CASTLETON, Vt. (WCAX) – Saturday marks the day one year ago when beloved Castleton University teacher Honoree Fleming was shot and killed while walking on a local bike path, leaving the community in shock and sadness. The Vermont State Police have pursued hundreds of tips in the case, but so far none have led to an arrest.
On October 5, 2023, police say Honoree Fleming went for a walk around 4 p.m. on the rail trail near the Vermont State University Castleton Campus. Half an hour later, she was found dead.
The typically quiet community was on edge. “Earth-shattering. It’s tense in town, what little bit I’ve ever been out,” local resident Betty Moyer told WCAX last year.
There were reports of a suspect matching a police description. Officers searched for clues, conducted interviews, and reviewed video, but no answers emerged. Police even released a rough sketch of a suspect using witness descriptions of a man they encountered shortly before coming across Fleming’s body. A white man, 5-foot-10 inches with short red hair, wearing a dark gray t-shirt and carrying a black backpack.
“We have witnesses that came across him acting strangely, oddly, just prior to coming across Mrs. Fleming,” VSP Maj. Scott Dunlap told reporters last year.
The investigation came among a rash of seven other homicides in Vermont, leaving the state police stretched thin.
But the Castleton community rallied. Local business owner Mark Brown collected money to use as a reward for information that led to a killer. With a town match, it reached over $25,000.
Brown says the impacts of the crime can still be felt today. “This was the first time that we had a random act of violence like this with no trace, and that was really hard for the community. People walk in groups and they’re a little more weary, but we’re not going to let this change the character of who we are,” he said.
Anyone with information is asked to call the VSP’s barracks in Rutland at 802-773-9101, or send a tip anonymously online at https://vsp.vermont.gov/tipsubmit.