The man accused of kidnapping and killing his niece in June will be entering a plea of not guilty today in U.S. District Court in Burlington, Vermont.
Michael Jacques, has decided not to appear at his arraignment. Authorities say Jacques could face the death penalty in the death of Brooke Bennett, 12, whom they say Jacques drugged, sexually assaulted, strangled and smothered.
At the time of Brooke Bennett’s death, Michael Jacques was working for a company that had not been doing employment background checks. If they had an employee screening program in place at the time they hired Jacques, they would have discovered a 1993 kidnapping and aggravated sexual assault conviction.
In this video, a company representative says “at the time our policy was we didn’t do background checks…that’s changed, over the last couple of months, we’ve actually changed our policy.”
Employers’ Obligation
Employers have a responsibility to provide a safe working environment for their staff. By hiring someone with a criminal record, they could be exposing their staff to an unnecessary risk.
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