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Vermont House amends bill to create felony for abuse of a corpse
Summary
The Vermont House on Feb. 12 amended House Bill 41 to create a felony for knowingly burning, mutilating, disfiguring, dismembering or otherwise destroying a dead body and ordered the bill read a third time; the measure also alters penalties in an existing public-health statute.
The Vermont House of Representatives on Feb. 12 amended House Bill 41, which would create a felony for the abuse of a dead body, and ordered the bill read a third time.
Representative Burditt, the member from West Rutland speaking for the House Judiciary Committee, told the chamber the bill responds to a violent death in Enosburg and described committee testimony from the victim's family. “This was by far the Reader's Digest version of what we heard,” he said, and later called the committee's recorded vote “probably the strongest 11 vote I've seen in my 15 years in the building.”
The bill would create a new criminal statute, described in the draft as 13 V.S.A. § 3761a, prohibiting a person from knowingly and without legal authorization intentionally burning, mutilating, disfiguring, dismembering, or destroying the dead body of a person. A violation under the subsection that criminalizes those acts carries a penalty of up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $5,000, or both. The measure also establishes an enhanced felony penalty—up to 15 years in prison, a fine up to $10,000, or both—if the prohibited conduct is committed with the specific intent to conceal a crime or avoid apprehension, prosecution, or conviction.
The Judiciary Committee also amended a separate public-health provision, 18 V.S.A. § 5211, which addresses unauthorized burial or removal of a dead body. The committee struck the existing five-year prison term in that section and retained a $1,000 fine as the sole penalty for unauthorized burial or removal under that statute.
Representative Burditt described the origin of the bill as tied to testimony in committee by Pamela Merritt, the daughter of Roberta Martin of Enosburg, who the representative said described the murder and its aftermath at length during the committee hearing. The House summary posted on the day's calendar indicates witnesses included the victim's family, the Department of State's Attorneys and Sheriffs, legislative counsel, the defender general's office, and members of the judiciary.
During floor proceedings the chamber voted by voice to adopt the committee amendment recommended by the Judiciary Committee. After the amendment was adopted, the House voted by voice to order a third reading.
The bill text sets an effective date of July 1, 2024, in the language presented on the floor. No final passage vote on the bill is recorded in the provided transcript excerpt; the House ordered the third reading during this session.
Votes at a glance
- Committee amendment to H.41 (as recommended by the House Judiciary Committee): adopted by voice vote (recorded as “ayes do have it”). - Motion to order third reading of H.41: adopted by voice vote (recorded as “ayes do have it”).
Next steps
After the House orders a bill read a third time, the measure would appear on the House calendar for final passage vote and any subsequent action required before transmittal to the Senate; the transcript for this session records the ordering of the third reading but does not record a final passage vote.
