Mosher indictment riles farmers

Rutland Herald

By Kathleen Phalen Tomaselli

Staff Writer | June 03,2016

Albert J. Marro / Staff file Photo A somber Craig Mosher talks about the day Tropical Storm Irene devastated the Killington / Bridgewater area and the scene when Roaring Brook exploded across U.S. 4 just north of Goodro Lumber wiping out the road (front photo) and causing tens of thousands in property damage.

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Craig Mosher’s involuntary manslaughter charge — in a fatal crash involving a bull that got loose — has spurred a vocal reaction from farmers and animal owners far beyond Vermont’s borders.

And the Vermont Farm Bureau is urging its members to come to Mosher’s status hearing at 3 p.m. Monday in Rutland criminal court.

“This isn’t about farmers, this isn’t about Vermont, this isn’t about Craig Mosher, this is huge ... this should not be in criminal court,” said Ray Duquette, president of the Rutland County Farm Bureau. “This sets a precedent nationwide. Anyone with any kind of animal is at risk. We are hoping (State’s Attorney) Rose Kennedy will drop the charge.”

Mosher’s charge came from the July 2015 death of a Woodbridge, Conn., man who was driving at night on Route 4 in Killington and crashed into a tree after hitting Mosher’s large Scottish Highlander bull that had escaped from its fenced pasture.

“We are encouraging all farmers to pay attention and make sure we have a voice in this,” said Joe Tisbert, president of the Vermont Farm Bureau. “The farm bureau is very, very concerned about this case. We are monitoring this closely and we are also speaking with the American Farm Bureau and (Mosher’s) attorney about what we can do. This could devastate our economy ... everyone could get prosecuted.”

After a grand jury investigation, Mosher, 61, owner of Mosher Excavation, was charged in Rutland criminal court on April 4. He pleaded innocent at the same time.

If convicted, Mosher could be sentenced to serve one to 15 years in jail.

“I am a pet owner, and this sets everybody up for criminal charges,” Killington resident Vito Rasenas said in a phone interview. “People are reacting even from Canada and out West.”

Few details are publicly available because the grand jury information is secret and Kennedy said law prohibits her from talking about it.

According to the indictment, the grand jury charged:

“On July 31, 2015, Craig Mosher of Killington ... was a person who acted with criminal negligence by having noticed that his Scottish Highlander bull was loose and failed to contain his bull or alert others to this danger and, that his failure to take action caused the death of Jon Bellis.”

Rasenas said while they are not close friends, he has known Mosher for 20 years, and has never seen his fence in disrepair.

“I’ve been by the property many times where the bull was penned and the fence was not in bad shape,” he said. “He was indicted for negligence, but none of this seems to be the case, and this should never have gone this far. Why are we pursuing this? Why is this happening?”

But Rutland lawyer John Paul Faignant said the grand jury process must be honored.

“We don’t know what facts the grand jury had, and I am withholding judgment until all the facts are revealed,” he said Thursday.

At the time of the crash, Vermont State Police reported that Jon M. Bellis, 64, and his wife, Kathryn Barry Bellis, 60, were traveling west at 10:22 p.m. when their vehicle struck the bull on Route 4 near Mosher’s Excavation.

Bellis died at the scene and his wife was treated and released, police said.

Local farmers talked about Mosher’s case at a recent Rutland County Farm Bureau meeting, said Patricia Matteson of Poultney. She and her husband Charles Matteson, vice president of the bureau, are retired farmers.

“We were at the farm bureau meeting the other night and everybody thinks this should be dropped,” she said.

Tisbert, of the Vermont Farm Bureau, said members want to speak out so people understand how farmers work.

“This is generally a civil case, not criminal,” he said. “Dairy brings $3 million into the state’s economy. What would happen to the economy if this were the norm? More harm could come if we open this door up for more criminal charges.”

The local farm bureau has urged people to call or email Rutland County legislators, asking them to try to get the manslaughter charge against Mosher dropped, Tisbert said.

Senator Peg Flory, R-Rutland, said she has received about 60 emails in the past week and 20 of those are from other states. Flory said that with hot button issues, she often receives form letters, but the emails about Mosher are personal letters.

“Most are asking me to stop this and make the state’s attorney drop the case,” Flory said, adding that the Legislature has no jurisdiction over such charges.

“I know what I read and what I have seen in emails,” she said. “It (the charge) surprises me, but I don’t know all the facts.”

She expressed concern about all the money the case is costing the state and Mosher.

“If, in fact, it is criminal negligence, we have a duty to protect the public,” she said. “If it wasn’t, I do question the money.”

Many of the social media posts point to the precedent this case may create.

Middlebury lawyer and farmer Peter Langrock said every case plays a role in future case law, but he doesn’t know if this case will set a precedent.

“I don’t know of any precedent in Vermont where a farmer was charged with a felony for an animal that got out,” Langrock sid. “The idea that an animal getting out makes a farmer a potential felon is a scary thought.”