Thomas Hatfield, 26, entered the plea Monday. A charge of cruelty to a child was dismissed as part of the agreement accepted by the court.
Dad who broke infant daughter’s three ribs pleads guilty, escapes jailtime
Galfetti: Barre school board’s lack of budgetary concern is alarming
What we actually need are more special educators, paraeducators and behavioral specialists in classrooms. We need them urgently if we are serious about improving educational outcomes. But that is not what this budget protects or prioritizes.
VT Headlines: Rutland’s new monument, honoring local World War Two veterans, has been completed
Milton man dies in crash; Police look for suspect in South Burlington vandalism investigation; Second fire ignites at Vermont family-owned convenience store; Vermont Route 9 reopens after hazmat trailer failure; Vermont program teaches how to forage, process, and cook wild foods
State, towns face ’27 ban on license plate cameras
The state says the 2027 repeal stands. Four attempts to change it went nowhere, and one Vermont town is already debating its cameras.
Laquerre: Why I’m challenging Sarah George
When Sarah George took office, she brought new ideas about criminal justice that I believed were worth trying at the time. I still believe in criminal justice reform. But it’s been over nine years, longer than a presidential term, and we’ve seen the results. The experiment has failed.
Jeeps, fall festivals and cheese lead weekend activities
Last weekend of September, and Vermont has decided to spend all of fall at once. Two long-running festivals open within an hour of each other Saturday morning at opposite ends of the state, Cabot puts close to forty cheese, ferment, and beverage makers on its village common, and the Paramount in Rutland books Talking Heads on Friday and Journey on Saturday like it’s settling a bet. Ten counties are doing something worth the drive.
A trailer that can power 50 homes for 10 hours—while crews repair the lines
GMP’s planned mobile batteries could keep neighborhoods powered after storms and help lower electricity costs for customers beyond the five proposed communities.
Vermont AG will charge Anti-ICE trespassers in Williston
Move comes after State’s Attorney Sarah George gives them a pass.
Kastner: Waiting for Jack Ruby
Sixty-three years ago, Jack Ruby stepped out of a crowd and killed Lee Harvey Oswald before the accused assassin of President John F. Kennedy could ever stand trial.
Roper: Not-no-moderate Molly Gray
Scores 100% on the Democratic Socialist Party policy questionnaire.
VT Headlines: Vt. lawmaker claims Franklin County state’s attorney candidate deceived impeachment panel
Vermont Route 9 closed after tractor-trailer crash, hazmat spill; Baaaaad influence: Sheep on the lam wander Burlington High School grounds; Alleged Springfield kidnapping brings additional federal charges; Fire damages Stowe building housing several businesses
Senate candidates differ on F-35 siting
“I believe I probably did sign a petition years ago when this was an issue in Vermont. Since the F-35s have come here, we have seen the damage this is doing for people under the flight path,” Wrenner said.
Klar: Why there is no quick fix for America’s beef price problem
The American beef market faces unique challenges that will likely keep burger prices high for some time.
New England journos knock Trump
Several New England journalism organizations have come together to condemn the Trump administration’s decision to ban Politico, CNN, and MS Now reporters from the White House.
Palestinian shooting conviction, sex crimes lead week’s VT crime news
A mother and son both charged in incident of child sex crime.
Leaf peepers, look before you climb: Elmore and Spruce fire towers are closing
Repairs are expected to keep both towers closed through October. Here’s what hikers need to know, plus seven alternatives the state recommends.
Teenage driver dies from injuries in weekend crash in Warren
“We are heartbroken to share that Vinny Viola died this morning from injuries sustained in the car accident over the weekend,” school officials wrote in to students, staff and parents.
The New York Times celebrates its 175th anniversary and its founder—a UVM graduate
The Times was the brainchild of Henry Jarvis Raymond, who graduated with high honors from UVM in the Class of 1840. The paper kicked off its dodransbicentennial (yes, that is the official term for a 175th) this January with a “Birth of the Times” column that featured the original prospectus published by Raymond and his business partner, George Jones, who functioned as the Times’ publisher. The paper’s celebration continues with a multimedia “New York Times at 175” website.
Rodgers disputes Gray over future of large dairy farms in Vermont
“Molly Gray has it backwards,” Rodgers said in a statement. “Vermont dairy isn’t dying because people stopped drinking milk or eating cheese.”
Longer bobcat hunting season won’t affect species stability, trappers say
Over the past decade, trapping has accounted for an average of 47 bobcats annually, while average total mortality from trapping, hunting, road kills and other causes was 109.
Palestinian activists celebrate Eaton conviction
During the trial, the defense presented evidence that Eaton believed the CIA and Israeli intelligence agency Mossad were communicating with him through FM radio and directing his actions.
The Great Book Brigade: Human chain moves Middletown Springs library
About 150 volunteers passed thousands of books down the line from the old library building to the new one.
VT Headlines: Burlington orders that dog deemed dangerous be euthanized
Bail hearing for Rutland man who tried to lure child with candy; Poultney man, accused of shooting dog, pleads not guilty to animal cruelty
Winter home heating costs to rise 31%
Also, drought down despite rising temps
Letters: Boardman on Chief Swanson coverage
The results so far have shown zero wrongdoing by Chief Swanson.
Volunteers keep pulling tires from Vermont rivers. A bill to make tire makers pay for disposal died in committee.
Vermont is one of 14 states with no dedicated scrap-tire program.
Vermont teachers’ union pushes gender identity in sports, raises alarms about ‘white privilege’
The Vermont teachers union formally recognizes students’ right to play sports based on “gender identity,” rather than biological sex. The National Education Association Vermont chapter also asserts that the state’s public school teachers must acknowledge the nation’s “white supremacy culture” as responsible for “white privilege” that is “conferred irrespective of wealth, gender, and other factors.”
VT Headlines: Vermont Cheesemakers Festival returns for 14th year
Vintage car show draws crowds to Essex Junction; Advocates push to improve ballot access for Vermonters with disabilities
Believe your eyes! 72 lb. zucchini, 1,730 lb. pumpkin take top honors
….And there was a tomato ranked second largest in the world. All on display at Sam Mazza’s Farm Market.
Keelan: College to be repurposed as five-star resort
On September 5, 2026, the Bennington Banner ran a full-page ad supporting the repurposing of the former Southern Vermont College (SVC) into a five-star Orchards Resort.
CLG: U.S. warns of rapid escalation in Middle East war
Fox News Poll: 71% think Trump administration lacks plan to end Iran war; Trump announces Greenland deal; Trump signs new Russia sanctions bill; Iran war costs U.S. households $860 each as energy prices surge – economist
Letters: Thayer on protecting the Constitution
Winter on the legislative road ahead; Holt on Copeland-Hanza’s disappointing celebration
Shorts: Sterling College to change hands
Also, conservationist honored, and the Stuff the Buss nonperishable food drive
Ellis: Nate Hagens and the Great Simplification
The American government payment on the national debt is more than a trillion a year.
Blotter: Vandals paint over City Hall Park surveillance camera solar panels
Also: Hartford man, 62, identified as victim of vehicle fire; CSAM producer sentenced; Man charged after child found on second-story windowsill
Westfield woman named Vermont’s top weight-loss achiever by national organization
Connie LaPlume of Westfield has been named the 2025 Vermont Queen by TOPS Club Inc., a national nonprofit weight-loss support organization, after losing 43 pounds.
Incumbent US Rep. Becca Balint seeks third term
Incumbent US Rep. Becca Balint is running for reelection as Vermont’s only member of the US House of Representatives.
High diesel prices hit farmers as officials push export limits
U.S. farmers face record-high fuel expenses this year as the fall harvest kicks into gear while pressure grows on the Trump administration to impose a temporary ban on diesel exports that could bring down prices.
Assistant town clerk accused of stalking, threatening woman
Tammy Haas, 61, is accused of sending death threats, placing metal spikes in the woman’s driveway, posting signs containing her photograph and home address around Essex County, and creating a social media account in her name, the Caledonian-Record reported.
Vermont news outlets launch monthly ‘Journalism Club’ at Williston bookstore
Inaugural event, on Oct. 1, to focus on coverage of South Burlington ICE raid and protest
Roper: Passing Prop 3 will make Vermont less affordable
We know this because history and math.
Book Review: ‘The Coming Food Crisis’ by John Klar
It is a wakeup call for knowing what is happening with our agriculture across the country. Family farms are disappearing and farmland is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain.
Tagliavia: The “Species of Greatest Conservation Need” is…?
There is indeed a species in Vermont under constant threat: Threat of the loss of their habitat and home, threats to their land and their ability to survive the regular attacks of predators that infringe upon and invade their lives.
City Hall Park killer denies gun and drug charges
An ex-New Jersey man, who was sentenced to 10 years in prison last month for homicide in Burlington City Hall Park four years ago, pleaded not guilty in U.S. District Court on Friday to federal gun and drug charges.
States without Right to Work have higher taxes and living costs, fewer private sector jobs, new watchdog report says
The report examines Proposal 3, the proposed constitutional amendment on the November general election ballot, in the context of Vermont’s current economic challenges—including declining private-sector employment, high taxes, high living costs and population loss—and compares employment, affordability, tax and migration data across states with different labor policies.
Council President may challenge Mulvaney-Stanak for mayor
Traverse and Mulvaney-Stanak have differed over the city’s approach to public safety. Traverse is scheduled to discuss his public-safety plan Sunday at 11:30 AM on WCAX’s “You Can Quote Me.”
Livingston: Shutdown of town listservs leaves Vermonters scrambling to save them
There is a particular kind of Vermont institution that nobody notices until it’s gone: not the general store, not the town meeting, but the humble email listserv — the digest that lands in your inbox each morning carrying news of a missing dog, a farmers market, a zoning hearing, and, occasionally, two mysterious explosions rattling windows across White River Junction. For more than two decades, that plumbing of local civic life has belonged to Vital Communities, the White River Junction-based nonprofit. This summer, with little warning, the organization moved to shut it down.
Feds charge convicted felon after reportedly making 15 drug sales in Brattleboro
Shameik Camara, 37, was on federal supervised release from illegal gun theft and possession convictions when he made the drug sales in Windham County, a federal prosecutor said in U.S. District Court.
VT Headlines: Fair Haven man accused of firing gun, fleeing police custody
Fair Haven man accused of firing gun, fleeing police custody; Students kick off opening day of Tunbridge World’s Fair; Lt. Dan Band to make appearance in Vermont
Mom: school transitioned her special needs son without her knowledge or consent
“I was left with no other choice but to pull one of my children from school in order to save his life,” Duprey said.
Federal judge tosses out Trump demand for Vermont voter rolls
On Thursday, September 17, United States District Judge Mary Kay Lanthier dismissed the Department of Justice (DOJ)’s lawsuit against Vermont demanding the state’s voter rolls.
Gettin’ stinky at Garlic Town, USA
Thousands flock to Bennington for a (slightly smelly) festival.
Cheese The Day on Burlington Marketplace Saturday
Get ready to say cheese! Church Street Marketplace will celebrate Vermont’s rich cheesemaking tradition on Friday, September 18, with an evening of free tastings, live music, and local flavor as part of Vermont Cheese Week.
Vermont’s newest flood buyouts: 98 homes in 25 towns, 23 of them in Plainfield
The delegation announced 90. The state’s own count is 98 — and Vermont taxpayers are covering about $9.2 million of the cost.
A massive data leak has put millions of Americans’ driver’s licenses at risk—including people in Vermont
In early September 2026, a dark-web service began advertising digital scans of more than 153 million U.S. and Canadian driver’s licenses, according to a recent TechCrunch article, along with millions of other ID cards, passports, and medical or cannabis cards.
Small-town fatal bike crash case changes venue
Kaylee Bailey, 16, was traveling west on Richardson Road on a 2025 Kawasaki KLX140 on Oct. 5 when she struck Kyle Hunt’s 2019 Subaru Crosstrek. According to Vermont State Police, Hunt was traveling east when he turned south in front of the dirt bike.
VT Headlines: Car crashes into gas pump at Orleans convenience store
Crews monitoring stubborn wildlfire in Bristol; Police investigate New Hampshire truck driver death in Barnet; Burlington adds fencing, cameras and toilets at City Hall Park
Darn Tough Sock Sale set for Nov. 21 and 22
The dates surfaced on a sign taped to a Cabot Hosiery Mills truck in Northfield’s Labor Day parade, before the company posted them online.
Vote to merge municipalities fails in Northeast Kingdom town
In the Northeast Kingdom last Thursday, hundreds of Troy voters packed the school gymnasium to meet in two separate town meetings to determine whether the Village of North Troy would lose its municipal charter and merge into the town. With the merger requiring two affirmative votes to pass, the merger failed.
VT joins lawsuit challenging Medicaid restrictions on youth gender-transition care
Vermont has joined a coalition of 22 jurisdictions challenging a new federal rule that would end Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program reimbursement for certain gender-transition treatments provided to minors, setting up another dispute between states and the Trump administration over federal health-care policy.
Coyote feared rabid in Windham County
The coyote was reported with porcupine quills and behaving aggressively.
Man escapes crash, walks off cliff
A 73-year-old New Hampshire man died Tuesday after witnesses said he got out of his truck following a crash on Route 5 and walked off a nearby cliff.
Teen charged with Stewart’s robbery
Security footage showed a male—later identified as Hemingway—arrive at the store in a white Kia Soul, enter the store, point an apparent handgun at store clerks, demand money, and then leave the store with cash.
UVMMC, Dartmouth hospital announce big job cuts
The University of Vermont Medical Center will lose 118 positions as part of a new round of workforce reductions announced Tuesday by UVM Health, while Dartmouth Health is separately eliminating 124 jobs at its flagship medical center and clinics.
Third person dies from gas explosion at Granville home
Sheila Hammond, 69, the homeowner, died while getting treatment out-of-state for critical injuries received in the propane leak blast on Saturday Sept. 5, police said.
VT Headlines: Repeat teen offender facing Federal robbery charges
Man dies after being hit by car in South Burlington; Man accused of sexual harassment at Sand Bar State Park; Dartmouth Health cuts 124 jobs, 300 open positions as costs rise; New pilot program launches in Brattleboro to fill empty storefronts downtown
Washington County Sheriff attends elite FBI National Academy
Washington County Sheriff Marc Poulin attended an elite training program at the FBI National Academy early this summer, returning in late June from two and a half months of training.
More Vermonters favor socialism than capitalism, UNH poll shows
But a closer look at the poll shows that support for socialism, membership in the Democratic Socialists of America and the electoral value of a DSA endorsement are three different things.
State trooper, rescue dogs honored for search
A state trooper honored for her heroic 2024 rescue of an eight-year-old girl who had plunged through the ice into freezing waters is being honored again for her role, with five other troopers, in searching for a person with dementia suffering from hypothermia.
MacDonald: Partisan prosecutions
When a parody video of Becca Balint hit the internet, the libs were triggered. The Congresswoman got all huffy, and the Progressive AG Charity Clark sent a threatening letter to the video’s creator.
Blotter: Bland double-murder sentence, more familiar activity lead Vermont Crime This Week
Elsewhere the pattern was familiar and grim — domestic and sexual assault arrests in Washington County, an interstate fentanyl pipeline intercepted on a Brattleboro side street, and a steady run of out-of-state fugitives turning up at Vermont ports of entry and traffic stops.
Roper: The housing crisis: It’s the regulations, stupid
How Austin, Texas, solved its housing crisis, and lessons for VT.
Vermont fall fishing heats up as waters cool
“As water temperatures cool off, many different fish species begin to feed heavily,” said Shawn Good, a fisheries biologist with Vermont Fish & Wildlife. “From warm water species such as largemouth and smallmouth bass, northern pike, perch, and walleye, to cold water species like trout and salmon, fish feeding activity really picks up and creates exceptional fishing conditions for anglers.”
Secretary of State applauds Supreme Court backing universal mailed ballots
Vermont’s mail-ballot system will proceed without new federal Postal Service restrictions after the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday left in place a lower-court order blocking the rules for the November election.
Gray runs to reclaim the Lt. Governor’s office after a four year hiatus
The Burlington resident is running again for Lt. Governor to stand against the Trump administration and tackle the pressures that working families in Vermont face.
Some – but not all – VT hospitals told to reduce commercial insurance rates
UVMMC prez Dr. Stephen Leffler warned the hospital expects to lose more than $75 million this year and said the board’s decision could result in another $75 million loss next year. He said UVM’s reserves currently are being supported by stock-market gains.
VT Headlines: Green Mountain Care Board approves aggressive cuts to UVMMC revenue, rates
Police find nearly 200 bags of suspected fentanyl in Brattleboro car search; Woman cited after police chase ends in Shelburne cruiser crash; Possible rabid coyote prompts warning in Windham County
Newport mayor on CNN: trade war is testing Canadian ties
The segment also touched on Derby Line, the border village north of Newport, where the CNN correspondent said residents on both sides voiced less anger about the tariffs themselves than uncertainty about what comes next.
Woman misses court date after going into labor
Fatal crash, no seat belt. And, traffic stop leads to discovery of about 196 bags of suspected fentanyl and/or heroin.
Lincoln: Rural Vermont cannot afford to become an economic museum
Vermont still has abundant talent, but the barriers to business growth in our state have become extraordinarily high, complicated, and expensive.
Rich kids go to school on Vershire farm
“At the semesterlong Mountain School program, families pay $40,000 for their teens to do chores on a farm in rural Vermont.”
School district mulls merger, moving high school to former Cabot Cheese HQ
After receiving preliminary declining enrollment data for the new school year, Harwood school leaders this week took two key steps regarding merger talks with neighboring school districts and a separate effort to investigate combining four of its elementary schools.
Bland avoids death penalty, gets double life sentence for drug murders
New details about the brutal and senseless killing by Theodore Bland, 31, formerly of Stowe, because of a drug debt Oct. 12, 2023 were outlined during the more than one-hour sentencing.
‘Tap trees not Vermonters’ Rodgers seeks 2nd term as Lt. Governor
Northeast Kingdom resident and incumbent Lt. Governor, John Rodgers, is seeking reelection to the state’s second highest office. He is running on a record of advocacy and turning the position into an active participant inside the Statehouse on legislation and important policies. Rodgers faces former Democratic Lt. Governor Molly Gray in the November general election.
Sibilia asks AG to review Americans for Prosperity advertising
The social media advertisements criticize Vermont lawmakers and their voting records, according to Sibilia. One also urges Vermonters to contact legislators in support of positions backed by AFP.
Four arrested in Addison/Chittenden County cocaine case
Three New York City area men, who authorities said set up a temporary drug trafficking business in Addison County, along with a local resident, are behind bars following a joint state and federal investigation into the distribution of illegal drugs in the New Haven and Hinesburg area.
VT Headlines: Opening arguments begin today in Burlington attempted murder trial for Jason Eaton
Police search for suspect in South Burlington store robbery; Car hits unoccupied business in Vergennes; Vermont Almanac will not publish a seventh edition
Vagrant charged with pointing (fake) handgun at passing cars
Also: Man accused of threatening clerk over cigarettes, assaulting officer, and a man held without bail in Waterbury sex-assault case
LaFleur: The race on the ballot we shouldn’t overlook
On Election Day, members of the Board of Civil Authority are not simply names on a ballot. They are the people working at the polls, greeting voters at check-in, overseeing the voting process, monitoring the ballot tabulator and helping ensure that every ballot is properly accounted for.
United We Stand Media Fest screens “15 DAYS: The REAL Story of the Pandemic School Closures”
Burlington event explores solutions to the politicization of schools and ideological division tearing communities apart through film, panel discussions, and keynote addresses
Salmonella illnesses traced to Windsor County farm
Fourteen cases of salmonella illness in Vermont have been linked to eggs produced at a Windsor County farm, prompting a recall covering more than three months of production.
Moyer: Act 181 bureaucrats’ map doesn’t tell story of my land
Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission (TRORC) draws my region’s planning maps. Vershire is one of thirty towns in that picture. That is how fifteen to seventeen acres of private farmland here were classified and color-coded in a restrictive Future Land Use category.
Swanton man denies drug charges, including running a crack house
Nathan Farr, 36, denied in federal court on Friday that he managed and controlled 2465 Frontage Rod in Swanton as an owner and occupant between at least September 29, 2025 and Dec. 4, 2025 when the residence was raided by law enforcement authorities led by Swanton Village Police.
Koch: Fed up with Trump
I have been a lifelong Republican. I remain active in the Barre Town, Washington County, and Vermont State GOP committees. I will be voting for Republican candidates this fall. However, I am totally fed up with the antics of our President Donald J. Trump.
The Border Report: Tariff churn, a stalled fire hall and the Haskell’s anniversary season
The Pulse is a daily English-language newspaper covering Stanstead, Coaticook, Magog, Sherbrooke and the surrounding communities just across the line. Each week we share a selection of their stories most likely to matter on this side of the border.
Rutland propane rail car derails, rolls over
The accident happened Saturday morning in Rutland City.
VT Headlines: Brattleboro birthing center to stay open
Richford man charged with swiping nearly $1,400 in merchandise from Church Street business; Jury selected for trial of man accused of shooting Palestinian students; Plans for Rutland town’s new Walmart Supercenter progress at Act 250 prehearing on Thursday; Vermont farmer, former Air Guard pilot recall 9/11 response
Police cruiser damaged in DUI crash
HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM: A 79-year-old driver from Texas was arrested Thursday after police say he turned around and drove the wrong way on Interstate 91 to speak with a state trooper.
Vermont has been quietly building a 485-mile trail with cabins along the way. The world just noticed.
A 38-mile loop through Rochester and Pittsfield caught the BBC’s attention. It is the first finished piece of a planned 485-mile route across the state.
State issues waiver for Finch wood
Regulators in Vermont have issued a waiver to permit biomass plants Ryegate Power and the McNeil Generating Station in Burlington to purchase low-grade wood that had been destined for a Glens Falls mill, Finch Paper, before it suddenly discontinued its pulpwood operation in July.
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