Public Safety

Citing upbringing in Russian orphanage, judge sentences man who assaulted state trooper to 3 weeks in prison

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Judge Michael Kainen, Caledonia County Superior Court

The Caledonian-Record, a daily newspaper in the Northeast Kingdom, reported Friday, Jan. 3 that a man who violently resisted and assaulted state police, and threatened to kill them, was sentenced to only 21 days in prison by Vermont judge Michael Kainen.

After appeals for mercy from his family and employer, and despite the evidence justifying a harsher sentence, Judge Michael Kainen sentenced Robert Maximov, 28, of East Haven to 21 days in jail, citing his traumatic childhood in Russian orphanages as a mitigating factor.

In a Caledonia Superior Court session on Monday, December 30, video evidence from police body and cruiser cameras was presented, showing the violent resistance of  Maximov (who also goes by the last name of Rohaley) during his arrests on September 19, 2021, and March 25, 2023. 

Maximov was convicted of assaulting Trooper Elizabeth Plympton and resisting arrest in two separate incidents. During one arrest, Maximov aggressively resisted, used abusive language, and even threatened the lives of the officers involved. His violent actions were documented in video footage that was played in court.

While the prosecution sought a minimum two-year jail sentence, citing the need for punitive measures, Maximov’s defense highlighted his difficult upbringing and PTSD as factors contributing to his behavior. Dr. Clair Gilligan testified that Maximov’s criminal responses were triggered by past trauma, including abuse in orphanages and during his adoptions.

Judge Kainen acknowledged the severity of Maximov’s actions but opted for a lighter sentence, emphasizing rehabilitation over prolonged incarceration. He imposed the 21-day jail term with the possibility of a longer sentence if Maximov fails to adhere to the conditions set by the court.

“I don’t want someone to think that you can assault an officer, grab an officer, resist arrest or threaten to kill officers and not do any time in jail. I just think it’s the wrong message to you (Maximov) and to the general public,” Kainen told Maximov.

Maximov expressed remorse but was unable to directly face Trooper Plympton during his apology. The judge’s decision appeared to attempt to reflect a balance between accountability and recognition of the defendant’s past traumas. – editor

This news report was rewritten by VDC from a Caledonian-Record news story by Editor Dana Gray. 

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Categories: Public Safety

13 replies »

  1. Vermont’s progressive-minded public officials like Judge Michael Kainen essentially issue a “license to kill” to violent criminal convicts by completely ignoring the concept of deterrence, excusing their behavior on some supposed past victimhood. Once a respected and noble profession, It really is amazing that anyone would want to serve as a law enforcement officer in present-day Vermont. Yet another ticking time bomb has been unleashed on the public. We can only hope that his subsequent victims only include those who share this judge’s philosophy regarding crime and punishment.

  2. I’m pretty sure ALL violent responses are ‘triggered’ by our pasts… ALL of them. When are we held accountable, grow into our big boy and girl panties… and hold OURSELVES accountable?
    As someone with a traumatic past, I can say it was never used as an excuse for bad behavior…nor was it accepted as such.
    New rule for foreigners?
    Do I get to plead the trauma of the past four years as an excuse for MY bad behavior cuz it was surely that way for a LOT of people… maybe that is why so many people are acting out?
    I hope this guy never gets into another ‘triggered’ situation…

  3. Now, if he walked into our Nation’s Capitol, to use the restroom on a certain January day he’d get at least four years in prison plus the four years he waited for trial. I think we need prison reform, justice reform, and a few disbarments to improve the system in this country.

  4. A violent responses from my checking account every time I have to pay my property tax bills is not because of my childhood. All excuses are null and void.

  5. Stomach churning. This judge needs to be removed immediately – his judgements present a clear and present danger to the public. But of course, he won’t be. His continued reckless and life-threatening decisions will continue until innocent people are critically injured or murdered in cold blood and their families grieve and suffer relentlessly all because of this kook’s terminal case of bleeding-heart syndrome. An illness to which there remains NO cure other than election reform & this electorate voting in even greater numbers!

  6. Again, this shows what’s wrong with Vermont’s judicial system. Another bleeding heart judge that sees no wrong. It’s pretty pathetic !!

  7. Right — he has PTSD and can’t control his behavior so he will be released to society. How about the judge agrees that if he reoffends, whatever he does will be inflicted on the judge or his family. I am so sick of criminals being treated as victims so that they can go out and harm more innocent victims. “Restorative justice” is an ideological fantasy with very real consequences. Vermont’s courts have become a joke to criminals and now victims as well…..

  8. So in this judge’s opinion, when does an individual become responsible for their own actions? Clearly it is older than 28.

  9. The majority of child rapists/pedophiles/molesters/sex offenders probably had perverted things done to them as children. Does this ever give any of them a pass or minimize retribution for their crimes.

    No.

    Never.

    We may not be responsible for the bad and evil things that were done to us as children, but we are 100% responsible for our choices and actions now as adults.

    To cause a criminal’s past abuse to be linked to present retributive justice and sentencing is a non-sequitur.

    Judges and defense attorneys who expect past abuse to be taken into account for the violent choices and actions committed by offenders against others need to be removed.

  10. And crimes/assaults against our LEOs need to have distinct mandatory severe consequences. The law is already disrespected in today’s society, let alone those who put their lives on the line everyday to enforce it. Lax penalties for messing with our LEOs only emboldens those who already do not respect the law.

  11. Oh yah, 3 weeks in jail teaches nobody nothing.

    Many, many people have had traumatic childhoods that don’t cause them the act this way. This judge’s response, is perhaps, compassionate, but comes off as a silly slap on the hand. How about mandating mental health counseling? Oh right, there are no resources for this and it would impede his rights…sheesh. This is so lame.

  12. “Dr. Clair Gilligan testified that Maximov’s criminal responses were triggered by past trauma, including abuse in orphanages and during his adoptions.” So, it would appear due to past abuse, the child grew into a man afflicted with cluster-B disorders, such as anti-social disorder (sociopathy) or psychopathy – malignant perhaps?

    “Judge Kainen acknowledged the severity of Maximov’s actions but opted for a lighter sentence, emphasizing rehabilitation over prolonged incarceration. He imposed the 21-day jail term with the possibility of a longer sentence if Maximov fails to adhere to the conditions set by the court.” Judge Kainen’s decision to layout a list of conditions instead of a consquence. Who will ensure Mr. Maximov receives rehabilitation for his mental illness? Who will put in the time and effort to cure his affliction so he will not become another repeat offender in the turnstyle justice system full of cluster B’s? What did Mayor Adams of NYC say yesterday about rates of recidivism and pointed his finger, discreetly, yet directly at the judiciary?

    The real criminality playing out is not the police arresting the perps, it is the judiciary releasing these predators with “light” to no sentencing at all. Above all, there are no services to “rehabilitate” offenders so they do not offend again – none whatsoever. The same goes for drug and alcohol rehabilitation. It is a failure by the numbers growing, not reducing. Yet, they keep parading the bodies through the failed system, the predators are freed to roam and prey upon communities with impunity. The prosecutors, defenders, and judges collect their handsome salaries, with benefits and pensions, all on the taxpayer dimes. We are paying for the assaults and battery upon our communities as well as paying the enablers and co-conspirators. There is no justice system, it’s an illusion and a delusion set up to destroy civilized society – better known as the great reset and wealth transfer – Agenda 2030 – depopulation numbers not quite there, but they are working on it daily.