BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – A Burlington man with a history of nearly 300 encounters with police was back in court this week. He also spoke with our Ike Bendavid about his life and battles with mental health and addiction.
For months we have been following the story of Patrick Ibbotson. The Burlington man has racked up dozens upon dozens of low-level criminal charges, only to be immediately released back into the community.
We heard the frustration of Ibbotson’s victims and how state lawmakers are working to find better ways of dealing with people like Ibbotson who are caught in a cycle of crime.
While substance abuse is an issue, there are also questions about Ibbotson’s mental health. He was previously found incompetent to stand trial in one case, but in another recent case, the Department of Mental Health refused to provide hospitalization.
Ibbotson is due back in court in a few weeks on one of his many open cases.