Leahy Taps Former Essex And St. Albans Police Chief

As Choice For U.S. Marshal In Vermont 

(TUESDAY, March 10) – U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Tuesday announced that he has selected former Essex Jct. and St. Albans Police Chief David E. Demag -- a highly honored, fourth-generation Vermont law enforcement veteran – as his choice to be Vermont’s next U.S. Marshal.  Demag also is a former Commander in the Burlington Police Department.

After interviewing several candidates, Leahy said he will recommend David E. Demag to President Obama to head Vermont’s U.S. Marshals Service office, which has a budget of more than $4 million and a staff of about 35 in three Vermont offices located in Burlington, Rutland, and Brattleboro. 

Under longstanding practice, Leahy – as the senior U.S. Senator of the President’s party -- has the prerogative of recommending candidates to head the Marshals Service’s state office and for other appointments in Vermont.  Leahy also chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, which oversees the Marshals Service and has jurisdiction over the confirmation process for marshals.

Leahy, a former prosecutor, said he picked Demag from a field of several “truly outstanding candidates.”  He said Demag will bring 37 years of criminal justice experience to the post.  “Chief Demag has both breadth and depth of law enforcement experience in Vermont,” said Leahy.  “He has experience in every aspect of police work, from patrolling a beat to managing a complex investigation.  It’s almost as if he has been preparing for this throughout his career.  He knows that getting people working together across jurisdictional lines builds strong anti-crime nets and strong inter-unit bonds, and that is especially important in countering drug crime and violence in Vermont.”

“Law enforcement is a proud family tradition for Chief Demag, and I’m delighted that Vermont will continue to benefit from his service,” Leahy said. 

Demag started his law enforcement career as a Burlington patrol officer in 1971.  He rose to the rank of Commander and later would serve as police chief in St. Albans and Essex Jct., where he restructured the department and managed a budget of $3 million.

His great grandfather and namesake was Chief David Demag, head of police in Essex Jct. in the early 1900s.  In 1978 his father, Deputy Sheriff Bernard Demag, succumbed from a heart attack while chasing a fugitive.

As an example of Demag’s strength in managing strategic partnerships, Leahy pointed to the aftermath of a shooting spree in August 2006 when Demag led in managing the multi-agency team that investigated the tragedy in which a lone gunman killed two teachers and wounded two others.  Their work resulted in an arrest and conviction for two counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder.

The U.S. Marshals Service, created in 1789, is the nation’s oldest federal law enforcement agency.  The Marshals Service takes the lead in security of the courts and the entire judicial system and is involved in virtually every federal law enforcement initiative, working with federal prosecutors and federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.

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