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A Vermont Senate panel is putting off, at least for now, a proposal that would have allowed for greater “flexibility” to reduce sentences for prisoners in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The proposal, brought forward by Chief Superior Court Judge Brian Grearson, would have allowed a sentence to be modified outside of the current 90-day window from when it is formally imposed, provided both the prosecutor and defense attorney are in agreement.
Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, meeting via video conference Tuesday, indicated that the proposal appeared to be too controversial to move forward as part of a larger package of changes Grearson has proposed to address issues that have arisen as part of COVID-19.
Those other changes in a proposed bill include extending the statute of limitations to bring civil cases as well as resetting other deadlines for certain court proceedings.
Sen. Dick Sears, D-Bennington and committee chair, said during the meeting that putting the provision in regarding sentence modifications might sink the whole legislation. Instead, he talked of removing it and making it a stand-alone bill that could be taken up later.
The proposal was presented as a way to help aid in the release of inmates held in custody during the COVID-19 emergency.
The initiative on revisiting sentences outside of the 90-day window had the support of the Vermont Attorney General’s Office.
However, John Campbell, executive director of the state Department of State’s Attorneys and Sheriffs, strongly opposed the measure, citing concerns that victims could be left out of the process.
Vermont Defender General Matthew Valerio, whose office represents most of the defendants in the state, told the committee Tuesday he didn’t mind seeing the sentence review provision removed from the bill. In fact, he encouraged the panel to take it out.
“I would just as soon have you strike it from this bill and leave everything alone,” he said. “I’d rather have you just leave it alone than diddle around with it and potentially limit the options that are available.”
He said defense attorneys are currently moving forward in other ways to seek the release of prisoners that could be jeopardized by the legislation.
“This is too important of an issue,” he said, “for the rights that are currently being exercised with petitions for extraordinary relief and the like to be limited by legislation that’s considered on the quick and under odd circumstances like this.”