BENNINGTON — The state Supreme Court has denied a Bennington man’s request to be released from jail while awaiting trial on child assault charges, affirming the local court’s decision since 2018.
The man, Joshua Boyer, had argued that the Bennington Superior Court abused its discretion by not considering the indefinite suspension of jury trials in its decision to continue holding him without bail. He’d asked to be released on conditions, according to the Supreme Court’s March 15 decision.
Boyer, 34, has been detained at Marble Valley Correctional Facility, in Rutland, since April 2018. He is being held on three felony counts allegedly committed against a 14-year-old girl: repeated aggravated sexual assault on a child, aggravated domestic assault as well as aggravated sexual assault on a child resulting in serious injury. All carry a potential penalty of life in prison.
In May 2018, the Bennington court denied Boyer’s request to be placed on home detention while waiting for trial. Earlier this year, it again denied his request to be released to a friend’s home in Charlotte under “any conditions of release the court felt would be sufficient to protect the public,” according to the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court ruled that the lower court didn’t abuse its discretion in deciding that keeping Boyer in jail was the least restrictive measure available to ensure he doesn’t evade prosecution. It cited a state law that allows a person to be held without bail if he is charged with an offense punishable by life in prison and the evidence of guilt is great.
The Supreme Court said it couldn’t consider Boyer’s argument about the pandemic-related suspension of jury trials, because he hadn’t brought it up with the lower court. Boyer, though, had asked the Bennington court to consider how long he has been detained and the uncertainty of when he can be retried, according to the six-page decision.
Boyer’s first trial, in November 2019, ended in a mistrial because of juror misconduct. The pandemic hit before his second trial could be held, and he has since been clamoring for a trial, including asking that his case be dismissed since he couldn’t be granted his constitutional right.
The state Supreme Court put jury trials on hold in March 2020, after the coronavirus outbreak spread to Vermont, in an effort to mitigate the virus’s spread. State court officials finally greenlighted a criminal jury trial to be held in Brattleboro last week, but it didn’t push through because there had been no case to try.
Boyer, who is the second-longest held defendant in a Bennington County case, has spoken about getting infected with the COVID-19 coronavirus disease while in jail. He is represented by the public defender’s office.
The guardians of the case victim declined to speak with the Banner after an interview request was made through the Bennington County State’s Attorney’s Office.
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March 30, 2021 at 04:40AM
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VT Supreme Court denies Bennington man's appeal for bail in 2018 case - Bennington Banner
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