Doctor charged with 2019 Vermont murder living in Florida, and in no hurry for trial – The Chester Telegraph this week reported on a murder trial going much too slow for both the judge and the prosecutor. But the defendant – a doctor who appeared at a recent hearing via zoom from his Florida home – appears in no hurry.

Jozsef Piri was arrested Dec. 16, 2021 in Florida and charged in court with second degree murder Dec. 27, 2021. Police say that on Nov. 1, 2019, delivery driver Roberto Fonseca-Rivera was driving behind Piri, who was driving a pickup truck, when Piri fired shots at Fonseca’s truck, killing Fonseca. Piri was lodged at a Vermont jail, then released on $250,000 bail on condition of surrendering his passports and guns. Piri is a second-homeowner living in Londonderry and Naples, Florida.

At the status conference this week, both judge and prosecutor said the case is lingering too long. The prosecutor said the defense lawyer hasn’t produced a witness list as required. The defense lawyer expressed the hope of trial moving forward in 2024. The judge said she hopes it will be in early 2024.

WWII POW and Essex Junction resident turns 105 – Bill Busier of Essex Junction celebrated his 105th birthday Wednesday at home with family and friends. Raised on a Shelburne dairy farm, Busier joined the National Guard in 1940 and received a medal for helping soldiers escape the sinking SS President Coolidge when it hit mine in the Pacific in 1942. He later served in the European Theater, where he was taken prisoner. Sgt. Busier contracted malaria in a German POW camp. “I thought I was going to die, but I didn’t,” he said. “I been through quite a few things there. I didn’t even think I’d make it, but I did.” Read more in Sally Pollak’s fascinating feature story published Wednesday, March 8 in Seven Days.

Bernie, Welch want $60K minimum for all teachers – Sen. Bernie Sanders on Thursday introduced legislation “to begin to address the major teacher pay crisis in America and ensure that all public school teachers earn a livable and competitive wage” of at least $60,000 a year and increases over the course of their career.

Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT) co-sponsored the bill. “Today in America, more than half of public schools report feeling understaffed, while the starting pay for teachers in nearly 40 percent of school districts is less than $40,000 a year,” Sanders said.

What about PFAS in freshwater fish? – “Over the last few years, we have been reading a lot about per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances that refer to a group of over 4,000 man-made chemicals found in everyday household product,” today’s Journal-Opinion newsletter observes.

They pervade the environment and are pretty much everywhere, even, in some places, our drinking water. In a primer, the Connecticut River Conservancy says they can be found in the fish we pull out of the Connecticut River, its tributaries, and nearby lakes.

Bottom line recommendation? “The suggestions for avoiding excessive exposure to PFAS from fish that are caught from local rivers and lakes are similar to those for avoiding other environmental contaminants that biomagnify such as mercury:  eat low on the food chain, vary fishing spots, and respect local fishing advisories.”