A man was fatally stabbed in Burlington early Saturday, one of several violent incidents in the city across a 36-hour span.
The victim, who has yet to be publicly identified, was found around 4 a.m. in a parking lot near the federal courthouse on Main Street. Police say they’re still looking for a suspect.
It was one of three confrontations involving knives over the weekend, in addition to two separate gunfire incidents.
The first was reported around 1 p.m. on Friday, following an altercation between a man and three juvenile males on the bike path near North Beach.
One of the juveniles pulled out a knife, slashing the man’s tire and causing him minor injuries, police said. The juveniles — two of whom were riding e-motos and one an e-bike — then fled and have yet to be identified.
That incident was followed by a stabbing on Church Street around bar close at 2 a.m. on Saturday. Police say they were dispatched to the area of St. Paul and Bank streets, where they determined that a group of younger men “engaged in a conflict” with a lone man before a “physical confrontation ensued.”
The victim, Vito Spano, 19, of Colchester, disputed that characterization in a phone call with Seven Days on Monday. Spano said he and his friends were walking on Church Street when a man who appeared to be homeless started to harass them, yelling that he wanted to fight.
Spano said his friends told the man that they didn’t want trouble, but the man continued to approach. Spano said the man pushed him twice before reaching around to slash him in the back with a sharp object. Police arrived soon after, but the man was already gone, Spano said.
“It was completely unprovoked,” Spano said of the attack. He was taken to the hospital and needed 17 stitches for his wound, he said.
An hour later, officers heard gunshots on lower Church Street near the intersection with King Street. Witnesses told police that two men were arguing in the area shortly before shots were fired. Police were unable to locate either man, and no one was found injured.
The fatal stabbing occurred not long after.
Then, early Sunday morning, officers patrolling downtown heard another gunshot ring out, this time on Center Street.
They raced over to find a 21-year-old woman, who admitted she accidentally fired a pistol after pulling it out of her purse to check if it was loaded, according to police. She and her boyfriend had been out drinking at local bars and were waiting for a ride to bring them home, she told police. The woman was arrested for reckless endangerment and was scheduled to be arraigned on Tuesday morning.
The violent weekend comes amid an intensifying political clash over Burlington’s approach to public safety.
Democrats on the Burlington City Council pushed through a resolution earlier this month that targets criminal behavior downtown, including public drug use and illegal camping.
Burlington Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak, a Progressive, condemned the resolution and accused councilors of refusing to collaborate with her office before putting it forward.
In a press release on Monday morning, Mulvaney-Stanak called the weekend incidents “deeply upsetting” but sought to dispel any notion that they reflect a broader deterioration of safety in the city.
She noted that serious crimes have been trending downward this year compared to the previous two and that city police have been expanding foot patrols. Officers were on duty downtown at the time of each incident and were able to respond within minutes, she wrote.
She added that the gunfire incidents are further proof that Vermont needs stronger gun laws, particularly a prohibition on firearms in places that serve alcohol.
“I know these incidents can leave us feeling worried, angry, and unsettled — particularly at a time when our community is engaged in difficult and fraught conversations about safety,” Mulvaney-Stanak wrote. “This is a time to unify around what we know makes communities safer — violence prevention work, including with youth, strengthening gun laws, and making sure members of our community’s basic needs are met.”
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