By Michael Donoghue
Vermont News First

BURLINGTON — The gun-toting woman that is accused as part of the fatal shooting of a U.S. Border Patrol Agent in the Northeast Kingdom in January will not get a six-month extension for her defense team to try to block consideration of the death penalty in her case.

Vermont’s chief federal judge, Christina Reiss, issued a ruling Friday afternoon rejecting the defense request on behalf of Teresa Youngblut, 21, of Washington State. 

“The overwhelming majority of courts have held that a federal court, due to the separation of powers doctrine, has no authority to interfere in the Attorney General’s Capital Case Review or dictate the protocol for that process,” Reiss wrote in her two-page decision.

She also said in part, “Because both the process and the ultimate charging decision are the sole prerogative of the Executive Branch, the court lacks the authority to grant Defendant’s motion.”

The defense team asked Judge Reiss Monday afternoon to reconsider her ruling, but no action had been taken on the request.

Her lawyers and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Vermont are due to attend a meeting next Monday at the U.S. Justice Department in Washington, D.C. to discuss the case.  The meeting is designed to give the defense to present any mitigating evidence that it believes may bear on the government’s decision on whether to seek the death penalty.  They sought at least a six-month delay.

U.S. Border Patrol Agent David “Chris” Maland of Newport was gunned down during a deadly traffic stop near the Canadian border on Interstate 91 in Coventry about 3 p.m. Jan. 20.  He ordered a 2015 Toyota Prius that was registered in North Carolina to pull over for an immigration stop about nine miles south of the international border.

Authorities have said that without any warning, Youngblut, the driver, got out of the car and opened fire. Maland was struck by one of two shots in the neck and never got a chance to return fire, officials said.

Another Border Patrol Agent, whose name has not been released, returned fire and wounded Youngblut.  The unnamed agent also fatally shot her passenger, Felix Bauckholt, 28, a German National, the car’s owner, as he attempted to draw his gun, officials said.

Newport Officer James LeClair rushed Maland in a city police cruiser to North Country Hospital in Newport, where he was later pronounced dead about 4 p.m.

Youngblut has pleaded not guilty to a two-count indictment.  She is charged with using a deadly weapon to assault a federal law enforcement officer while engaged in his official duties.  Youngblut also is charged with discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.

She was treated at a New Hampshire hospital for her gunshot wounds.  Youngblut was released and appeared in federal court on Jan. 27 for the initial criminal complaint.  Her parents, Eric and Carla Youngblut, have traveled to Vermont to attend virtually every court hearing.

The nation’s new Attorney General Pam Bondi said on Feb. 5 that the fatal shooting of a Border Patrol Agent in Vermont was a perfect example of when the country should use the death penalty.

President Donald J. Trump and Bondi have said they want federal prosecutors across the country to take a tougher approach to crime, especially violent acts, compared to former President Joe Biden’s administration.

Youngblut’s defense team, led by Assistant Federal Defender Steven L. Barth, had filed a 21-page motion seeking the federal court’s intervention.  The motion argued the meeting might be premature because the government has not yet obtained a capital indictment.

The motion noted that over the past 15 years, the time between a death-eligible indictment and the deadline for a mitigation submission often averaged about 15 months.

Barth, who is one of the top defense lawyers in Vermont, has never handled a death penalty case and a second lawyer with capital case experience was sought to help, the motion noted.  One lawyer with death penalty defense experience was initially assigned in February, but was tied up with a trial and later withdrew.  A second lawyer with death penalty case experience was appointed June 12.

“The lack of learned counsel for almost the entirety of this case has hamstrung the defense team’s ability to prepare a mitigation case,” the motion said.

The June 30 motion also noted it was difficult to prepare for the meeting with Youngblut being detained out of state more than two hours away from the base of the defense team in Burlington.  Youngblut, who had been shipped in February to a New Hampshire jail, is currently at the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility in South Burlington.

Acting U.S. Attorney Michael P. Drescher said his office would have no comment on the ruling by Judge Reiss.

Two .40-caliber casings recovered at the scene support the belief that Youngblut fired the handgun twice, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has said.

“Following the incident, Youngblut and Bauckholt were each found to be in direct possession of a handgun — Youngblut was holding a Glock 23 .40-caliber semi-automatic pistol, and Bauckholt had a Smith & Wesson M&P Shield EZ .380-caliber semiautomatic pistol in a holster on his waistband,” an ATF Task Force agent wrote.

Another woman from Orleans also has been officially charged with the illegal purchase of the two firearms used by her two friends in the deadly shootout in Coventry.

Michelle J. Zajko, 32, was named in a one-count criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Burlington by the ATF.

She is charged with making false statements while buying four handguns on Feb. 13 and 14, 2024 at The Last Frontier, a federally licensed gun dealer on U.S. 7 in Mount Tabor, south of Rutland.

Zajko is in custody in Maryland on unrelated charges. She is a person of interest in the double homicide deaths of her parents on New Year’s Eve 2022.

Hundreds of law enforcement officers, including a huge delegation from the U.S. Border Patrol from throughout the country attended the emotional funeral service for Maland at Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Minnesota in February.  They joined family, friends and community members for the one-hour service.

Besides his federal co-workers from the Green Mountain State, Maland also was honored with a small delegation of troopers from the Vermont State Police led by Lt. Andy Jenson, station commander at the Derby barracks.  

Orleans County Sheriff Jennifer Harlow, at least 3 members of the Department of Motor Vehicles and Officer LeClair from Newport Police also attended.

Vermont State Police also had one trooper selected as part of a special honor guard that the six New England state police agencies created for the memorial.

Among those to speak at the outdoor ceremony was U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who praised Maland’s work.

Noem noted she was struck by the deep appreciation for Maland when she flew to Vermont to visit with his family and his Border Patrol colleagues a few days after the shooting.

The new Secretary said the trip was “impactful for me.”