Governor says violent crime not just a problem in Burlington

BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – Vermont’s governor is addressing the influx of violent crime in the state’s largest city, saying gun violence is a problem affecting communities across the state, not just Burlington.

Police in the Queen City have had their hands full this month, investigating several shootings, armed robberies involving guns, a homicide at a nightclub on Church Street, gunfire leading to an abandoned car riddled with bullet holes and covered in blood in a public park, and seeking information on young people concealing firearms and getting into fights downtown.

“Incidents like this and the ongoing incidents that Burlington is struggling with show how complex the community safety issues have been and have been for a long time in the city,” said Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak, P-Burlington.

Gov. Phil Scott attended a manufacturing workforce roundtable in Lyndon on Tuesday. We asked him what could be done about the situation.

“We’re not just seeing it in Chittenden County; it’s everywhere,” said Scott, R-Vermont.

Scott points to recent legislation that stiffens penalties for dealing drugs, like fentanyl and xylazine, and allows prosecutors to charge teens as adults in cases of gun violence.

It comes as Burlington grapples with concerns over open drug use, public encampments and the uptick in gun crimes.

“We need to do more,” Scott said. “People need to be held accountable for their actions and I don’t think we’ve done that as well as we should.”

Next week, about 300 more Vermonters will be out on the street following cuts to Vermont’s subsidized hotel-motel program.

With the legislative session about four months away, Scott says he’ll continue to push for more measures for more accountability like bail reform.

“Hopefully, we’ll get some more of what we promoted in the last couple of sessions,” the governor said.

Democratic Senate President Pro Tem Phil Baruth said this week that lawmakers will likely act on new gun restrictions in Burlington bars next session, claiming there’s been a sea change in public opinion on banning guns in bars.

“We are not equal in terms of the challenges we are seeing in our downtown cities with addiction, firearms and violence,” said Baruth, D/P-Chittenden County.

The discussion comes as college students return to the Queen City, a major economic driver for Burlington and the state as a whole.

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