A Franklin County Sheriff’s Office cruiser parked at the department’s headquarters in St. Albans Town. File photo by Shaun Robinson/VTDigger ST. ALBANS — A Fletcher man accused of critically injuring a sheriff’s deputy during a traffic stop pleaded not guilty in Vermont District Court in St. Albans Monday to an attempted second-degree murder charge.  Alexander T. Seagroves, 32, also pleaded not guilty to aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, eluding a law enforcement officer, grossly negligent operation of a vehicle and driving with a suspended or revoked license.  According to court proceedings, Seagroves also faces a violation of probation related to a 2020 case in which he was charged with attempting to elude law enforcement. He appeared virtually at his arraignment from a state correctional facility while more than a dozen uniformed police officers watched from the court gallery.  Judge Elizabeth Novotny ordered Seagroves held without bail, saying that she believed his release would pose a threat to public safety. Novotny said that, from the evidence so far available, she believed that Seagroves knew his actions might harm the sheriff’s deputy and that he was willing to flee “at all costs.” “He has no regard for human life,” Novotny said in court.  If convicted on the attempted second-degree murder charge, Seagroves could face up to life in prison.  Seagroves was arrested Friday after a traffic stop in Fairfax, during which he is accused of severely injuring sheriff’s deputy Jeff Barriger, 41.  Barriger was in critical but stable condition at the University of Vermont Medical Center as of Sunday morning, according to police. He had at least two skull fractures, including one to his orbital bone, and blood between his brain and skull, among other injuries, according to a police affidavit.    In court documents, police said that Seagroves’ license had been suspended after a DUI conviction and that he had two active warrants for arrest related to failures to appear in court.  Seagroves has also faced previous convictions for fleeing from police. He was sentenced in 2024 after pleading guilty to multiple charges, including negligent operation while eluding law enforcement, according to reporting in the Barre-Montpelier Times Argus.  Corporal Jeffery Barriger with the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office. Courtesy photo Police said in an affidavit that Barriger pulled a vehicle over Friday for driving 66 mph in a 50 mph zone. The car initially stopped, and the deputy interacted with the driver, who identified himself as Seagroves, according to the affidavit. After Barriger returned to his police vehicle, the affidavit says, he saw the car start to move. He again approached the car, and eventually grabbed onto the driver’s front door as the car began to drive, the affidavit said.  “The vehicle traveled a short distance while accelerating rapidly then braked abruptly at which point Deputy Barriger was thrown from the vehicle onto the roadway,” the affidavit said. The driver then fled the scene, according to the affidavit, and Seagroves was arrested later Friday at a home in Cambridge. There, police found the car they said was involved in the incident, the affidavit said.  Police accounts of the events were based in part on a review of footage from Barriger’s body cam, the affidavit said. That footage has not yet been publicly released or reviewed by VTDigger.  In an interview conducted and summarized by police in court documents, Seagroves said that he had been pulled over by Barriger on Friday, and after Barringer asked him to turn off and exit his car, he attempted to leave the scene.  READ MORE The summarized statement from Seagroves said that when Seagroves attempted to drive away, Barriger jumped onto the running board of his truck and attempted to remove the key from the ignition, but subsequently fell into the road after Seagroves used the brakes.  After Barriger fell into the road, Seagroves drove away, according to the summarized statement. A bystander who called 911 said that he had witnessed part of the incident, according to the police affidavit. In the summarized statement, Seagroves also told police that he had previously fled from law enforcement during traffic stops, and that police had previously drawn firearms on him, which he said contributed to his actions.  “We’re going to do everything we can to hold Mr. Seagroves accountable for his actions,” state prosecutor Bram Kranichfeld said.  Seagroves is expected to appear in court next week in the case. Read the story on VTDigger here: Man accused of critically injuring sheriff’s deputy had prior convictions for fleeing law enforcement. ...read more read less