Friday September 24, 2010

BENNINGTON — A television commercial launched Friday by the gubernatorial campaign of Republican Lt. Gov. Brian Dubie that attacks his opponent’s Corrections plan repeats information that has been debunked by the nonpartisan Legislative Council.

The television ad, like a radio ad the campaign released earlier in the week, claims that Democratic Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin’s plan will allow the early release of people convicted of crimes involving child pornography.

Dubie: Plan is ‘reckless’

Shumlin wants to save as much as $40 million annually by providing resources to ensure that nonviolent offenders who are released from prison do not commit new crimes and end up back in prison. The plan will not seek early release for convicted criminals, he said.

But Dubie has maintained in his advertisements and appearances that the plan is “reckless” and dangerous for Vermont. Both ads out this week claim that “child pornographers” would be “released long before their sentences are up.”

The Legislature passed Act 157 during the past legislative session, however, which more clearly defines violent and nonviolent crimes. “Listed crimes,” a collection of 30 or so crimes, are considered to be violent, said Democratic Bennington County Sen. Dick Sears, the longtime chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Legislative Council’s Michele Childs, a lawyer assigned to the Senate

Judiciary Committee, said in an opinion provided at the behest of Sears that possession or dissemination of child pornography is considered to be a violent crime. Any crimes involving the sexual exploitation of children outlined in Title 13, Chapter 64, of the Vermont statutes are considered violent and not eligible for early release, according to Childs.

Dubie Campaign Manager Corry Bliss maintained Friday that possessing child pornography is a nonviolent crime. He said the campaign’s position is based on his “at-length conversation” with Department of Corrections Commissioner Andrew Pallito and the statute itself.

“It’s my contention that child pornography is not a violent crime based on a literal reading of the statute,” Bliss said.

Pallito did not return phone or e-mail messages Friday.

Sears, who worked on the legislation in committee and reported it on the Senate floor, said the law is clear. “Any crime that involves exploitation of a child is a violent crime, whether you touched them or didn’t. I don’t think there’s much question about it,” he said. “That bill spelled out who could be released early and who couldn’t. So even if the Department of Corrections considers them to be a nonviolent offender they couldn’t be released early.”

Sears said there “is no excuse” for Pallito or other Corrections officials for not knowing state laws. He said Dubie should also be familiar with legislation taken up in the Senate.

“By the same token Brian Dubie should not get a free pass and just blame the commissioner,” Sears said. “As the presiding officer of the Senate he should have known content of the bills.”

Sears said the radio and television ads are factually wrong and Dubie continues to run them.

“That’s beyond the pale when people are pointing out to him that he’s wrong,” Sears said. “I don’t now why you would put a TV ad up when the Legislature passed a bill this year when you were presiding that expressly makes it a violent crime.”

Meanwhile on Friday, the Vermont Democratic Party questioned a document Dubie held up during Thursday’s debate here and described as a list of nonviolent offenders provided by Pallito. Dubie said the list of offenders included “people who deal in pornography with children.”

However, in e-mails provided to the Banner, Pallito told Vermont Democratic Party officials that he did not provide a list of offenders, only a list of crimes that shows what is considered violent and nonviolent.

Bliss said Friday that Dubie misspoke about the document he was showing. “The lieutenant governor misspoke, but he has had several conversations with the commissioner about who the 780 nonviolent offenders include,” Bliss said.

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NEAL P. GOSWAMI
Bennington Banner

Wednesday July 7, 2010

BENNINGTON — Democratic gubernatorial candidate Sen. Peter Shumlin snagged endorsements Wednesday from Bennington County Sens. Dick Sears and Robert Hartwell.

Shumlin,the president pro tem in the Vermont Senate, faces four others — Secretary of State Deborah Markowitz, Sens.Susan Bartlett and Doug Racine, and former Sen. Matt Dunne — in a primary Aug. 24. Endorsements from Democrats in the Legislature had been slow to arrive for the five candidates, but have picked up with the primary date fast approaching.

Sears, the county’s senior senator and chairman of the Senate JudiciaryCommittee,and Hartwell, who is seeking a third term in November, were unequivocal in their support for Shumlin in a brief news conference at theBennington Town Office.

Sears said all five Democrats in the race to succeed retiring Republican Gov. James Douglas were “terrific candidates.”

But Shumlin stands out for several reasons, Sears said, most importantly is his ability to win.

“I believe Peter can win in November, and I think that’s tremendously important as a Democrat,” said Sears, who has served with Shumlin in the Senate for 14 years.

Shumlin is the “best candidate of the five to lead Vermont out of our recession-induced budget gap,” according to Sears. “That’s a tremendous problem that we’re facing in the state and throughout the nation,” he said. “Peter understands that we can’t do that by either
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… raising taxes or cutting services. He realizes we need to that through economic development.”

Hartwell said Shumlin was an effective “manager as well as a legislator.” The Putney Democrat has guided fellow lawmakers through several challenges, including an override of a vetoed state budget and passing same-sex marriage, Hartwell said.

“In my four years with Peter he’s been confronted on a number of occasions with tough management decisions and guiding the Legislature through tough issues,” Hartwell said.

He said he, too, was swayed because “Peter can win this in the fall.”

Sears also said Shumlin has “the temperament to lead.” While he can be “overly aggressive” on issues, Sears said he has watched (Shumlin) grow in the position of president pro tem.” He demonstrated after the tragic killing and sexual assault of a 12-year-old girl in 2008 the ability to approach hot-button issues in an even-keeled way, Sears said.

“There was all kinds of calls for this, for that, but at the time Peter was the leader, in my view. He said, ‘No, we’re not going to jump to special sessions. We’re not going to suggest that Vermont isn’t a safe state. We remain as one of the safest states in the union,’” Sears said. “Peter … set in motion, I think, one of the best examples of leadership this state has ever seen.”

Bennington County would benefit from having a governor from Southern Vermont, Sears said.

“Peter understands southern Vermont. It’s interesting. I have candidates call me and say, ‘What are the issues down here,’” Sears said. “He understands that and he understands what it’s like to be forgotten.”

Shumlin pledged to bring more attention to the southern part of the state and said he hoped to “make Bennington County Sears, Hartwell and Shumlin county.”

“Having been born and raised in Southern Vermont, I will never forget my roots or where I come from. I am going to be the governor that creates jobs equally across the state, not just in our central population base,” Shumlin said.

“Bennington desperately needs jobs. We need to grow the opportunities in composites and other areas where we’ve been extraordinarily innovative.”

Contact Neal P. Goswami at ngoswami@benningtonbanner.com

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