Defence seeks juror survey in Rutland deadly chase murder case
The lawyer for Tate Rheaume, charged with aggravated murder after a 2023 police chase killed a trainee officer, wants to quiz prospective jurors before pursuing a change of venue.
Rutland chase murder: defence pushes for juror questionnaire ahead of venue motion
David Sleigh, attorney for Tate Rheaume, 23, of Salisbury, told Judge Susan McManus at a hearing Monday in Rutland Superior Criminal Court that he wants to send prospective jurors an initial questionnaire before pressing a formal motion to move the trial to another county, vtdigger.org reports.
Rheaume has pleaded not guilty to aggravated murder and several related offences in connection with the death of Jessica Ebbighausen, a 19-year-old Rutland City police trainee, on 7 July 2023. The chase ended on Woodstock Avenue when Rheaume drove his pickup nearly head-on into Ebbighausen's cruiser while another officer was in pursuit.
Sleigh told McManus that the volume of media coverage surrounding the case has raised serious concerns about empanelling an impartial jury in Rutland County. He proposed sending a short "initial" questionnaire — containing two or three targeted questions — to prospective jurors as a first filter.
"I think it's an efficient way to address the enormous amount of publicity this case has generated, and the strong feelings that appear to exist in a large number of people in Rutland County," Sleigh said.
Those who passed the initial screen would then receive a more detailed questionnaire as part of the full jury-selection process, he added, noting the approach would likely "weed out quite a few potential jurors" at an early stage.
Rutland County Deputy State's Attorney Daron Raleigh said Monday was the first time she had heard Sleigh's proposal and she was not prepared to endorse it. McManus issued no ruling and scheduled a further hearing in two weeks.
The judge asked Sleigh directly whether he intended to pursue the venue-change motion if the parties could not reach agreement on his questionnaire proposal. "I don't know, your honor," Sleigh replied. "But I'll certainly have an answer for that the next time we speak."
Sleigh had filed a motion earlier this year to transfer the trial out of Rutland County, citing in part the extent of media attention the case has attracted. The prosecution filed a counter-motion opposing the transfer.
No trial date has been set. The case has already faced delays while a separate defence issue worked through the courts: Sleigh had sought permission to introduce details from an internal affairs report that found officer misconduct by other officers during the pursuit. A Rutland judge denied that request, and the Vermont Supreme Court upheld the ruling in August.
Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)