Directory of Burlington Vermont
area Web Sites and Information
SURFING OPTIONS: | Recommend URL | Recommend record changes | Search | What's Cool |
Administrative Options: Add link| Modify link | Delete link | List All | View link | Validate user recommended links | Re-Build Pages (sw) |
|
|
Directory of Burlington Vermont
|
|
Do you see this message near the top of your browser, when you click on the links?
When you click on a link in my directories, the web site you are requesting will be opened in a separate window or tab. This worked great until version six. Unfortunately, many web sites will open windows with advertisements and junk that you don't want. So Internet Explorer is asking you if you really requested that information or web site -- or is this web site just trying to force feed it to you? This web site does NOT open up pop-ups with ads or porn, here. I open up the web sites you request in a separate window or tab as a convenience. For best results, I recommend clicking on the
If you do this I will be able to open the web pages as you request them.
| If a link is no longer clickable, it is probably a temporary link that has expired or whose content has changed. Red Links have been found to be unavailable. The web site might have been removed, had its name changed, or is temporarily unavailable. To be a featured web site, you must be a most 10 requested web site of your category -- or, be cross-linked to this web site. Both incoming and outgoing traffic is measured on all web sites. Web sites are listed in the following order, 1. web sites added within the last 7 days in alphabetical order, 2. The top-ten (featured or popular) web sites in alphabetical order, and 3. remaining web site in alphabetical order. |
|
Home :
Alternate Lifestyles :
criminal behavior and lifestyles
Criminal Behavior & Lifestyles
What does "Alternate LIfestyles" mean?
Not everyone in Burlington is a church going heterosexual that grows up, gets a job earning an honest and legal income, gets married to someone of the opposite gender, and has children by way of their sexual activity with that person. An "Alternate lifestyle" can be anything that deviates from what most of us would consider to the normal (and traditional) lifestyle that is recommended by the Lord. In fact, Burlington seems to attract many people that choose to live other life styles. I realized that there were many things I had not been sure how to categorize that would easily fit in this category.
Disclaimer: I am NOT condoning or condemning these lifestyles, by listing them on my web page. In fact, as a bible-believing Christian, the web master does not agree with any of the life styles mentioned below. But, the directory was originally designed to be a secular listing of local web sites and stories, without moral consideration or prejudice. The fact that these sites are listed is only to show the fact that the following does exist in Burlington, not to condone or condemn it. I do, however, feel a need to make it known that I DO NOT sanction any of these activities.
There are 260 Alternate Lifestyles links for you to choose from!
2686 Crimes were reported in Burlington during 2001
including
A South Burlington man has been charged with the attempted
stabbing murder of his girlfriend.
Court records indicate he had already been charged with assaulting her at least twice this year.
Thomas Sharrow, 32, South Burlington, broke into the woman's Burlington apartment early Saturday morning, grabbed a steak knife from the kitchen, and stabbed her repeatedly in the head, neck, and arms as she screamed for help, according to police.
Neighbors called police who say they arrived to find the bloody steak knife on a porch and Sharrow trying to flee the building clutching a second knife, and his girlfriend's purse.
According to court records, in April Sharrow was sentenced to 23 days in prison and placed on probation after he was convicted of domestic assault for strangling and kicking the woman.
popular
Click here to read more.
Sarah Genest Murdered
Thursday afternoon four days after she was delivered to the ER at Fletcher Allen Health Care. Channel 3 News has learned that she arrived there with severe head injuries.
We have also learned that she was living in an apartment at 82 Front Street with her two young children and their father, 34-year-old Robert Jones, her longtime boyfriend. ...
Daniel Valentine pleaded guilty. ...
Robert Jones was in court Tuesday morning to face charges of second degree murder. Prosecutors say Jones severely beat 32-year-old Sarah Genest on May 5th inside their Front Street apartment. Genest died the next day after Jones and another woman brought her to Fletcher Allen Health Care for treatment of her injuries. ... Jones has a history of abuse, and has been convicted of domestic assault on 3 occasions, 2 of those were against Sarah Genest.
popular
Click here to read more.
"Leapfroggers" have returned to...Church Street
Marketplace.
Monday, the gleeful school girl leaping over an obliging boy sculpted in copper and steel took their place firmly anchored on a shinny new bronze base.
In early July, late at night, the Marketplace fixture was pushed over, snapping at the boy's ankles.
That night, a police officer collected the work and put it in the trunk of a cruiser for safe keeping, said Ron Redmond, executive director of the Church Street Marketplace.
A total of ,800 was raised to repair the sculpture, including a donation from a 3-year-old. Ryder Thornton of Burlington donated the money he raised playing his harmonica on Church Street. Queen City Steel Co. donated materials, Redmond said.
Ryder was delighted to see the "Leapfroggers" back in place.
"Look at the statue," he said, scrambling up the base. "It's all fixed."
16-year-old Dan Lavilette is currently behind bars.
at the Chittenden County Correctional Facility, facing a charge of "one count of first-degree aggravated domestic assault for recklessly causing a serious injury to his girlfriend," said Burlington Police Deputy Chief Mike Schirling.
Police arrived at the North Avenue apartment and found 17-year-old Holly Ploof critically injured with a single gunshot wound to the head. Lavilette was found downstairs. He was taken into custody, but not charged until he reportedly admitted he shot his girlfriend, claiming it was an accident.
Police were at the scene past midnight on Saturday morning, gathering evidence to help determine exactly what happened.
Click here to read more.
281 Crimes were reported in Winooski during 2001
including
773 Crimes were reported in South Burlington during 2001
including:
78-year-old woman was assaulted and robbed
at about 2:20 p.m. Tuesday in front of the Bon-Ton store in the mall, according to a report filed by Officer Darren Beers. Police said four white men, all about 20 years old, were involved in the assault.
An elderly woman was the victim of a purse snatching Thursday in Williston, the second such crime in the area in nine days. Police were investigating whether the two crimes are linked, Williston police Officer Scott Graham said. The most recent incident happened at about 3:05 p.m. in the parking lot of the Hannaford Food & Drug Superstore in Williston. An 85-year-old woman was getting into her car when a man grabbed her purse, police said. Two men in their mid-20s were seen hanging around the store and are suspects in the robbery. The one who took the purse was described by police as wearing a maroon shirt, 5 feet 7 inches tall with blond hair weighing 150 pounds.
Click here to read more.
A 25-year-old South Burlington man involved in a scuffle
with another man was cut in the throat with a steak knife early Saturday on the Church Street Marketplace.
Burlington police arrested Alfonso Garcia, 23, of Winooski,nearby shortly after the incident. He is charged with attempted second-degree murder and is being held at Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility in lieu of ,000 bail.
Police Lt. Tim Charland said police separated the two men, Garcia and William "Tony" Messer of South Burlington, after a fight downtown late Friday night. The men left in opposite directions.
About 12:20 a.m. Saturday, Messer flagged a police officer near the corner of Church and Main streets. He described the attacker to the police officer and told him his throat had been cut at the corner of College and Church streets.
Messer was taken to Fletcher Allen Health Care for treatment of an 8-inch gash, which police described as a "severe laceration to the throat."
A 5-week-old poodle puppy was stolen from a van in a parking lot
Wednesday afternoon, according to the South Burlington Police Department.
The puppy was taken at about 4 p.m. from a litter in a van parked near the Healthy Living Natural Foods Market off Market Street, police said. The puppy is described as white with yellowish ears.
Witnesses reported seeing a 16- or 17-year- old girl take the puppy and run toward Hinesburg Road on Market Street, police said in a news release. The teen is described as white, having long brown hair dyed blond on top, wearing black pants and a white shirt.
Anyone with information is asked to call the South Burlington Police Department at 846-4111.
A Burlington man is behind bars, after assaulting an acquaintance
with a hammer. Police say 56-year-old Thomas Kelleher got into an argument with a house guest Saturday night. When the guest wouldn't leave, Kelleher allegedly hit the man in the head with a hammer. When police arrived, the victim was outside with a laceration on his head -- and Kelleher would not come out of the house.
They went to Mr. Kellehers apartment, he wouldn't answer the door," Burlington Police Lieutenant Mike Schirling said. "Although they could hear some moving around inside, we obtained a search warrant to search the residence for him, he was apprehended without incident."
Kelleher is being held for lack of -thousand dollars bail. He will be arrained on charges of Aggrevated Assault on Monday.
A Burlington man pleaded innocent Wednesday to allegedly paying a
friend to blow up another man's van.
Reno Kruger is accused of paying John Monfreda to throw a homemade explosive at a third man's van. Kruger was upset with the van owner because the man was allegedly having an affair with Kruger's wife, Burlington Detective Steven Dumas said in court papers. Monfreda told police that Kruger wanted to blow up the van because it was where the affair took place.
Monfreda said Kruger initially offered him ,000 to shoot and kill the third man, according to the court papers. Monfreda said he refused, at which point Kruger allegedly came up with the plan to blow up the van.
Kruger pleaded innocent in Vermont District Court in Burlington to a charge of inciting another to commit a felony. Police are continuing the investigation and more charges might be added, said Lt. Walt Decker.
Kruger, 33, worked briefly as a correctional officer at the South Burlington jail in the spring of 2000, despite having recent criminal convictions.
A Burlington man was back in a Vermont courtroom Wednesday
facing new charges one month after he was captured in the Virgin Islands.
In December, arrest warrants were issued for Walter Biggs, 38, Burlington, after he fled Vermont while awaiting trial on several pending charges, including probation violations and burglary.
At the time, Biggs was on pre-trial release on ,000 bail provided by the Amherst Bail Bond company.
Under law, the ,000 bail would have been confiscated by the courts if Amherst failed to return Biggs for trial.
In response, Amherst dispatched its enforcement agents to find and capture Biggs. The agents found him in St. Thomas in February.
Amherst agents say they notified Virgin Island authorities seeking assistance in capturing Biggs, but the police did nothing. On May 8, Amherst says they notified U.S. Marshals who arrested Biggs the same day without incident and returned him to Vermont, nearly five months after he fled Vermont.
Click here to read more.
A Burlington man was charged late Sunday with drunken driving
after he allegedly tried to ram another motorist off the road, Burlington police said.
Robert Brosseau, 30, was jailed after the incident at about 8 p.m. Police said callers reported a black Ford Explorer trying to run two motorcyclists off Interstate 89, then ramming into the car of a witness who tried to follow the Explorer into Burlington. No injuries were reported.
Police said they found the car in a Burlington parking lot and traced the registration to Brosseau and arrested him. They are seeking information from anyone who might have seen the incident.
-- end --
A Burlington woman faces charges accusing her of stealing
at least thousand dollars from an elderly man, according to Burlington Police.
Lori Billings, 40, Cedar Street, Burlington, embezzled the money from the retirement funds of an unidentified 78-year-old man, according to investigators.
Police say Billings befriended the elderly man in October, 2001, gained his trust, obtained power-of-attorney, and used it to steal the money until the victims relatives contacted police two months ago.
Billings has confessed that she took 30 to 40 thousand dollars, but police say at least -thousand dollars was taken, and the investigation is not complete.
Billings spent most of the stolen money on lavish personal expenses, including weekend outings at New York state hotels, according to investigators.
Billings is scheduled to be arraigned on the embezzlement charges at the Burlington District Court in December.
Brian Joyce -- Channel 3 News
A Burlington woman pleads not guilty
to aiding in first degree aggregated domestic assault.
25 year old Lisa Foy appeared in District Court on Wednesday.
Her boyfriend, 32 year old Shawn Riley, the father of the baby pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to First Degree Aggregated Domestic Assault.
The case involves a shaken baby syndrome.
The two are charged in an incident that happened on August 14th.
Police say the baby suffered major injuries including retinal hemorrhaging, severe bruising to the head and other parts of the body, possible GI damage, and at least 10 rib fractures.
Doctors say shaken baby syndrome is a violent act that cannot be caused unintentionally.
The baby could suffer permanent brain damage and more.
This is not Foy's first brush with the law.
She is on probation and is undergoing methadone treatments for substance abuse.
Foy is being held on ,000 bail she is not to have contact with the baby or any minor under sixteen.
Click here to read more.
A Burlington woman Thursday changed her plea to guilty
to a less serious charge for her part in setting-up a drug-related murder two years ago.
It's a crime that compelled Vermont's largest non-profit agency for troubled kids to change its housing policy.
Stephanie Dellavecchio, 18, pled guilty to attempted assault and robbery at the Burlington District Court as part of a plea agreement calling for no more than ten years in prison.
She was initially charged with felony-murder in October 2002 after Elrahaine Whitely, 27, New York, was killed by a single shot to the head as he sat in his car outside Dellavecchio's Pine Street apartment.
Dellavecchio lured Whiteley to her apartment with a phone call requesting a cocaine delivery, according to police.
But police say the call was the set-up for a plan devised by Dellavecchio and three male accomplices to rob Whitely. Police say the plan backfired when Dan Jones, 24, Burlington, murdered Whitely with a single gunshot to the head.
Click here to read more.
A jury has been selected to hear the case of a Shelburne man
charged with gunning down a man at a party.
Skylar Underhill-Ortiz, 21, is charged with first-degree murder. Police say he shot and killed Rhynell Lewis at a party on Lafountain Street in Burlington last year. The two had reportedly been arguing and got into a wrestling match.
Underhill-Ortiz claims it was self-defense.
Prosecutors disagree because they say Lewis was unarmed. Under Vermont law, the prosecution will have to convince the jury beyond a reasonable doubt that it was not a case of self-defense.
Monday, it took about 2 1/2 hours to select a jury. The trial will start Tuesday morning.
Click here to read more.
A longtime property asset manager in the city,
who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retribution, said Friday's graffiti spree was the most prolific episode of vandalism he's seen in two decades.
On rounds to check the parking lot of the Kmart building for snow and ice that night, he said his headlights shone on a new symbol spray-painted high on the front wall.
Friday's episode occurred less than 10 hours after the building had been retouched to cover previously painted graffiti -- for the second time in two weeks, he said. He estimates the damage to the building over that time to be upward of ,000.
Four teens have been arrested on suspicion of unlawful mischief in connection with the incident.
The taggers scrawled purple and black marks like a long tattoo across the roof and back side of Kmart on Shelburne Road, on the corner of the Hannaford grocery store, on a white trailer parked in front of Lowe's, and on every utility cabinet along the sidewalk from there to the Palace 9 movie theater.
Click here to read more.
A Man was arrested for Armed Robbery on Main Street.
Police have arrested a teenager that they say robbed a convenience store at gunpoint. 18-year old van Christian schryver (shriver) was arrested in Connecticut, after police say he fired a shot at a state trooper. He's also charged with pulling a gun he had taped to his back, in a courtroom. Police in Vermont say schryver (shriver) has confessed to robbing the colonial deli mart on main street, about a month ago.
Around 11:00 P.M. April 1st, at the Champlain farms store on main street, a man walked in with a gun and demanded money. The clerk gave him some cash. And the robber took off on foot towards King Street. Police say they're looking for a tall white man in his twenties, with light brown hair. The suspect was wearing jeans and blue hooded sweatshirt.
-- end --
A murder suspect who'd planned to plead guilty in a 2006 school shooting
Wednesday refused to enter the plea, prompting prosecutors to upgrade the charges against him and begin preparing for ... a "wrenching" trial.
Saying he didn't understand the terms of the deal, Christopher A. Williams, 29, surprised a courtroom packed with family members and friends of the victims by initially balking and then reconsidering before finally telling Vermont District Court Judge Geoffrey Crawford he wouldn't go through with it. ... Williams is charged in an Aug. 24, 2006 shooting spree that left two people dead and two people wounded. According to prosecutors, he was upset after breaking up with girlfriend Andrea Lambesis and went to her mother's house, fatally shooting the mother, teacher Linda Lambesis, and then driving to Essex Elementary School in search of Andrea Lambesis.
... Prosecutors allege Williams fatally shot teacher Mary Alicia Shanks, 56, and wounded teacher Mary "Jenky" Snedeker, 52, but never found Andrea Lambesis, who escaped.
Click here to read more.
A South Burlington woman faces charges of embezzling
tens of thousands of dollars from the Burlington YMCA.
Burlington Police cited Linda Hall, 59, South Burlington, to appear in court next next week on felony embezzlement charges.
The charges ended a six-month investigation that began after the Y noted financial irregularities.
Within days YWCA office manager Linda Hall reportedly admitted to Y officials that she had embezzled about ,000.
But police say the audit revealed the actual missing amount was about ,000.
It's not the first time Hall has been charged with embezzlement.
In 1999, the Y hired her shile she was still completing a prison term for bankrupting the tiny village of Bakersfield while serving as the village's clerk-treasurer. In 1986 she was convicted of embezzling more than ,000 from the village, but the town report claimed the actual amount was closer to ,000, and all of it had reportedly been squandered.
Click here to read more.
A University of Vermont student faces charges in connection
with a string of vandalism-graffiti incidents in Burlington.
Police say they arrested Steven Goldfield, 21, Wednesday on Pearl Street after they caught him in the act of spray-painting a building.
Police say there is evidence that he Goldfield has been one of Burlington's busiest graffiti vandals in recent months, responsible for hundreds of spray-painted tags signed "SENT."
But police say Goldfield's arrest will hardly put a dent in the flood of graffiti that has been inundating public and private property in Burlington.
The problem is that as soon as police arrest one tagger, two more appear.
Click here to read more.
A Winooski man pleaded innocent Monday to charges, he burglarized
the company where he works.
Timothy Ashley, 22, is accused of breaking into Vermont Paint Co. in Williston on Saturday night.
Williston police said an off-duty officer saw a man get out of a cab on Williston Road in Williston and walk behind closed businesses. The officer heard loud noises at the Vermont Paint Co. store and notified Williston police. When police arrived the suspect ran.
Police said they caught Ashley behind Vermont Wholesale Building Products, police said. Ashley told police that he worked at the paint company and entered the building with keys he had to the business, then ransacked the business to stage a break-in.
The stolen money was recovered, police said. Ashley was being held at Chittenden Regional Correctional facility in lieu of ,000 bail. -- end --
A young woman who was shot in the head two months ago has made a dramatic
recovery that some are calling a medical miracle.
Holly Ploof, 17, walked into a Burlington courthouse Friday to confront the former boyfriend accused of firing the shot that almost killed her. Four weeks ago, Ploof was fighting for her life with a less than 50-percent chance of survival. She won the fight-- and Friday she took steps to ensure the gunman who gravely wounded her knows it.
"Scary," she says-- of going to court to confront her ex-boyfriend, Dan Lavilette.
Nine weeks ago, he shot her once in the head at her family's Burlington apartment. He told police it was an accident. But he is charged with aggravated domestic assault and another gun related assault charge. He is accused of pointing a loaded gun at another teenage boy and threatening to kill him out of jealousy over a girl. In addition, police say that Lavilette was expelled from Burlington High School three years ago because he was caught trying to hide a loaded pistol on the roof of the school.
Click here to read more.
About twenty businesses and public buildings in downtown
Burlington were struck by vandals early Monday morning. Graffiti artists spray painted the city and what they wrote has angered many in the city. Swear words and derogatory statements about our troops were sprayed all over windows up and down Church Street.
Susan Bouchard arrived at her Burlington boutique Trillium this morning to find a disturbing site.
... On the Church Street Marketplace and surrounding public buildings someone spray-painted graffiti on doors and windows expressing anti-troops sentiments.
... Police are not used to seeing it either.
... The vandals hit sometime between midnight and two o'clock Monday morning. The Church Street Marketplace got to work on the problem early, so most of the slogans were gone by 7 a.m.
... "This does happen occasionally and what you do is you remove it, get it off very quickly and don't give the vandal an opportunity to have the medium so they can feel some sense of dominance," said Ron Redmond,
Click here to read more.
After Essex shooting suspect rejects plea deal,
Prosecutors reacted swiftly. They elevated the charges against Christopher Williams, 29, of Essex to the harshest available under Vermont law and said they were through offering deals, making a trial all but certain. Williams now faces one count of aggravated murder, which carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison with no chance of parole; one count of first-degree murder; and two more of attempted first-degree murder, all with possible terms of 35 years to life.
The deal had presented Williams a slight hope of one day being freed. The bargain called for him to admit two counts of second-degree murder and one of attempted second-degree murder in exchange for a prison sentence of 48 years to life.
Click here to read more.
An attempted murder trial ended abruptly Monday
when the defendant, Daniel Valentine, 27, of Burlington, changed his plea to guilty.
Valentine changed his plea when the judge agreed to a sentence of no more than twenty years in prison.
It was a case that joined two women who had been the victims of long-time domestic violence.
Valentine was accused of using a broken beer bottle to slash and nearly kill his long-time girlfriend, Diana April, 23, in July 2000 in her Burlington apartment.
Monday April told the jury how Valentine slashed her repeatedly and she nearly bled to death.
Her neighbor Sarah Genest was scheduled to testify about how when heard April's screams, rushed in, and interrupted Valentine's attack. Genest was also slashed as a result. Burlington police say her act of bravery saved April's life.
But Genest died last week under suspicious circumstances that may involve domestic violence.
Sentencing for Valentine could come next month.
Click here to read more.
An escaped prison inmate who slipped out of a sheriffs cruiser
on his way to court on Wednesday is back in custody, but only after the suspect eluded an intensive manhunt. 23-year old Kevin Donaldson was recaptured Thursday afternoon following his second escape in as many days. On Wednesday while being transported to jail, the sheriff says Donaldson had a key to the handcuffs hidden on him. He got out of his shackles, reached through an open window to unlatch the cruiser door and bolted.
Donaldson's whereabouts for 24 hours stretched from Winooski to Underhill, his original home, where the search resumed in the morning after police received three initial tips from local residents. Vermont state police, Essex police and Chittenden county sheriff deputies established a perimeter to keep watch around the woods near Poker Hill road in Underhill where Donaldson was believed hiding. Channel 3's Noon news brought more calls to police, who set up a command center at the Underhill-Jericho fire station.
Click here to read more.
Arson Forced a UVM Dorm Evacuation.
Firefighters said two separate fires were set at the University of Vermont's Living and Learning Center on Thursday night.
Burlington firefighters said they went through the building, making sure everything was cleared out.
Students had to evacuate their dorm rooms after fire alarms were tripped by the smoke. UVM police sealed the buildings with police tape, securing it for an investigation.
Firefighters said the fires are considered suspicious.
UVM police said they take fires seriously and will prosecute those involved.
Click here to read more.
Burlington man Duyen Van Nguyen is being held without bail
after police say he stabbed his friend with a broken beer bottle.
It happened Sunday night on Hyde Street in the Old North End.
According to court documents, 34-year-old Duyen Van Nguyen spent the evening drinking with three friends in the apartment he shared with the victim, Ali Tran.
Police believe the two began fighting when Tran started dancing with Nguyen's girlfriend.
He allegedly broke a Heineken bottle and then stabbed Tran in the stomach with it, puncturing his liver.
Tran was taken to Fletcher Allen Health Care and treated for a severe liver wound.
Police also say Nguyen admitted to the crime.
He was charged Monday with second degree attempted murder and entered a plea of not guilty.
Nguyen and Tran both have lengthy criminal records.
Nguyen was also cited Monday for violation of parole on a simple assault charge from last year.
He's being held without bail.
Monday, 8/11/03
Burlington police are investigating an act of wanton vandalism
that has some people asking -- why.
Nondescript mounds of ice on the Church Street Marketplace used to be finely-made sculptures that were part of Burlington's Winter Festival -- that is until someone destroyed them.
"People were just all over Church Street enjoying the ice walk, watching our volunteer ice carvers go to work. There were some beautiful creations. We're really proud of everyone who came out.... So to see this, this morning is tough. But you know, what can you do?" said Molly McDevitt, a UVM student and Burlington Winter Festival Organizer.
Police say two people may have been involved in the vandalism. A cash reward of one-thousand dollars is being offered for information leading to an arrest and conviction.
Burlington Police are warning elderly residents
to be on the lookout for a young woman wanting to come into their homes to help them with finances.
Police say the woman tells homeowners that she is a member of the "Upreach Program", and can help them save money on rent and utility bills. Once in the house, she steals money, prescription medications and anything else of value.
The woman is described as a white, thin female with blonde hair and blue eyes. Anyone with information should call Burlington Police, 658-2704, or Crimestoppers, 1-800-427-8477.
Police say these scams are common, and homeowners should request proper identification before letting anyone into their home.
-- end --
Burlington police have arrested two men for breaking into a city
business. Police say 20 year olds James Abby and Everett White broke into Longe Brothers Market just after 10 o'clock Tuesday night. They say the two shattered a glass door, then entered the business and stole beer and cigarettes. Police tracked them down a short time later, and say they confessed to the crime.
The two men were jailed on felony burglary charges, and will be arraigned Wednesday.
Burlington police were searching Saturday for several men
who forced open the window of a police cruiser during the night and stole gear from inside.
The incident happened when officers responded to a loud party at the corner of Buell and South Union streets at about 12:50 a.m. Officers left the cruiser unattended for about 30 minutes while breaking up the party, and it was during that time one of the cruiser's windows was forced open, according to a news release from the Burlington Police Department.
A witness reported seeing three or four men breaking into the cruiser, according to the release. The men stole a black nylon bag containing blank police paperwork, tried to remove a shotgun from a locked rack and tampered with the police radio, according to the release.
Police asked witnesses to call the department at 658-2704 or Champlain Valley Crimestoppers at 864-6666.
Charlene & Joseph Lucia put out a plea for help with their roof.
Two days before Christmas, nearly 2 feet of snow covered the roof of Joseph and Charlene Lucia's mobile home in Breezy Acres Mobile Home Park. Radio warnings urged people to shovel their roofs because an impending rainstorm would add to the snow's weight on houses and barns.
Charlene Lucia's son, Earl Larocque dutifully climbed up on the roof to shovel and promptly broke through, sinking up to his knees into a space above the ceiling.
Pieces of wood and a tarp cover the hole, and the Lucias, both 72, said they don't have the $4,800 to fix the roof.
(Seven Days later reported that the Lucia's home was actually a trailer they were using. They were just seeking a free roof so they could sell the trailer.)
Click here to read more.
Chase Ortiz arrested for stalking, domestic assault,
alcohol possession by a minor and disturbing the peace/threatening harm.
Chase Ortiz of 65 Winooski Falls Way was being held at the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility on Wednesday. Vermont District Judge Gregory Rainville set bail at ,000 in a Tuesday hearing.
Ortiz was charged after an 18-year-old woman told police that she had been assaulted by Ortiz over the past year and was called repeatedly and threatened after she ended their two-year relationship four months ago. She said she feared for her life, according to a Burlington Police Department affidavit.
According to the affidavit, the woman recounted to police that Ortiz told her: "My brother got away with killing someone. If he can get away with it, so can I."
Click here to read more.
Chase Ortiz, 19, of Winooski, pleaded not guilty Tuesday
to domestic assault and stalking a former girlfriend, charges that carry a combined maximum of three years in prison.
Burlington police arrested Ortiz Monday night and say their investigation revealed he placed hundreds of phone calls to the young woman after she ended their relationship last fall.
Court documents allege Ortiz repeatedly threatened to kill the woman -- and her family -- if she didn't reconcile.
Dan Lavilette, 16, shot her. Lavilette is charged
with first-degree aggravated domestic assault.
... A Burlington teenager who was shot in the head has improved so much, she is out of the hospital.
Holly Ploof, 17, was shot in her North Avenue apartment in December. For weeks she was listed in critical condition, but she has gradually improved. WCAX News has learned Ploof is now walking and has limited speech capability. She still faces long-term rehabilitation for brain injuries. She was released from Fletcher Allen is and now living at a rehab center.
Click here to read more.
Daniel Valentine
was convicted of attacking his girlfriend with a broken beer bottle three years ago in Burlington. Daniel Valentine pleaded guilty in May, after two days of testimony in his trial for attempted second-degree murder.
Click here to read more.
Downtown Burlington got a paint job this morning,
and not a good one. Over twenty buildings, including the Costello Courthouse and Masonic Temple, have been hit by graffiti artists.
Church Street Marketplace Maintenance Director Pat Rideout said, "There were many places that were hit on Church Street. I think I counted about 18 in all. Most of them were storefront glass, and it was basically vulgarity towards our troops."
On the heels of an alleged harassment incident against a uniformed guard member in Montpelier, this graffiti strikes an angry chord with many business owners.
Oasis Diner owner Jon Lines said, "The people on this street I consider to be like my neighbors… and for somebody to come by and defile their property its not only rude, its unacceptable."
Most downtown stores were cleaned off by 9 a.m., before some even opened for business.
Police say the vandalism seemed random, however, some stores that were targeted have an American flag displayed.
Click here to read more.
Dwayne Herron has been charged with helping his 11-year-old stepdaughter
steal an puppy from a pet store.
Police say Dwayne Herron, 52, and his stepdaughter stole the miniature schnauzer puppy from Noah's Ark in Colchester in November. Police had no leads until WCAX News broadcast surveillance video of Herron, the girl and another man who allegedly drove them to the store. The video triggered several tips to police and led them to Herron. The dog was later recovered at Herron's apartment in Burlington.
Herron pled innocent to one count of retail theft Thursday. After the hearing, he told WCAX News that he is innocent.
If convicted, he faces up to two years in prison.
Brian Joyce will have more on this story tonight on the Channel 3 News at 6:00 p.m.
Click here to read more.
Fix my trailer's roof for free so I can sell it.
Two days before Christmas, Earl Larocque stepped through the roof of a Colchester trailer home while shoveling snow off the building. The trailer’s occupants, Larocque’s mother and her husband, Charlene and Joseph Lucia, are both 72 years old and living on fixed incomes. Faced with a repair bill, Charlene had an idea.
The community response was heartwarming, but the Lucias may not be the innocent victims the media coverage made them out to be. For one thing, the Lucia’s trailer was for sale when Charlene’s son stepped through its roof — a fact Sutkoski was aware of but chose not to report. “All along, they wanted to sell the trailer, as I understand it,” he said. “But they couldn’t sell it because the roof was bad.”
Click here to read more.
Former security guard Derek Kearns on Wednesday admitted stealing money
from people entering Burlington's state courthouse and was ordered jailed for five days -- the first instance in Vermont, his lawyer said, of incarceration as punishment for misdemeanor theft.
Kearns, 34, of Burlington pleaded guilty to one count of petty larceny, the charge arising from a Sept. 18 incident in which he stole an unspecified amount of money from a man's belongings as they passed through an X-ray scanner. In exchange for the plea, prosecutors dropped a second count of petty larceny.
Each charge carried a maximum penalty of one year in prison and ,000 in fines. The plea bargain also requires Kearns to spend two years on probation and perform 50 hours of community service, among other conditions.
Click here to read more.
Gun Thieves Caught Being Rowdy With The Stolen Goods.
Can you imagine pulling off a gun heist only to get caught while having a gun party? That is what happened to three UVM students and a New Hampshire student. When Police checked out the sound of guns being fired complaint, they caught the thieves red-handed. ... Federal prosecutors today filed charges against four men in connection with the Williston gun shop burglary. The timing of last week's break in, and sheer volume of weapons taken, had police on edge. ... According to an affidavit filed today in federal court, the break in the case came last weekend, in Madison, Connecticut. Police found a uvm student firing guns in the woods, which police traced to the bj's burglary. That led federal agents to search apartments in the Burlington area, and arrest four students in the case.
Click here to read more.
Herman Yoh is to be resentenced for killing Mary Yoh.
A man convicted of killing his wife in 1997 in Burlington will face a new sentencing hearing rather than receive a commuted sentence of 35 years, a Chittenden County judge has ruled.
Judge Christina Reiss turned aside a challenge from defense attorneys for Herman Yoh, 52, formerly of Colchester, who had argued the convict's prison sentence, overturned on appeal last year, should be established without a hearing.
Yoh received a sentence of life without parole following his 1999 conviction for the first-degree murder of Mary Yoh, 37. The Vermont Supreme Court determined, though, that Herman Yoh's incarceration was unconstitutional because the trial judge increased the term from the 35-year minimum without requiring evidence to justify the upgrade.
Click here to read more.
Herman Yoh, sentenced to life without parole for killing his wife
ten years ago claims changes in the law require that his sentence be reduced.
In 1997, a jury declared Herman Yoh guilty of first degree murder for beating and strangling his wife, Miriam, in a Burlington hotel room after a Christmas party.
At the time, the sentencing range for first degree murder was 35 years to life unless there were aggravating factors that could lengthen the sentence. Trial Judge Brian Burgess determined that the murder was "particularly cruel" so he sentenced Yoh to life without parole.
But the Vermont Supreme Court overturned Yoh's prison term because it was imposed by the judge, not a jury.
Click here to read more.
Hundreds of homes, apartments and other buildings
fill the 55 streets of Burlington's Old North End. The neighborhood is also home to 203 criminal offenders currently under the supervision of the Corrections Department. That includes people on probation, parole, pre-approved furlough and house arrest. Residents say that's too many.
"You know why they want to come to live in the North End? Does the other part of the city want them? No. They dump them down here. That's why they dump them right here," says resident Mary Gabbeitt.
That was the message heard at Tuesday's Neighborhood Safety Forum in Burlington. Residents say the density of offenders living in the Old North End is too high and they're working with local law enforcement and state corrections officials to change that. Residents worry about offenders committing new crimes, like those involved in last summer's beating death of a young woman and a drive by shooting on North Street.
They want to know whether high risk offenders are adequately supervised.
Click here to read more.
Is the Case Crumbling Against Teenage Shooter?
Holly Ploof came to court for another pre-trial hearing for Dan Lavilette, her ex-boyfriend. Four months ago, he shot her once in the head at her family's apartment in Burlington. When police arrived he was waiting and reportedly told them it was an accident. Then he stopped talking to authorities.
Lavilette was charged with aggravated domestic assault. But Friday, prosecutors acknowledged they may not have enough evidence to put before a jury.
Holly Ploof has no recollection because the slug that shattered the right side of her skull pierced her brain. It is a miracle she survived. Incredibly, she is already back in high school. But she may never be able to remember what happened the day she was shot.
Click here to read more.
James P. Brown pleaded guilty in Vermont District Court
on Wednesday to two counts of grand larceny.
He will serve no jail time, but will pay ,364.78 for his crimes. Brown paid the money -- two bank checks from Chittenden Bank -- Wednesday.
Brown paid the city more than ,000 to cover what he stole and the city's expenses for investigating him. Brown was sentenced
to 30 days on a work crew, 100 hours of community service and a one-to- four-year suspended prison term, plus the restitution.
He also gave the city a ,000 check in an agreement that prevents the city from taking legal action against him, said Janet Murnane, counsel to the city.
Deputy State's Attorney Craig Matanle described the outcome as "fairly good." Brown paid back the amount the prosecution could prove he stole, about ,000, Matanle said. The ex-city employee had a nearly spotless criminal record, which generally means a lighter penalty.
|