By Paul Bean 

Following the resignation of the Northfield Police chief over alleged racial discrimination within the community, a Northfield resident has posted a list of alleged severe operational failures by the chief including zero traffic stops in two years, a refusal to wear a police uniform, and breaking public information laws.

Kristin Pollard, in a public statement shared on Facebook, urged fellow Northfielders to review the October 14, Selectboard meeting footage in full:

According to Pollard’s FB statement, “Chief Gomez interrupted numerous times slurring his words and wasn’t even talking about the appropriate subject at hand. He was asked multiple times to stop and he didn’t. He was muted twice by the Town Manager and still continued to interrupt and would talk over Chair Charlie Morse when he was telling him to stop.”

VDC published above an excerpt from the meeting’s YouTube video and leaves it to the reader to determine whether Gomez, who has resigned, was exhibiting slurred speech. 

The information in Pollard’s posts, drawn from public records, come during escalating tensions within the town over the recent resignation of Police Chief Pierre Gomez and a contentious Selectboard meeting earlier this month.

Gomez submitted his resignation on October 15, effective November 1, citing ongoing racial discrimination and efforts to undermine the department since his hiring in 2023.

Pollard’s post alleges and documents six grievances spanning the past two years:

1. Zero traffic stops conducted by the Northfield Police Chief in a two-year period.

2. Only four police encounters were logged by Gomez during the same timeframe.

3. A directive from Chief Gomez to his dispatcher to delete the department’s longstanding Facebook page, which contained 15 years of press releases and public records. This action is alleged to violate 1 V.S.A. § 317, Vermont’s public records retention law

4. According to NPD schedules and logs posted on Facebook,19 days without police coverage, in September 2025, despite Chief Gomez being scheduled for 22 days that month.
5. Nine consecutive days with no police coverage during the period.
6. 364 calls responded to by Vermont State Police (VSP) in Northfield over two years

The department’s staffing has dwindled from four officers in 2023 to just one currently. Chief Gomez’s annual salary stands at $92,500, while the department’s overall budget exceeds $1 million annually.

In response to a public record request made September 26th by Pollard, regarding a dog bite incident in June of 2022, someone using the gmail account “npd05663@gmail.com” or ‘NPD Tech Team’ replied to Pollard and told her that “the post was made by the previous administrator who no longer manages the page,” and that “NPD Dispatcher Sara Helfant was the administrator of the department’s Facebook page. She subsequently deleted that page before our team set up a new page. We never had access to this page unfortunately.”

Emails from earlier this year show that Gomez actually did have access to the Facebook page through Sara Helfant, however he actually directed her to delete the Facebook page. 

Emails and texts between Sara Helfant and Chief Gomez from early March show that after multiple requests to have herself removed as admin from the Northfield Police Facebook page, Dispatcher Sara Helfant (wife of retired NPD Chief John Helfant), was repeatedly denied, despite her pleas that prior to his hiring it was the chief’s responsibility to run the page or at the very least delegate it to someone who was willing.

She also told Gomez in early March by email that it was not in her contract to be responsible for the Facebook page, specifically because administrating the page requires off duty-hours work and attention to messages and communication making her personal cellphone liable to potentially being confiscated or searched for official matters. 

“Dispatcher Helfant you will not send another request to Cpl. Gosselin and that is a direct order,” wrote Gomez on March 6 in response to Helfant’s requests to give the Facebook page over to Gosselin. “Be mindful that you do not have a supervisory role in this department nor do you have the power to give any direction to a sworn officer.”

Not only was she denied the ability to turn over administrative roles but was later told to delete the Facebook Page all together. 

“Dispatcher Helfant. Please delete the NPD Facebook Page as the Town will transition to another page,” wrote Chief Gomez on March 9th.

“Hi Chief,” Helfant replied. “NPD Facebook page has been deleted per your email below, Sara.”

Following Pollard’s list of accusations against the former Chief at the Northfield Selectboard meeting October 8, former Police Chief John Helfant spoke and gave a full explanation (2:37:05) of how the mysterious “NPD Tech Team” using a gmail account had failed to give an accurate description as to what happened to the original NPD Facebook Page or its origins. He also explained that the “NPD Tech Team” had falsely stated that he had started the Facebook Page during his time as Chief. 

“The response from the NPD Tech Team starts, ‘To clarify, John Helfant set up the previous NPD Facebook page,’” said Helfant to the selectboard. “This is not true. The page was set up long before October of 2018 when I became Chief of Police I had to be granted administrative privileges by the. Sgt. Hoar so that I could access the page.” (Helfant’s full statement linked below)

After reading his full statement to the Selecboard the group was noticeably surprised about the revelation. 

“I am curious about who that NPD Tech Team is and why there’s a gmail account attached to it,” said Selectboard Member Lydia Petty… “that’s not an official known town entity?”

“They shouldn’t be using gmail.” says someone in the crowd.

After a few moments of silence and bewilderment Chief Gomez interjects virtually and says “can I comment on that?”

“No. You really shouldn’t,” said what again appears to be Petty.

“Uhh, Chief, I don’t think that’s a good idea until we get down to this,” said Chairman Morse. 

Northfield is home to about 5,900 residents and Norwich University, where Gomez has faced at least one documented instance of racial harassment since arriving from Philadelphia in September 2023. 

Incidents include a former selectboard member’s April 2025 remark likening Gomez’s refusal to wear a uniform and instead a “hoodie” that make him look like a “gangster.” More recently, in September 2025, a resident verbally assaulted Gomez on duty with racial slurs.

Gomez, a Black Latino with over two decades of police experience, stated in his resignation that the “attempt to undermine the department” contributed to his resignation as reported by VT Digger.

Retired Chief John Helfant’s entire statement to the selectboard: