A state’s attorney decided not to file charges against the dozens of protesters who were arrested during a rally against the Addison County natural gas pipeline at the Pavilion Office Building in Montpelier this fall.
Washington County State’s Attorney Thomas Kelley said Monday he did not charge the protesters for a variety of reasons, including workload. He said 57 of the 64 protesters arrested had clean records, no one was hurt and the group eventually left the building peacefully.
On Oct. 27, the protesters staged a sit-in at the Pavilion Building on the first floor and the fifth floor, which includes the governor’s office. The protesters urged the governor, who was not in the office, to reverse his support for the 41-mile natural gas pipeline being built by Vermont Gas Systems. Hundreds rallied outside the Statehouse before some entered the Pavilion.
The groups organizing the protest were Rising Tide Vermont, 350 Vermont, Just Power and the Vermont Workers Center. The groups promise to continue their opposition to the pipeline through direct action and civil disobedience, according to a news release from Rising Tide last week.
