo was initially placed on administrative leave in late July after telling Mayor Miro Weinberger about his anonymous Twitter account and his subsequent denial to a Seven Days reporter. The investigation resulted in a medical leave that began August 1. He returned to his post September 16. City officials never publicly disclosed the preceding administrative investigation until last week.
Del Pozo’s discovery responses, filed October 30 and November 6, did not mention it, either.

Deputy Chief Jan Wright and the city attorney’s office assisted in preparing del Pozo's responses, the former chief wrote in the filings.

Attorneys for the men, Evan Chadwick and Robb Spensley, asked the judge in both cases Monday to issue a default judgment in favor of their clients based on what they characterized as the city’s false answers given during discovery.

“It is a fraud perpetrated on the Court when a chief law enforcement officer, with a masters degree in criminal justice and with assistance from counsel, including the City of Burlington legal department, knowingly provides false answers under oath to legitimate discovery questions,” they wrote.
They also asked the court to impose punitive damages against the city of $50,000 in each case.

City Attorney Eileen Blackwood initially said Monday that she did not review del Pozo’s filings, only those submitted by the city itself. The city is represented in the cases by outside counsel Lynn, Lynn, Blackman & Manitsky, P.C. The firm did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Blackwood later clarified in an email to Seven Days that an assistant city attorney did help prepare the response. That attorney was unaware of del Pozo's Twitter "account issue."

Wright, who has been named acting chief, did not immediately return phone messages for comment.

At a press conference Monday announcing the chief’s resignation, Weinberger said questions over del Pozo’s credibility in future legal matters was part of the conversation between the pair Sunday night.

Chadwick declined to comment Monday afternoon.

View the full motion for sanctions below:

Correction, 3:23 p.m.: This story has been updated to correct a comment from Burlington City Attorney Eileen Blackwood regarding who reviewed del Pozo's written responses in the lawsuits.

Updated at 3:23 p.m.

Burlington Police Chief Brandon del Pozo has resigned, days after admitting he created an anonymous Twitter account to harass a local political activist, Mayor Miro Weinberger said on Monday.

The mayor, who had defended the city's top cop last week, announced the news at a press conference at the Burlington Police Department's headquarters on North Avenue.

"I will miss him greatly, and I believe Burlington will as well," Weinberger told members of the media.

Deputy Police Chief Jan Wright will serve as acting chief, the mayor said: "I will have more to share about the appointment of a permanent chief in the days to come."

Burlington Police Chief Brandon del Pozo admitted Thursday to creating an anonymous Twitter account to troll a critic. He also conceded that he'd lied to a Seven Days reporter who asked him about the account in July. In a written statement Friday, Mayor Miro Weinberger described his chief as not having "been forthright with a reporter about those tweets."

"It's 45 minutes of my life spent anonymously tweeting someone in a snarky way that does not befit the chief of police," del Pozo said at an impromptu press conference Friday, "and then, to be candid, denying it out of embarrassment to a reporter, which I think is the more serious problem."

Del Pozo went on to say he felt his "throat choking up" during the July 23 phone call with this reporter.

A review of  the audio recording of the 36-minute interview showed that the chief lied nearly a dozen times about what he'd done.

 Tests mandated by a new Vermont law are revealing elevated lead levels at schools around the state. Eighty-three percent of facilities tested so far have had at least one tap above allowable levels, according to state data.

The latest water sources to be flagged were in Burlington's Integrated Arts Academy, an elementary school. Burlington superintendent of schools Yaw Obeng informed parents Thursday about the test results.

"We take our responsibility to provide a safe and healthy environment for the children and staff seriously," Obeng wrote in a letter to parents. Any tap that tested at or above four parts per billion was immediately taken out of service for drinking or cooking, the letter stated. "We are working on fixes to permanently lower levels of lead in the water," it continued.

The Vermont Department of Corrections placed the leaders of a state prison in Newport on administrative leave Friday, according to Commissioner Mike Touchette.

Superintendent Joshua Rutherford and assistant superintendent Scott Martin of the Northern State Correctional Facility were both relieved of command, Touchette said.

“I cannot comment on specifics, but a credible report was made that warrants further assessment,” Touchette told Seven Days in a written statement. He did not immediately return a call seeking additional comment.

The moves come during a time of turmoil for the Department of Corrections. Last week, Seven Days published an investigation of another state prison, the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility, revealing a pattern of misconduct and retaliation. In response, Human Services Secretary Mike Smith removed the South Burlington women's prison from the department's
chain of command and assumed operational control of it.
Touchette remains in charge of the state's five prisons for men, including Northern State. 

Greg Hale, the superintendent at Northwest State Correctional Facility in Swanton, will serve as interim superintendent at the Newport prison, Touchette said. Hale, in turn, will be temporarily replaced in Swanton by his two assistant superintendents.

This story will be updated.

Signs posted throughout Vermont's prisons encourage victims of sexual misconduct, physical violence and discrimination to dial what's known as the Offender Reporting Line.

"It is never too late to report!" one sign reads.

But unlike similar hotlines at prisons throughout the U.S., Vermont's does not connect to an independent, third-party organization. Rather, callers are directed to the central office of the state Department of Corrections. From there, according to Corrections Commissioner Mike Touchette, complaints are forwarded to a prison superintendent, deputy commissioner or other department official.

That's a problem, according to Lovisa Stannow, executive director of the Los Angeles, Calif.-based prisoner advocacy group Just Detention International.

"Corrections agencies must give prisoners a way to get crisis support from an outside entity, including through a hotline," Stannow said. "It is absolutely crucial that officials clearly explain to prisoners how such services work, and who runs them. If survivors can’t trust that their attempts to get help will be confidential, many will stay quiet."

A prominent Vermont family's foundation has accused its longtime financial adviser of secretly funneling its funds into a failing business, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court last week.

The Hoehl Family Foundation, a giving arm of the family of IDX Systems co-founder Robert Hoehl, filed the suit in Burlington. It claims that Ronald L. Roberts siphoned more than $20 million in secret loans and investments from the Hoehl family’s business empire to help prop up a struggling sports equipment company, G-Form, to which he was financially connected. The payments included a $1 million investment from the Hoehl Family Foundation, which filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court of Vermont.

“Mr. Roberts invested the Foundation’s money in G-Form because he had already loaned or invested tens of millions of dollars of his personal assets and his other clients’ assets into G-Form, which was having significant cash flow shortfalls,” the complaint says.