Bristol man charged with attempted murder

BURLINGTON — The Chittenden County state’s attorney charged Dean T. Heffernan, 27, of Bristol with attempted murder, first degree, at a Thursday morning arraignment at the criminal division of Chittenden County Superior Court.

Heffernan pleaded innocent to a charge that carries a penalty ranging according to court documents from "a presumptive minimum term of 35 years" to life in prison.

Vermont State Police had first charged Heffernan with aggravated assault after arresting him Wednesday following an early morning Hinesburg shooting incident. VSP allege Heffernan early on Tuesday morning fired four shots at a car driven on Route 116 by Shawn Holbrook, 24, of Hinesburg.

Heffernan is being held without bail at the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility until Aug. 15, when a bail review hearing has been scheduled.

According to the affidavit by VSP Sgt. Todd Baxter filed at Heffernan’s arraignment, the shooting occurred after a drug deal went bad at Heffernan’s Bristol home on Monkton Road.

VSP searched the home of Dean and Kate Heffernan, 26, later on Wednesday and said they found 14 bags of heroin, an undisclosed amount of hashish, 31 “assorted narcotic tablets,” and a Beretta 38-caliber handgun they allege Heffernan used to shoot at Holbrook’s car.

Kate Heffernan, 26, Dean Heffernan’s wife, was cited to appear in court on Aug. 29 on drug possession charges.

The VSP affidavit offers differing versions of what went wrong at the Heffernans’ mobile home late on Tuesday night. After calling VSP to report the shooting, Holbrook admitted buying four bags of heroin for $25 apiece, but said he only gave the Heffernans $75.

In Holbrook’s story, he said the Heffernans accused him of only giving them $50, and that he ran away. When he did so, he told VSP that he heard Dean Heffernan say, “You’re dead.”

In separate interviews with VSP, both Heffernans said Holbrook punched Kate Heffernan and took heroin without paying. According to the affidavit, Dean Heffernan told VSP he chased Holbrook down the driveway and ripped a side mirror off Holbrook’s white 2001 Subaru. It was missing that mirror and had two bullet holes in its side and a broken driver’s window when police met with Holbrook that evening, according to court documents.

Woman loses foot in New Haven car accident | Connecticut ...

The left foot of a Connecticut woman was amputated in a car accident in New Haven on Saturday night. The accident occurred on Route 15 just before 10:30 p.m. The woman who lost her foot was a passenger in a car that was struck by another driver.

According to a report in the Hartford Courant, the accident occurred when a Ford sedan tried to pass a Honda. The Ford, driven by a 20-year-old man moved into the right lane to try to pass the Honda. But the 20-year-old driver lost control of his car.

The Ford fishtailed and crashed into a Honda sedan driven by a 37-year-old woman. The collision caused both cars to smash into the guardrail. The Honda rolled over during the accident and ended up on its roof. The woman who lost her foot was a passenger in the rear seat of the Honda. The other passengers and driver of the Honda were not seriously injured.

This accident remains under investigation. Law enforcement officials have not yet indicated if they know what caused the 20-year-old driver to lose control of his car. There has not been any indication that the driver was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash.

Unfortunately, a gruesome tragedy like this can be the consequence of just a moment of inattentive driving. A lack of focus while driving can be particularly disastrous when a driver is driving at excessive speeds or is passing in close proximity to another car.

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