Page 2 - Kyle Dodson News Today

Kyle Dodson's short tenure with the City of Burlington began and ended the same way: with a boatload of controversy. Mayor Miro Weinberger tapped Dodson, a Black man who serves as president and CEO of the Greater Burlington YMCA, to lead the city's "police transformation" effort in September 2020. That month, protesters had occupied a city park to demand that the city fire three officers accused of violence and racism.

Unemployment rate falls another tenth to 3.1 percent The Vermont Department of Labor has reported that the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for February was 3.1 percent. This reflects a decrease of one-tenth of one percentage point from the prior month’s revised estimate of 3.2 percent. The comparable United States rate in February was 6.2 percent, which was a decrease of one-tenth of one percentage point from the revised January estimate. The decline is largely due to a sharp ...

Rob Donnelly Last June, hundreds of people called in to public meetings to demand that the City of Burlington reduce its reliance on police officers and instead invest in other public safety measures. City councilors listened, voting 9-3 to reduce the police force by 30 percent, through attrition. They also ordered up a study to answer a vital question: If police were no longer responding to certain calls...

EZ-ier Still [Re "EZ Does It," March 31]: Your article about the company EZ-Probate stated: "The estate can cover any legal fees, but the assets are often tied up in property that has to be vacated or sold. And outstanding debts can sometimes wipe out what little money an estate has, leaving families to pay the attorneys bill." This is generally false, since attorney fees and other costs of administering the estate are a first priority. "Outstanding debts" would not be paid until there are ...

Courtesy of Lets Grow Kids From left: Chris Nelson, Keegan Albaugh, Kyle Dodson, Rachel Whalen and Michael Seaver Chris Nelson is the kind of person all families would love to have caring for their children. An experienced and enthusiastic early childhood educator, Nelson runs Mountain View Child Care in North Troy. The 10 children enrolled there spend weekdays o...

16:28 The national reckoning with racial justice and police brutality has led to a conversation about the role of law enforcement in New England communities. The May 2020 killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody sparked protests across the nation, including in Williamstown, Massachusetts, where residents worked to bring that conversation home. Residents formed the Racial Justice Police Reform Group in July. They also pushed the town to establish the Advisory Committee for Divers...

5:30 An issue that shadowed Burlington, Vermont officials throughout 2020 began at the end of 2019.  As Progressives took control of the City Council, policing issues were targeted. Now the department faces cuts moving into 2021. On December 16, 2019 Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger accepted the resignation of then-Police Chief Brandon del Pozo after he admitted using an anonymous Twitter account to criticize a local activist and department critic.  The mayor then appointed Deputy Chief Jan W...

4:11 The acting chief of the Burlington, Vermont Police Department is speaking out about the current and potential future impacts of a resolution passed by the City Council earlier this year that mandates a 30% reduction in sworn officers. On June 29th the Burlington City Council passed a Racial Justice through Economic and Criminal Justice resolution. Among its provisions is a requirement that the police department decrease the number of uniformed police officers by 30% through attrition. The ...