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NACDL is committed to enhancing the capacity of the criminal defense bar to safeguard fundamental constitutional rights.
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Policies and rulings on lengthy imprisonment terms in Vermont.
Attorney-client communications federal caselaw and state-specific anecdotal data in Vermont
Information on the policy and history of recording custodial interrogations in Vermont.
Memorandum of Amici Curiae the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Vermont.
Argument: The COVID-19 pandemic is of unprecedented national and global significance, necessitating a drastic local response. The rate of infection in the Vermont DOC is striking in comparison both to the rate of infection in Vermont as a whole, and even compared to the highest rate of infection for any state in the country. The Department of Corrections is demonstrably ill-equipped to adequately respond to the pandemic, and the Court must intervene to protect the constitutional rights of those incarcerated. The Court should join with judges from other jurisdictions across the country, who have reviewed inmate motions and petitions similar to those that are currently before this Court, and who have taken steps to reduce incarceration by releasing inmates on bail in light of this unprecedented pandemic and the conditions of confinement issues it brings to light.
Brief of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers et al. as Amici Curiae in Support of Plaintiff-Appellant.
Argument: Expanding police discretion would exacerbate the racial inequities entrenched in Vermont's criminal justice system in general, and its traffic enforcement practices in particular. Implicit racial bias impacts police office behavior and perceptions of what constitutes criminal behavior.
