VTDigger Minute is a weekly news digest from Vermont PBS. Tune in every Wednesday at 6 p.m. and Thursday at 6:30 a.m. to hear about the week’s top stories.
This week on the Minute:
Burlington council sets up police review panel following incidents
The Burlington City Council voted this week to form a special committee that will review the policies of the Burlington Police Department. A handful of recent incidents have prompted allegations that officers used excessive force, including one case where a man died a few days after an altercation with an officer. The councilor who proposed the committee said those incidents had shaken the community.
Scott signs bills removing statute of limitations for child sexual abuse claims
Gov. Phil Scott has signed a new law that removes the time limit for victims of child sexual abuse to bring civil claims against their abusers. Scott also signed a bill that will extend the statute of limitations for criminal offenses including manslaughter and sexual exploitation of a vulnerable adult.
Chittenden state’s attorney drops three major cases due to insanity defense
The Chittenden County State’s Attorney’s Office dismissed two murder cases and one attempted murder case after determining there was not enough evidence to rebut the defendants’ planned insanity defenses. The move comes just weeks after prosecutor Sarah George beat the insanity defense in the high-profile murder case of Steven Bourgoin.
