State v. John J. Stern, Jr.

¶ 14. If this were a straight-up prosecution for violation of 13 V.S.A. § 4017, I would concur. We have embraced the general rule that ignorance of the law is generally no defense to a prosecution for violating that law. None of the narrow exceptions to this rule would apply to a direct prosecution of defendant for violating this statute. But this probation violation case in which a probation officer informed the probationer that his conduct, not expressly prohibited in his probation conditions and not inherently counter to community norms, would not amount to criminal behavior in violation…