# United States District Court for the District of Vermont

44°28′51″N 73°12′51″W﻿ / ﻿44.480727°N 73.214117°W﻿ / 44.480727; -73.214117
The United States District Court for the District of Vermont (in case citations, D. Vt.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the federal district of Vermont. The court has locations in Brattleboro, Burlington, and Rutland. The court was created by a March 2, 1791 amendment (1 Stat. 197) to the Judiciary Act of 1789 and assigned to the eastern circuit. Under the Midnight Judges Act, the Circuits were reorganized and this court was assigned to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit where it has remained since. Originally created with one judgeship, in 1966 a second judgeship was added.
Appeals from the District of Vermont are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).
The United States Attorney's Office for the District of Vermont represents the United States in civil and criminal litigation in the court. As of December 10, 2021 the United States attorney is Nikolas P. Kerest.

## Current judges

As of September 12, 2024:
| # | Title | Judge | Duty station | Born | Term of service | Term of service | Term of service | Appointed by |
| # | Title | Judge | Duty station | Born | Active | Chief | Senior | Appointed by |
| 19 | Chief Judge | Christina Reiss | Burlington | 1962 | 2009–present | 2010–2017 2024–present | — | Obama |
| 21 | District Judge | Mary Kay Lanthier | Rutland | 1971 | 2024–present | — | — | Biden |
| 17 | Senior Judge | John Garvan Murtha | inactive | 1941 | 1995–2009 | 1995–2002 | 2009–present | Clinton |
| 18 | Senior Judge | William K. Sessions III | Burlington | 1947 | 1995–2014 | 2002–2010 | 2014–present | Clinton |
| 20 | Senior Judge | Geoffrey W. Crawford | Burlington | 1954 | 2014–2024 | 2017–2024 | 2024–present | Obama |

## Former judges

| # | Judge | State | Born–died | Active service | Chief Judge | Senior status | Appointed by | Reason for termination |
| 1 | Nathaniel Chipman | VT | 1752–1843 | 1791–1793 | — | — | Washington | resignation |
| 2 | Samuel Hitchcock | VT | 1755–1813 | 1793–1801 | — | — | Washington | elevation to 2d Cir. |
| 3 | Elijah Paine | VT | 1757–1842 | 1801–1842 | — | — | J. Adams | resignation |
| 4 | Samuel Prentiss | VT | 1782–1857 | 1842–1857 | — | — | Tyler | death |
| 5 | David Allen Smalley | VT | 1809–1877 | 1857–1877 | — | — | Pierce | death |
| 6 | Hoyt Henry Wheeler | VT | 1833–1906 | 1877–1906 | — | — | Hayes | retirement |
| 7 | James Loren Martin | VT | 1846–1915 | 1906–1915 | — | — | T. Roosevelt | death |
| 8 | Harland Bradley Howe | VT | 1873–1946 | 1915–1940 | — | 1940–1945 | Wilson | retirement |
| 9 | James Patrick Leamy | VT | 1892–1949 | 1940–1949 | — | — | F. Roosevelt | death |
| 10 | Ernest W. Gibson Jr. | VT | 1901–1969 | 1949–1969 | 1966–1969 | — | Truman | death |
| 11 | Bernard Joseph Leddy | VT | 1910–1972 | 1966–1972 | 1969–1972 | — | L. Johnson | death |
| 12 | James L. Oakes | VT | 1924–2007 | 1970–1971 | — | — | Nixon | elevation to 2d Cir. |
| 13 | James Stuart Holden | VT | 1914–1996 | 1971–1984 | 1972–1983 | 1984–1996 | Nixon | death |
| 14 | Albert Wheeler Coffrin | VT | 1919–1993 | 1972–1989 | 1983–1988 | 1989–1993 | Nixon | death |
| 15 | Franklin S. Billings Jr. | VT | 1922–2014 | 1984–1994 | 1988–1991 | 1994–2014 | Reagan | death |
| 16 | Fred I. Parker | VT | 1938–2003 | 1990–1994 | 1991–1994 | — | G.H.W. Bush | elevation to 2d Cir. |
* ↑ Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 27, 1793, confirmed by the United States Senate on December 30, 1793, and received commission on January 28, 1794
* ↑ Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 3, 1906, confirmed by the Senate on December 11, 1906, and received commission the same day

## Chief judges

Chief Judge :
| Gibson | 1966–1969 |
| Leddy | 1969–1972 |
| Holden | 1972–1983 |
| Coffrin | 1983–1988 |
| Billings | 1988–1991 |
| Parker | 1991–1994 |
| Murtha | 1995–2002 |
| Sessions | 2002–2010 |
| Reiss | 2010–2017 |
| Crawford | 2017–2024 |
| Reiss | 2024–present |
Chief judges have administrative responsibilities with respect to their district court. Unlike the Supreme Court, where one justice is specifically nominated to be chief, the office of chief judge rotates among the district court judges. To be chief, a judge must have been in active service on the court for at least one year, be under the age of 65, and have not previously served as chief judge.
A vacancy is filled by the judge highest in seniority among the group of qualified judges. The chief judge serves for a term of seven years, or until age 70, whichever occurs first. The age restrictions are waived if no members of the court would otherwise be qualified for the position.
When the office was created in 1948, the chief judge was the longest-serving judge who had not elected to retire, on what has since 1958 been known as senior status, or declined to serve as chief judge. After August 6, 1959, judges could not become or remain chief after turning 70 years old. The current rules have been in operation since October 1, 1982.

## Succession of seats

Seat 1 :
| Seat established on March 2, 1791 by 1 Stat. 197 ||||
| Chipman | 1791–1793 |
| Hitchcock | 1793–1801 |
| Paine | 1801–1842 |
| Prentiss | 1842–1857 |
| Smalley | 1857–1877 |
| Wheeler | 1877–1906 |
| Martin | 1906–1915 |
| Howe | 1915–1940 |
| Leamy | 1940–1949 |
| Gibson Jr. | 1950–1969 |
| Oakes | 1970–1971 |
| Holden | 1971–1984 |
| Billings Jr. | 1984–1994 |
| Murtha | 1995–2009 |
| Reiss | 2009–present |
Seat 2 :
| Seat established on March 18, 1966 by 80 Stat. 75 ||||
| Leddy | 1966–1972 |
| Coffrin | 1972–1989 |
| Parker | 1990–1994 |
| Sessions III | 1995–2014 |
| Crawford | 2014–2024 |
| Lanthier | 2024–present |

## U.S. attorneys

U.S. attorneys for Vermont since it attained statehood in 1791 include:
| U.S. Attorney | Term started | Term ended | Presidents served under |
| Stephen Jacob | 1791 | 1794 | George Washington |
| Amos Marsh | 1794 | 1796 | George Washington |
| Charles Marsh | 1797 | 1801 | John Adams |
| David Fay | 1801 | 1809 | Thomas Jefferson |
| Cornelius P. Van Ness | 1810 | 1813 | James Madison |
| Titus Hutchinson | 1813 | 1821 | James Madison, James Monroe |
| William A. Griswold | 1821 | 1829 | James Monroe, and John Quincy Adams |
| Daniel Kellogg | 1829 | 1841 | Andrew Jackson, Martin Van Buren, and William Henry Harrison |
| Charles Davis | 1841 | 1845 | John Tyler |
| Charles Linsley | 1845 | 1849 | James K. Polk |
| Abel Underwood | 1849 | 1853 | Zachary Taylor and Millard Fillmore |
| Lucius B. Peck | 1853 | 1857 | Franklin Pierce |
| Henry E. Stoughton | 1857 | 1860 | James Buchanan |
| George Howe | 1861 | 1864 | Abraham Lincoln |
| Dudley C. Denison | 1864 | 1869 | Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson |
| Benjamin F. Fifield | 1869 | 1880 | Ulysses S. Grant and Rutherford B. Hayes |
| Kittredge Haskins | 1880 | 1887 | Rutherford B. Hayes, James Garfield, Chester A. Arthur, and Grover Cleveland |
| Clarence H. Pitkin | 1887 | 1889 | Grover Cleveland |
| Frank Plumley | 1889 | 1894 | Benjamin Harrison and Grover Cleveland |
| John H. Senter | 1894 | 1898 | Grover Cleveland and William McKinley |
| James L. Martin | 1898 | 1906 | William McKinley, and Theodore Roosevelt |
| Alexander Dunnett | 1906 | 1915 | Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and Woodrow Wilson |
| Vernon A. Bullard | 1915 | 1923 | Woodrow Wilson and Warren Harding |
| Harry B. Amey | 1923 | 1933 | Calvin Coolidge and Herbert Hoover |
| Joseph A. McNamara | 1933 | 1953 | Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry Truman |
| Louis G. Whitcomb | 1953 | 1961 | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
| Joseph F. Radigan | 1961 | 1969 | John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson |
| George Cook | 1969 | 1977 | Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford |
| William B. Gray | 1977 | 1981 | Jimmy Carter |
| Jerome O'Neill | 1981 | 1981 | Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan |
| George Cook | 1981 | 1987 | Ronald Reagan |
| George J. Terwilliger III | 1987 | 1991 | Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush |
| Charles Caruso | 1991 | 1993 | George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton |
| Charles Tetzlaff | 1993 | 2001 | Bill Clinton and George W. Bush |
| Peter Hall | 2001 | 2004 | George W. Bush |
| David Kirby | 2005 | 2006 | George W. Bush |
| Tom Anderson | 2006 | 2009 | George W. Bush |
| Tristram J. Coffin | 2009 | 2015 | Barack Obama |
| Eric Miller | 2015 | 2017 | Barack Obama and Donald Trump |
| Christina Nolan | 2017 | 2021 | Donald Trump |
| Nikolas P. Kerest | 2021 | present | Joe Biden |

## U.S. marshals
### Duties and responsibilities

The United States Marshal for the District of Vermont oversees all Marshals Service operations in Vermont. The Vermont district maintains offices in Burlington and Rutland, enabling the Marshals Service to carry out its role with respect to public safety in Vermont. The U.S. Marshal for Vermont is responsible for federal law enforcement activities within the state, including apprehending fugitives and sex offenders, managing transport of federal prisoners, and protecting federal courthouses.

### History

The offices of U.S. Marshal and Deputy Marshal were created by the 1st U.S. Congress when it passed the Judiciary Act of 1789. Marshals were presidential appointees and their duties included supporting the federal courts within their districts and executing the orders of the president, Congress and federal judges. Support of the courts included serving subpoenas, summonses, writs, and warrants, making arrests, and handling prisoners. Marshals were also responsible for the finances and administration of the courts, including paying fees, expenses, and salaries for court clerks, U.S. Attorneys, jurors, and witnesses. Marshals serve at the pleasure of the president, and when the positions were created, Congress created a time limit on Marshals' service. Marshals are limited to four-year, renewable terms that expire unless they are reappointed.
In the country's early years, Marshals rented courtroom and jail space, and hired and supervised bailiffs, criers, and janitors. They also handled the day-to-day activities of court proceedings, including ensuring that defendants were present, jurors were available, and witnesses appeared as required. Marshals were also called upon to carry out federal death sentences and investigate counterfeiting. Because they were paid on a fee system, the positions were lucrative and highly sought after.
Marshals also filled a gap in the federal government as it was originally designed, executing numerous tasks because no other agency was available to do them. These duties included taking the national census every 10 years until 1870, distributing Presidential proclamations, collecting statistical data for use by federal agencies, and supplying data on federal employees for including in a national register, deporting foreigners who entered the country illegally, and capturing fugitive slaves.
Over time, the duties of Marshals grew to include activities such as enforcement of the Eighteenth Amendment, the prohibition of the sale and transport of alcoholic beverages. In the modern era, the duties and responsibilities of U.S. Marshals include witness protection and apprehension of federal fugitives.

### U.S. marshals and dates of appointment

Vermont's U.S. marshals have included:
* Lewis R. Morris, March 4, 1791
* Jabez G. Fitch, June 9, 1794
* John Willard, March 11, 1801
* David Robinson, January 7, 1811
* Heman Allen (of Colchester), December 14, 1818
* Joseph Edson, March 3, 1823
* Heman Lowry, June 6, 1829
* George W. Barker, December 30, 1835
* Heman Lowry, March 7, 1837
* William Barron, March 10, 1841
* Jacob Kent Jr., March 15, 1845
* John Pettes, March 13, 1849
* Charles Chapin, April 1, 1853
* Lewis S. Partridge, May 2, 1857
* Charles C. P. Baldwin, April 12, 1861
* Hugh H. Henry, July 25, 1865
* George P. Foster, January 24, 1870
* William W. Henry, April 10, 1879
* John Robinson, June 24, 1886
* Rollin Amsden, June 18, 1890
* Emory S. Harris, June 9, 1894
* Fred A. Field, June 14, 1898
* Frank H. Chapman, October 16, 1903
* Horace W. Bailey, October 21, 1903
* Arthur P. Carpenter, February 14, 1914
* Albert W. Harvey, June 2, 1922
* Edward L. Burke, June 7, 1935
* Dewey H. Perry, March 14, 1954
* Thomas W. Sorrell, August 3, 1961
* Christian Hansen Jr., June 20, 1969
* Earle B. McLaughlin, July 28, 1977
* Christian Hansen Jr., March 17, 1982
* John E. Rouille, September 29, 1994
* John H. Sinclair, November 29, 1999
* John R. Edwards, March 18, 2002
* David E. Demag, August 18, 2009
* Bradley J. LaRose, January 2, 2019
* John Hall (acting), July 9, 2024