[B]ARRE — A Vermont judge says the Washington County State’s Attorney’s office dropped the ball in a child sex case, prompting him to dismiss a felony charge that carried a possible life sentence against the defendant.
The ruling this week by Judge Howard VanBenthuysen comes as Washington County State’s Attorney Scott Williams is on leave from his office, reportedly to receive psychiatric care.
“This is a very serious case, carrying upon conviction the potential for a life sentence,” the judge wrote in his two-page order issued Wednesday.
“A child is alleged to have been victimized. It should be a priority for the State and should not be unduly delayed in fairness to both the Defendant and the young complainant,” VanBenthuysen added. “The failure to give the case attention it deserves is unfortunate but should not prejudice the Defendant.”
The judge dismissed then the charge of aggravated sexual assault on a victim under the age of 13 that had been brought last spring against Jeffrey C. Manning, 59, of Barre.
Williams has been on family medical leave from the office since November. His office has been receiving support from the Vermont Department of State’s Attorneys and Sheriffs and prosecutors from other counties in Vermont.
“This a regrettable situation,” John Campbell, that department’s executive director, said late Thursday afternoon. “It was brought on by the sudden departure by Scott Williams due to his health issue, which left the office extremely understaffed.”
Campbell added that because the judge dismissed the charge “without prejudice,” it does allow prosecutors the opportunity to refile the charge.
That exactly what prosecutors intend to do, he said.
“We are going to rectify it and do our best to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” Campbell added.
Attorney James Martino, representing Manning, could not be reached Thursday for comment.
The judge noted in his ruling that another count, a felony charge of lewd and lascivious conduct with a child, second offense, was dismissed by the state in August. Campbell said Thursday he was still researching the circumstances around that charge and whether it had actually been dismissed and whether it could be refiled.
Manning had previously pleaded not guilty to both charges at his arraignment in April. He is currently on the state’s sex offender registry, stemming from a previous conviction.
According to Vermont State Police, in January 2017 the Washington County Special Investigation Unit opened an investigation into Manning. That investigation led to the filing of the two latest sex charges against Manning on a girl under the age of 10 years at the time of the offense.
According to the judge’s ruling, a hearing in the case was set for Wednesday.
“At the hearing today the state was not prepared to respond to the Motion to Dismiss with witnesses, affidavits or other admissible evidence,” VanBenthuysen wrote in his order.
“The state indicated that it only learned of the hearing yesterday, and that they were unable to procure the needed witnesses or affidavits on such short notice,” the judge added. “The Deputy State’s Attorney indicated that she believed that hearing notice went directly to State’s Attorney Scott Williams.”
Deputy State’s Attorney Ashley Hill asked for a continuance to allow her to respond to the motion, however, attorney Martino, representing Manning, objected, saying that the prosecutors have had three months to prepare for the hearing, according to the ruling.
The judge, in a footnote to his two-page order, wrote that Williams’ law license was suspended and he was placed on disability status by the Vermont Supreme Court on Dec. 4, and “has been unavailable” since Nov. 13.
“Ms. Hill indicated that her office had not heard from Mr. Williams since that date. It remains unclear when or whether Mr. Williams will resume his duties,” the judge added. “The Washington County State’s Attorney’s office is presently running on only two licensed Deputies although it is supposed to have five.”
Neither Hill nor Williams could be reached Thursday for comment.
In suspending his law license, the Vermont Supreme Court wrote in its order, “Disciplinary Counsel and (Williams) have filed with the Court a stipulation to transfer (Williams) to disability inactive status due to a medical condition that currently incapacitates respondent from practicing law.”
Williams went on leave at the time of the sentencing hearing for Jody Herring, who killed four people in 2015, including three relatives and social worker Lara Sobel.
Williams was excused from testifying at a sentencing hearing last month, after he filed a motion to quash a subpoena. He was reportedly at the Brattleboro Retreat receiving care around the time he was excused from testifying at Herring’s sentencing.
He had previously said he had post-traumatic stress disorder that predated the Herring murder case.
Witnesses who testified at that sentencing said they saw Herring put down the rifle after shooting a social worker in downtown Barre. That contradicted earlier reports that said Williams disarmed Herring immediately after the shooting.
The Vermont Professional Responsibility Board had also been looking into a handful of cases that Williams dismissed around the same time that “donations” were made by defendants to a victims’ fund that didn’t exist.
Williams, in an Aug. 16 written response to the board’s disciplinary counsel, Sarah Katz, wrote that none of that money has ever been spent, and he denies any wrongdoing.
Williams wrote that concerns about issuing dismissals of cases in exchange for donations to his office are a “mischaracterization of the situation.”
“There have been no donations to my office. no plea or dismissal has been conditioned on such a contribution; obviously not to my office; but not to any other cause either. There are no plea agreements, while have been State’s Attorney, that included any type of donation or contribution other than those authorized or required by Statute.”
There are cases, though, he wrote, “where the facts and circumstances of an individual and the crimes alleged warrant consideration, if proposed by the defendant or their counsel, of a contribution to an appropriate cause.”
Williams, elected state’s attorney in 2014, wrote that in the winter of 2016 he learned about a fund for assisting victims that had been created and was overseen by a board of directors that has been inactive for years.
He said he eventually planned to start a new fund called the Washington County Community Support Fund, which would be overseen by a volunteer board of directors.
However, he wrote, that he had been so busy, he never had the time to get the initiative off the ground. Williams added that he accepted four contributions in four cases to the community support fund as “seed money” to promote more fundraising once the fund is formally established.
Campbell said Thursday it’s been a challenge trying to bring the office to full staffing, especially in regard to finding experienced prosecutors. He said other state’s attorneys from around Vermont have offered assistance.
Within the next few weeks, Campbell added, he hoped to have the office fully staffed.
Asked when Williams was expected back, Campbell responded that he didn’t have that information at this time.
Correction: Deputy State’s Attorney Ashley Hill has not heard from Williams, according the judge’s order. A transcription error left out the word “not.”
