Brief filed: 04/21/2020
Documents
Vermont v. Sanville
Vermont Superior Court; Case No. 263-3-18
Argument(s)
The COVID-19 pandemic is of unprecedented national and global significance, necessitating a drastic local response. The rate of infection in the Vermont DOC is striking in comparison both to the rate of infection in Vermont as a whole, and even compared to the highest rate of infection for any state in the country. The Department of Corrections is demonstrably ill-equipped to adequately respond to the pandemic, and the Court must intervene to protect the constitutional rights of those incarcerated. The Court should join with judges from other jurisdictions across the country, who have reviewed inmate motions and petitions similar to those that are currently before this Court, and who have taken steps to reduce incarceration by releasing inmates on bail in light of this unprecedented pandemic and the conditions of confinement issues it brings to light.
Author(s)
Lindsay A. Lewis, NACDL, New York, NY; Paul S. Volk and Kasey Emmons; Blodgett, Watts & Volk P.C., Burlington, VT.
