Franklin County

Franklin County follows Vermont law on arrests, release, and courts. These rules are the same in every county in the state; the full set covers prosecutors, defense, and jails too.

Who decides release first

After an arrest, the officer must call a judicial officer, a Superior Court judge or a court clerk, to set temporary release. For charges carrying less than two years, a person the Court Administrator designates may also set bail.

13 V.S.A. 7554(f) and 7559a

Time to see a judge

The rules say an arrested person must be brought before a judicial officer without unnecessary delay, and set no hour limit. The U.S. Supreme Court's 48-hour rule for a probable cause finding applies as the federal floor.

V.R.Cr.P. 3(k)

Money bail

Money bail is allowed. Since 2018, a court may not set bail at first appearance for a cited misdemeanor, and may set at most $200 for a misdemeanor eligible for expungement.

13 V.S.A. 7551(b)

Courts

Vermont has one trial court, the Superior Court, with a unit in each county. Its criminal division hears all crimes, felonies and misdemeanors alike. The Judicial Bureau hears civil violations, not crimes.

Vermont Judiciary, About the Vermont Judiciary

Judges and magistrates

The governor appoints judges, and the state Senate confirms them, for six-year terms. At the end of each term, the General Assembly votes on whether the judge stays.

Vt. Const. ch. II, s. 32 and 34

Read from the statutes and court rules cited, 2026-09-30. The state constitution says state's attorney districts are set by law; that each county is one district was not read in the statute. Whether clerks or designees who set bail must be lawyers was not confirmed.

Pretrial practice

Mapping Pretrial Injustice listed its risk tool in 2021 as the Ohio Risk Assessment System Pretrial Assessment Tool (ORAS-PAT).

MediaJustice and Movement Alliance Project, Mapping Pretrial Injustice county map (data as of fall 2021)

From Mapping Pretrial Injustice, a map compiled by MediaJustice and the Movement Alliance Project, advocacy groups that campaign against pretrial risk assessment tools. Its data is from fall 2021; CrimeDB uses it only where no court, government, or research list covers the county.

• St. Albans town7,057
• St. Albans6,954
• Swanton town6,820
• Fairfax town5,226
• Georgia town4,890
• Highgate town3,528
• Enosburgh town2,804
• Swanton village2,670
• Richford town2,467
• Sheldon town2,267
• Fairfield town1,938
• Berkshire town1,745
• Franklin town1,590
• Enosburg Falls village1,570
• Fletcher town1,196
• Bakersfield town1,109
• Montgomery town1,047

Every city, village, town, and township with any of its land in Franklin County, largest first. Population, the whole place's: Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020 to 2024.

• State Police: St. AlbansState police agency36,961 served
• St. Albans Police DepartmentCity police department7,072 served
• Swanton Police DepartmentCity police department6,878 served
• Franklin County Sheriff's OfficeSheriff or county police

Agencies: FBI NIBRS master file 2025 batch headers; names from the FBI agency list, pulled 2026-09-29. An agency that serves several counties appears on each. Population served is the FBI's figure.