Neighborhood disruptions, new offenses prompt troopers to detain Waterbury man
August 2, 2023 | By Lisa Scagliotti After spending much of the day Wednesday outside a Loomis Hill Road home, Vermont State Police arrested a Waterbury Center man with a growing list of criminal charges that he will answer to in Vermont Superior Court.
Vermont State Police troopers lead John Neville from his home to a waiting cruiser on Wednesday. Photo by Gordon Miller
Shortly after 5 p.m., police received word that a court order was approved for them to enter the home of John Neville, 51, allowing them to take him into custody. Neville would not comply with leaving his home on his own, however, and police used “distraction device” that sounded like a firecracker before forcing open the door. Neville cooperated once troopers were inside and they escorted him to one of multiple cruisers lining the street before 5:30 p.m.
According to a state police news release issued just before 9 p.m. on Wednesday, Neville was taken to the Berlin state police barracks “where he became uncooperative with troopers’ efforts to take a mugshot and damaged Vermont State Police property.” Neville was jailed Wednesday night at Northwest State Correctional Facility in St. Albans for lack of $5,000 bail.
He was cited for violating a relief from abuse order, driving with a suspended license, and unlawful mischief. An arraignment on the latest charges was scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 3, in the Criminal Division of Vermont Superior Court in Barre.
“Residents here hopefully will get some peace tonight,” said Sgt. Charles Winn, commander at the Berlin state police barracks, as he left the scene around 6 p.m.
Over the past several weeks, state police have responded more than half a dozen times to Waterbury Center for reports of incidents involving Neville on Sweet Road and Loomis Hill Road. Neville already was scheduled for a Thursday court appearance on new charges stemming from incidents at his home on Sunday night and early Monday morning including violating conditions of release, violation of an abuse prevention order, unlawful mischief, and noise in the nighttime.
Also on Thursday, the court was to consider a state request that Neville be held without bail for a separate felony offense of attempted first-degree arson. The latter stems from an incident on July 11 when police say Neville left a Molotov cocktail at a home on Sweet Road in Waterbury Center. The explosive did not cause a fire and Neville has pleaded not guilty to the charge along with misdemeanor counts of unlawful trespass, reckless endangerment, driving under the influence second offense, negligent operation of a vehicle, aggravated disorderly conduct, and violating conditions of release from a simple assault incident at the same Sweet Road location, according to court records.
Troopers outside Neville’s home on Wednesday afternoon. Photo by Gordon Miller
A daylong vigil
On Wednesday morning, Neville refused to come out of his home when state troopers arrived. Police then parked near the house while they sought a search warrant for the home which came late in the afternoon.
The vigil by police and the new charges drawn up on Wednesday stem from a chain of events that began in the overnight hours Tuesday into Wednesday morning, according to police and witnesses.
On Tuesday, Neville was in court for a hearing regarding violations of an extreme risk protection order. A mental health evaluation was ordered for Neville at the end of that hearing and he was taken to Central Vermont Medical Center, police said.
He was released around 2 a.m. on Wednesday and he returned home where he began disrupting the neighborhood playing loud music, banging things, and by morning was driving his truck on a next-door neighbor’s property.
State police received multiple calls reporting that Neville was in violation of a relief from abuse order, Winn said. Several officers responded around 8:40 a.m.
They remained outside for the rest of the day as other officers arrived. Police attempted to communicate with Neville with the help of an embedded mental health crisis worker who was part of the state police team on the scene, but that effort was unsuccessful. “He was uncooperative,” Winn said of Neville. “He refused to talk to them.”
As the day wore on, Neville continued to be disruptive, swearing at police and throwing objects from the second-story windows of his home which sits close to Loomis Hill Road across from Hope Davey Park.
Police did not restrict vehicle or pedestrian traffic through the area and nearby residents stopped along and across the street to observe the scene with multiple police cars and blue lights flashing. None would comment by name to news reporters but all agreed that the neighborhood is on edge. Some said they have not been staying overnight in their homes recently, instead staying elsewhere with family or friends. One neighbor contacted by Waterbury Roundabout was in Grand Isle County, saying they were uncomfortable in their home.
Along those lines, state police list victims in both Monday and Wednesday’s incidents as “various residents in the area of Loomis Hill Road.”
Neighborhood on edge
Resident Chris Lackey attended the Waterbury Select Board meeting Monday evening where he related details of incidents Sunday night and pressed local officials about the situation.
Since the attempted arson case unfolded in mid-July and Neville was released with conditions to remain at home, the neighborhood has been on edge. New loud disturbances and a small fire in Neville’s yard on Sunday night had people very worried for their safety and their homes, Lackey said.
State police and the Waterbury Fire Department responded to Neville’s home on Sunday for a fire of personal belongings burning in the yard. It was put out by a family member, Fire Chief Gary Dillon said, and firefighters did not need to take any action. Later that night, Lackey said neighbors called police again reporting more loud music and noises including a vehicle being struck repeatedly on Neville’s property. Police were unable to respond the second time, Winn explained, because officers on duty were at a fatal traffic accident elsewhere in Washington County.
“This is definitely a huge issue,” Lackey told the Select Board. “How do we make our community safe?”
Town officials responded with empathy, expressing optimism that the court system would take action. “My impression is that state police and prosecutors are moving forward as fast as they can,” board Chair Roger Clapp said.
Town Manager Tom Leitz noted that the state police contract with the town involves two full-time officers. Increasing that coverage could be part of the discussion when the contract comes up for renewal in June 2024, he said, acknowledging that’s a longer-term step.
Along these lines, Leitz said he’s recently asked the town of Stowe about possibly contracting for policing services, but he said the response was negative. Stowe cannot take on more patrols as their department is down three officers, Leitz explained. “I don’t think the officers are out there. This is a hard task to accomplish now,” Leitz said.
Former Select Board member Chris Viens, who was attending the Select Board meeting, suggested that citizens and local officials take concerns to state officials. “It seems very troubling to me that the only thing we can convey is sympathy,” he said.
Reached late Wednesday afternoon, Washington County State's Attorney Michelle Donnelly said she is aware of public concern. “This office is putting a lot of resources into this case for public safety,” she said.
She pointed to the hearing scheduled Thursday with a request to hold Neville without bail, noting that it would be up to a judge’s discretion whether the circumstances warranted that step. “Our office is doing our job,” she said.
Likewise, Winn said troopers are stretched thin over a wide area and doing their best to move cases along as quickly as possible. He said he hopes in the upcoming hearings, the justice system could provide Neville with mental health support and his neighbors with some assurances of safety. “The goal is to help him, not just put him in jail,” Winn said. “He can’t just be threatening to burn down people’s houses.”
Charred remains of a burned shed in a yard beside Hope Davey Park along Loomis Hill Road. Photo by Lisa Scagliotti
Other open investigations
In addition to the incidents this week and other cases involving Neville, state police have open investigations in the area including two arson cases. The events on Wednesday at Neville’s home unfolded across the street from the charred remains of a storage shed that burned on July 23. State police are investigating that incident as well as a July 1 suspicious fire where a camper burned at the same Sweet Road location as the Molotov cocktail incident. The state police Victim Services Unit also has been involved in aspects of these responses.
Investigators ask that anyone with information about the recent activities on Loomis Hill Road and Sweet Road in Waterbury Center call the state police Berlin barracks at 802-229-9191 or provide an anonymous tip online at vsp.vermont.gov/tipsubmit.