The U.S. Senate confirmed Eric Miller to serve as Vermont’s U.S. attorney Wednesday night.
Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), who nominated Miller, called him one of the state’s leading trial attorneys.
“I am confident that he will do an outstanding job as the top federal law enforcement officer in the state,” Leahy said in a prepared statement. “Before recommending Eric to the president, I consulted prosecutors, defense attorneys, judges, law enforcement officials and civic leaders throughout Vermont. They were unanimous in their support for Eric. I was particularly impressed with his thoughtfulness, vision and depth of experience that he has demonstrated throughout his career.”
Miller, who has worked at the Burlington law firm Sheehey, Furlong & Behm since 1999, replaces Tristram Coffin, who stepped down to take a job in the private sector.
Miller has a law degree from Yale University and an undergraduate degree from Duke University. He is the husband of Gov. Peter Shumlin’s former chief of staff, Liz Miller.



So very appropriate — a great person and top-notch attorney!
Does the media just lift the talking points from Sen. Leahy’s Press Releases for these stories? Mr. Miller may be a “great person” and “top-notch” attorney but he has been defending healthcare providers for over a decade in private practice and has never prosecuted anything. Sen. Leahy’s other buddy former U.S. Attorney Tristram Coffin conceded in his prepared remarks for H.120 Vermont False Claims Act that he encountered violators of the federal False Claims Act but felt the penalties were too severe. Welcome to Vermont where fraud, corruption and attorney misconduct are welcome and where federal prosecutors let fraudsters off the hook! This is Sen. Leahy’s legacy: one that rewards his buddies in the Old Boys Club at the expense of good public policy including fighting fraud for all Vermonters.