WOODSTOCK — Windsor County Sheriff Ryan Palmer is reviewing processes throughout his department after coming under fire for the second time in recent weeks for an administrative issue.
Until two weeks ago, 12 Windsor County Sheriff’s deputies did not have active appointment documents, known as commissions, filed with the Windsor County Clerk as is required under Vermont law. Some of the deputies have been with the department for over a year.
“This commission must be recorded in Windsor County Clerk’s Office before the Deputy Sheriff is authorized to act,” a note at the bottom of the paperwork reads. The requirement is also reflected in 24 V.S.A. 307.
The statute does not dictate penalties for the violation.
The issue came to light following an investigation by the Vermont Standard that was published Sept. 15.
On Sept. 16, Palmer filed the first set of what would be 28 commissions filed over two weeks for current Windsor County Sheriff’s Deputies, according to documents shared by County Clerk Pepper Tepperman.
The documents included paperwork for the 12 deputies at issue. Palmer also filed new paperwork for 16 deputies whose commissions were not set to expire until next year.
The transgression is “certainly something that shouldn’t have happened,” Palmer said Tuesday.
As for how it happened: “Whenever you have an organization and there’s been exponential growth, balls are going to get dropped and that’s on me to make sure you don’t have that,” he said.
Since taking over the department in 2023, Palmer has increased patrols from nine to 15 towns, including four in Orange County, and more than doubled the department’s staffing.
All of the Windsor County Sheriff’s Deputies are certified law enforcement officers with the Vermont Criminal Justice Council, Palmer wrote in a Sept. 19 Facebook post, and employees of the state agency confirmed last week.
The agency is tasked with overseeing the Vermont Police Academy and implementing statewide rules, standards and policies for criminal justice personnel. The council also evaluates conduct complaints against certified officers.
Lindsay Thivierge, the Vermont Criminal Justice Council’s director of administration and compliance, said legal matters are beyond the agency’s purview and directed legal questions to a state’s attorney. Windsor County State’s Attorney Ward Goodenough declined to comment.
The legal implications of the paperwork delay are unclear.
Palmer is not aware of any legal issues or “negative impacts on the horizon” as a result of the error. But, “it’s certainly something that’s on our radar.”
For now, the mistake has encouraged him to step back and review processes and to think more about his own role as “an executive” more than as a “case officer.”
“It certainly warrants, slow down and go through and make sure that on every level of this department we’re doing things the best way that we can,” Palmer said. “There’s always room for improvement, and that’s where my focus is for the immediate future.”
One of the officers who was not previously commissioned is Bryan Jalava, who is currently under investigation for his role in a fatal officer-involved-shooting in Springfield, Vt., last month.
The investigation into Jalava’s conduct is ongoing, but he has returned to duty in a limited capacity, Palmer said. Jalava is armed while on duty, but he is being tasked with “pretty minimal” duties such as traffic details and serving paperwork.
There is no law saying Jalava has to remain on paid leave, Palmer said, and “I’m trying to balance what’s good for my individual deputy” and he is “comfortable” with the decision even if it “may feel unorthodox to some.”
The initial decision to place Jalava on leave is “standard protocol following a critical incident,” according to a news release from Vermont State Police. The VSP Major Crime Unit is responsible for all officer-involved shooting investigations.
“Someone lost their life and that’s a very serious thing, but the unfortunate nature of police work is that sometimes these things happen,” Palmer said. “We never want it to and we do everything we can to not have that happen, but sometimes this happens.”
Another officer, Deputy Kristinnah Adams, remains on leave after she was charged with and pled not guilty to domestic assault and interference with access to emergency services in June. Adams is scheduled for trial in mid-December.
Palmer’s Department also is the subject of an ongoing investigation into its finances after Vermont State Police received an anonymous tip to look into the matter in mid-August.
Bennington County State’s Attorney Erica Marthage who is overseeing the investigation, along with Vermont State Police, did not respond to a request for any updates.
Palmer said he has not received any updates into the investigation, but a regularly scheduled mandated audit of the department is ongoing.