A former Vernon man, who was on the FBI Most Wanted List after repeatedly sexually abusing a child and spent 18 years in federal prison for federal charges, is still facing four similar charges before a state court.
According to evidence presented in court, Michael Scott Bliss (now 57) sexually assaulted a child at least a dozen times, including in his Vernon home, the child’s Chesterfield, N.H. home, and motels in Vermont, Connecticut, and Vermont between 2000 and 2001. Bliss was also accused of recording his sexual assaults on the child.
A U.S. District Court Judge described Bliss’s crimes as “heinous” and “one of the worst case I’ve ever seen as a court judge.”
Bliss fled Vermont before he was arrested in April 2001. He became the first Vermonter to be placed on the FBI Most Wanted List. Bliss was also featured twice on “America’s Most Wanted,” which ran for 24 years, and featured criminals who were on the run.
Bliss also prompted an Interpol “red alert” to alert authorities of Canada and Mexico.
In 2002, he had been arrested by federal authorities at Los Angeles. In 2003, he pleaded to 11 federal charges, including aggravated sexual abuse of a child, using a minor to produce child pornography, and possession child pornography.
Bliss, who was in federal custody at the time, was never charged with the four charges of sexual assault filed by the State of Vermont.
In 2020, he moved from a federal prison in Albany, N.Y. to a halfway-house in South Burlington for nine months. He has been deemed compliant on the state’s sex offenders registry.
Bliss, who was updating his registry photo, went to the Williston State Police Barracks on Thursday to update the photograph. Troopers discovered that Bliss had a warrant for arrest in the amount $250,000 issued more than 20 years earlier by the state.
Joshua Atkisson was Bliss’ public defender at a hearing held in Windham Superior Court, Brattleboro, on Friday.
Katherine Hayes, a Windham Superior Court judge, asked: “He has been doing this for three years and this is the first time anyone noticed [the arrest warrant]?”
David Gartenstein, Deputy State’s attorney, said that it was “troubling”, that Bliss had been in the registry ever since his return to Vermont and no one checked if he still had outstanding warrants.
Gartenstein said that “the defendant, through his lawyer, claimed that the state charges had been resolved as part the federal sentence, but there is no record of this anywhere.”
Gartenstein said that the state also believed Bliss be held without bail for the state sexual assault charges. Bliss was arrested in Williston and arraigned by a judge in Chittenden County. He was released on $6,000 bail despite only being able to raise $2,400.
Atkisson said, “[Mr. Bliss] told the judge yesterday that he has cash to send in… postal Money Orders. [But] the court didn’t accept money orders.” “So, he cashed them in his bank.” They have not been cleared yet.”
Hayes gave Bliss a deadline of Monday to pay the remainder of his bail.
Hayes said that if he didn’t post the letter, a warrant for his arrest was issued.
Bliss appealed in 2005 his sexual assault conviction, and sentence of 22-years followed by five-years of supervised release. He argued that the District Court erred by imposing an enhancement of sentence for obstruction of justice, and by treating the sentencing guideline as mandatory.
A federal judge sided with Bliss and reduced his sentence, allowing him to be released in 2020 rather than 2024.
Bliss was released from Vermont state prison in 2000 after nearly 10 years of imprisonment for assaulting three Brattleboro teens with an aluminum bat, which left one boy in a coma.
