Pseudo Santa pleads guilty in 'pie gate'
1:28 p.m.
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By David Delcore Times Argus Staff - Published: November 26, 2008
BARRE - The pseudo Santa who slapped Gov. James Douglas in the face with a faux pie during this year’s Independence Day parade in Montpelier copped a plea in Barre today.
Matthew Manning, 23, now of East Montpelier pleaded guilty to a charge of disorderly conduct in connection with a bizarre incident that unfolded on July 3 as Douglas was marching up State Street in Montpelier.
Dressed as Santa Claus, Manning, then 22, ran up to Douglas and launched a pie into the governor’s face before running away. Manning was quickly corralled by a parade watcher and then tackled by Barre Mayor Thomas Lauzon, who had been marching with Douglas at the time.
Today an apologetic Manning - dressed in a suit, with his hair drawn back in a short pony tail - told Judge Brian Grearson he should have found a better way to express his frustration with Douglas’ energy policy.
I don’t see anything good that has come from it,” he said, describing himself as “… a disappointment to my community” and offering his apologies to Douglas, his family - several of whom were in the courtroom - and the community at large.
“I’ve learned that it wasn’t funny,” he said, describing the prank as “a mistake.”
Grearson, who described the incident as both “serious” and “reckless,” agreed. He suggested Manning’s actions had “a ripple effect” in Vermont - a small state where the highest elected official is extremely accessible and has historically felt comfortable participating in parades with minimal security.
“As a result of your actions maybe that security is a little tighter … and we are a little less open,” he said.
After accepting Manning’s guilty plea, Grearson was urged by Washington County States Attorney Tom Kelly to consider a stiffer-than-usual-sentence for a first-time offender accused, in his words, of “tumultuous behavior.”
Kelly cited the unique nature of the victim, the fact that the governor’s security has in fact been modified in the wake of the incident and the “assault-like nature” of the confrontation.
“If you had a scale of one to 10 on disorderly conduct your honor it’s a 10 and I think the court should impose a sentence that reflects that,” he said, urging Grearson to consider a 60-day suspended sentence with 45 days to serve on a work crew in addition to reparative probation and an agreement to donate $21.35 - the amount of Douglas’ dry cleaning bill - to the Vermont FoodBank.
For more on this story, see Thursday's Times Argus.
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