BURLINGTON, VT — There was more than a little confusion here in Vermont Superior Court last Friday during a status conference, with key parties not present, and interpreters and lawyers talking over each other.
Judge John Pacht requested the presence of the accused over video conference, along with that of State Attorney George Gelzer, and the accused stated he did not have the money to travel.
The accused, appearing remotely without his camera turned on, was charged with his second count of driving while under the influence.
Originally, Gelzer was listed as representing the State, and Deputy State’s Attorney Jacqueline Whitman was present, but admitted she had not had the chance to speak with DPA Gelzer prior to the day’s hearing.
Another attendee over Zoom was a Nepalese interpreter for the accused’s translations.
Judge Pacht, noting that not all parties were present and having a lack of familiarity with the case because of prosecutor Gelzer’s absence and the remote appearance of the accused, stated there should be a future date when all parties are present.
But, in response, the accused stated, “(I) don’t have money to travel.”
There were then further exchanges made by the interpreter and the accused that were not translated. These were occurring at the same time as counsel was speaking.
The accused then tried to ask a question about his standing, to which Judge Pacht responded that no more questions would be allowed and the accused should speak with his attorney.
After further discussion by counsel, and more exchanges between the interpreter and the accused that were untranslated, Judge Pacht ended the confusion by stating he would “take a plea over Webex,” though it is unclear whether that was directly translated to the accused.
The pretrial conference date was set for Oct. 2.
