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Mystery as Vermont politician, his wife and her 13 year-old son are all found murdered in their cozy cottage

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Mystery as Vermont politician, his wife and her 13 year-old son are all found murdered in their cozy cottage


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A Vermont town politician and his family have been found dead in their cottage in a mysterious triple murder.

Pawlet select board member Brian Crossman, 46, his wife Erica, 41, and her son Colin Taft, 13, were shot dead on Sunday, according to police.

Detectives arrived at the home after receiving a 911 call early on Sunday by someone they identified as a person of interest in the homicides.

The person, a relative of the family, was waiting for police in blood-covered clothes at a school near the Crossman home, as reported by Vermont News & Media.

He then reportedly accompanied police to the home, where the bodies were found. 

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Pawlet select board member Brian Crossman, 46, his wife Erica and their son Colin Taft, 13, were shot dead on Sunday, according to police

Erica, 41, and her son Colin Taft, 13, are pictured in 2021

Erica, 41, and her son Colin Taft, 13, are pictured in 2021

Police have yet to name a suspect but said the incident was isolated and there is no ‘identified threat to the community.’

They’ve also declined to discuss a possible motive.  

A neighbor and relative of Crossman claimed the farm where the murders happened had been in his family for generations. 

They said Crossman and his wife, who married in June, recently took control of the farm from Crossman’s sister.

‘I think he was just trying to make a new start and trying to run the family farm. And, yeah, this just is, like, the last thing I expected,’ the source told Vermont News & Media.

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Crossman worked as a lineman and joined the Pawlet select board last spring. 

He had been appointed as the liaison to Pawlet’s Highway Department and for buildings.

A neighbor and relative of Crossman claimed the far where the murders happened had been in his family for generations

A neighbor and relative of Crossman claimed the far where the murders happened had been in his family for generations

They said Crossman and his wife, who married in June, recently took control of the farm from Crossman's sister

They said Crossman and his wife, who married in June, recently took control of the farm from Crossman’s sister

Pawlet is a town of about 1,400 near the New York state line. 

The select board is in charge of overseeing the town’s spending and enacting of ordinances.

Crossman’s place at the table in the board’s meeting on Tuesday was filled with flowers.

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‘Brian Crossman was a friend and neighbor, a hardworking community member who just this year stepped up to join the Pawlet Select board,’ chairman Mike Beecher said in a statement.

‘This tragedy that struck him and his family has also hit our community hard, and we are shaken and grieving. Our hearts go out to everyone affected by this devastating loss.’ 

Vermont State Police told DailyMail.com on Wednesday: ‘VSP’s investigation remains active and ongoing. No one is currently in custody. 

‘Detectives request that any members of the public who have information potentially relevant to this case contact the Rutland Barracks at 802-773-9101 or provide an anonymous tip online athttps://vsp.vermont.gov/tipsubmit.’

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21-year-old killed in wrong-way crash on I-89 in Vermont; other driver cited

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21-year-old killed in wrong-way crash on I-89 in Vermont; other driver cited


A 21-year-old is dead after a pickup truck slammed head-on into her vehicle on Interstate 89 Wednesday evening in Bolton, Vermont, and the other driver involved has been cited.

State police say they responded around 5:22 p.m. to reports of a wrong-way driver in the area of mile marker 71. As troopers were responding, a multi-vehicle crash on the interstate was reported to dispatchers.

A preliminary investigation shows 45-year-old Timothy Wooster was driving a Toyota Tundra in the northbound lane when he crossed the median into the southbound lane, where he continued traveling the wrong way until he collided head-on with a Kia Sportage that was being driven by 21-year-old Hailey Westcot, police said.

A third vehicle, a Cascadia Freightliner, was traveling southbound when the head-on collision happened ahead, causing the vehicle to strike Westcot’s car and then rollover.

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Westcot, of Northfield, Vt., was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Wooster, of Jericho, Vt., was taken to University of Vermont Medical Center to be treated for serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

The third driver who was involved, 50-year-old Douglas Bailey, of Londonderry, New Hampshire, was evaluated on scene and did not report any injuries, police added.

Officials haven’t said what led Wooster to allegedly drive in the wrong direction on the highway. Wooster was cited on a charge of grossly negligent operation with death resulting. Further charges will be determined as the investigation continues, according to police.

Any witnesses are asked to contact Trooper Shawn Morrow at 802-878-7111. Anonymous tips can be submitted online here. The investigation remains ongoing.

It’s unclear if Wooster has obtained legal representation at this time. He’s due in Chittenden County Superior Court on Jan. 29, 2026.

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UVM men’s rugby team wins first-ever national championship – VTDigger

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UVM men’s rugby team wins first-ever national championship – VTDigger


The University of Vermont men’s rugby team celebrates after winning its national championship game against the University of Chicago on Sunday, Dec. 14. Photo courtesy of National Collegiate Rugby

The University of Vermont men’s rugby team romped the University of Chicago last weekend, 71-5, to win its first-ever national championship. It’s the second time, notably, that a UVM sports team has won a national-level title in the past year.

Rugby is not a varsity sport at UVM — such as soccer or basketball — which means the school’s men’s and women’s teams play outside of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, or NCAA. The men’s team plays in National Collegiate Rugby’s Division II, which has more than 100 teams in different regional conferences across the country.

The team’s win Sunday capped an undefeated season that also saw it dispatch rivals in earlier rounds of the Division II tournament by double-digit margins.

“It really hasn’t even set in yet, still. Every time I see a picture or something, I’m like, holy — I can’t believe it,” said Jack Worobel, a senior mechanical engineering major at UVM who plays in the No. 4, or “lock,” position. “It’s awesome.”

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In UVM’s rugby league, 15 players are on the field for each team at a time. Players advance the ball by running or kicking it but aren’t allowed to pass the ball forward. Points come primarily through “tries,” which are worth five points each and scored by bringing the ball into the opponent’s in-goal area and touching it to the ground.

Worobel credited UVM’s win to strong bonds that he said he and his teammates have built up over the past four years. A number of the players, including himself, have been on the team every year since they were first-year students, he said.

UVM has had a men’s rugby team since 1970, according to a school press release.

The University of Vermont men’s rugby team handily defeated the University of Chicago 71–5 to win its first ever national championship. Photo courtesy of National Collegiate Rugby

“We all do anything for each other. Anyone would do a favor for anyone else on this team — I think that’s where the win comes (from),” Worobel said Wednesday. “It’s not from the skill or the talents. Really, it’s what’s off the field.”

The rugby team’s win comes about a year after UVM’s men’s soccer team — which competes at the highest level of collegiate athletics — won the NCAA Division I championship last December. UVM has also won six NCAA championships in skiing, with the most recent coming in 2012.

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Police investigating after ATV stolen from Vt. driveway

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Police investigating after ATV stolen from Vt. driveway


Police are asking for the public’s help in their ongoing investigation into a stolen all-terrain vehicle in Derby, Vermont.

State police say they were notified around 4 p.m. on Oct. 31 that a Camouflage 2008 Yamaha Rhino 700 ATV had been stolen from a driveway on Main St. The theft occurred some time between 10 p.m. on Oct. 30 and 7 a.m. on Oct. 31.

No other details were immediately available. Police did released two photos as part of the investigation.

Anyone with information about this theft is encouraged to call Vermont State Police at 802-334-8881, or leave an anonymous tip online.

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