BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – Some Vermont prosecutors say they’re struggling to keep up with the rising caseloads and are calling on other state agencies to help pick up the slack.
Bennington County State’s Attorney Erica Marthage has served as the county prosecutor for nearly two decades but says her office has become bogged down by a backlog of cases.
“My attorneys are individually carrying anywhere between 400 and 600 cases per attorney. I have 700 plus in my name,” Marthage said. “It is untenable at this point.”
Despite the high caseloads, the situation is trending in the right direction. There were about 3,000 fewer pending cases in December compared to December 2023 and state’s attorneys over the last two years were able to clear more cases than new ones filed. But for bigger counties, it can feel hard to get ahead.
“I’ve never been this overwhelmed,” Marthage said. And it’s not just violent crime. State’s attorneys also take on Fish and Wildlife complaints and even home improvement fraud cases. Cases that some state’s attorneys feel should be handled by the Vermont Attorney General’s Office.
In a recent email with the Burlington City Council, Chittenden County State’s Attorney Sarah George noted that assistant attorney generals are currently handling less than one percent of all active pending cases in the state.
“One conversation that is worth having, but to date has been met by some resistance is — if you’re going to have a Consumer Protection Division, they should handle the prosecution of those cases as well,” Marthage said.
Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark declined our request for an interview but said in a statement: “The Attorney General’s Office has statewide jurisdiction and, with our limited resources, prioritize the most violent crimes, including homicides, sexual assaults, and violent crimes against children.” Clark went on to say she’s hopeful state’s attorney’s offices get additional resources.
Top lawmakers haven’t discussed the AG taking on more cases but they did pass a law last session to address the case backlog. “It’s continuing our efforts to make sure that we are able to divert cases from the criminal justice system. To the extent that we can keep cases out of the criminal justice system, that helps with the backlog, it helps with the speed of processing,” said House Judiciary Chair Rep. Martin LaLonde.
Starting this summer, new rules will help pay for expanded programming for community justice centers in an effort to take some low-level offenses off local prosecutors plates.