Addison County state’s attorney ends fight over driver’s license suspension stemming from DUI arrest

Addison County State’s Attorney Eva Vekos has dropped her challenge against having her driver’s license suspended for six months following her arrest for driving under the influence earlier this year.

But she could be back behind the wheel of her vehicle well before the end of the six-month suspension period.

Vekos faced the civil suspension after she refused to submit to a breath test following her arrest on the night of Jan. 25. Police alleged she showed up impaired to a crime scene investigation in Bridport.

She also refused to be photographed or fingerprinted once at the state police barracks in New Haven, where she was processed for the DUI charge, according to charging documents.

She has since pleaded not guilty to the charge, which is being prosecuted by the Vermont Attorney General’s Office. The case has been moved from Addison County to Chittenden County to avoid any potential conflicts.

A court hearing was scheduled for Tuesday to consider the civil suspension of her driver’s license. However, Vekos last week agreed that she would no longer challenge the suspension, according to court records.

“I chose to withdraw my notice to contest the civil suspension proceeding because hindsight showed me that it was best for myself and for my community,” Vekos said in a statement released Tuesday through her attorney, David Sleigh.

“My overall message to the community is that it is always a better course to cooperate with law enforcement,” the statement added. “We, as Vermonters have the right to refuse to submit to evidentiary testing, but there are sanctions associated with a refusal – such as a license suspension.”

Vekos, in the statement, maintained that the suspension of her driver’s license should not affect her ability to perform her job as state’s attorney.

Sleigh, in an interview Tuesday, said he expected that his client would likely seek a “restricted” driver’s license, which would still allow Vekos to drive but with an ignition interlock device installed in her vehicle.

A driver must blow into the device before starting a vehicle, preventing them from operating it if they have been drinking.

Vekos, in her statement Tuesday, also addressed ongoing staffing challenges. The two deputies in her office have recently submitted their resignations, but the state’s attorney said she intends to maintain a “fully operational” office.

Annie Noonan, the Department of State’s Attorneys and Sheriffs labor relations and operations director, said Tuesday that the Addison County State’s Attorney’s Office has one full-time and one-part-time deputy prosecutor assigned to the office.

Addison County Deputy State’s Attorney Michael Novelli departed his full-time position last month for a post in the Vermont Attorney General’s Office, according to Noonan.

Noonan said that Anthony Bambrick, the part-time deputy prosecutor, is set to leave the office July 8.

Neither Novelli, Bambrick nor Vekos immediately returned messages Tuesday seeking comment.

In her statement, Vekos said she is working to get the office up to full staffing with plans in place to bring a new full-time deputy state’s attorney on board in September, which Noonan also confirmed on Tuesday.

Noonan said she could not yet release the name of that person, citing pending paperwork.

Should the Addison County State’s Attorney’s Office require additional prosecutorial assistance during the weeks ahead, Noonan said, she expected the state’s attorneys’ offices from nearby counties or the Vermont Attorney General’s Office would step up to help out.

Noonan said it is not that unusual for one county office, particularly a smaller one like Addison’s, to seek assistance on a short-term basis from another prosecutorial office.

A hearing on Vekos’ ongoing criminal DUI case Tuesday before Judge Michael Harris focused primarily on scheduling pretrial matters. A date for the trial, which the parties said they expected to run two days, still has not been set.

“I steadfastly maintain that I was not under the influence when I went to the scene of a crime after being invited by law enforcement,” Vekos said in her statement Tuesday. “I look forward to being judged by a community of my fellow citizens at trial.”

Read the story on VTDigger here: Addison County state’s attorney ends fight over driver’s license suspension stemming from DUI arrest .