Sunday, July 16, 2017
The campaign finance documents provide the first glimpse into state politicians' campaign accounts since December 2016. Candidates for federal office file on a quarterly basis. (See fundraising totals from Vermont's congressional delegation here.)
Though the next state election is more than 15 months away, Donovan's campaign account appears unusually active. The first-term Democrat easily won the post last November, leaving him with $128,479 to spare. Since then, he picked up a $4,000 contribution from the Democratic Attorneys General Association.
Donovan also spent more than any other candidate over the last seven months, racking up $12,062 in expenses. Those included $6,450 for campaign software, $782 for a June event at Burlington's St. John's Club and $40 for a Mexican meal in Portland, Ore., in May. That left Donovan with $121,132 in his campaign account at the end of the reporting period.
Tags: Phil Scott , TJ Donovan , David Zuckerman , Beth Pearce , Jim Condos , Doug Hoffer , campaign finance , fundraising , Image , Web Only
Friday, July 14, 2017
A jury found former state senator Norm McAllister guilty of one misdemeanor count of prohibited acts involving prostitution Friday, but not guilty of a felony sexual assault charge and a second charge of prohibited acts.
The verdict came at 9:45 p.m. after more than three hours of deliberation. Earlier Friday, the man who formerly represented Franklin County in the legislature had surprised many by taking the witness stand to defend himself in a case that involved graphic testimony.
McAllister left the courthouse with his attorney, Bob Katims. They said that they would appeal the conviction, which could carry a sentence of up to one year in prison. No sentencing date was set.
McAllister was found guilty of arranging for a friend to have sex with a woman who lived in a trailer on his Franklin County farm. That was for money to cover the cost of her power bill, for which she had gotten behind, the woman testified.
Tags: Norm McAllister , Bob Katims , Image , Web Only , Video
Former state senator Norm McAllister took the witness stand in his own defense on Friday morning and said the woman who has accused him of sexual assault cajoled him into a months-long consensual relationship.
He was the final witness, and faced tough questions during cross-examination. Jurors began deliberating the case around 5:30 p.m.
McAllister forcefully denied ever coercing or assaulting the alleged victim during testimony in Franklin Superior Court. He claimed that she initiated a sexual relationship in January 2014, several months after she had come to live and work at his farm.
At the time, McAllister said, he was grieving the loss of his wife, who died of cancer in September 2013, only two months after she was diagnosed. Meanwhile, the victim had lost her children to the Department for Children and Families, and took the job in hopes of getting them back.
Tags: Norm McAllister , Bob Katims , John Lavoie , Franklin County , Image , Image , Web Only
"The [Public Utility Commission] has rightfully concluded that the history thus far raises questions about the depth of burial of the entire pipeline," said Jim Dumont, a Bristol lawyer who sought the investigation on behalf of several pipeline neighbors.
Construction of the 41-mile pipeline from Colchester to Middlebury, which was completed in April, has been controversial from the start. Dumont's challenge was the latest complaint by opponents, who allege that the company deliberately disregarded promised protocols for construction.
On Thursday, Dumont filed a supplementary allegation accusing Vermont Gas of more widespread violations of its commitment to bury the pipeline seven feet beneath streams and four feet below ground in residential areas.
Tags: Vermont Gas Systems , Public Utility Commission , Jim Dumont , Image , Web Only
Thursday, July 13, 2017
It was, to some, an ironic choice: The farm uses sludge and biosolids from a nearby wastewater treatment plant to fertilize some of its crops — a controversial practice in the environmental community. In fact, a bill under consideration in the Vermont legislature would ban the practice.
The new program is called the Vermont Environmental Stewardship Program. Farms enrolling in the program will be subject to soil testing and other measurements. If they pass the tests, they will be certified as using best-management practices to minimize their environmental impact.
Tags: Phil Scott , Julie Moore , Jon Groveman , Lorenzo Whitcomb , North Williston Cattle Company , Image , Web Only
The alleged victim in the sexual assault trial of former state senator Norm McAllister took the witness stand Thursday morning and said she agreed to a sex-for-rent scheme with him out of desperation.
Back in 2012, the woman testified, the Department for Children and Families had taken her children. She was living in a homeless shelter in St. Albans. To have any chance to get her kids back, she needed a job and a place to live, she testified. She answered a Craigslist ad for someone willing to live and work on a Highgate farm.
McAllister, who had taken out the ad, told her he had other applicants with more experience, she recalled.
She recounted the following conversation while on the witness stand in Franklin Superior Court: To land the job, she told McAllister she would be willing to do anything, including household chores, cooking meals or running errands.
Tags: Norm McAllister , Bob Katims , John Lavoie , Franklin County , Image , Web Only
Wednesday, July 12, 2017
Deputy Franklin County State's Attorney John Lavoie said that McAllister targeted a woman who was desperate to live in a dilapidated trailer he owned and to work on his Highgate farm. She allowed him to take advantage of her for years, Lavoie said.
"Rape is not about sex," Lavoie told jurors in Franklin Superior Court. "It's about the rapist using sex to exercise power and control."
Lavoie devoted most of his opening argument to unveiling a 30-minute recording of McAllister speaking on the telephone with the alleged victim. On the recording, McAllister discusses, in often graphic detail, some of their sexual encounters.
Tags: Norm McAllister , Bob Katims , John Lavoie , Franklin County , legislature , Image , Web Only
Chen is a former state representative, state health commissioner, and acting human services secretary who left state government in March; Lezak is a consultant in nonprofit management and grant writing who most recently worked at Mercy Connections, a Burlington nonprofit.
"This is a transition point for me," Chen explains. "It was a time to take stock and decide what you want your next adventure to be. Anne and I have always talked about spending time overseas. It's a perfect time to do it."
Tags: Harry Chen , Anne Lezak , Patrick Leahy , Uganda , state health commissioner , Image , Web Only
Authorities on Wednesday afternoon recovered the body of an 11-year-old boy who slipped and fell into the Winooski River on Tuesday evening.
Ali Muhina had been playing on the riverbank with friends when he slipped and fell into the water, friends and relatives told Seven Days. The other boys ran home to get help after they were unable to pull their friend back to safety. Witnesses on the other side of the river, just below the hydroelectric dam, called police.
Colchester Technical Rescue, the Winooski Fire Department and the Winooski Police Department started searching for the boy around 7 p.m. and ended for the night about three hours later. "It got too dangerous for the rescue team to recover anybody in the dark," said Winooski police chief Rick Hebert.
Tags: Ali Muhina , Winooski River , Winooski drowning , Christian Kibabu , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, July 11, 2017
Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Congressman Peter Welch (D-Vt.) both called for further investigation Tuesday. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who has refused Seven Days' interview requests for more than 26 months, did not respond to a request for comment.
The New York Times has reported in recent days that the president's son, Donald Trump Jr., and other top advisers met with a Russian attorney in June 2016 to discuss information that could damage Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. On Tuesday, the Times published emails suggesting that Trump Jr. knew the information came from Russian officials and was comfortable with that.
Leahy spokesperson David Carle said Vermont's senior senator "believes that Donald Jr.'s meeting raises exceedingly serious and troubling issues." He did not go as far as Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Clinton's 2016 running mate, who called Trump Jr.'s actions "beyond obstruction of justice" and "potentially treason."
"[Leahy] continues to believe that it's crucially important to gather all the facts … so determinations can be made about whether and what crimes were committed," Carle said.
Tags: Senator , Patrick Leahy , Peter Welch , Bernie Sanders , Donald Trump , Donald Trump Jr. , Russia , 2016 election , Image , Web Only