Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the States Attorneys Operational Needs topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
State's attorneys cite 23,000 pending cases, ask for staff and IT cost relief including a docket manager and PCR attorney
Summary
Department testimony said Vermont’s 14 State’s Attorneys’ offices have about 23,000 pending criminal cases and requested attorneys, paralegals, a docket manager, a PCR attorney, and fiscal support to address backlog and discovery demands.
Montpelier — Department leaders told the House Appropriations Committee on Feb. 13 that Vermont’s 14 State’s Attorneys’ offices collectively carry roughly 23,000 pending criminal cases and are seeking a mix of attorneys, paralegals, and administrative staff to reduce backlogs, assist discovery, and manage post-conviction work.
“We currently have over 23,000 pending criminal cases in our department,” Annie Noonan said in testimony. The department provided a county-by-county snapshot that it said shows about 13,000 misdemeanors and roughly 7,000 felonies among the pending caseload.
The department asked the committee for a set of positions for FY26, including a docket management position to analyze and triage older pending cases, four deputy state's attorney positions (the department noted that four limited-service deputies granted last year remain unfilled and could be converted to permanent positions), paralegals and additional administrative support, a post-conviction relief (PCR) attorney tied to appellate and records work, and an additional fiscal staff person to help manage 29 offices across the department.
Department staff described discovery and media file management as a growing workload pressure. Annie Noonan told the committee that the department has been billed by the Agency of Digital Services (ADS) for SharePoint and other services at levels higher than expected; she said the department had already paid about $48,000 and was advised to budget about $18,000 per month for ongoing ADS/SharePoint charges. Those costs and rising internal service fees contributed to the department’s request for additional operating funds.
Tim Lueders Dumont, the department’s executive director, and Annie Noonan also noted large trial and docket pressures: the department reported a 65% increase in trial days over the prior year and said that increased trials helped clear about 3,000 cases. To manage the remaining backlog, the department recommended a docket manager who could generate weekly lists of older cases for review and potential offers or dismissals.
The department said its total “fully satisfied” ask if the committee provided full staffing would be about $3.6 million for FY26, inclusive of transports and other requests; officials said they would work with legislators to scale the package.
No committee action was taken during testimony; requests were entered for consideration in the FY26 budget process.
