Vermont Farmer on Tractor Trashes
7 Police Cruisers, 1 Van, and His Life
By William Boardman
panthers007@comcast.net
Shortly after noon on Thursday, August 2, Vermont farmer Roger Pion, 34, rode his parents’ 20,000 pound tractor into Newport, Vermont, on his way to the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department’s new building, where he rolled back and forth over seven of the sheriff department’s cruisers (two unmarked) and a van, before moseying on down the road with no one in pursuit.
There was no one in pursuit for a couple of reasons: first the personnel in the sheriff’s department couldn’t hear what was going on in their parking lot because they had the air conditioning turned on and, second, once they were aware of what happened, they didn’t have a cruiser in which to pursue Pion [pronounced PEE-on]. Two deputies pursued on foot, until a motorist picked them up. Pion was stopped shortly after by the Newport City Police Department, despite his apparent attempt to run over their cruiser with two officers inside. Officers from three agencies surrounded Pion and arrested him at gunpoint. No one was injured. http://www.unionleader.com/article/20120803/NEWS03/120809827
By now, a little more than a day later, the media coverage of this story has blanketed America, if not the world, at least in its skeletal form. The TV networks had it this morning, and while NBC, Fox, and CBS played it straight, ABC’s Good Morning, America thought it was all pretty funny.
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2012/08/farmer-crushes-7-police-cars-with-tractor/
Within a few hours there was a dedicated facebook page titled, “Roger Pion, The Magnificent ,” filled with links to coverage and comments, mostly cheering for his gesture (such as, “warms my heart, “a true patriot,” “don’t mess with a Vermonter” and “Robert Pion: Patriot, Vermonter, Folk Hero, Pot smoker, performance artist, smashing the state, one cop car at a time....”).
http://www.facebook.com/RogerPionTheMagnificent
Pion is now incarcerated at the Northern State Correctional Facility in Newport. His initial bail of $15,000 has been raised to $50,000 and the state expects to arraign him on August 7.
Because of his alleged attempt to run over an occupied police car, the Vermont State Police have charged Pion with a felony count of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer. Other charges filed in Orleans County Superior Court include seven felony counts of unlawful mischief, one misdemeanor count of unlawful mischief, one count of gross negligent operation, and one count of leaving the scene of an accident.
Pion was armed at the time of his arrest, but he did not pull the gun out of its holster. State Police detective Lyle Deceker identified the gun as a .32 caliber Czech handgun, the like of which he’d never seen before. Pion has not talked to police in any detail and remained silent at his bail hearing that was held by phone. http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article/20120803/NEWS/308030010/Police-say-farmer-who-crushed-police-cruisers-his-tractor-armed
Late Friday, attorney David Sleigh of St Johnsbury entered his appearance on Pion’s behalf. Sleigh is a well-known Vermont defense attorney whose work includes a successful challenge to the state’s methods of testing blood alcohol levels of motorists suspected of drunk driving during 2010-2011. On his law firm’s website he is described this way: “David believes that a good lawyer needs to be proactive and willing to vigorously challenge the status quo. Whether he is interviewing a client or arguing in front of a jury, David’s motivation is always the same: to be the best defender of the rights of all citizens.”
http://www.sleighandgary.com/david-sleigh/
Sleigh has already announced his intention to have the aggravated assault charge dropped, since the tractor never actually touched the police cruiser and raised questions as to Pion’s intent: “He never came into threatening proximity of anyone.”
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/08/03/50k-bail-for-vermont-man-accused-crushing-cop-cars-with-tractor/
According to speculation by the sheriff’s department, Pion was motivated by anger over a recent arrest for marijuana possession and resisting arrest and that speculation was widely repeated in the media. But Pion’s arrest was by the Newport PD, so that doesn’t quite explain why he crushed the sheriff’s cruisers. The sheriff estimates damages at about $300,000 while the Vermont State Police put it at about $250,000. Police agencies around the state are providing substitute vehicles to Orleans County, which is on the Canadian border.
Although he was widely characterized as a “farmer,” (including at the top of this story), it’s not clear how accurate that characterization is. His parents are apparently farmers, and he may have been growing marijuana, but on his facebook site he says he’s “self-employed.”
Speculation from a non-police, anonymous source has a different, but coherent story: “Evidently, the backstory is that he's not right in the head, after getting wacked in the head by a hoe years ago. His friends say that he has been self- medicating with mj, with good results, otherwise he becomes agitated and unruly. In this case, it’s probably true. Once the helpful police took away his medicine that helped him be a good, productive, member of society, his already documented mental illness reasserted itself, and the destroyed cars are the result. Hoisted by their own petard. Another clear example of the nanny state doing more harm than good. A good lawyer should get these charges reduced. However, since he is flat out broke, he may be destroyed by the system.”
http://thisbluemarble.com/showthread.php?p=367026
http://www.facebook.com/roger.pion.75
so he's alive...??? ... !!! AND HE DIDN"T HURT ANYONE
ReplyDeleteThis is a great story !!!
Go Get 'em ...
Springfielder's should hope for the best !
I heard when he finally pulled over, he looked over, smiled, and said "meow".
ReplyDeleteI guess he got tired of having to drive to Holyoke and decided to grow his own.
Why can't Vermont take to heart the importance of Home Grown Marijuana ?
Clean, fresh, and healthy grown qualified for human consumption by a standard of industry.
Problem free. Drug dealer free. Financially free.
Proven to be less harmfull than tobacco and alcohol.
and less harmfull than gang bangers and pushers.
DeleteOne time when me was high, me sold me car for like 24 chicken McNuggets.
ReplyDeleteAnd he would've gotten away with it too...if it hadn't been for those meddling kids ....
ReplyDeleteLooks staged.... police cars are put together ready to be crushed, not parked straight within the lines
ReplyDeletemy license plate reads
VT 420 USA
No. Look. Clearly they say that Not one police officer could hear anything outside above the airconditioner.
DeleteThe guy had like at least 45min to strategically place them in his own dream come true race track style obsticle course. Obviously.
Darn airconditioner.
Oh my gosh... Look.. It's so true...
ReplyDeleteWho is Voting on What ???
It's an inside job ! finally the cops are working with the vt farmers.
A win win insurance deal get's a new tractor a whole new fleet of cop cars, A van.. and the front yard re-landscaped. Pluss of course new cameras and more infrastructure and higher taxes. hmmmm. everylast Vermont Police Department needs the infrustucture up grade...
They KNEW they had the right guy with his name and his charges
Probably gonna qualify for a medical marijuana card this time through.
DeleteROL...
and new airconditioners
DeleteThis Was Fake...
ReplyDeletePolitics...
Don't Tractor Tread On Me
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteYeah right...
DeleteDude's a hero inside....
THE MAN
even the cops are thanking him internaly because they all get new cars and increased budgets.
THE MAN
a true hero
he'll get all the charges dropped and a medical card to plant at his house after he gets out.
Temporary insanity or a more permanent diagnosis.
The "dude" is not a hero. He is a criminal who destroyed 100,000's of thousands of property and is lucky he did not kill anyone. Lock him up and throw away the key. This isn't about marijuana laws, it is about the massive destruction of public property. Next thing clowns like you will declare the 9-11 killings and property destruction were justified, too.
DeleteAnonymous (8-4-12 10:43pm) I think you jumped the gun on this one.
DeleteIf you reread (undercover cop) it says, "dude's a hero inside". Even being a law abiding citizen like myself, I know that inside means in jail. So calm down on the massive destruction of public property rant. Of course this idiot is no hero to the general tax paying Vermonter but "inside" he will be a OJ Simpson kind of hero". That is the mentality. Don't you remember a few months back when a prisoner remade the State Police emblem with the outline of a pig?? I realize that was a few thousand dollar boo-boo not a half a million dollar disaster but again...the mentality. I do hope the Newport PD installs outside cameras and keeps them in working order. Yeah to the donut.
You have a right to your own opinion.
DeleteDon't ever say I am pro 9-11 again. You don't want to know what I think about building 7 and the real relationship it had to your future.
As far as I am concerned Pion is the "shot heard around the world" or at least one of the loudest shots from a long fought battle.
End the drug war, your killing people.
Good for Roger, no deaths and one heck of a good job breaking the evil zionist toys.
" public property " ????? When is the last time a cop let you borrow his squad car ????
The public tax payers paid for the cars. I can't imagine they are too happy at the cost of it all.
Deletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxc7MqRGT0s
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1Spm0rlLB4
ReplyDeleteWE ALL KNOW.....
ReplyDeleteWhen YOUTUBE ONLY has press release style, News Anchor, T.V. Station reports, that are the same day and make international interests as well..........
and there are no cell phone uploads from pre-established real people...... or any other individual user uploads...
IT IS FAKE...... You guys need to do better than this. Any idiot like myself can see through this.
problem, reaction, solution...
So, I was thinking... What will you pay me to do the same?
or not to do the same. As long as your paying me that is..
What did Roger get?? Did you promiss to lower and minimalize his current disposition. Or, is he just plain and simply in on it from the begining?
@ FF
Deletehey.. you are a perfect fit for Springfield VT. 05156