PAWLET, Vt. (WCAX) – It could be more than a month before the man accused in a triple murder in Pawlet faces a judge in Vermont.
Brian Crossman Jr., 22, was arrested in his home state of New York last week, and that’s where he remains.
Crossman Jr. told police that on Sept. 15, he went for a walk and when he returned to his family’s Pawlet home, he found they had all been shot to death.
Police arrested Crossman Jr. on Friday for the murders of his father, Brian Crossman Sr., 46; his stepmother, Erica Crossman, 41; and his stepbrother, Colin Taft, 13.
Investigators say the home was covered in blood, firearms and shell casings, and that Crossman Jr.’s story was inconsistent.
Rutland County State’s Attorney Ian Sullivan called it a devastating event for the families and for the communities impacted.
Crossman Jr. remains behind bars in New York with his next scheduled court appearance there on Oct. 21. That means it could still be a month before he appears in a Vermont courtroom.
“The formal extradition process requires a governor’s warrant from both Vermont and New York. Both governors’ offices do their own independent review of the materials before a formal extradition can take place,” said Sullivan, who is prosecuting the case.
Sullivan says Crossman Jr. can waive extradition to Vermont but that hasn’t happened yet and it could still be a few weeks until it does.
Crossman Jr. is charged with three counts of aggravated murder, the most serious charge in Vermont. It carries a sentence of life without parole.