Hung Juries

March 5, 2021: The Committee has revamped and expanded the reporter’s note for the hung jury (“Allen” ) charge. The expanded note incorporates discussion from State v. Rolls, 2020 VT 18, ¶¶ 13–20.

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Transitions to Lesser-Included Offenses

March 5, 2021: The Committee has revised the reporter’s note accompanying the transition instructions, which appear on multiple pages on this website, to add a reference to State v. Rolls, 2020 VT 18, ¶ 9 (trial court did not err in providing both hard and soft transition instructions, rather than one or the other, in the absence of defendant’s request). See, for example, the reporter’s note on the homicide page.

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Investigation of Jury Taint

March 4, 2021: The Committee has added a reference to State v. Kandzior, 2020 VT 37, ¶ 27 (“the failure to investigate possible jury taint and establish an evidentiary basis for determining if the jury was fair and unbiased amounts to plain error”) to the reporter’s notes accompanying the juror prohibition instructions, available here and here.

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Criminal Threatening

January 11, 2021: The Committee has added a new model instruction and reporter’s note for the crime of criminal threatening, 13 V.S.A. § 1702, available here.

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Evidence of Flight

January 8, 2021: The Committee has revised the instruction and reporter’s note for evidence of flight, CR05-501.

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Sexual Exploitation of a Minor

January 8, 2021: The Committee has created new instructions and a reporter’s note for the crime of sexual exploitation of a minor, 13 V.S.A. § 3258. The new instructions include both misdemeanor and felony versions.

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Aggravated Assault (threatened another with deadly weapon)

December 31, 2020: The Committee has updated the instruction for aggravated assault (threatened another with deadly weapon), CR22-098. That instruction is available here.

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Violation of Abuse Prevention Order (VAPO)

December 18, 2020: The Committee recently revised the instruction and reporter’s note for VAPO to reflect a recent statutory amendment that explicitly adds an element of general intent.

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Dismissal During Trial of Some Charges Against Single Defendant

October 12, 2020: The Committee added a new reporter’s note to accompany model instruction CR03-061, and also changed the caption for that instruction from “Partial Rule 29 Dismissal” to “Dismissal During Trial of Some Charges Against Single Defendant.”

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Permissive Inference of Drug Possession

October 12, 2020: The Committee has added a new instruction: CR40-801, Permissive Inference of Drug Possession (presence in automobile), based on 18 V.S.A. § 4221(b). The accompanying reporter’s note is available here.

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