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Four arrested for violence on North St.

- By John Briggs -- Free Press Staff Writer -- Friday, August 08, 2003

A confrontation between two groups of feuding men ended up in an exchange of gunfire on North Street on Tuesday night.

The violence had spilled onto the Church Street Marketplace earlier in the day.

Three of the men police say were involved in the shooting were arrested Wednesday and a fourth was picked up Thursday morning. All have criminal records and are being held in the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility for parole violation.

The men were identified as Edward Allen, 20, of Williston; Kevin Martin, 25, of Burlington; and his brothers Steven Martin, 21, of Winooski and Robert Scales, 20, of Burlington.

Lt. Walt Decker, Burlington police spokesman, said it has been difficult for police to reconstruct what happened Tuesday, and more individuals might be involved.

"We have reluctant witnesses," he said. "We're looking both for witnesses and for suspects."

He said charges against the men in custody and perhaps others could include reckless endangerment, unlawful mischief and burglary, but he stressed that the investigation remains active.

The violence Tuesday grew out of a long-standing dispute between Kevin Martin, who goes by the street name of "Cornbread," and a group of men police say were associated with Allen. That animosity turned into a fight Sunday on Church Street between the two groups and continued Tuesday afternoon, when several of the men went after Martin on the crowded Marketplace near Cherry Street.

"I saw an individual with his shirt off, walking north on the Marketplace, carrying a baseball bat," said Howard Center outreach worker Matt Young. "There was a commotion at the corner and I saw him being chased by four or five men shouting that they would kill him."

He said shoppers on the Marketplace seemed "appalled" by the episode.

A police affidavit filed in Vermont District Court on Thursday said that one of the men in the group chasing Martin had a bat.

Later that night, according to the police affidavit, Martin and his brothers, armed with bats, drove around the Old North End looking for the Allen group. They stopped on North Street near Dion's Locksmith and approached a dark-colored car that had three or four men in it. One of the men in the car fired a shot at them, and then that car sped away, chased by Martin and his brothers.

A short time later, the Martin group found Allen's brother's sport utility vehicle parked on North Street near Front Street and smashed out its windshield, bringing Allen, his brother and another friend on the run from a nearby party. Martin's group retreated. As they drove away, someone fired at least four shots at them, according to the police report.

A number of residents near the intersection of North and Front streets in the Old North End said the shooting Tuesday was an outgrowth of gang-like activity that has left many people in the neighborhood frightened for their safety. Some people refused to identify themselves for fear of retaliation.

George Gabbeitt, who lives nearby, said he was asleep when the shots rang out at about 10 p.m. Tuesday. He said he knew his wife, Mary, was sitting on the front porch.

"I flew out front," he said. "I almost died of a heart attack."

He said men associated with the shooting have become more threatening in recent months.

"There's a lot of drug activity," he said.

"I've lived around here all my life," said Tammy Corcoran, another neighbor. "I moved back from Winooski a month ago. I wish I hadn't. My 11-year-old son was on the porch when it happened."

She and others criticized the lack of a visible police presence in the neighborhood.

"They don't even walk the beat no more," she said. "They don't care."

"We don't feel safe," her husband, Randy, said.

Another neighbor, Patty Niemann, who saw the car chase and later heard the gunshots, said drug sales and prostitution were obvious at several houses along the street. She, too, criticized the police for inaction.

"It's getting worse," she said. "My girls sleep in the front room. They're not going to be safe here, and I don't feel safe. I'm moving. I'm not going to stay here. This is bad."

She said gangs were involved in the violence.

"Fifteen or 20 of them with clubs or poles?" she said. "I call that a gang."

Police Lt. Michael Schirling, the district commander, said a door-to door police survey of a cross-section of the Old North End on July 14 didn't uncover widespread fear.

"The number one complaint was traffic violations, number two was property crimes and three was drugs," he said. He said police work with residents at monthly meetings to try to solve the problems identified through surveys.

Decker said a new storefront police office has recently been opened at the intersection of North and Drew streets, and a prosecutor has been assigned "to take a personal interest in improving that area.

"We're still trying to put it all together," he said of the Tuesday gunshots, "trying to understand the true motivations, but I would describe this more as families than as gangs, whether they're involved in a feud over insults or illegal activity."

Contact John Briggs at 660-1863 or jbriggs@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com
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ID theft case raises concern over public records

- By Matt Sutkoski -- Free Press Staff Writer -- Friday, August 15, 2003

David Hodgdon walked into Winooski City Hall last week, police said, and copied down Social Security numbers from property transfer tax return forms.

The forms are public record -- anyone can go to any Vermont town or city clerk's office and look at them.

Hodgdon allegedly used the information to order credit cards and computer equipment using the identity of the people on the Winooski property transfer forms, said Winooski Police Detective James Fuller.

Winooski police, working with the U.S. Secret Service, cited Hodgdon, 33, of Colchester with felony false pretense. He is scheduled for arraignment in Vermont District Court in Burlington on Oct. 27.

Hodgdon could not be reached for comment Thursday.

The case highlights the difficulty of preventing identity theft while making sure people have access to public records.

Following a similar incident last year, state officials told town clerks they could black out Social Security numbers from property transfer forms, said Charles Merriman, a special state assistant attorney general.

Social Security numbers are often crossed out before copies of the forms go to town clerks, Merriman said.

Buyers and sellers of every property conveyed in Vermont fill out the property transfer tax forms. About 30,000 are processed each year in Vermont, Merriman said. Copies of the form go to each community where a property was sold or exchanged.

Some municipal clerks are uncomfortable with altering the forms, Merriman said, because their job is to record legal documents, not change them.

Merriman said the state's Property Valuation and Review office, which administers property transfers, has assured town clerks that it is legal for them to black out the Social Security numbers from the forms.

In Milton, Town Clerk John Cushing says the town often crosses out the Social Security numbers, and always when somebody requests it. There's not much that can be done about the thousands of transfers stored in the town vault from previous years.

Cushing said he and other staffers discreetly ask people why they are looking at the records, "but if somebody says it's none of our business, we have to walk away," he said.

Cushing said it might be time to make the property records confidential, like personnel files, and force people to seek the transfer information from the state office.

About one-tenth of recently submitted property transfers in the Burlington assessor's office contain Social Security numbers.

Records Clerk Mary O'Neil said people who bought or sold property in Burlington more than three years ago need not worry, because the records are in storage and not readily available for public review.

In Vermont, people who are worried about their Social Security numbers on forms in municipal clerks' offices can call and have the numbers obscured.

Starting this week in Winooski, city employees are crossing out the Social Security numbers from all property transfer records that come in, said Janet Brouard, a bookkeeper for the city.

Fuller said Hodgdon's fraud plan began to unravel when a credit card company called a Winooski woman to ask why she applied for three credit cards within a 24-hour period. The woman, whom police did not identify, said she had not ordered any credit cards.

The online application had the woman's correct name and Social Security number, but other personal details were wrong, Fuller said.

The woman contacted Winooski police, as did two other Winooski residents with similar stories, Fuller said.

Police investigated and were able to trace the fraud to Hodgdon, Fuller said. Winooski police obtained a search warrant for Hodgdon's Heather Circle home, and with Colchester police and the U.S. Secret Service seized computer equipment and other evidence from Hodgdon's home, Fuller said.

The fraud charges are not Hodgdon's only recent brush with the law. Winooski police said they cited Hodgdon last week for prescription fraud. Fuller said Hodgdon pretended to be a doctor to phone in a prescription for pain medication.
Free Press Staff Writer Andy Netzel contributed to this report. Contact Matt Sutkoski at 660-1846 or msutkosk@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com

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James Provost is accused of Murder

- By Modisane Kwanza
Free Press Staff Writer
Thursday, October 24, 2002

A Burlington man stabbed a 41-year-old woman to death and then returned several times to her apartment where he had left her decaying body, police said he told them.

James Provost, 23, pleaded innocent to first degree murder Wednesday in Vermont District Court. He is accused of killing Susan Dow in her North Winooski Avenue apartment.

"He admitted to killing her," Burlington Police Lt. Walt Decker said after Provost's arraignment Wednesday. "The motive was robbery."

Court documents chronicled what Decker called "a sad tale."

Provost told police he had smoked crack cocaine with Dow at her apartment the night she was killed. After she went to bed, he went to her bedroom and began going through her belongings.

Dow awoke, and the two struggled. Provost told police he grabbed a heavy brass object from the dresser and struck Dow in the head. The woman was not unconscious, so Provost pulled a silver-folding knife from his pocket and "jabbed" her to get her to stop fighting.

Dow continued screaming, Provost told police in court documents, and he became scared and decided to "kill her." Provost repeatedly stabbed Dow for about 20 minutes with the woman screaming for help until she was dead, according to the police affidavit.

About three hours later, Provost said he left the apartment taking some of Dow's belongings, including her credit cards, car keys and car, and $2,000 in cash. He disposed of the bloody clothing in a Dumpster behind K-Mart in South Burlington, Provost told police, and threw the knife and brass object into Lake Champlain, according to court documents.

Monday afternoon, when police went to the apartment to check on Dow, who neighbors said had not been seen for weeks, they found her decomposed body covered by layers of blankets and pillows. Police suspect Dow was killed between Sept. 22 and Oct. 10, but no date of death has been determined. Candles were burning in the apartment. The mail and newspapers had recently been brought in.

In court documents, Provost told police he lit the candles and dumped potpourri on the body to hide the smell. He also said that he collected the mail and newspapers in an attempt to keep people from discovering Dow's body. Police found a note on the apartment door stating she was out of town, and Provost told police he had written it.

Provost was taken into custody Tuesday on outstanding warrants for domestic assault and violating conditions of release for another domestic assault charge. At the time, he was considered a suspect in Dow's death, but the murder charge was not filed until Wednesday morning, after further investigation, Decker said.

Police were alerted to Provost's possible involvement in Dow's death Monday night, according to court documents, by a one-time girlfriend, Yvonne Chabot. Provost had been driving around in Dow's car for the past three weeks, Chabot told police. She told the officer that she had "put it all together" after seeing a news report on the suspicious death at Dow's address, and said, "I think he murdered Sue."

Chabot could not be located for comment Wednesday night.

Chabot told police that Provost might go to a friend's home on North Winooski Avenue. Tuesday, police caught Provost hiding on the roof of the building and he was taken into custody. Police also searched the residence and found a receipt for Dow's credit card dated Oct. 20 and apparently signed "James Provost."

Prosecutors argued in court that Provost should be denied bail because he had violated previous release conditions and because of the gravity of the charge.

"The evidence of guilt was great because he admitted he killed the victim and the physical evidence supported his guilt," prosecutor Robert Simpson said.

Judge Matthew Katz ordered Provost held without bail at the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility in South Burlington. Provost was represented in court by public defender Kirstin Schoonover. He will be assigned an attorney later.

If convicted of the murder charge, Provost faces life in prison.

A person who answered the phone at the Pennsylvania home of Barb Smith, Provost's mother, said she did not want to comment.

Contact Modisane Kwanza at 660-1833, or mkwanza@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com.

Friday, October 25, 2002

Victim overcame battles, except one that killed her

By Emily Stone
Free Press Staff Writer

WHITE RIVER JUNCTION -- Susan Dow was a teenager before her family figured out that she was nearly deaf.

Still, she had learned to read lips well enough to excel as a student. She graduated from high school with honors and attended Dartmouth College, her brother said.

"She overcame a lot of battles," said Frank Dow Jr. "Except this one."

He was referring to his sister's violent death in Burlington. Susan Dow, 41, was found dead Monday in her North Winooski Avenue apartment. Police say she was stabbed to death two to three weeks before by an acquaintance who planned to rob her. The man, James Provost, pleaded innocent Wednesday to first-degree murder.

"She didn't deserve this," said Frank Dow Jr., 45, his eyes wetting with tears as he stood in front of his White River Junction home Thursday.

Her father, Frank Dow Sr., described his daughter as "very loving." She liked playing cards, going to yard sales, spending time with children and listening to music. She also battled depression for many years, he said, but was doing well enough to live on her own in Burlington.

Susan Dow was the youngest of four children. The family started out in Danbury, Conn., but moved to Vermont in 1969. Susan Dow graduated from Hartford High School in 1979 and attended Dartmouth College, where her father worked as groundskeeper. Frank Dow Jr. said his sister was the only member of the family to go to college.

Susan Dow spent three years at Dartmouth. She dropped out after that. Her brother said he isn't sure why, but he said their parents split up around that time. Frank Dow Jr. said he believes that breakup precipitated his sister's depression, which she struggled with for the rest of her life.

The depression kept Susan Dow from working steadily, her brother said. She had worked jobs after college, though he wasn't sure what. The income was enough that she could live on her own in Burlington, where she moved more than a decade ago, her brother said. At the time of her death, she was receiving Social Security, he said.

Provost, 23, told police that he went to Susan Dow's apartment to buy marijuana, according to court papers. Frank Dow Jr. said he knew his sister smoked marijuana.

"That doesn't make her a bad person," he said.

The rest of Provost's story doesn't add up, Frank Dow Jr. said.

Provost told police that he and Susan Dow smoked crack cocaine, which he had brought, according to the court papers. He said she went to sleep in her bedroom. He then followed her into the bedroom with the intention of robbing her.

Provost said Susan Dow woke up and the two began to struggle, the papers said. He told police he hit her with a heavy object, but when she didn't stop screaming, Provost pulled out a knife and stabbed her repeatedly. He then covered her body, stole her car keys and some cash and left. He told police he returned to the apartment several times to take more belongings, which he traded for crack.

Frank Dow Jr. said his sister would never have fallen asleep with someone else in the apartment, even her own family. And if she had been smoking crack, she would have had too much adrenaline to fall asleep at all.

Susan Dow's family began to worry when she didn't return repeated answering machine messages, her father said. They called a relative closer to Burlington who went to check on her. The police were called, and they found her body.

Frank Dow Jr. said he is comforted some by the fact that his sister, who often fell into a state of severe depression, did not take her own life.

"God must have had a plan that was different than ours was," he said. "I know she's with Him now, because she was that kind of person."
Contact Emily Stone at 660-1898 or estone@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com

Saturday, October 26, 2002

Drugs found in inquiry of slaying

By Emily Stone
Free Press Staff Writer

Police announced Friday that they seized 3 pounds of cocaine and $12,000 in cash as a result of the ongoing investigation into the recent killing of a Burlington woman.

Also on Friday, a second person was charged in connection with the crime for using the dead woman's credit cards. Police said more arrests are expected. They gave few details about the drugs or cash, but did say the drugs were not connected to the victim.

Susan Dow's body was found by police Monday in her North Winooski Avenue apartment after they were contacted by worried relatives. Police said Dow, 41, had been dead for two to three weeks.

James Provost, 23, pleaded innocent Wednesday to a first-degree murder charge. Provost told police he killed Dow after she woke up while he was trying to rob her, according to court papers. The two knew each other.

Provost's one-time girlfriend, Evonne Chabot, 28, was in court Friday to answer to charges that she and Provost went shopping with Dow's stolen credit cards. Chabot pleaded innocent to three charges of using or trying to use the stolen credit cards and one charge of violating her probation on a previous drunken-driving conviction.

According to court papers, Chabot told police that she and Provost used the cards at Kmart, Price Chopper and two gas stations, and were turned away at The Gap and Filene's when they tried to buy clothes there.

Chabot allegedly told police that she had "suspicions" that Provost killed Dow. After news of Dow's death became public, Chabot called police and helped lead them to Provost.

Chabot tearfully interjected comments to the judge while the lawyers spoke during her arraignment in Vermont District Court in Burlington. At one point she put her head down on the table that she was standing behind.

"This woman was a friend of mine," she said. She also spoke up when the judge mentioned Chabot's suspicions about Dow's death. "Suspicion doesn't make it fact, your honor."

Burlington Police Chief Alana Ennis said at a news conference Friday that Provost had a substantial drug history. She said that on Thursday and Friday, police executed a number of search warrants in the area that netted some of Dow's property as well as weapons, a small amount of heroin and the large amount of cocaine and cash.

The roughly $50,000 worth of cocaine was taken from a Colchester home, Ennis said. She would not say whose home it was nor where the cash was found. She said more arrests are likely but would not say when or how many.

Provost told police he went to Dow's home to buy marijuana from her, according to court papers. He said he and Dow then smoked some crack he brought and Dow went to sleep in her bedroom. Provost said he went into Dow's bedroom to rob her, according to court papers. Dow woke up and Provost hit her with a heavy object, he told police. When she didn't stop screaming, he decided to stab her.

Dow's friends and family said they don't buy Provost's story. Dow used marijuana but not crack, they said.

"No, she was not doing that," said her friend Tammy Erkins, who used to live in the same apartment building. "I know her."

Dow suffered from severe depression and was not working when she was killed. She was originally from White River Junction, where she was an honor roll high school student. She went on to attend Dartmouth College for three years before dropping out, according to her family.

Provost and Chabot are being held without bail.

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Murder charges filed in Burlington shooting

- By Emily Stone -- Free Press Staff Writer -- Saturday, October 12, 2002

A South Burlington man was charged Friday with murder, and his brother and another man were charged with attempted robbery, bringing the total number of people charged in connection with Wednesday's shooting in Burlington to five.

Daniel Jones, 22, pleaded innocent to a charge of first-degree murder for the shooting of Elrehaine Whitely in an alley off Pine Street. Jesse Jones, 17, and Richard Hooper, 21, both pleaded innocent to attempted assault and robbery.

Police, the prosecutor and court papers describe a plan by the five defendants to rob Whitely, 27, after setting up a drug deal with him.

Two 18-year-olds were charged Thursday in connection with the crime. Errol Richards and Stephanie Dellavecchio pleaded innocent to attempted assault and robbery and conspiracy to deliver a drug.

Chittenden County State's Attorney Robert Simpson said Friday that he has asked that Richards' charge be upgraded to include first-degree murder. The change awaits a judge's ruling.

Simpson said Daniel Jones and Richards fired guns while attempting to rob Whitely. According to witness statements and the location of the bullet casings, Daniel Jones appears to have fired the fatal shots, he said.

Twenty-one Burlington police officers worked on the case, along with about a dozen federal, state and local officers, Burlington Chief Alana Ennis said. Officers also seized 10 ounces of cocaine worth $16,000. Police declined to say where the cocaine was discovered. The investigation is ongoing, they said.

According to court papers, Daniel Jones asked Dellavecchio to set up a drug deal to buy about $1,500 worth of cocaine from Whitely at about 2:30 a.m. Wednesday. When Whitely arrived in his car along with Yosef Pitts, Daniel Jones and Richards approached the car holding guns and wearing masks.

Jesse Jones was a short distance away, holding an expandable baton. His brother had asked him to act as backup if needed, Detective Steven Dumas said in court papers. Hooper was waiting down the street in his car.

Jesse Jones, who was interviewed by police, said he heard a series of gunshots. He and Hooper then drove and picked up Daniel Jones and Richards. Jesse Jones said his brother was shaking and said, "I think I shot him in the back," according to the papers.

Whitely and Pitts had by that point sped off in their car. Pitts drove Whitely to Fletcher Allen Health Care, where Whitely died later that morning.

Hooper, who was also interviewed by police, said he lent Daniel Jones the two guns used in the shooting, one of which was his and one of which was a friend's.

Richards had told police that Daniel Jones and someone named Robert were the two people carrying guns during the attempted robbery, according to court papers. Simpson said he believes Robert is "fictitious."

Daniel Jones was a furloughed prisoner living with his mother while finishing sentences on a series of convictions, including possession of heroin. He was listed Wednesday as an escapee when he couldn't be located by police, and an arrest warrant was issued for him. He was arrested Thursday afternoon after police learned that he was at Fletcher Allen for a heroin overdose.

Daniel and Jesse Jones are the brothers of Christal Jones, who was killed last year while working as a prostitute in the Bronx.

In court Friday, Daniel Jones turned around and mouthed "I love you," to his mother and girlfriend, who were sitting behind him. He is being held without bail.

Jesse Jones is being held on $100,000 bail, as are Richards and Hooper. Judge Ben Joseph indicated that he would be willing to reduce Hooper's bail, and a hearing was set for Monday to address the issue more fully.

Dellavecchio was released into a Howard Center for Human Services program that provides 24-hour supervision.

This is the first homicide in Burlington since March 1999 when Davis Chan shot his business partner and his partner's wife at the Panda Inn Chinese restaurant they owned together.
Contact Emily Stone at 660-1898 or estone@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com
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Police say man said he stabbed woman in home

- By Modisane Kwanza -- Free Press Staff Writer -- Thursday, October 24, 2002

Restaurateur sentenced for killing partners

- By Emily Stone
Free Press Staff Writer
Thursday, October 24, 2002

Davis Chan was sentenced Wednesday to 20 years to life in prison for killing his business partner and his partner's wife 3 years ago at the Burlington restaurant they owned together.

Chan's lawyer argued that his client, now 52, was hallucinating on the day he shot Shiao-Fa and Tong-Hsiang Tao at the Panda Inn Chinese restaurant. The prosecutor said Chan slipped into a state of serious mental illness after he killed his two friends.

Chan's lawyer had planned to use an insanity defense if the case had gone to trial. Instead, Chan pleaded guilty in July to two counts of second-degree murder, which had been reduced from the original charges of first-degree murder.

Judge Michael Kupersmith said he didn't think Chan's mental condition led him to kill the Taos.

"I don't believe his mental state contributed to his pulling the trigger that afternoon," Kupersmith said.

Both lawyers said Chan is diabetic and in poor health, so the 20-year sentence could mean that Chan spends much or all of the rest of his life in jail. The defense had asked for a 15-year minimum sentence and the state asked for a 25-year minimum.

The Taos' youngest daughter, Ellen Tao, spoke at the hearing in Vermont District Court in Burlington. She lives in California with her brother, Charlie Tao. Their older sister, Jennifer Tao, moved to Taiwan after her parents' deaths.

"I will never be free from the sorrow inside me," said Ellen Tao, 19. "All I can do is cry."

Her parents died a few days before her 16th birthday, so she couldn't celebrate at the sweet 16 party they had planned, she said. Every year since, her birthday has left her feeling empty, she said.

Ellen Tao said that although she and her siblings have lost both parents, Chan's three children still have a father who can be proud of them and encourage them.

"All we have are pictures in our albums and memories in our minds," she said.

Chan later addressed the court and expressed remorse.

"I'm very, very, terribly, terribly sorry for Mr. and Mrs. Tao. I'm very sorry for their family," Chan said. He looked over at Ellen Tao, who was sitting with a cousin. They stared straight ahead, avoiding Chan's gaze.

Chan's three children, his wife, mother, sister and brother sat behind him in court. A few wiped their eyes during the hearing. On the other side of the room, Ellen Tao covered her face with her hands a few times or simply cried quietly while the lawyers and judge spoke of her parents' deaths.

After the hearing, Ellen Tao said the sentence was too light.

"My family feels that 20 years is not enough for what he has done to our parents," she said.

She also said Chan's apology was not credible.

"We don't believe a word that he said," she said. "We don't think he's sincere. He never said he was sorry for what he did until today, when he had to say something to the judge."

The crime

When questioned by Kupersmith, Chan said he couldn't remember all the details of what happened March 22, 1999.

"All of a sudden, fears overcame me," he said. "I shot my close friend."

Chittenden County State's Attorney Robert Simpson outlined how Chan went to the Shelburne Road restaurant and got into a heated argument with the Taos. Chan and the Taos had been business partners since 1990, but the relationship had soured. Chan believed the Taos were unfairly trying to force him out of the restaurant.

Chan fought with the Taos in the kitchen, as Jennifer Tao stood nearby on the other side of the take-out window. Shiao-Fa Tao opened the window and asked his daughter to call the police, Simpson said. Chan then shot Shiao-Fa Tao three times and shot Tong-Hsiang Tao once.

"He's aware that Jennifer Tao is out there. Then he kills her parents," Simpson said.

Simpson stressed how calm Chan appeared to witnesses the day of the killing, both before and after the crime. Chan spoke to his accountant less than an hour before the shootings and seemed fine, Simpson said.

Simpson played the 911 tape of the call Chan made to police, in which he said he shot his partner.

"I just killed somebody. I need the police," Chan said in a steady voice on the tape.
Mental problems

Chan's lawyer, George McMahon, said Chan was a hard-working, family-oriented man until he started to show signs of mental health problems in 1995.

That was the year Chan and the Taos started disagreeing over the future of the restaurant. Chan went to a lawyer and said he didn't want to live and that he needed a will. The lawyer took him to the Howard Center for Human Services, where a counselor diagnosed him as potentially suicidal and homicidal, McMahon said.

The counselor prescribed medication, which Chan took until the prescription ran out. That was the extent of his counseling, McMahon said.

McMahon and Simpson's main dispute was whether Chan was suffering from a serious mental illness before the murders or if the murders prompted the onset of his delusions. Chan was held until Wednesday at the Vermont State Hospital since the murders. It took more than two years for a judge to rule him competent to stand trial.

"For him to do this, something was horribly wrong with his mind," McMahon said, noting that Chan had no previous criminal record.

Chan will serve his sentence in the psychiatric unit of the Northwest State Correctional Facility in St. Albans. With credit for good behavior and for the time he has served, Chan could be out of prison in about 11 years.
Contact Emily Stone at 660-1898 or estone@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com

2002 homicides

Here is an unofficial review of Vermont homicides in 2002. The numbers become official after being checked at the end of the year.
-- Michael D. Blood, 26, of Brattleboro who died of head trauma after an assault Feb. 3. Nathan Hazlet of Brattleboro has been charged with manslaughter and is awaiting trial.
-- Declan Lyons, 24, of Montpelier was shot April 12 while stirring an outdoor caldron of tomato sauce at the American Flatbread restaurant in Waitsfield. Isaac Turnbaugh, 18, of Moretown is being held after pleading innocent to a first-degree murder charge in Vermont District Court in Barre.
-- The body of Elwyn White, 40, of Barre was found in a shallow grave in Northfield in May. White had been killed a year before the body was found. White was a heroin user who had been convicted of domestic assault and several other crimes. The case is under investigation. No arrests have been made.
-- The bodies of Colleen K. Davis, 33, of Athens and Gregg Enos, 33, of Brattleboro are discovered in Enos' pickup truck, parked in the Mollie Beattie State Forest in Grafton. Charles Sherman, 42, and Michael Perez, 20, both of Bellows Falls, have pleaded innocent to charges of aiding in aggravated murder which police say took place on June 24.
-- Elrehaine Whitely, 27, of New York is shot to death in a Pine Street alley in Burlington on Oct. 9. Daniel Jones, 22, of South Burlington has pleaded innocent to a charge of first-degree murder. Four others have been cited on lesser charges.
-- Janet Allain, 56, of Richford is shot to death in her home on Oct. 12. Her husband, Richard Allain, 58, of Richford, has pleaded innocent to one count of second-degree murder and one count of arson.
-- Maurice Lizotte, 63, of Rochester dies Oct. 17 following an armed confrontation with Vermont State Police at his home on Oct. 15. Vermont State Police are investigating the shoot-out. If the shooting is ruled justified, it will not be reported as a crime statistic.
-- Susan M. Dow, 41, of Burlington is found in her apartment at 71 N. Winooski Ave. on Monday. Police say she has been dead for some time and died of trauma. James Provost, 23, of Burlington pleads innocent to first-degree murder in Vermont District Court on Wednesday.

Past years

The number of homicides in Vermont for the past five years:
-- 2001: 8
-- 2000: 12
-- 1999: 17
-- 1998: 12
-- 1997: 9
Source: The Vermont Crime Information Center
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