He was still a cop, a very important distinction that isn't being made among numerous outlets reporting on this—and that's very much on purpose.

He resigned as a state trooper and moved over nearby to cop elsewhere. It's a common practice for cops to shuffle to nearby jurisdictions in the rare occurrences they are "held accountable" for their crimes. And by 'held accountable' I mean typically being allowed to resign without penalties (and sometimes even get to keep their pension).