By Guy Page

If House Democrats were hoping the governor would appoint a young, progressive Burlingtonian to fill the North End Burlington seat long held by Rep. Bob Hooper, they are likely disappointed. 

Governor Phil Scott yesterday announced his appointment of Kevin Scully of Burlington to fill the vacant Chittenden-18 seat in the House of Representatives. Scully, a Democrat, is a member of the 111th Class of the FBI National Academy and served as Chief of the Burlington Police Department from 1986 to 1998. After his retirement he worked as the General Manager of Ready Funeral Home and for the Catholic Diocese of Burlington. He previously served on the Burlington Youth Council and lives in the New North End with his wife Mary. They have two adult children and four grandchildren.

“Kevin Scully has spent his life dedicated to public service and the Burlington community. I am thankful for his willingness to step up once again for his neighbors and fill this vacancy through the end of the session,” said Governor Scott.

An aide to Gov. Scott confirmed that Scully has no intention of running for election. He was not on the list of candidates presented to Gov. Scott by the Burlington Democrat Committee. 

“We heard there was some drama on the committee, so we reached out to (former GOP Rep.) Kurt Wright and former councilor Dave Hartnett,” about a good seat-filler Democrat, he said. He emphasized that the governor doesn’t always appoint a legislator from the slate of nominated candidates. 

True that. Neither Sen. John Morley (Orleans) or John Benson (R-Orange) were on the list recommended by their county Republican committees.

The governor was looking for “a lion of the community” – and in Burlington, Scully definitely fits that description.

 “I’m grateful for the opportunity to give back to my neighbors,” Scully said. “While this is a short appointment, there are many important issues that will come before the House in the next few weeks, and I look forward to representing the district.”

Hooper, a Vietnam-era veteran and long-serving legislator, was bounced from his committee assignment and successfully pressured to resign after a House panel found he had harassed a female committee member. Hooper said he photographed the complainant rolling on the floor while demonstrating that her dress matched the committee room rug. 

A failed attempt to photoshop the image removed the rug background but replaced it with a black background. She complained of harrassment and the panel agreed. Hooper said he did nothing wrong but botch the photoshopping. The image was only distributed to other committee members.