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Terms Used In Vermont Statutes Title 16 Sec. 1127

  • Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Home study program: means an educational program offered through home study that provides a minimum course of study and that is offered to not more than:

  • Independent school: means a school other than a public school, which provides a program of elementary or secondary education, or both. See
  • Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
  • Person: shall include any natural person, corporation, municipality, the State of Vermont or any department, agency, or subdivision of the State, and any partnership, unincorporated association, or other legal entity. See
  • Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
  • Public school: means an elementary school or secondary school operated by a school district. See
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States may apply to the District of Columbia and any territory and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. See

§ 1127. Notice and complaint by truant officer; penalty

(a) The truant officer, upon receiving the notice provided in section 1126 of this title, shall inquire into the cause of the nonattendance of the child. If he or she finds that the child is absent without cause, the truant officer shall give written notice to the person having the control of the child that the child is absent from school without cause and shall also notify that person to cause the child to attend school regularly thereafter.

(b) When, after receiving notice, a person fails, without legal excuse, to cause a child to attend school as required by this chapter, he or she shall be fined not more than $1,000.00 pursuant to subsection (c) of this section.

(c) The truant officer shall enter a complaint to the State‘s Attorney of the county and shall provide a statement of the evidence upon which the complaint is based. The State’s Attorney shall prosecute the person. In the prosecution, the complaint, information, or indictment shall be deemed sufficient if it states that the respondent (naming the respondent) having the control of a child of school age (naming the child) neglects to send that child to a public school or an approved or recognized independent school or a home study program as required by law. (Amended 1981, No. 151 (Adj. Sess.), § 3; 1987, No. 97, § 6, eff. June 23, 1987; 1991, No. 24, § 11; 2013, No. 92 (Adj. Sess.), § 122, eff. Feb. 14, 2014; 2017, No. 93 (Adj. Sess.), § 15.)