Woodstock Police Sgt. Joseph Swanson continues to recover from his injuries, while prosecutors have started their review of the homicide-suicide case that rocked the community last month.

Swanson told the Vermont Standard this week that he is continuing his appointments with both his doctor and physical therapist for injuries sustained in a couple of falls and jumps during the scramble to avoid gunshots amid the shootout at 13 Slayton Terrace on June 14.

Swanson, 41, was grazed on the left elbow by one bullet and was knocked or stumbled to the ground. He took at least one other tumble while sprinting across the yard to safety.

He said several factors, including all the extra gear he is required to carry on his police belt and uniform apparently was not conducive to his body as he took the two falls to avoid multiple gunshots. He joked his age may have been a factor with the twisting forces too.

He said his lower back and hip injuries are the worst he has sustained in his 15-year police career.

Swanson took time during the interview to give appreciation to the Woodstock community for rallying behind him in the life-threatening case.

“I need to thank the community for the support they have shown me and the police department during this time,” Swanson said.

Swanson, who is also the chair of the Woodstock Selectboard, was able to return to those limited duties at municipal meetings.

He said he hopes to return to police work by September. Swanson said he realizes the pressure the small department is under to provide 24/7 coverage while he remains on leave. Police Chief Robbie Blish has said several part-time officers have stepped up to help fill shifts for the department, which also recently lost a full-time officer to retirement.

It will be up to the Village of Woodstock whether Swanson can return to police work before there is a ruling from prosecutors about the officer-involved shooting case.

Grand Isle County State’s Attorney Doug DiSabito said this week he has started to receive some parts of the final report from Vermont State Police. Windsor County State’s Attorney Ward H. Goodenough, who has an ongoing working relationship with Swanson and Woodstock Police, asked DiSabito to give the case an independent review to avoid any possible appearance of a conflict of interest.

State Police Detective Capt. Scott Dunlap, commander of the Major Crimes Unit, said the department is in the final stages of pulling together all the reports and videos. Besides written reports from investigators, the crime scene search and SWAT teams, various lab reports, ballistics and other reviews need to be compiled.

Swanson said he is not free to discuss the actual homicide-suicide case because prosecutors have not ruled on the case, including his use of his department-issued firearm.

The homicide-suicide unfolded as June Wilson, 73, of Rutland and her boyfriend Dieter Seier, 67, of Cornish, N.H. went to visit her son, Jay Wilson, 45, at a residence at 13 Slayton Terrace that she owned, but he resided. 

Wilson said she was at the house to give her son her car — a newer model — to replace his 2002 sedan. But things soon broke down. Jay Wilson reported he had COVID and they did not enter the residence, she told the Vermont Standard last week.

For some reason, a dispute ensued and Seier came to her aid.

“Dieter jumped in front of me,” she said.

The next thing she remembered seeing was Jay Wilson on Seier’s back. As the two men struggled, her son produced a handgun and she believes she heard two shots. Seier fell on his face, she said. An autopsy showed he died from multiple gunshot wounds to the torso, police said.

Wilson said she ran for safety and eventually made it down the narrow single-lane street to a female friend. 

Jay Wilson called 911 and Swanson responded to see a body in the driveway, police have said. When he checked the body for signs of life, he was fired upon, police said.

Jay Wilson fired at least 5 or 6 shots that struck the Woodstock Police cruiser, Chief Blish has said. Swanson fired back as he also scrambled for safety.

Wilson was believed to be hiding in the house as another Woodstock officer arrived and the pair were then joined by State Police, the Windsor County Sheriff’s Department and others. After repeated attempts over several hours to get Wilson to surrender or to even talk, state police secured a search warrant from a state judge allowing them to breach the residence at about 11 p.m.

Wilson fired a fatal single self-inflicted gunshot wound as police entered, investigators said. He was found on the second story of the white house with black trim. 

Dunlap has limited his comments about the case, pending review by DiSabito and the Vermont Attorney General’s Office. It remains unclear where Wilson got the gun, whether Swanson wounded him during the gunfire exchange and how many shots were fired.

Dunlap did say Tuesday the Vermont State Police investigation does not intend to answer the question of what happened to the $50,000 that June Wilson said she withdrew from the People’s United Bank in Woodstock and gave to her son the day before the shooting.

Dunlap said the missing money is not part of the homicide-suicide and, if the question is pursued, it would be by Woodstock Police or some other agency. He said state police saw no trace of a large sum of money in the house.

The homicide-suicide took place about 28 hours after Jay Wilson followed his mother into the People’s United Bank on the Green in Woodstock and caused a commotion.

The bank staff was concerned enough to call Woodstock Police because Jay Wilson was causing a disturbance in the lobby, but not enough to provide written statements when Swanson asked for them so he could investigate.

The bank caller had indicated June Wilson was afraid of her son and the People’s United personnel wanted him removed, records show.

Jay Wilson had fled on foot by the time Swanson arrived at the bank shortly before 10 a.m.

June Wilson told the Vermont Standard last week she had obtained a $50,000 check for her son and she believes he then went to the T.D. Bank to deposit or cash it. There was no known trace of the money, she told the newspaper.

The Woodstock Police report doesn’t mention her $50,000 check and Blish said he first learned about the money issue by reading the Standard. 

A Woodstock Police report written by Swanson does indicate bank tellers at People’s United had said Jay Wilson “was verbally abusive towards her.”

Wilson feared if her son saw her with a law enforcement officer “he would become violent,” Swanson wrote in his report. He said Wilson then called “a male friend” to escort her home.

“As a result of the bank’s withholding of written statements from the two witnesses, [I] was unable to conduct further investigation,” Swanson concluded. 

One day later, Wilson’s boyfriend was shot dead by Jay Wilson in the driveway of the home.

June Wilson, who retired after teaching for 25 years at Woodstock Union High School, was sorry that Swanson, a former student, was wounded during the shootout.

She said her son was “very intelligent,” took top classes and was a “wonderful artist.”

Wilson told the Vermont Standard last week she appreciates the prayers and thoughts from the Woodstock community during this difficult time.

She reported she struggles with her daily duties and trying to make sense of the incident because of so many unanswered questions.

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