by Guy Page
A Townshend woman was cited for disorderly conduct and violation of conditions of release after confronting the a local school board in Townshend last night, state police say.
At 7:36 pm, Vermont State Police received a report of a disorderly woman causing a disturbance at the West River Education District meeting at Leland and Gray High School. Upon arrival, police found Elizabeth Dery, 55, of Townshend outside the school engaging in a verbal confrontation with members of the school board. Townshend is a small town in northern Windham County.
State troopers found that Dery had exhibited criminal behavior, to include disorderly conduct and violation of conditions of release. She was arrested, jailed at Southern State Correctional Facility, and cited to appear today in Vermont Superior Court. The conditions of release stemmed from an arrest on 06/23/2021 for DUI, Disorderly Conduct, Attempting to Elude and Resisting Arrest.
Neither video nor minutes of the meeting are available, but a Brattleboro Reformer news reporter Chris Mays wrote today that Dery “became combative with board members and school staff as soon as she entered. “I’m going to destroy you…. “I’m SUNY Binghamton. I got in there because I’m smart. You didn’t get in there.”
According to the Reformer, attendees said they smelled alcohol on Derry’s breath. Police were called and others attempted to get Dery outside of the building.
This isn’t Dery’s first run-in with the school district (or vice-versa), according to the Reformer story. She reportedly lives next door, where her yard has signs questioning Covid-19 policy and other issues.
A Nazi flag reportedly was seen in her yard last year. In October, the school board issued a statement, possibly aimed at Dery, decrying hate speech. When she announced at the meeting Monday night that she had sold her house, several audience members reportedly clapped.