By DAMIEN FISHER, InDepthNH.org
Accused of using racist, sexist, and homophobic insults, intimidating co-workers and making them fear his retaliation, and even getting a gay colleague to quit, Jon Stone was unrepentant when confronted by superiors.
“You should see me when I really get going,” Stone reportedly said to a Vermont Department of Corrections administrator.
The Republican state representative for Claremont became national news this year when InDepthNH.org reported why he was fired from the Claremont Police Department in 2006.
Stone managed to keep allegations of threatening to kill his chief, rape the chief’s wife and children, and go on a mass shooting spree inside the Claremont Police Department secret for nearly two decades thanks to his police union and preferential legal precedents that blocked the public from knowing about police misconduct.
According to Claremont Police internal affairs reports, Stone was upset because of an investigation into his alleged inappropriate relationship with a teenage girl.
Stone rebounded from losing his police job by getting a job as a corrections officer in Vermont, starting a gun dealership in Claremont, and getting into politics. Stone was an elected member of Claremont’s city council up until last year. He’s currently running for reelection to the New Hampshire House of Representatives.
Stone worked as a corrections officer at the Southern State Correctional Facility in Springfield, Vermont until he was fired in late 2021 for his alleged toxic manner. The firing was not public knowledge.
After getting denied access to Stone’s personnel records by the Vermont Department of Corrections this year, InDepthNH.org recently obtained copies of records from the grievance Stone filed with the Vermont Labor Relations Board.
Peter DeCato, Stone’s attorney, declined to offer comment on the grievance. The Board has yet to issue a decision in the matter, DeCato said. Stone did not respond to a request for comment.
According to transcripts of his grievance hearing, Stone allegedly called a gay co-worker a “faggot,” called female co-workers “c—-,” and “fat cows” and called others “retards,” according to the transcripts. He also used the term “wetback,” according to the records.
One coworker reportedly said that Stone managed to be “homophobic and racist all at the same time.” Another said, “Stone spreads poison around this facility like it’s candy,” according to the records.
The gay colleague Stone allegedly called a “faggot” ended up quitting and blamed the open homophobia from numerous co-workers, according to the records. A female co-worker reported spending one shift with Stone caused a panic attack, and others reported they feared he would retaliate against them if they spoke out, according to the records.
“[Stone] created… kind of a dangerous work environment and people felt intimidated by him,” one co-worker reportedly said.
According to the transcripts, Stone was warned about his behavior in 2020 after an initial complaint and put under investigation. According to the transcripts that investigation found that Stone used other “inappropriate language” and that he had an intimidating presence.
However, Stone did not change the way he spoke, according to the records, and in May of 2021 he allegedly called female colleagues “c—-.” That incident sparked a second investigation and Stone was informed in November of 2021 that he was terminated.
This was not the first time Stone was reportedly disciplined by his Corrections superiors. In 2013, Stone was demoted for an incident that has since been removed from his file, according to the records. In 2019, Stone was handed a 30-day suspension for reportedly failing “to notify a shift supervisor of a use of force and a search of an inmate.”
Stone’s past is coming out after he was tapped to serve as the Sullivan County campaign chair for former President Donald Trump’s team. Stephen Stepanek, Trump’s New Hampshire campaign chair, did not respond to a request for comment.
The campaign team for gubernatorial hopeful Kelly Ayotte also did not respond to a request for comment. After InDepthNH.org reported on Stone’s Claremont history, Ayotte took heat for campaigning with Stone. She’s yet to comment on the matter.
Stone was never charged with a crime in the Claremont investigation. Sullivan County Attorney Marc Hathaway told InDepthNH.org he dropped several criminal cases in a drug investigation due to Stone’s credibility issues.
Stone subsequently gave up his New Hampshire police certification and cannot work as a police officer in New Hampshire. In the legislature, Stone serves on the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee.