Former Addison County Sheriff Peter Newton in the Chittenden County Superior criminal court in Burlington in October 2025. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger Former Addison County Sheriff Peter Newton, sentenced to probation on criminal convictions last year, now has been banned from working a s a law enforcement officer in Vermont. The Vermont Criminal Justice Council, the body that regulates police in the state, voted Tuesday to permanently revoke Newton’s law enforcement certification.  Newton had been scheduled to go before the council Tuesday for a hearing on misconduct allegations based on his actions that led to the criminal convictions. Instead, he emailed the council prior to the proceeding and stated he would not be showing up to contest the allegations. A decertification sanction by the panel gets reported to a national database alerting law enforcement agencies around the country of the action in Vermont as they consider someone for employment.  The misconduct allegations against Newton stemmed from his arrest in June 2022 on several charges, including felony sexual assault and unlawful restraint of a woman in Addison County.  Christopher Perkett, the council’s associate general counsel, told council members Tuesday that based on Newton’s email, the former sheriff “essentially” knew the council was going to “take” his law enforcement certification. Newton, in his email to the council, wrote that “you can have my certification, I’m going to continue enjoying life away from law enforcement.” As part of an agreement with prosecutors, Newton pleaded guilty to a felony charge of lewd and lascivious conduct and a misdemeanor count of simple assault. In October 2025 he received a probation sentence that allows for the felony conviction to be cleared from his record provided he does not violate the terms of his probation over two years. Newton was sheriff at the time of his arrest. He later opted not to run for another four-year term and left office in January 2023 when his existing term ended.  Newton is the third elected sheriff in Vermont to have the council take action against his law enforcement certification in recent years.  Earlier this year, the council voted to temporarily suspend the law enforcement certification for Windsor County Sheriff Ryan Palmer after his arrest on charges including lewd and lascivious conduct and solicitation of prostitution. Palmer has pleaded not guilty, and the case against him remains pending. Also, in 2023, the council revoked the law enforcement certification for Franklin County Sheriff John Grismore after a contested hearing over a use-of-force policy violation. Read the story on VTDigger here: Ex-Addison County sheriff: ‘You can have my certification’. ...read more read less