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Vermont has agreed to a $175,000 settlement with a man who was arrested and charged for giving a state trooper the middle finger. In 2018, Trooper Jay Riggen pulled Gregory Bombard over because he believed Bombard flipped him off.
Bombard denied making the rude gesture and got into an argument with Riggen. Bombard admitted to cursing at the Riggen during the argument and said that he flipped him off after the traffic stop had concluded.
Riggen then stopped Bombard again, took him into custody for disorderly conduct, and had his vehicle towed.
Bombard spent about an hour in jail and was cited to appear in court. However, the charge was later dismissed, and in 2021, Bombard filed a lawsuit with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union of Vermont.
Instead of going to trial, Vermont reached an agreement to settle the lawsuit and pay $100,000 to Bombard and $75,000 to the ACLU to cover their legal expenses. The state did not have to admit fault as part of the deal.
“While our client is pleased with this outcome, this incident should never have happened in the first place,” Hillary Rich, staff attorney for the ACLU of Vermont, said in a statement. “Police need to respect everyone’s First Amendment rights – even for things they consider offensive or insulting.”