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Volume 38 Issue 6
November 21, 2000

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Dickson requests extended leave; awaits trial

BY J.W. WATSON
MESA LEGEND
Submitted November 21, 2000

Bruce Dickson, MCC business manager, is awaiting a court date on stalking charges in Vermont

Chandler police detectives are continuing an investigation of MCC Business Manager Bruce Dickson after seizing more than 300 videos, multiple computer disks and equipment, and various e-mails from two searches of his home and office at MCC earlier this month.

"Currently, there are no charges that we are filing against Mr. Dickson," Chandler police Sgt. Brian Potter said. "But this is an ongoing investigation and we have no timetable for when we may finish it."

Chandler police served both warrants Nov. 2 and 3, working in conjunction with the Windham County, Vt., Sheriff’s Department and the FBI, after authorities there arrested Dickson Oct. 27 on charges of stalking a 14-year-old Dummerston, Vt., girl.

Dickson, 44, has since requested an extension of his paid vacation through the Thanksgiving holiday as he awaits a court date from the Windham County Superior Court, according to MCC spokeswoman Lynn Milner.

Milner said MCC administration granted him the extension and said she could not speculate on whether or not Dickson, whose 2000-01 salary is $70,099, will actually return to work at the end of his vacation.

According to a Windham County Superior Court affidavit filed by Chief Deputy Henry Farnum, e-mail addresses of the alleged victim, as well as other juvenile females, were found in Dickson’s rented Hyundai Sonata.

Also found in the vehicle was a small brown teddy bear intended as a gift for the 14-year-old, a blue velveteen box with a heart-shaped charm necklace, and a compact disk containing the song "Beauty and the Beast," the couple’s "special" song. The alleged victim played it on her flute in the presence of Dickson during a "covert" trip to her home, according to the affidavit.

According to search warrant returns filed with the Chandler Municipal Court by Detective Brett Denton, items siezed from Dickson’s home include several travel itineraries to Vermont and various other places around the country, $4,000 in savings bonds, and a multitude of computer equipment, including a monitor, printer and hard drive.

Chandler police then seized similar items from Dickson’s desk in MCC’s Cashier Services office, including a poem accompanying a photocopy of a picture of a young girl.

Potter said the more than 300 videos found in Dickson’s home were still being reviewed by detectives, and therefore could not divulge their subject matter.

"It just goes to show you never know who your neighbors are," said Kelly Hernandez, a 28-year-old mother of two who lives directly across the street from Dickson.

Potter said that despite children’s toys, diapers and a playpen located inside Dickson’s home, there were no minors living with him at the time of his arrest.

If convicted on one count of aggravated stalking and two counts of unlawful restraint, all felonies, Dickson could serve 15 years in prison.

Dickson’s Vermont attorney, John C. Mabie, refused repeated requests by the Mesa Legend for comment.

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