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Subchapter 001: TRIAL GENERALLY
§ 6501. Rights of accused
On the trial of an information or indictment, the party accused may defend himself
or herself, be heard by counsel, produce witnesses and proofs in his or her favor,
and shall be confronted with the witnesses produced against him or her.
§ 6502. Presumption of innocence
The presumption of innocence in criminal causes shall attend the accused until the
jury renders a verdict of guilty, and the court shall charge the jury accordingly.
This presumption of innocence is a proper subject of comment in argument.
§ 6503. Repealed. 1971, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 9, eff. date, see note set out below.
§ 6504. Employment of counsel on behalf of State
In the examination of a person charged with a crime exceeding the jurisdiction of
a Criminal Division of the Superior Court to try and determine, commenced upon the
complaint of a complaining officer not entitled to draw a salary, and in the trial
of person before such court upon the complaint of such an officer, charging him or
her with a crime within the jurisdiction of such court to try and determine, where
the fine is payable to the State, such officer may employ counsel at the expense of
the State, when the State’s Attorney is disqualified or unable seasonably to attend
at such examination or trial. (Amended 1965, No. 194, § 10, operative February 1, 1967; 1973, No. 249 (Adj. Sess.), § 53, eff. April 9, 1974; 2009, No. 154, § 238.)
§ 6505. Payment
The Commissioner of Finance and Management shall allow counsel so employed a reasonable
compensation for his or her services and expenses and shall issue his or her warrant
for the amount allowed. Compensation shall not be allowed where it appears to the
Commissioner that the prosecution was superfluous and instituted to enhance costs,
nor in the trial of a person upon a complaint for intoxication or for any other offense
against the title relating to alcoholic beverages, except where the respondent pleads
not guilty. (Amended 1959, No. 329 (Adj. Sess.), § 8; 2017, No. 83, § 146.)
§§ 6506, 6507. Repealed. 1973, No. 118, § 25, eff. Oct. 1, 1973.
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Subchapter 002: PLEADINGS AND PROOF
§§ 6551-6554. Repealed. 1973, No. 118, § 25, Oct. 1, 1973.
§ 6555. Nolle prosequi when proof shows greater offense than charged
If, upon the trial of a person charged with an offense, the facts given in evidence
amount in law to a greater offense than the one charged, such person shall not by
reason thereof be acquitted, but the court, in its discretion, may allow a nolle prosequi
to be entered in order that he or she may be prosecuted for the greater offense.
§ 6556. Former acquittal a bar
A person shall not be held to answer on a second complaint, information, or indictment
for an offense of which he or she was acquitted by a jury upon the merits on a former
trial. Such acquittal may be pleaded in bar of a subsequent prosecution for the same
offense, notwithstanding defects in the form or substance of the complaint, information,
or indictment on which he or she was acquitted.
§ 6557. Exceptions
When a person is acquitted by reason of a variance between the complaint, information,
or indictment and the proof, or upon an exception to the form or substance of the
complaint, information, or indictment, he or she may be arraigned again on a new complaint,
information, or indictment and may be tried and convicted for the same offense notwithstanding
such former acquittal.
§ 6558. Allegation and proof of ownership
In the prosecution of an offense committed upon, or in relation to, or in any way
affecting real estate, or an offense committed in stealing, embezzling, injuring,
or fraudulently receiving or concealing money or other personal estate, it shall be
sufficient and not deemed a variance if it is proved on trial that, at the time when
the offense was committed, the actual or constructive possession, or the general or
special property in whole or in part of such real or personal estate was in the person
alleged in the complaint, information, or indictment to be the owner thereof.
§ 6559. Allegation and proof of intent to defraud
When an intent to defraud is required to constitute a criminal offense, it shall be
sufficient to allege in the complaint, information, or indictment an intent to defraud,
without naming the person or body corporate intended to be defrauded. On trial it
shall be sufficient and shall not be deemed a variance if there appears to have been
an intent to defraud the United States, a state, county, town, city, district, a body
corporate, a public officer in his or her official capacity, a partnership or members
thereof, or a person.
§ 6560. Truth as defense in prosecution for libel or defamation
If a person is prosecuted by information or indictment for uttering and publishing
a libel or for defaming the civil authority of the State, under a plea of not guilty,
he or she may give evidence as to the truth of the words contained in such supposed
libel, as set forth in the information or indictment. If he or she proves their truth
to the satisfaction of the jury, it shall find the respondent not guilty in its verdict.
§§ 6561-6564. Repealed. 1973, No. 118, § 25, eff. Oct. 1, 1973.
§ 6565. Pleas
(a) In prosecutions for felonies, the State’s Attorney shall place on record in open court
the content of the plea agreement, including the offenses charged and the disposition
of those charges.
(b) No plea agreement shall be binding upon the court nor shall it limit the court in
the judgment and sentence to be imposed. A defendant may not withdraw a plea of guilty
or nolo contendere except as provided in Rule 32(d) of the Vermont Rules of Criminal
Procedure.
(c)(1) Prior to accepting a plea of guilty or a plea of nolo contendere from a defendant
in a criminal proceeding pursuant to Rule 11 of the Vermont Rules of Criminal Procedure,
the court shall address the defendant personally in open court, informing the defendant
and determining that the defendant understands that, if he or she is not a citizen
of the United States, admitting to facts sufficient to warrant a finding of guilt
or pleading guilty or nolo contendere to a crime may have the consequences of deportation
or denial of U.S. citizenship.
(2) If the court fails to advise the defendant in accordance with this subsection, and
he or she later at any time shows that the plea and conviction may have or has had
a negative consequence regarding his or her immigration status, the court, upon the
defendant’s motion, shall vacate the judgment and permit the defendant to withdraw
the plea or admission and enter a plea of not guilty.
(d) Each State’s Attorney shall submit an annual report to the Office of the Executive
Director of the State’s Attorneys, in such form as the Executive Director may require,
providing information as to the use of plea agreements. (Added 1981, No. 223 (Adj. Sess.), § 21; amended 1983, No. 229 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; 2005, No. 121 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 2006; 2017, No. 14, § 1.)
§ 6566. Defense based on victim identity prohibited
In a prosecution or sentencing for any criminal offense, the following shall not be
used as a defense to the defendant’s criminal conduct, to establish a finding that
the defendant suffered from diminished capacity, to justify the defendant’s use of
force against another, or to otherwise mitigate the severity of the offense:
(1) evidence of the defendant’s discovery of, knowledge about, or the potential disclosure
of the crime victim’s actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity, including
under circumstances in which the victim made a nonforcible, noncriminal romantic or
sexual advance toward the defendant; or
(2) evidence of the defendant’s perception or belief, even if inaccurate, of the gender,
gender identity, or sexual orientation of a crime victim. (Added 2021, No. 18, § 1, eff. May 5, 2021.)