HOLLY RAMER and AMANDA SWINHART.

FILE - U.S. Border Patrol agent David Maland is recognized with military honors before his burial at Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Minneapolis on Feb. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr, File)

Zizians group member pleads not guilty to murder and other charges in Vermont border agent’s death

A woman accused of killing a U.S. Border Patrol agent in Vermont has made her first court appearance since prosecutors said they will seek the death penalty against her. Teresa Youngblut, a member of the cultlike Zizians group, pleaded not guilty Friday to murder and other charges. She is accused of killing U.S. Border Patrol agent David Maland in Vermont in January. New indictments last month made her eligible for the death penalty, and the U.S. Justice Department said it would seek it as part of the Trump administration’s push for more federal executions. Authorities had been monitoring Youngblut and her companion, Felix Bauckholt, before the shooting on Interstate 91. Bauckholt was killed, and Youngblut was wounded.

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Members of Migrant Justice, a community group advocating for migrant farmworkers' rights, hold a rally outside the Vermont Statehouse in Montpelier, Vt., on Friday, June 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Amanda Swinhart)

A Vermont dairy farm was raided. The mixed messages from Washington since then have increased fears

The arrest of eight Vermont dairy farmers in April sent shock waves throughout New England’s agriculture industry, and fears haven’t eased since then. That’s because migrant farm workers are still getting mixed message about such raids. President Donald Trump last month paused arrests at farms, restaurants and hotels. Less than a week later, the assistant secretary of the Department of Homeland Security said worksite enforcement of immigration policies would continue. Such uncertainty is causing problems in big produce-producing states like California. It’s also affecting small states like Vermont. More than half Vermont’s farmland is dedicated to dairy and dairy crops, and the state produces nearly two-thirds of all the milk in New England.

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