Rhonda’s daughter-who discovered the bodies, which she says were shot-tells the paper Herring called the Berlin farmhouse Friday morning and threatened the women if they didn’t stop talking to DCF.
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“This is someone simply doing a very, very hard job”, Mayor Thom Lauzon said.
The social workers often go into some of the worst homes without protection from law enforcement, Campbell said.
At a news conference Friday, Barre City Police Chief Tim Bombardier said Herring was tackled by witnesses moments after Sobel was “shot in close proximity” and restrained until police arrived.
Vermont State Police originally said they were assisting Berlin officers with a death investigation.
The shooting was a few hundred yards from the courthouse in Barre.
“This could happen in any state office or court”, said Campbell, who is also a state prosecutor.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
The incident occurred on the final day of work for the state’s police director, Col. Tom L’Esperance. A retirement dinner for him was taking place in South Burlington, about 40 miles away, when reports of the shooting were broadcast, and troopers left to go to the scene, the newspaper said.
While we won’t know all the details for some time, the initial reports are horrific and break my heart.
Speaking about the appalling crime in which an innocent state employee lost her life, Senate President Pro Tempore John Campbell, a Democrat from Windsor, Vermont, said, “I am beside myself”. While there is no indication of a broader threat, the Agency of Administration will review security procedures in state buildings in light of this tragic event and provide any additional measures immediately.
Shumlin said DCF employees deal with challenging family situations and do their work “out of their dedication to the children and families of this great state”.
Department of Children and Families Commissioner Ken Schatz said Sobel was an experience worker and grief counselors are being made available.
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Shumlin says the worker’s death is “shocking and heartbreaking”.
