White River Junction
Emily Perkins, 30, has agreed to serve a minimum of 20 to 30 years in prison for her role in the death of 48-year-old Scott Hill and the injuries of then-19-year-old Emma Jozefiak at Hill’s Bethel trailer in November 2011, according to the agreement, which both Perkins and the prosecutor signed.
A jury in March found Perkins guilty of voluntary manslaughter and attempted second-degree murder, and Windsor Superior Court Judge Theresa DiMauro ordered the mother of two held without bail pending a formal sentencing hearing, which is scheduled for Wednesday.
DiMauro will have the ultimate say in how much time Perkins serves. If DiMauro accepts the agreement, she will decide the minimum sentence Perkins will serve between the 20- to 30-year range, Windsor County State’s Attorney David Cahill said on Wednesday.
If DiMauro rejects the agreement, she has the authority to impose a sentence outside of that range. An attempted second-degree murder conviction carries a maximum possible sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Perkins shot and killed Hill and shot and injured Jozefiak on Nov. 9, 2011, during a drug deal gone bad. The two were found three days later; Hill was dead and Jozefiak was clinging to life.
Much of the sentencing agreement likely will be fleshed out at a status conference on Friday.
The purpose of the status conference is so “the court can determine whether the victims’ families are in agreement” with the proposal, according to the docket sheet.
The agreement itself doesn’t make note of whether the victims agree with the proposed sentence structure. At least one family member involved said he is pleased: Scott Hill’s 26-year-old son, Josh.
“I’m fine with the agreement,” Hill said in a Facebook message. “I’m just ready to put this behind us. It’s been going on way too long.”
Jozefiak’s mother, Cyndi Belouin, said she is on the fence, but has “faith” that DiMauro will impose a “fair sentence.”
The low end of a minimum sentence is for someone who has accepted responsibility for his or her actions, Belouin said, something she said Perkins hadn’t done.
Perkins maintained her innocence throughout her 11-day trial, contending her late husband, Michael, was responsible for the shooting incident.
“At this point, we have had a good year of being able to have peace of mind knowing that Emily has been in prison,” Belouin said of her and the now 24-year-old Jozefiak, who wasn’t available for comment. “Life has moved forward.”
There are several other components included in the sentencing agreement, all of which would be voided if DiMauro doesn’t accept it, the agreement states.
Perkins has agreed to waive her right to file an appeal of the conviction and sentence. She also has agreed to resolve her other pending criminal charges in Windsor Superior Court, including counts of burglary and accessory to a narcotic sale and multiple counts of condition of release violations.
She has agreed to plead guilty to those charges and serve a sentence that is concurrent with the time she will serve for the shooting convictions. As of March 1, Perkins will have 364 days of pre-trial credit, which would go toward her minimum sentence, according to the agreement.
Perkins’ lead attorney, Devin McLaughlin, said the agreement calls for a “to-serve” sentence, meaning Perkins is eligible for parole once she meets her minimum sentence, but there is no guarantee that she will get out of prison.
Her case then would go before the Vermont Parole Board, which will determine when Perkins should be released. A number of factors go into that decision, including victims’ needs and the risk to public safety, according to the state’s website.
Perkins’ mother, Peggy Ainsworth, said she left the sentence length up to her daughter and her attorneys.
Ainsworth maintained Perkins’ innocence on Wednesday, saying she knows in her “heart that she did not harm anyone.”
She acknowledged that Perkins should serve some time for the other crimes she is accused of committing, but not for the ones she didn’t.
“The part that tears at my heart is her two girls,” said Ainsworth, a farmer and member of the Selectboard in Royalton who along with her husband have guardianship.
Asked how the two elementary school-aged girls are doing, Ainsworth said “all right.”
“They miss their mom,” she said. “I really want her to be home with her girls. They don’t have their dad. They need their mom.”
Jordan Cuddemi can be reached at jcuddemi@vnews.com or 603-727-3248.