Murder caseload stacks up
Toolbox
By Brent Curtis Staff Writer - Published: November 12, 2009
Accused murderer David Denny requested a speedy trial this week, but the earliest available date on the Rutland District Court schedule isn't until February.
The three-month delay was a disappointment to Denny's attorney, Kerry DeWolfe, who said she hoped the court would bring the one-year-old case to trial next month.
"There's no way to do it faster?" DeWolfe asked.
The answer from Judge Thomas Zonay, who already has a lengthy murder trial scheduled next month followed by another murder trial and more than 100 other trials on the docket in January, was "no."
"The court can't set trial for Mr. Denny in January," Zonay said.
The crowded caseload combined with staffing changes in the Rutland County State's Attorney's Office has made for some difficult courtroom decisions as of late, court officials said. In addition to the case involving Denny, who is charged with second-degree murder in the killing of Poultney resident Linda Wiggin, murder trials for accused killers Jonathan Bruno and Salvatore MacEwan are scheduled for December and January respectively.
On Tuesday, when the trial date for Denny was discussed, Zonay said the court, prosecutors and defense attorneys were in the position of having to prioritize the caseload and stick to tight timelines.
For Rutland County State's Attorney Marc Brierre, who replaced longtime state's attorney James Mongeon in September, keeping up with the caseload has been a challenge due to reassignments in his office and the loss of an attorney that won't be replaced until later this month.
Brierre asked the court to delay Denny's trial until March to provide time for additional work on the case, but in light of the speedy trial request, Zonay said the court wouldn't wait.
"This case was supposed to be trail ready by Dec. 1 2009," the judge said. "With the number of trials scheduled in this court we are going to have trials backing up and this court expects the parties to be ready to go as soon as possible."
January promises to be a very busy month for the criminal court with 111 cases scheduled on the jury draw list that month. The January caseload includes an anticipated jury trial for Salvatore MacEwan who was charged in June 2008 with second-degree murder for the death of his 5-week-old son.
The prosecutor and public defender in MacEwan's case told the court this week they hope to complete depositions and have the trial ready for a jury sometime in January.
Part of the reason for the backload of cases anticipated at the start of 2010 is a potential two-week murder trial scheduled at the start of December for Bruno. The 25-year-old Rutland man is charged with stabbing 24-year-old John Baptie to death in the parking lot of the Rutland Shopping Plaza in November 2007.
Bruno's case is scheduled for jury draw on Dec. 2 with the trial to begin the following day. The case is on the court schedule through Dec. 11, but Zonay said Tuesday the court would make provisions to go longer if need be.
brent.curtis@rutlandherald.com
16