By Ted Cohen
Gov. Phil Scott has directed the Vermont State Police to begin patrolling the state's largest city's crime-riddled shopping district.
Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak announced Tuesday that the deployment will begin today.
The accessory patrols, which will supplement Burlington Police coverage, come in the wake of several violent assaults in downtown Burlington.
Mulvaney-Stanak, meanwhile, complained in a press release that Scott hadn't first consulted her on the plan.
"While it is unfortunate that the governor did not directly notify my office about this, our city welcomes any state partners that would like to help make our community safer," she said.
The mayor insisted that homelessness and open drug abuse "is not the failure of our municipal approach - this is a historic, statewide crisis laid bare."
Her defense of the city's moral decay as evidence of a broader cultural failure comes amid a plan by Democrat city councilors to crack down on crime.
The council next week will consider a proposal designed by the mayor's opposing party - she's a "Progressive" - to increase arrests.
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