A man who shot and wounded a St. Johnsbury police officer pleaded not guilty to attempted murder on Monday afternoon.
Scott Mason, 38, of St. Johnsbury, faces a charge of first degree attempted murder, and aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer.
Law enforcement officials say Mason shot St. Johnsbury Police Capt. Jason Gray on Friday afternoon. Gray, a nearly 25-year veteran of the department, is hospitalized at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in serious but stable condition, according to Vermont State Police.
The incident began when Gray and three other St. Johnsbury police officers responded to a 911 call that Mason was beating his wife at their apartment, according to a police affidavit. Gray went up the stairs to Mason’s apartment first, and while at the top of the stairs, there were two loud bangs. Gray then came down the stairs covered in blood, and told the other officers he’d been hit in the arm and face, according to body camera footage reviewed by investigators, and described in the affidavit.
Mason’s wife later told investigators that Mason had been acting “delusional” and talking to himself and people who weren’t there, and that he’d stopped using fentanyl for the past five days, but had been using crack cocaine. She denied that Mason assaulted her that Friday.
Mason disappeared after the shooting, which spurred an extensive manhunt over the weekend. Vermont State Police searched dozens of properties, and used drones and dogs to try to track down Mason. The St. Johnsbury Select Board and FBI also each offered separate $25,000 rewards for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Mason.
Police eventually got a tip that Mason was hiding out in the building next door to where the shooting took place. Vermont State Police surrounded the building, and Mason gave himself up and was arrested at about 2 a.m. Sunday, said VSP Maj. David Petersen during a press conference.
“He was confrontational, he damaged some equipment of the Vermont State Police,” Petersen told reporters on Sunday. “Members of the tactical service unit had to use control and restraint techniques to secure him.”
The building where Mason was arrested had been searched multiple times since the shooting, Petersen said.
“I can't conjecture about whether he was there or not there the whole time,” Petersen said. “That'll be something that hopefully will use all investigative means to try to unfold and account for.”
As of Sunday afternoon, Gray was still sedated and intubated at the hospital. He was shot by what appeared to be birdshot from a shotgun, and was hit in the neck and torso area, according to a police affidavit.
St. Johnsbury Police Chief Joel Pierce told reporters on Sunday that the shooting has rocked the town.
“I've known Jason for 20 years plus, and it's pretty emotional for everybody,” Pierce said. “Everybody knows Captain Gray. They know his style, and they have shown nothing but a large amount of support for us.”
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