252 A.3d 804
Vt.2021Background
- Joshua Boyer was charged with multiple violent felonies, including aggravated sexual assault and aggravated assault involving his minor daughter; each count carried potential life imprisonment.
- He was held without bail under 13 V.S.A. § 7553 at arraignment and earlier requests for home detention were denied.
- A November 2019 jury trial resulted in a mistrial; preparation for a retrial was interrupted by the judiciary’s Administrative Order 49 suspending jury trials during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Boyer moved to dismiss or, alternatively, to be released on conditions because trial suspension prolonged pretrial detention; the court denied his motion and later denied a renewed bail-review motion.
- The trial court expressly considered the § 7554(b) bail factors (nature of the offenses, weight of evidence, criminal history, risk of flight, public-safety concerns) and concluded conditions proposed could not assure safety or prevent flight.
- Boyer appealed, arguing the court abused its discretion by not factoring the indefinite jury-trial suspension into the least-restrictive-means analysis for pretrial release.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the trial court abused its discretion in denying bail review by failing to consider COVID-related jury suspensions when assessing least-restrictive measures | State: Court properly exercised discretion, considered §7554(b) factors, and reasonably denied release | Boyer: Indefinite jury suspensions prolonged detention; court should release him on conditions as the least-restrictive measure | Affirmed—no abuse of discretion; Boyer failed to preserve the specific COVID-impact argument and court adequately considered bail factors |
| Whether the suspension of jury trials violated Boyer’s due-process/speedy-trial rights to require release | State: Suspension was constitutional as previously adjudicated; no due-process violation | Boyer: Delay from A.O. 49 violated due process and speedy-trial rights, warranting release | Court relied on prior ruling rejecting Boyer’s due-process claim; no basis to reopen that determination |
| Whether the trial court was required to expressly relate each §7554(b) factor to risk of flight/public safety | State: No formalistic mapping required; substance controls—court need not explicitly tie each factor to ultimate interests | Boyer: Court failed to weigh factors to show hold-without-bail was least restrictive with respect to flight and safety | Rejected formal requirement; once court finds defendant cannot be trusted to comply, effect on risk of flight/public safety is obvious |
| Preservation: Could Boyer raise pandemic’s effect on public-safety/flight for the first time on appeal? | State: Argument not preserved below; appellate review inappropriate | Boyer: Pandemic’s changed conditions warrant consideration now | Forfeited—appellant did not present the specific argument to trial court, so appellate court declined to consider it |
Key Cases Cited
- State v. Blackmer, 631 A.2d 1134 (Vt. 1993) (articulates limits on pretrial detention: cannot be punitive, must be proportionate, and must serve legitimate compelling interests)
- Bell v. Wolfish, 441 U.S. 520 (1979) (pretrial detainees cannot be punished; due-process constraints on detention conditions)