With all my heart, I thank everyone who has signed and helped me reach 300 signatures. Please share to help me reach 500 signatures before the June court date! After a less than 30-second hearing in September, which the defendant didn't even attend, they put off the next court date until June 3rd, NINE MONTHS away, hoping people would forget and the hype would die down. The court date was supposed to be for jury draw, but now online says status hearing. 

I have been trying to obtain a full background report on Matthew Hill without success. I only have November 1977 for his DOB, and I cannot find the exact day. I Googled everything and even paid for some of those stupid information sites, and still got nothing of value. Rumor has it he has an extensive criminal background, which possibly consists of some very disturbing behavior. He lives in a very small rural town in Vermont, talk about the boonies, that's Eden! Everyone knows everyone. 

My biggest concern at the moment is that the town of Eden has not removed him from their website as ACO and Constable. I read through all the minutes from each town meeting, and only once did they mention Matthew Hill: at the first emergency meeting, July 16th, 2025, after he was arrested. They put him on temporary leave as an ACO. Unfortunately, the town has to vote him out as Constable. In that meeting, they said, "Let's table this for now and come back to it". Well, they never did, not once since then, which was July 16th. A gentleman offered to serve as the interim ACO, but his offer was declined. So what are they actually doing? Allowing him to continue? 

It's concerning enough that he still has animals in his possession after torturing Lucy, an innocent mama pig, for protecting her babies! Matthew is also the reason a perfectly healthy and adorable raccoon was euthanized because he kept it as a pet, knowing it's illegal in Vermont and leads to euthanasia no matter what. He should not have animals right now!!

The town of Eden is notorious for protecting animal abusers. For example, Carol Merchant of Eden, Vermont, was involved in a major animal hoarding and cruelty case discovered in February 2015. On February 25, 2015, Vermont State Police and humane officers executed a search warrant at a home on Route 100 in Eden, known locally as the "Pink Palace". Approximately 62 dogs and 3 cats were initially removed from the home, with reports indicating that nearly 100 animals were involved in total. The animals were found in "appalling conditions," with many lacking access to food, water, or sanitary living conditions, and some were suffering from severe health issues. Carol Merchant, 58, and Russell Goodell, 50, were arrested and charged with multiple counts of animal cruelty. The case faced significant delays, including concerns over Merchant's competency to stand trial. As of April 2017, it was reported that charges were dropped in the Eden dog abuse case. Reports described the situation as a "classic case of an overwhelmed rescuer," with the home operating as an unauthorized rescue. 

I don't buy that excuse for a minute. If you are a "rescue" (I own a dog rescue, Pawsitive Connection Animal Rescue in Bristol, VT), you don't put animals in harm's way; you save them from harm. You say NO to taking in more if you can't feed or care for them, let alone give them water? How hard is that?!

I am so afraid they will do the same with Matthew Hill and dismiss the case. I'm concerned that the judge knows Matthew or his family personally and is biased. It's such a small town and area.

I will not stop working every day to make sure he is convicted for what he did to Lucy, and ultimately to her poor babies, who lost their mama in such a horrific and evil way. 

Animals are so much more, so much smarter, than any of us know. Not only as a "farmer" but as an officer of the town, which is supposed to do what's best for animals, Matthew should be held to higher standards: to treat his animals with care and to run his business ethically and respectfully. 

All I think about every day is those babies listening to their mama scream and cry for her life, shot multiple times, then dragged by an ATV for miles, to then have her neck slit by a man literally acting like a psycho serial killer and left like trash in the woods, her poor battered body, and defeated soul. Just following her instinct, loving her offspring, trying to do what's right. She obviously had a reason to feel she needed to protect her babies from this man. He even told one of my supporters who called him that he wasn't scared of Lucy and that he wasn't even mad at Lucy. So how and why would you go to such evil extremes then? He had plenty of chances to stop and think about what he was doing, but he took it way too far. 

He is a cruel and vengeful man. You don't just wake up one day at 47 years old and do something like this! He obviously can't control his anger and lashes out in very sick ways.

PLEASE, I am begging you to sign my petition and, most importantly, share it! If you can pitch in a few bucks to get more shares, it would mean the world to me. Please share on your social media, email your friends/family, post on Reddit, or any animal advocacy groups you are a part of, or any group for that matter. 

I am trying to share a few times a week, even though it may seem redundant, not everyone checks their feed every day, and may miss it. If you have time to reach out to the victims' advocate. stacey.vos@vermont.gov or the state's attorney, whose email I couldn't find (but it must be aliena.gerhland@vermont.gov), in support of making sure Matthew is convicted of this cruel crime and that Vermont does better, and you would be a hero in my mind. Thank you for taking the time to read my update and for supporting me and my mission to secure justice for Lucy and her babies. 

If you want to reach out, please do! My email is nikkif8@hotmail.com, or text me at 802-497-4842.