By Patrick Mcardle
RUTLAND HERALD
One year after the riot during which supporters of then-President Donald Trump violently stormed the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to stop certification of the 2020 presidential election, more than 700 people have been arrested for their part in the insurrection, but none of them are Vermonters.
The investigation is ongoing and a Vermonter may still be cited or accused but to date, Vermont is one of four states from which no resident has been charged.
A story published by Yahoo News on Tuesday looked at the numbers and found there had been arrests of people in every state with the exceptions of Nevada, North Dakota, Wyoming and Vermont.
A story published by National Public Radio on Wednesday found the same but added arrests had also been made of residents of Washington, D.C., in addition to 46 states.
By email, Jason Maulucci, press secretary for Gov. Phil Scott, noted the governor has said Jan. 6, 2021, was “one of the darkest days for democracy in our nation’s history, and it showed just how fragile it can be if we’re not careful.”
In December, Scott spoke at President Joe Biden’s summit for democracy. He supported acceptance of the election results.
“Just 11 months ago … we saw our president fuel a campaign to undermine and try to overturn the results of a free, fair and legal election. The election was overseen by nonpartisan officials across the country and validated by governors of both political parties, which proved the system worked and the values of democracy prevailed when tested,” Scott said.
“Yet we cannot lose sight of the fact that one person’s ego led us to a very low moment in American history. This is a powerful reminder of why we must always guard against authoritarianism and the manipulation of would-be dictators from both the right and the left,” he added.
Robert Sand, a professor at Vermont Law School and founding director of the Center for Justice Reform, said he was “certainly happy” to hear no Vermonters had been charged in connection with the insurrection, but added that he would be “reluctant to read too much into it right now.”
Sand said he had no inside knowledge except for his background in knowing the way complex investigations work. He was once the Windsor County State’s Attorney.
“What I do think is important to appreciate is that complex cases like this unfold in layers and so the first layer tends to be the principals, the people who can be identified as the actors engaging in criminal behavior. That’s really been this first wave of arrests and prosecutions. It’s not unusual that there then is a second layer. Those are people who either conspired with or aided either before an act or after,” he said.
Sand said he had no reason to believe that Vermonters had committed any crime that day.
“But I think it would be imprudent to say, ‘Oh look, no Vermonter has been arrested yet, that means no Vermonter had any involvement or has any criminal exposure.’ I think it would be premature to draw that kind of conclusion,” he said.
Sand said one possibility was that the investigators looking at the insurrection may reach the end of an investigation that looked at those who stormed the building or engaged in violence in Washington, D.C., but may then look at people who may have organized and financed trips to the U.S. Capitol “with the understanding that it would yield a criminal effort to thwart the certification of the election.”
“Merrick Garland (United States attorney general) and his team might say, we are done with the principals, now we’re going to be moving on to the people who supported it,” he said.
Sand noted that Vermont’s small population “tilted in our favor” in having no arrests among residents even from a well-attended event like the one on Jan. 6, 2021.
But he also said that Vermont is not monolithic nor uniformly blue.
“But even where we’re purple and red, I don’t know, maybe we have a better appreciation for the rule of law,” he said.
Sand agreed there was some significance to the fact that no Vermonters had been arrested a year after the insurrection.
“I would love to tout that as a badge of honor for Vermont and Vermonters reasonableness and willingness to abide by the rule of law, even if their candidate did not win. I’m just reluctant to trumpet that too loudly until all facets of the investigation are complete,” he said.
In December, Scott urged Americans not to forget what happened a year ago.
“It is critical for our nation to humbly reflect on these events and the many years leading up to them, and learn from it to make our nation, and all democracies, more durable. Because democracy is only as strong as our commitment to it, and we cannot let our guard down,” he said.
patrick.mcardle @rutlandherald.com
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