Vermont Man Receives $175,000 Settlement After Arrest for Flipping Off State Trooper
A Vermont man, Gregory Bombard, has received a $175,000 settlement this month after filing a lawsuit against the state and the arresting officer who charged him for flashing a middle finger and cursing at a state police trooper back in 2018. The lawsuit alleged that the state trooper violated Bombard’s First Amendment rights.
Dashcam footage from the incident shows Jay Riggen, the arresting officer, pulling over Bombard twice in St. Albans on Feb. 9, 2018, accusing him of giving him the middle finger. Bombard initially denied it but later did give the officer the middle finger and cursed at him, leading to his arrest on two counts of disorderly conduct. However, the charges were later dismissed and dropped.
The lawsuit also revealed that the police circulated Bombard’s mug shot to local news outlets after his arrest and towed his car. Last Christmas, the state police issued another citation for disorderly conduct in connection with the 2018 episode, but it was later rescinded after public pushback.
Despite the settlement, neither Jay Riggen nor the state admitted any wrongdoing. Riggen retired from the Vermont State Police in May, and the state police declined to comment further on the matter. The Vermont attorney general’s office, which represented the state in the case, also declined to comment.
Cases involving individuals raising a middle finger have previously sparked debates on the intersection of free speech and law enforcement. A federal appeals court in 2019 ruled that the gesture is a form of free speech.
Jay Diaz, a lawyer for the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) who represented Bombard, emphasized that officers cannot retaliate against individuals for exercising their First Amendment rights. Bombard received $100,000 from the settlement, with $75,000 going to his legal representation at FIRE and the American Civil Liberties Union of Vermont.
Diaz noted that Bombard initially hesitated to sue but was motivated to do so after the murder of George Floyd in 2020 to shed light on police misconduct in his home state. While Bombard is pleased with the outcome, Diaz mentioned that the humiliation from the incident still lingers.
“This has not left him,” Diaz said.
