The Attorney General’s Office announced that Joel Daugreilh, 37, of St. Albans, Vermont, pleaded guilty to one count of Simple Assault at a court appearance yesterday in Vermont Superior Court, Franklin Criminal Division.
The charges arose from an incident that occurred on November 26, 2017, when Mr. Daugreilh was an officer with the St. Albans Police Department. After taking a suspect into custody and placing them in a small holding cell where they were handcuffed and shackled to a bench, Mr. Daugreilh pushed the suspect’s head against the holding cell wall and deployed O.C. spray, commonly known as pepper spray, directly into the suspect’s eyes at close range. Mr. Daugreilh resigned from law enforcement following the incident.
At yesterday’s appearance, the Court, Judge Martin Maley presiding, weighed input from the victim as well as a statement from Mr. Daugreilh, and compared the case to other contemporaneous use-of-force cases in the St. Albans Police Department that resulted in criminal charges. The Court accepted Mr. Daugreilh’s change of plea, deferred his sentence, and imposed a probationary sentence of six months with conditions that Mr. Daughreilh have no contact with the victim and perform 40 hours of community service. If Mr. Daugreilh completes these requirements and complies with his probation conditions in six months his case may be dismissed.
Contact: Lauren Jandl, Chief of Staff, 802-828-3171