Prosecutor Zach Weight, left, speaks during Chittenden County Community Accountability Court in Burlington on Friday, November 21, 2025. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger “I think we learned things that we already knew,” Defender General Matt Valerio told both the House and Senate judiciary co mmittees Wednesday.  Burlington’s accountability court pilot was successful, Valerio said, because it embedded social workers in the legal system.  Before the court’s pilot began in October, prosecutors and defense attorneys in Chittenden County saw the same people cycle through the court system for the same underlying issues that led them to commit crimes. They were often grappling with housing instability, mental health issues or substance abuse.  So Gov. Phil Scott announced he would funnel state dollars and resources to pilot a special court model. Defendants’ cases were assigned to the special court only if they had five or more pending legal cases against them. And in the designated courtroom, employees from the Vermont Agency of Human Services and other social service organizations worked with the attorneys and designated judge to help get defendants temporary housing or involved in recovery.  With officials touting the court’s success, Scott wants to bring the model elsewhere. In his budget proposal, Scott said he wants to spend $500,000 to bring the model to other counties. Though what the court may look like elsewhere will vary.  (Before the Burlington court got up and running, Chief Superior Judge Thomas Zonay estimated the additional costs for the pilot would be about $150,000.) Since October, a single judge and prosecutor made significant progress chipping away at the cases assigned to the court, resolving 702 out of 972 cases.  Chittenden County State’s Attorney Sarah George said the heavy lift has made a difference for her team of prosecutors. “Our cases are the lowest they’ve been since I’ve been a prosecutor,” said George, who has been a prosecutor for 15 years.  Zach Weight, who prosecuted the cases in the special court, said the court was very successful with connecting defendants to social services. Connecting them with resources, instead of sending them to prison, kept many from committing more crimes, he said.  “Some of them are doing exceptionally well,” Weight said.  Valerio attributes the court’s success, though, to the resources it has received. “This isn’t lawyering; social work made that happen,” he said. And not every county in the state has the social service organizations that Burlington does, Valerio pointed out.  Sen. Tanya Vyhovsky, P/D-Chittenden Central, said she worried about disparities in justice if only some counties were to roll out the court’s model.  Meanwhile, Rep. Angela Arsenault, D-Williston, worried the court wouldn’t last. “I’m worried that it’s going to be this great thing that we don’t sustain,” she said.  — Charlotte Oliver In the know Gov. Scott said at his weekly press conference Wednesday that he thinks the state should change the way it chooses a new adjutant general, which is the head of the state’s National Guard. Vermont is the only state in the country where legislators elect a guard chief, rather than leave it to the governor to appoint someone to the role. Vermont’s system means that military leaders seeking the job have to spend time in the Statehouse pitching themselves to legislators. That’s been the case in recent weeks, with the two candidates running this year — Deputy Adjutant General Henry “Hank” Harder, who’s a retired Air National Guard general, and Army National Guard Col. Roger “Brent” Zeigler — frequenting the cafeteria, handing out pamphlets with their resumes and appearing before legislative committees.  “Asking our military to go out and campaign, I think, is a slap in the face. I feel for them,” Scott said. “I think they deserve better.”The governor said he would prefer a system in which a panel of legislators vets and recommends candidates for his consideration, similar to how judges are appointed to the bench now. Scott said he is not endorsing either Harder or Zeigler to succeed the current adjutant general, Maj. Gen. Gregory Knight, who is retiring after seven years. The House and Senate will jointly elect one of the two next Thursday, Feb. 19.  “I think either would be great for the guard,” he said. — Shaun Robinson A ‘delicate dance’  A bill that would prevent all law enforcement officers, including federal agents, from wearing a mask passed the Senate floor on second reading Wednesday. During the roll call vote, 27 senators voted in favor of the bill while Sen. Russ Ingalls, R-Essex, and Sen. Terry Williams, R-Rutland, voted no.  Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Baruth, D/P-Chittenden Central, said ahead of the vote that the bill is a response to pleas from constituents who are calling on Vermont lawmakers to “do something” as they’re constantly exposed to pictures and videos of masked people in plainclothes pulling civilians into unmarked vehicles.  The bill, S. 208, would also require officers to visibly display their name or badge number and the agency they work for. There are some exceptions, though, for certain adventurous missions where a mask might be necessary, such as a mountain rescue in cold weather or an underwater scuba search.  Under the bill, state and municipal law enforcement officers would be tasked with issuing other officers a $1,000 citation for a first offense and a $2,500 citation for a second offense.  Baruth said he thinks the Senate Judiciary Committee, on which he sits, has made the bill ready to withstand legal challenges. “There is … a very delicate dance to be done with the federal government,” Baruth said.  At his weekly press conference Wednesday, Scott said he was supportive of the bill, though he didn’t want to say if he would sign it into law. He’ll have to see how things play out in the House, he said.  — Charlotte Oliver On the move The Senate Appropriations Committee passed out its version of this year’s midcycle budget tuneup on Tuesday. It is slated for consideration on the Senate floor Friday. Among other changes, the committee’s “budget adjustment” bill, H.790, includes a measure first proposed by Pro Tem Baruth that would allow state leaders to reimburse cities and towns for public safety costs that might be incurred in the event of a major deployment of federal immigration agents. The money would come out of a pot that lawmakers already set aside in the current year’s budget. — Shaun Robinson In the air The Vermont Air National Guard’s F-35s are headed to the Middle East, according to media reports. That movement appeared to be the plan earlier this week, as at least some of the guard’s aircraft were spotted at a mid-Atlantic military base en route to the region.  Now, the F-35s are possibly bound for Jordan, joining other U.S. forces amassing for a possible attack on Iran.  At Wednesday’s presser, Gov. Scott said he had no information about the guard’s movements beyond what he’d read in the news. “I would hate to see us involved in another war of any sort. So, I would hope that this is just, maybe, saber-rattling and building up forces — if that’s what it is — into the Middle East to force a negotiation.” — Ethan Weinstein and Shaun Robinson The hand that feeds The Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife was serving venison in the cafeteria Wednesday evening. Though my freezer supply is running pretty low, I did not partake.  — Ethan Weinstein I’m scaring them away… During a press conference with Senate Democrats in the Cedar Creek Room on bills S.208 and S.209, I asked lawmakers if they thought Scott was doing enough to fight back against President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda.  A few lawmakers tried to slyly scurry away from behind the podium. Not so fast! “I hope you notice everyone just left the room,” Baruth said.  “I don’t think any of us are doing enough,” he added. Handled like a true politician.  — Charlotte Oliver Department of corrections Yesterday’s newsletter referred erroneously to the effects of the state’s IT budget reforms. Read the story on VTDigger here: As pilot program sunsets in Burlington, lawmakers look to bring ‘accountability court’ elsewhere . ...read more read less