STATE OF VERMONT
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
VERMONT STATE POLICE
NEWS RELEASE
MOTOR VEHICLE CRASH
CASE#: 26A5003087
RANK/TROOPER FULL NAME: Trooper Aaron Leonard
STATION: Derby
CONTACT#: 802-334-8881
DATE/TIME: 06/05/2026 2151 hours
STREET: VT Route 5A (Willoughby Lake Road)
TOWN: Brownington
LANDMARK AND/OR CROSS STREETS: South of Pepin Road
WEATHER: Clear
ROAD CONDITIONS: Dry
VEHICLE #1
OPERATOR: Dean Burns
AGE: 66
SEAT BELT? Yes
CITY, STATE OF RESIDENCE: Woodbury, VT
VEHICLE YEAR: 2013
VEHICLE MAKE: Chevrolet
VEHICLE MODEL: Impala
DAMAGE TO VEHICLE #1: Hood, windshield, roof
INJURIES: None
HOSPITAL: N/A
SUMMARY OF CRASH:
On the above date and time, the Vermont State Police, Orleans Ambulance, and Orleans Fire Department were dispatched to a report of a motor vehicle collision involving a car and a horse on VT Route 5A, Willoughby Lake Road, in the Town of Brownington, VT.
Responders arrived on scene and learned that the operator of the vehicle, Dean Burns, age 66 of Woodbury, VT, was traveling south when he encountered several horses standing on or near the roadway, and his vehicle collided with one. Burns and his passenger sustained no injury. The vehicle suffered major damage to the front end, hood, windshield, and roof.
The horse suffered fatal injuries and was euthanized. The owners of the horses arrived on scene and advised the horses broke out of their containment fence. The other horses were contained by the owners and returned to their property.
Ray's Towing was dispatched to remove the vehicle from the roadway.
Aaron Leonard, Trooper
Vermont State Police – Derby
35 Crawford Road,
Derby, VT 05829
802-334-8881
