Rutland Herald Editorial Fighting crime October 29, 2014 Marc Brierre has served five years as Rutland County state’s attorney and 26 years before that as a deputy in the same office. He and his staff have handled the state’s heaviest caseload, and Brierre is proud of the efficiency and competence of his operation. Recent events, however, have undermined public confidence in Brierre’s ability to handle difficult cases and have provided the foundation of a strong challenge by Rose Kennedy, who had been a deputy working for Brierre until she told him earlier this year she would be running against him. One of the most troubling cases handled by Rutland’s legal and social service systems in recent years has been that of Dezirae Sheldon, the 2-year-old girl who police say was murdered by her stepfather. What Kennedy learned when she became lead prosecutor in the case motivated her to challenge her boss as the head prosecutor for Rutland County. In the spring of last year Dezirae appeared at the Rutland Regional Medical Center with two broken legs. Her mother was convicted of negligence because of the delay in reporting her daughter’s injuries, but the assault on the little girl was never prosecuted. Brierre says that the case he received from police and the social welfare system did not include an investigation of or charges against who had injured Dezirae, and so he never had the basis to prosecute the underlying crime. Kennedy says that if she is elected state’s attorney, she will take a more active role in shaping cases, working with police to secure evidence so that crimes like that against Dezirae are not ignored. She says the resolution of the earlier case involving Dezirae was “shocking.” Brierre argues that it is not a good practice for the prosecutor to become too closely involved with the details of a police investigation. Kennedy has a different idea. As the official in charge of putting together the legal case against an offender, the state’s attorney is in a position to help police build a strong case. Often there is tension between police and prosecutors, Kennedy says, but it is a tension with a useful purpose. Police believe Kennedy would make a better prosecutor than Brierre. The Vermont Troopers Association has endorsed her. So have Mayor Christopher Louras and Attorney General William Sorrell. The police have a particular reason for disappointment in Brierre because of the outcome of the case of Jennifer Berube. She is the woman who attacked Rutland City Police Officer Damon Nguyen in the police station in an incident captured on videotape. Brierre charged her with attempted murder for the knife attack, but a jury acquitted her. Brierre had chosen not to give the jury the option of convicting her of a lesser charge, so she went free. Police and city officials were appalled. Part of their dismay had to do with Brierre’s legal strategy. But observers of the trial also came away with the sense that Brierre lacked the courtroom skills to present a strong case to the jury. It is not the first time that Brierre has seemed to courtroom observers to fail in making a favorable impression on juries. These high-stakes cases have had wide reverberations. Young Dezirae was later murdered. Confidence on the part of Rutland City officials in the state’s attorney was shattered because of the Berube acquittal. Kennedy, who worked for seven years handling difficult criminal cases for the Chittenden County state’s attorney, now is seeking to restore that confidence. Brierre counters that Kennedy lacks the experience that he brings to the job. It is a strong argument. We don’t know what apple carts Kennedy might upset if she takes over a practice that has been in the hands of Brierre and his predecessor for many decades. But justice requires that all sides are well represented. If a criminal defendant lacks competent defense, justice suffers. If the prosecution falters because of flawed judgments or shaky courtroom performance, then justice suffers. Kennedy is 44 years old and in her career has gravitated to the most difficult and trying criminal cases. She appears ready to bring a tough-minded, fair approach and new energy to a job that is crucial to Rutland’s ongoing fight against crime.
Posted on: Wed, 29 Oct 2014 10:07:44 +0000
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