The change in the law came following the rape and murder of a 12-year-old girl in Essex. One of the two defendants in that case, James Savage, was 15 and could not be charged as an adult. The public outcry prompted a special session of the Legislature to change the law.
Vermont statutes list 12 crimes for which a minor may be tried as an adult. Those are arson causing death, assault and robbery with a dangerous weapon, assault and robbery causing bodily injury, aggravated assault, murder, manslaughter, kidnapping, unlawful restraint, maiming, sexual assault, aggravated sexual assault and burglary into an occupied dwelling.
Children between the ages of 10 and 15 cannot be charged as adults with other crimes, but the state can petition to have such a youth declared a “delinquent child.”
When a defendant falls within the relevant age and offense categories, the prosecutor has discretion in whether to charge a juvenile as an adult.