BURLINGTON, VT – In large part because of the unavailability of treatment programs, an accused man was sent to jail after he relapsed on drugs and violated the terms of his conditional release here,
After a brief hearing at the District of Vermont Federal Courthouse in Burlington, the accused is now being held at Northwest State Correctional Facility in St. Albans.
He admitted to having used fentanyl and cocaine, failing to report for drug testing, and failing to attend drug treatment, all of which violated the conditions of his release.
Responding to questioning by Judge William K. Sessions, the accused described his recent drug use as a relapse, and said he had previously been receiving treatment for his addiction at an outpatient clinic.
U.S. Attorney Mathew Lasher stated the prosecution was “seeking detention at least temporarily” for the accused, but acknowledged the accused had “done well on release until this point.”
Defense Attorney Allan Sullivan requested that the conditions of release be modified instead of completely revoked, indicating they had hoped to be able to provide proof of the accused’s “admission to a 90-day residential treatment program in New York,” but had been unable to get the accused accepted into treatment before the hearing.
Judge Sessions ultimately decided the accused would be detained, telling the defense that potential modified release conditions could be addressed at a later hearing.
