Man pleads not guilty to killing 3 family members in Vermont

RUTLAND, Vt.– The son of a Vermont city official accused of killing his father, stepmother and stepbrother pleaded not guilty and was ordered held without bail during his first court appearance in Vermont on Thursday.

An attorney entered the pleas of not guilty three charges of aggravated murder on behalf of Brian Crossman Jr., 23, of Granville, New York, who waived extradition from his home state, where he was arrested. He will be jailed until a Vermont judge holds another hearing on whether he should be held through trial.

Crossman Jr., who watched from jail via video feed, said nothing during the brief hearing.

He is charged with the murders early Sept. 15 of his father, 46-year-old Pawlet Selectboard member Brian Crossman Sr., along with Erica Crossman, 41, and Colin Taft, 13, in their Pawlet home.

According to a prosecutor, autopsies showed that two of the victims died of gunshot wounds. “We believe that this demonstrates a sustained and brutal form of violence against his victims, which should give the court significant pause in considering whether or not the suspect should be released,” the prosecutor said.

Crossman, who reported the killings, told police he was covered in blood because he tried to drag his father’s body away to take it to a relative’s house after returning from a walk to find the three dead to be found while he was spending the weekend with them. an affidavit. State police found an open gun safe and several weapons scattered around.

According to police, Crossman Jr. admitted to a mental health unit at Glens Falls Hospital on the day of the murders. New York State Police arrested him on September 19.