The Vermont Statutes Online
The Statutes below include the actions of the 2025 session of the General Assembly.
NOTE: The Vermont Statutes Online is an unofficial copy of the Vermont Statutes Annotated that is provided as a convenience.
§ 1001. Erection of lockups
At a meeting called for that purpose, a town or incorporated village may authorize
the selectboard of the town or trustees of the village, to purchase or erect and maintain
at the expense of the town or village within its corporate limits one or more lockups. (Added 1971, No. 199 (Adj. Sess.), § 20.)
§ 1002. Jailer; appointment; removal
The selectboard of a town or the trustees of an incorporated village may appoint a
jailer of the lockup and may remove him or her at pleasure. The appointment or removal
shall be in writing and recorded in the office of the town or village clerk. (Added 1971, No. 199 (Adj. Sess.), § 20.)
§ 1003. Commitments
When process is delivered to an officer to serve, requiring the officer to commit
a person to jail to await examination or trial before a Superior Court, if the order
for commitment was made within the limits of a town, incorporated village, or a county
maintaining a lockup, that person may be committed for not more than 72 hours, unless
the time is extended by court order, to the lockup and be subject to the restraints
and entitled to the privileges provided by law for persons confined in a correctional
facility. A person under 18 years of age charged or convicted of a misdemeanor may
not be detained in a lockup used to house inmates over 18 years of age, except as
provided in 33 V.S.A. § 5293. (Added 1971, No. 199 (Adj. Sess.), § 20; amended 1973, No. 193 (Adj. Sess.), § 3, eff. April 9, 1974; 1987, No. 182 (Adj. Sess.), § 6; 2013, No. 131 (Adj. Sess.), § 132, eff. May 20, 2014.)
§ 1004. Standards of maintenance and use by Department of Corrections
(a) All lockups must meet the standards established by the Commissioner of Corrections.
Such standards shall comply with the standards and requirements relating to medical
care established under the provisions of section 801 of this title. To assist in the management of correctional facilities, the Commissioner may contract
to house an inmate in a local lockup for pretrial detention, confinement, or for community
release. The Commissioner or his or her authorized agent shall visit and inspect
all lockups at least once every six months.
(b) The selectboard, trustees, or sheriffs maintaining a lockup that fails to meet minimum
standards shall discontinue its use within 30 days after notice thereof is sent to
them by the Commissioner. They shall cause its inmates to be transferred to the nearest
regional correctional facility. If the selectboard, trustees, or sheriffs do not
keep a lockup according to the standards established by the Commissioner or fail to
discontinue its use after notice from the Commissioner, he or she may petition the
Superior Court, and the court may grant an injunction against continued use of the
lockup. The court may make other orders appropriate and necessary for enforcing this
section. (Added 1971, No. 199 (Adj. Sess.), § 20; amended 1973, No. 193 (Adj. Sess.), § 3, eff. April 9, 1974; 1977, No. 57, § 2, eff. April 22, 1977; 1981, No. 185 (Adj. Sess.), § 3, eff. April 22, 1982; 1987, No. 199 (Adj. Sess.), § 2.)