SKOWHEGAN — Two Skowhegan-area boys who were arrested March 1 on felony terrorizing charges after allegedly making school threats on social media will have their day in court on Monday, March 26, according to the district attorney.

Maeghan Maloney, district attorney for Kennebec and Somerset counties, said the charges have been presented to the court, but declined to provide details of the case.

“The juvenile petitions are confidential,” Maloney said in emails to the Morning Sentinel. “They are both juveniles and will be tried as juveniles. I cannot comment on the facts of the case or the investigation which is ongoing. I also cannot speculate on the eventual outcome.”

Maloney said the investigation so far has found no connection between the Skowhegan threats and the ones at the Mount View school complex in Waldo County on the same days.

The two unidentified boys were taken away in handcuffs from Skowhegan Area High School just after noon March 1 after a second post on social media that week threatening violence. Schools in Skowhegan-based School Administrative District 54 were closed Wednesday, Feb. 28, after officials were alerted to a social media post showing an image of an AR-15 assault rifle accompanied by a threat.

A second Snapchat message — on the heels of other threats of violence in the aftermath of the mass school shooting in Florida — reportedly was posted about 6:30 a.m. the following day, March 1.

The first message, which prompted schools to be closed said, “Skowhegan, February 28, 2018 you’re all DEAD.”

The second message on social media said that closing the schools in the Skowhegan school district the previous day only makes the sender, called “Ray Dar,” want to kill more.

One of the boys is a Skowhegan Area High School freshman, the other a sophomore. They were arrested and taken to the Long Creek Youth Development Center in South Portland. Maloney would not say if the boys remain at the youth center.

Both are charged as juveniles, not as adults, with terrorizing.

It was the freshman student who allegedly posted the first threat the night of Feb. 27, according to Skowhegan police. The second threat allegedly was made by the sophomore.

Skowhegan police later in the day March 1 carried out a search warrant at a home on Turner Avenue in Skowhegan, looking for evidence.

Local police, the FBI and the Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit began investigating the online threats beginning late Feb. 27, closing schools on Feb. 28. School Administrative District 54 Superintendent Brent Colbry sent a message just after 9:30 a.m. March 1 to all district parents saying that all the schools were on “Lock-out,” meaning no one could get in without authorization.

SAD 54 serves Canaan, Cornville, Mercer, Norridgewock, Skowhegan and Smithfield.

“I ask the public to be aware that terrorizing is a crime and it will be prosecuted,” Maloney said. “In light of current events, we are taking very seriously any threats to our children.”

Doug Harlow — 612-2367

dharlow@centralmaine.com

Twitter:@Doug_Harlow

AUGUSTA — Police are trying to identify a man who they have accused of trying to rob Pet Life, a store on Western Avenue, on Friday evening.

A security camera at Pet Life in Augusta captured an image of a man who police have accused of trying to rob the business on Friday. Image courtesy of Augusta Police Department

The man, who was caught on a security camera in the pet store, was white and had a thick, dark beard, according to a Monday afternoon post on the Augusta Police Department’s Facebook page.

Police say that the suspect was in his mid-to-late 20s, approximately 175 pounds, and around 5 feet 9 inches tall. They also say that he had blue eyes.

Police did not immediately share more information about the alleged robbery attempt and it was unclear whether the man showed a weapon. They asked anyone with information about the encounter to call Detective Jesse Brann at 207-626-2370 ext. 3412.

JAY — A Massachusetts man is accused of OUI after his vehicle went off icy Route 133 late Friday, hit a snowbank and rolled onto its side and struck a utility pole.

Driver Dave A. Nosiglia, 58, of Hingham, Massachusetts, and his passenger, Harold Layland, 61, of Hanson, Massachusetts, both received minor injuries in the accident reported at about 11 p.m., Police Chief Richard Caton IV said Monday.

The windshield of the vehicle struck the pole, but the pole did not break, he said.

Officer Dylan Rider noted that the road was icy in his report, Caton said.

Rider arrested Nosiglia on a misdemeanor charge of operating under the influence of alcohol.

He was taken to Franklin County Detention Center in Farmington. He was released on $500 cash bail on Saturday.

Jay Fire Rescue Department, Livermore Falls Police Department and NorthStar EMS ambulance personnel also responded to assist.

Nosigilia is schedule to appear in a Farmington court on April 24.

Another man has been charged in connection with a series of raids on an alleged, large-scale marijuana trafficking operation in Lewiston-Auburn.

Tyler Poland, 31, of Auburn was arrested and charged Monday with illegal trafficking in the drug Ecstasy and marijuana.

According to the complaint unsealed Monday, the charges against Poland grew out of a series of raids by law enforcement officers on Feb. 27 on alleged marijuana operations in the Lewiston-Auburn area. Federal officials said the growing operation was purportedly part of the Maine medical marijuana program, but marijuana was sold to those not in the program and to out-of-state customers.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Poland’s home on Merrow Road and a warehouse were raided, and agents seized more than 600 marijuana plants, 366 pounds of processed marijuana, hundreds of Ecstasy pills, hundreds of alprazolam pills and more than $156,000. Alprazolam is a sedative used in the treatment of anxiety disorders.

Poland faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $1 million if convicted.

Police have also arrested Richard “Stitch” Daniels, 52, of Lewiston, and Brian J. Bilodeau, 33, of Auburn, in connection with the alleged marijuana growing and selling operation. Daniels is charged with marijuana trafficking and hash oil manufacturing and Bilodeau has been charged with illegal possession of a firearm in relation to drug trafficking and possession with intent to distribute marijuana.

Authorities said that Daniels’ garage contained a laboratory to make hash oil, which is made with marijuana. Bilodeau, a well-known amateur golfer in Maine, was arrested after authorities searched his home and found 183 pounds of marijuana, hash oil and loaded pistols and a rifle. Authorities also seized a 2016 Lamborghini Huracan, valued at $190,000, and a 2014 Nissan GT-R, valued at $60,000, saying the vehicles could have been bought with proceeds from drug trafficking or used in connection with drug trafficking or money laundering.

Federal officials have not said whether they will crack down on marijuana dealing in the wake of a decision by U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions to repeal an Obama Administration policy that said federal officials would not pursue marijuana possession cases in most circumstances, particularly in states that have approved medical marijuana or the recreational use of marijuana. Maine voters approved the use of medical marijuana in 1999 and in the ensuing years set up a system of caregivers and dispensaries to supply the drug.

Voters approved the recreational use of marijuana in 2016, but the state is still putting together a regulatory system to control growing and selling the drug.

In addition to the raids in Lewiston-Auburn, U.S. Attorney Halsey B. Frank last month obtained guilty pleas from two men involved in large marijuana growing operations in Frankfort.

Frank has said that pursuing most marijuana possession cases has not been a priority in his office, although he would not say that would continue to be the case in light of Sessions’ change of policy.

Edward D. Murphy can be contacted at 791-6465 or at:

emurphy@pressherald.com

Portland police issued a crime alert Monday, warning Old Port businesses about a thief or thieves who have been targeting valuables left in unsecured desks and file cabinets.

“There has been a rash of commercial burglaries in the Old Port over the past week,” Portland police said in a Facebook post. “Offices were entered with no sign of forced entry and the thief targeted checks from the center of checkbooks that were left in unsecured desks and file cabinets.”

In most cases, the crime was discovered after the stolen checks had been cashed. Police are asking Old Port business owners to look through their checkbooks and bank records for missing checks or unauthorized transactions.

Victims should immediately contact their bank to put a stop payment on the check and then report the theft to police.

“Remember to always keep petty cash, checks and personal belongings locked in a secure location both during the day while you are open and at night,” police advised.

IN CARRABASSETT VALLEY, Tuesday at 12:08 a.m., a noise complaint was taken on Main Street.

IN CHESTERVILLE, Monday at 7:44 a.m., criminal mischief was reported on Mace Road.

IN CLINTON, Monday at 12:56 p.m., harassment was reported on Main Street.

2:50 p.m., juvenile offenses were reported on Cindy Blodgett Drive.

9:21 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Hinckley Road.

IN FAIRFIELD, Monday at 1:11 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Bray Avenue.

IN JAY, Monday at 4:18 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Church Street.

10:53 p.m., a person was reported missing on Horan Street.

10:54 p.m., harassment was reported on Church Street.

IN HARTLAND, Monday at 1:41 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Main Street.

IN MADISON, Monday at 5:02 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Bean Street.

IN NORRIDGEWOCK, Monday at 7:25 p.m., a disturbance was reported on Pine Street.

10:59 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Winding Hill Road.

IN OAKLAND, Monday at 1:53 p.m., juvenile offenses were reported on Oak Street.

6:44 p.m., threatening was reported on Fairfield Street.

Tuesday at 12:26 a.m., an unwanted person was reported on Lakeview Drive.

1:25 a.m., a domestic dispute was reported on Main Street.

2:40 a.m., theft was reported on Main Street.

IN RANGELEY, Tuesday at 8:27 a.m., theft was reported on Idlewood Drive.

IN SKOWHEGAN, Monday at 2:26 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Cedar Street.

4:36 p.m., theft was reported on Water Street.

7:18 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Madison Avenue.

7:24 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Dartmouth Street.

7:41 p.m., a structure fire was reported on West Front Street.

11:09 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Island Avenue.

Tuesday at 4:34 a.m., an assault was reported on Land Street.

IN WATERVILLE, Monday at 9:31 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Marston Road.

10:23 a.m., theft was reported on Elm Street.

11:48 a.m., an unwanted person was reported on Silver Street.

12:05 a.m., threatening was reported on Summer Street.

12:27 p.m., theft was reported on Water Street.

2:54 p.m., harassment was reported on Colonial Street.

4:59 p.m., burglary was reported on Main Street.

7:33 p.m., an unwanted person was reported on Kennedy Memorial Drive.

8:39 p.m., a noise complaint was taken on Summer Street.

11:37 p.m., theft was reported on Elm Street.

Tuesday at 12:12 a.m., an unwanted person was reported on College Avenue.

12:58 a.m., theft was reported on Spruce Street.

ARRESTS

IN FRANKLIN COUNTY, Monday at 9:44 a.m., Debra Walsh, 60, of Strong, was arrested on warrants.

IN SOMERSET COUNTY, Monday at 1:52 p.m., Stuart Merl Palmer, 51, of Madison, was arrested on a charge of violating conditions of release.

2:55 p.m., Brian Daniel Hovey, 35, of Moscow, was arrested on a probation hold.

3:43 p.m., Miranda Alton, 28, of Pittsfield, was arrested on a warrant.

11:08 p.m., Amy-Jo Beaulieu, 41, of Jay, was arrested on a charge of criminal operating under the influence.

Tuesday at 12:27 a.m., Isaac Maxham, 22, of Farmington, was arrested on a warrant.

6:22 a.m., Geno Casson, 31, of Madison, was arrested on charges of operating under the influence, domestic violence assault, unlawful possession of scheduled drugs and possession of drug paraphernalia.

IN WATERVILLE, Monday at 7:33 p.m., Elizabeth Carter, 18, of Marshfield, was arrested on a warrant.

A 14-year-old girl who disappeared in late February from a Readfield foster home has been found safe in Georgia, but police say that a 35-year-old man who took the teenager there killed himself on Tuesday and had been facing a criminal charge.

That man, Robert Gooden, was from Georgia and had met the girl online, Sgt. Blaine Bronson, of the Maine State Police, said later on Tuesday.

Working with Georgia authorities, Maine State Police were preparing to charge Gooden with criminal restraint, a class D misdemeanor, Bronson said.

But on Tuesday morning, Gooden fatally shot himself as local police entered the home where he was staying with the girl, according to a Maine State Police news release.

Police have been searching for the girl, Heavenlee Benjamin, for more than a week. She was last seen on Feb. 27. Last week police asked the public for assistance in locating her.

Police think Benjamin left her foster home on her own accord and rode down to Georgia in a bus with Gooden. On Tuesday she was found in a home in Smyrna, a small city outside Atlanta.

Bronson declined to provide much information about how Benjamin was brought to Georgia and said police continue to investigate whether other people were involved. However, he did say that Gooden posed a threat to the girl.

“We don’t know all the details of her time there with him,” Bronson said. “I can’t comment too much. But these situations, in general, when you have a predator preying on young kids, they are always dangerous and volatile.”

Georgia officials now are working with the Maine Department of Health and Human Services to bring Benjamin back to Maine, Bronson said.

Authorities first learned that Benjamin might have been in Smyrna late last week, according to Bronson. The Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit helped locate her.

A call to the Smyrna Police Department, which sent officers to find the Readfield girl on Tuesday morning, wasn’t returned immediately.

Police were preparing to charge Gooden with criminal restraint, a misdemeanor charge that can be brought against someone who knowingly entices a minor away from the custody of her guardians. If Gooden hadn’t died, he would have been extradited to Maine, Bronson said.

“It was really a lot of boot leather police work,” Bronson said.

Last week, Bethany Murphy, a Readfield woman who is related to Benjamin’s foster family, described the girl as “very quiet.” She has been attending Maranacook Community High School and also spends “a lot of time” at the Readfield Community Library, according to Murphy.

In a Facebook message on Tuesday, Murphy said her family still was waiting to receive more information about Benjamin from the authorities.

“We are all, of course, so glad she is safe,” she said. “We are grateful that God answered prayers and kept her safe.”

Charles Eichacker — 621-5642

ceichacker@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @ceichacker

IN AUGUSTA, Monday at 9:30 a.m., a traffic accident involving injury was reported on Riverside Drive.

10:57 a.m., harassment was reported on Pierce Drive.

11:09 a.m., disorderly conduct was reported on Laurel Street.

11:26 a.m., a mental health and well-being check was performed on Armory Street.

1:18 p.m., a traffic accident involving injury was reported on Memorial Circle.

1:54 p.m., theft was reported on Spruce Street.

3:03 p.m., shoplifting was reported on Whitten Road.

3:54 p.m., a well-being check was performed on Parkwood Drive.

5:42 p.m., a well-being check was performed on Civic Center Drive.

8:25 p.m., theft was reported on Cony Street.

9:40 p.m., harassment was reported on Cedar Street.

9:52 p.m., a well-being check was performed on Macomber Avenue.

11:09 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Winthrop Street.

11:48 p.m., a disturbance was reported on Summer Street.

Tuesday at 12:38 a.m., a well-being check was performed on Western Avenue.

1:12 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Capitol Street.

3:33 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Green Street.

IN GARDINER, Monday at 4:20 p.m., theft was reported on Maine Avenue.

4:54 p.m., a well-being check was performed on Cannard Street.

IN LITCHFIELD, Monday at 12:51 p.m., assault was reported on Wentzell Road.

IN MONMOUTH, Monday at 9:57 a.m., a well-being check was performed on Main Street.

5:49 p.m., a well-being check was performed on Ridge Road.

ARRESTS

IN MONMOUTH, Friday at an unidentified time, Ronald Hinkley, 18, no town of residence listed, was arrested on charges of burglary, theft by unauthorized taking or transfer, stealing drugs and criminal mischief, after a burglary was reported on Berry Road.

SUMMONS

IN AUGUSTA, Monday at 4:06 a.m., a 42-year-old Augusta man was summoned on a charge of depositing trash on another’s property, after suspicious activity was reported on Green Street.

BANGOR — A former Bangor teacher has been charged with secretly recording women with his cellphone, according to police.

According to a report by News Center Maine (WCSH/WLBZ), Benjamin Emmott, 30, of Winterport, has been under investigation by the Bangor Police for several weeks after reportedly secretly recording women for years, taking images under their clothing.

He has been charged with seven counts of violating privacy, a Class D crime. If convicted, he faces up to 364 days in jail and/or a $2,000 fine.

Police have identified several of the women in Emmott’s videos and say none of them appear to be younger than 18.

Emmott was a teacher at Bangor Regional Program until Feb. 23, when he resigned.

Superintendent Betsy Webb of the Bangor School Department said the school was told of the investigation during February school break. Emmott is no longer allowed on school property.

The school said Emmott photographed a school staff member without consent several years ago, but there is no evidence that he targeted current staff or students.

A Hartland man was released this week into the Somerset County Community Corrections Program after his arrest Sunday night when police found him hiding in a Madison head shop, allegedly with stolen merchandise.

Christopher Gagne, 26, was found in the basement of Wicked Lettuce, described with a marijuana leaf logo on its Facebook page as being a “Bright and Cheery Smoke Shop located in Downtown Madison, ME.”

Somerset County Sheriff Dale Lancaster said Gagne had stolen items with him that included glass pipes, seeds, marijuana edibles, jewelry and other cannabis products. The value was estimated to be more than $2,000, the sheriff said.

The business operators are licensed medical marijuana caregivers and offer caregiver services and products during store hours to their patients.

Lancaster said the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of a possible burglary in progress at 11:14 p.m. Sunday at the shop on Main Street in Madison.

Cpl. David Cole, of the sheriff’s office, responded to the call and learned that the owner of Wicked Lettuce reported seeing a person in the store on the in-store surveillance system. Cole discovered that the rear door had been opened forcibly.

“Upon meeting with the owner at the store and reviewing the surveillance footage it was determined the individual responsible was still on the premise,” Lancaster said in an email.

He said Cole and Deputy Craig Dyer did a search of the building and found a hole in the basement wall that was covered by Styrofoam. Once they removed the Styrofoam, the hole led into another basement, where two backpacks were found.

Lancaster said the backpacks matched backpacks seen on the surveillance video. Deputies found Gagne hiding in a corner. He was arrested and taken to the Somerset County Jail in East Madison.

All of the reported stolen items were recovered and returned to the owner, Lancaster said. He said Gagne admitted the burglary.

Gagne was charged with burglary, class C; theft, class C; and criminal mischief, class D.

Gagne was arraigned Monday morning and placed on the Somerset County Community Corrections Program. He is scheduled to appear May 23 in the Somerset County Unified Court.

The shop was burglarized once before, Lancaster said, on Dec. 9, 2017.

“That case is still an active investigation,” he said.

In a statement emailed Tuesday to the Morning Sentinel, Faith Goguen, co-owner of Wicked Lettuce, said the business is a family operation.

“We are strong family-owned business and thankfully installed surveillance cameras and motion detectors,” Goguen said. “This alerted us to the fact he was there immediately, so we phoned the police and came right down.

“While this was an unfortunate incident, we will not allow it to get in the way of what we do here. We will rise above and continue on serving our customers, patients and this wonderful community that we now call home.”

Doug Harlow — 612-2367

dharlow@centralmaine.com

Twitter:@Doug_Harlow

Two Maine men who were arrested on drug charges last month in Massachusetts are due back in court on Wednesday.

Joshua Blodgett, 26, of Skowhegan, and Shane Lunt, 25, of Benton, were arrested Feb. 18 at a rest area on Interstate 495 in Haverhill, Massachusetts. The men allegedly possessed 101.1 grams of cocaine and 51.4 grams of heroin, a Massachusetts state police information officer said.

They were arraigned on charges of trafficking in heroin and trafficking in cocaine and bail was set at $50,000 each.

Carrie Kimball Monahan, director of communications at the Essex County District Attorney’s Office in Haverhill, Massachusetts, said in an email this week that bail was reduced to $5,000 at a bail review hearing.

Wednesday’s court appearance is for a probable cause hearing, Monahan said. The case has been assigned for indictment, meaning that a Superior Court assistant district attorney will investigate and present the case to a grand jury, she said.

Blodgett and Lunt were parked at a rest area in a Chevrolet Malibu, which wasn’t registered to either of them, when two state troopers assigned to the Newbury barracks came upon them about 3 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 18. The state police spokesman said both men appeared to be nervous and shaking.

He said a records check on the men showed previous arrests for drugs, which “threw up a clue to the troopers” that they might be involved in drug trafficking.

Blodgett also was charged with giving a false name to the troopers. Both men have been assigned lawyers.

Monahan said the penalty for trafficking in cocaine with more than 100 grams and less than 200 grams is eight to 20 years in state prison. For trafficking in heroin with more than 36 grams and less than 100 grams, the penalty is 3.5 to 20 years.

Local and state police continue to arrest people from New Hampshire and Maine who they say go to the Haverhill area to buy drugs and return to their states, where they can sell those drugs for a huge profit, according to published reports in Massachusetts.

Police say drug buyers are drawn to the Lawrence and Haverhill area because of the lower cost of drugs such as heroin.

Blodgett was sentenced to eight months in federal prison in July 2013 for his role in a conspiracy to distribute drugs from New York in central Maine.

He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and distribution of cocaine and oxycodone, as well as possession with intent to distribute oxycodone and aiding and abetting. Three years of supervised release, or federal probation, were to follow the prison term under the sentence imposed by Chief Judge John A. Woodcock Jr. in U.S. District Court in Bangor.

Blodgett had pleaded guilty to the two charges on Feb. 22, 2013, in the same court.

Doug Harlow — 612-2367

dharlow@centralmaine.com

Twitter:@Doug_Harlow

OLD ORCHARD BEACH – A former Old Orchard Beach fire chief is due to be sentenced for setting fire to a large marsh area.

Sixty-one-year-old Ricky Plummer is scheduled to be sentenced on Wednesday. He pleaded guilty in October to setting a fire that spread over more than 40 acres in the town in April 2016. He was the town’s fire chief at the time.

At the time, Plummer told a forest ranger that he was in the area where the fire later happened, smoking a cigarette. He said he threw the cigarette and matches into cattails. No one has been able to verify he was a smoker, and no cigarette butts were ever found at the fire’s origin.

Plummer went on administrative leave and later resigned.

VINALHAVEN — A 39-year-old Vinalhaven man is being held by federal authorities, accused of making numerous telephone calls to the Swedish embassy and threatening staff and the country’s king.

Eric Malmstrom

Eric Malmstrom was arrested March 9 in Sanford on a warrant issued by the U.S. District Court in Portland at the request of the U.S. Secret Service. Malmstrom is charged with interstate transmission of threatening communications.

He made his initial appearance Monday in the federal court in Portland. Magistrate Judge John Rich III ordered Malmstrom temporarily detained until a hearing is held Thursday.

An affidavit filed in court by Secret Service Special Agent Matthew Fasulo stated that the Swedish embassy in Washington, D.C., began receiving telephone calls from Malmstrom beginning on Oct. 10, 2017.

In the calls, he would threaten to attack staff and their children.

He also threatened to attack King Carl (Carl XVI) Gustaf with a knife.

The Knox County Sheriff’s Office met with Malmstrom on Nov. 4 and he denied making the calls but acknowledged he was upset with the Swedish government because when he visited Sweden, the government ignored him. The affidavit stated that records showed Malmstrom, of Swedish descent, had visited Sweden in 2000 and had a valid passport.

After the sheriff’s office contacted Malmstrom, the frequencies of the calls to the embassy increased, sometimes to 10 times a day.

In his last call on March 6, he said he would be coming to Washington, D.C., over that weekend and would slit the staff member’s throat and dump her body in the river outside the office.

The last call from Malmstrom came from Sanford where he was staying with a relative.

That is when the Secret Service arrested Malmstrom.

The maximum sentence for the offense is five years in prison followed by three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.

Malmstrom’s attorney Robert Andrews of Portland said it was too early in the case to make a statement but the defense would undertake an investigation of the facts and could comment after that point.

IN ALBION, Tuesday at 3:30 p.m., a harassment complaint was taken from Unity Road.

IN ANSON, Tuesday at 9:58 a.m., police were called to assist another agency on Wilson Street.

IN CANAAN, Tuesday at 6:39 p.m., a disturbance was reported on Dunlap Lane.

Wednesday at 7:11 a.m., fire and trees down were reported on Brown Corner Road.

IN CARRABASSETT VALLEY, Tuesday at 12:08 a.m., a noise complaint was taken on Main Street.

4:18 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Centre Court.

11:26 p.m., a noise complaint was taken on Beaver Brook Lane.

IN CHESTERVILLE, Tuesday at 7:44 a.m., criminal mischief was reported on Mace Road.

IN CLINTON, Tuesday at 8:09 a.m., a theft was investigated on Main Street.

9:33 a.m., a report of harassment was taken on Silver Street.

IN FAIRFIELD, Tuesday at 8:16 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Davis Road.

9:51 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Water Street.

11 p.m., a disturbance was reported on Water Street.

Wednesday at 3:56 a.m., fire and wires down were reported on Crane Drive.

7:52 a.m., fire and trees down were reported on Main Street.

IN FARMINGTON, Tuesday at 10:58 a.m., an individual was arrested on a warrant.

4:42 p.m., a case of fraud was reported on Marvel Street.

IN JAY, Tuesday at 9:59 a.m., a theft was reported on Main Street.

IN MADISON, Tuesday at 12:32 p.m., police made an arrest after receiving a report of a violation of bail or of a protection order.

IN NEW SHARON, Tuesday at 10:15 a.m., a case of fraud was reported on Blackberry Lane.

IN NORRIDGEWOCK, Tuesday at 9:35 p.m., a theft was reported on Waterville Road.

IN OAKLAND, Tuesday at 6:43 p.m., suspicious activity was reported at Messalonskee High School and Messalonskee High Drive.

Wednesday at 12:05 a.m., suspicious activity was investigated on Oak Street.

IN RANGELEY, Tuesday at 8:27 a.m., a theft was reported on Idlewood Drive.

IN SKOWHEGAN, Tuesday at 4:34 a.m., police made an arrest after receiving a report of an assault on Land Street.

4:48 p.m., an assault was reported on Spring Street.

IN SMITHFIELD, Wednesday at 5:52 a.m., fire and trees down were reported on Sand Hill Road.

IN SOLON, Tuesday at 12:25 p.m., a disturbance was reported on South Main Street.

IN WATERVILLE, Tuesday at 9:16 a.m., a report of fraud or forgery was investigated on West River Road.

11:09 a.m., criminal trespassing was reported on Summer Street.

12:14 p.m., a theft was investigated on Oak Street.

1:31 p.m., a report of harassment was taken on Summer Street.

1:33 p.m., an assault was reported on Hathaway Street.

7:13 p.m., a domestic dispute was investigated on Ash Street.

9:04 p.m., an assault was investigated on Spruce Street.

11:23 p.m., a theft was investigated on Summer Street.

IN WINSLOW, Tuesday at 12:57 p.m., an accident involving an injury was reported on China Road.

Wednesday at 1:50 a.m., criminal mischief was investigated on Fuller Drive.

ARRESTS

IN OAKLAND, Tuesday at 1:28 p.m., Michael F. Routhier, 61, of Fairfield, was arrested on a charge of operating under the influence.

IN SOMERSET COUNTY, Tuesday at 2:21 p.m., Geno Casson, 31, of Madison, was arrested on a charge of violating conditions of release.

IN WATERVILLE, Tuesday at 6:52 p.m., Matthew B. Dineen, 48, of Gardiner, was arrested on a probation hold and charges of domestic violence assault, with prior convictions, and domestic violence criminal threatening, with prior convictions.

A New York man indicted 13 months ago by a federal grand jury was found guilty of weapons and trafficking charges Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Bangor in connection with an incident two years ago when he fired a gun in a Walmart parking lot in Augusta.

Reginald McBride had been charged with being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm, possession with intent to distribute heroin and “carrying and discharging a firearm during, in relation to, and in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.”

McBride was one of four people arrested in June 2016 after shots were fired at the Augusta Walmart two armed bystanders broke up the exchange of gunfire.

At the time, police said two of the four people arrested had fired guns at each other during a dispute in the Walmart parking lot. Police said the incident was a dispute over drugs and money.

The federal indictment said McBride fired a pistol to further the drug deal.

Court records indicated he previously had been convicted of three felony charges in Virginia and one in New York.

Jeffrey Silverstein, McBride’s attorney, said on the third charge, the jury convicted McBride of carrying a weapon but not of discharging it.

Had he been convicted of the all the elements in that charge, he would have faced an additional mandatory 10-year sentence. Now his potential sentence would be reduced by five years, Silverstein said.

On his conviction for possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, McBride could be sentenced to not more than 10 years a $250,000 fine or both. On the possession with intent to distribute heroin conviction, he could be sentenced to not more than 20 years, a $1 million fine, or both.

Sentencing is expected to take place this summer.

The federal charges came after McBride, of New York City’s Harlem district, was indicted in September 2016 at the state level on charges of attempted murder, aggravated trafficking in scheduled drugs, reckless conduct with a firearm, and four counts of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.

Pamela Ames, McBride’s attorney on the state charges, said his state charges will continue until the federal charges are resolved.

Court papers show that McBride has a variety of aliases, including Kweasia McBride, Anthony Walker and Sunny.

They also show he has listed a variety of ages. According to the date of birth provided by Ames, McBride is 47.

A year ago, Frankie DeJesus, of Rochester, received a two-year deferred disposition after pleading guilty to a charge of reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon. The special conditions of his deferred disposition require that he depart Maine and return only for meeting with his attorney or for court proceedings.

At the same time, Samantha E. Tupper, of Augusta, pleaded no contest to a charge of hindering the apprehension or prosecution of McBride, a co-defendant in the case. Police said Tupper drove McBride away from the scene.

Tupper was sentenced to five months in jail, a term that is to run concurrently with a nine-month probation revocation. At the time of the incident in the Walmart parking lot, Tupper was on probation on a conviction for unlawful furnishing of scheduled drugs. In exchange for her plea a charge of unlawful furnishing of scheduled drugs dated June 26, 2016, against her was dismissed, as was a charge of trafficking in prison contraband from an incident July 6, 2016, at the jail in Augusta, when she was allegedly in possession of a syringe.

A fourth person charged after the parking lot incident, Diana M. Davis, of Rochester, New York, who identified herself in court as a sister of Dejesus, pleaded no contest to an assault charge Dec. 7, 2016, and was sentenced to 100 days in jail and given credit for time served, and a $300 fine was suspended.

Jessica Lowell — 621-5632

jlowell@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @JLowellKJ

IN AUGUSTA, Tuesday at 9:03 a.m., harassment was reported on Medical Center Parkway.

10:16 a.m., shoplifting was reported on Stephen King Drive.

10:50 a.m., a mental health and well-being check was performed on Court Street.

11:30 a.m., a mental health and well-being check was performed on Summer Street.

11:48 a.m., a well-being check was performed on Northern Avenue.

1:17 p.m., a city ordinance violation was reported on Washington Street.

1:35 p.m., property was recovered on State Street.

1:40 p.m., theft was reported on Mount Vernon Avenue.

1:59 p.m., a city ordinance violation was reported on Chapel Street.

2 p.m., a city ordinance violation was reported on Franklin Street.

2:14 p.m., a drug offense was reported on Civic Center Drive.

2:29 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Crosby Street.

4:48 p.m., mental health and well-being checks were performed at locations around the city.

7:04 p.m., property was recovered on Cony Street.

7:14 p.m., a city ordinance violation was reported on South Chestnut Street.

7:35 p.m., a well-being check was performed on Eastern Avenue.

7:48 p.m., harassment was reported on Cross Hill Road.

9:29 p.m., disorderly conduct was reported on Medical Center Parkway.

10:25 p.m., a disturbance was reported on Eastern Avenue.

10:30 p.m., a well-being check was performed on Western Avenue.

11 p.m., a suspicious person was reported on Green Street.

Wednesday at 2:03 a.m., a disturbance was reported on Green Street.

3 a.m., a suspicious person was reported on Green Street.

8:33 a.m., fraud was reported on Weeks Mills Road.

8:39 a.m., disorderly conduct was reported on Murray Street.

IN BELGRADE, Tuesday at 12:30 p.m., a well-being check was performed on Horse Point Road.

IN GARDINER, Wednesday at 12:02 a.m., a noise disturbance was reported on Spring Street.

IN HALLOWELL, Tuesday at 5:05 p.m., a well-being check was performed on Stickney Terrace.

ARREST

IN AUGUSTA, Tuesday at 2:37 p.m., Erik Michael Longmore, 28, of Augusta, was arrested on a charge of domestic violence assault, after disorderly conduct was reported on Water Street.

SUMMONS

IN AUGUSTA, Tuesday at 1:49 p.m., a 28-year-old Augusta man was summoned on a charge of operating without a license, after a traffic accident was reported on Monroe and Washington streets.

A North Monmouth man faces multiple charges after he allegedly stole money, medical marijuana, a smoking device and surveillance equipment from a home near downtown Monmouth, then ditched the surveillance equipment as he drove away from the scene.

Some of that equipment was destroyed, but police still were able to recover video that showed Ronald R. Hinkley Jr., 18, entering the home and pocketing a security camera that sat atop a refrigerator, authorities allege in court documents.

In part because of that video, Monmouth police confronted Hinkley, and he admitted having broken into the home on Berry Road, Officer Dana Wessling wrote in a probable cause affidavit.

Wessling arrested Hinkley on Friday last week, charging him with burglary, theft by unauthorized taking or transfer, criminal mischief and stealing drugs.

Hinkley was taken to Kennebec County jail in Augusta, then released Monday after a judge set his bail at $2,000 cash. During Hinkley’s initial appearance at the Capital Judicial Center, he did not offer a plea, according to court documents.

Police have accused Hinkley of taking $4,000 in cash from a man who lived at the home on Berry Road. The man reportedly was saving that cash to buy a car.

Police also accused Hinkley of taking the security camera and a related piece of equipment, which were valued at $400, and throwing that equipment out the window of his red Dodge pickup truck as he drove away from the scene.

Later, the victim told police he also was missing medical marijuana and a water pipe that he used to smoke it, which had a $100 value.

When Wessling spoke with Hinkley, he allegedly admitted having taken the money and spending a portion of it, buying $1,100 worth of marijuana concentrate from someone in Wayne, and $600 in merchandise from a head shop in Hallowell.

He still had about $975 on him, police said, but it’s not clear what happened to the remaining cash. According to Wessling, Hinkley said “he cannot remember where the other $1,200 went.”

Hinkley returned the water pipe to police, Wessling said, but he told them that he already had smoked the medical marijuana from the Monmouth home.

He also helped police recover the video system that he allegedly had taken and thrown out of his car, but some of the equipment was smashed to pieces and a camera couldn’t be found. Wessling didn’t indicate how he was able to view video captured by the equipment.

Burglary and theft are class B and c felonies, respectively, each punishable by more than a year in jail. The other two charges are each class D misdemeanors. Hinkley’s next court appearance is scheduled for May 15.

Charles Eichacker — 621-5642

ceichacker@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @ceichacker

ALFRED — A former Old Orchard Beach fire chief will serve a year in prison for setting a fire in a marshy area that threatened apartment and condominium complexes in that town.

Ricky Plummer, who appeared in York County Superior Court on Wednesday for his sentencing, has still not said why he started the fire, which burned 42 acres of marsh and required 100 firefighters to spend five hours dousing the flames in April 2016. The flames spread quickly in windy, dry “red flag” conditions.

No one was hurt and firefighters managed to get the blaze under control before it damaged any buildings.

Plummer initially said the fire started accidentally, but then pleaded guilty to arson last fall and prosecutors dropped a lesser charge of failing to control or report a dangerous fire.

Arson can be punished by a sentence of up to 30 years, but Plummer’s plea deal called for a sentence of no more than 10 years, with actual jail time capped at two years. He will also serve four years of probation, during which he will undergo a psychological evaluation and not be allowed to possess an incendiary device.

In his latest statement on the fire, filed with the court in January, Plummer said he went into the marshy area on the dry, blustery April day to try to deal with stress and to smoke a cigarette, although he was not known to be a smoker. He said he struck two matches to light the cigarette, and the second match sparked a fire when he dropped it onto the dry grass.

“I should have immediately put it out, but I didn’t,” he said in the statement, according to prosecutor Justina McGettigan. “I don’t know why.”

He said the fire spread quickly and he left when he realized that the flames had grown too big for him to handle.

Plummer still didn’t offer an explanation Wednesday when he spoke to York County Superior Court Justice Wayne R. Douglas.

He apologized to more than a half dozen individuals and groups, including town officials, firefighters and Old Orchard Beach residents, saying he let them down and betrayed their trust.

His wife, Elizabeth Plummer, also spoke to Douglas, saying that she was diagnosed with a tennis ball-size brain tumor more than three years ago, and her husband has helped her through operations and numerous doctors’ appointments. She also said that she suffers from agoraphobia, which is a fear of public places, and relies on her husband for grocery shopping, getting her to the doctor and picking up prescriptions.

McGettigan said prosecutors are sympathetic to Elizabeth Plummer’s health issues and acknowledged that Ricky Plummer, 61, has health problems of his own. But she said that doesn’t mitigate the seriousness of his crime and the fact that he put dozens of lives in danger by setting the fire.

She also said Plummer has had shifting explanations for what happened and he initially denied any role in setting the fire. But a surveillance camera caught him driving up to a spot near where the fire started, recorded him getting out and walking into the marsh and then had him returning to his SUV, at a quickened pace, about 20 minutes later. He didn’t report the fire and drove off toward Scarborough. A a resident of one of the condos reported the fire.

A search of Plummer’s computer indicated he had called up maps of the area near where the fire started earlier in the day, McGettigan said, making his actions appear premeditated, rather than accidental.

Plummer’s lawyer, Nathaniel Hitchcock, argued for a sentence of four years, with all but five months suspended, and Douglas read several quotes of praise from newspaper articles written when Plummer retired from the Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Fire Department, 16 years ago.

He has since worked for other fire departments around New England for short stints as a “fixer,” brought in to help ineffective departments operate better.

Douglas said the articles suggested Plummer is a “stand-up guy,” but the seriousness of the crime called for a sentence of nine years, with all but one year suspended. Douglas said the relatively short jail time was called for by Plummer’s record, although he said he was still troubled by Plummer’s failure to offer an explanation for the fire.

McGettigan said arson by firefighters is not uncommon, with about 100 charged every year. But she said most firefighters who commit arson are relatively young – in their 20s and 30s – and are usually volunteer firefighters, not professionals or top department officials like Plummer.

Edward D. Murphy can be contacted at 791-6465 or at:

emurphy@pressherald.com

Against her better judgment, Jill Modell-Dion clicked on a Facebook ad in December that promised a free trial of an advanced anti-aging serum from a company called Aurora Bella.

Shortly after receiving the two trial-size bottles of skin cream, Modell-Dion discovered that the internet-based company, which lists its return address as 165 Pleasant Ave. in South Portland, had charged $200 to her credit card. But there is no company named Aurora Bella in South Portland or anywhere in Maine. The address belongs to Ship-Right Solutions, an order fulfillment company whose business dealings with online sellers have sparked more than 250 consumer complaints to the Maine Attorney General’s Office over the past 15 years.

Jill Modell-Dion of Cape Coral, Fla.

“The next time I looked at my (credit card) bill, there were two charges of $99 each,” she said. “I gave no authorization for those charges.”

Modell-Dion, who lives in Cape Coral, Florida, had unwittingly become the latest victim of a growing number of beauty product distributors that use deceptive practices to sell their goods online.

Hundreds of such products – possibly thousands – are being advertised online in a similar manner: They promise a free trial and ask the buyer to provide credit card information to cover a nominal payment for shipping. Two weeks later, the buyer’s card is charged for the full price of the product, usually about $100.

Unless the customer calls to cancel, the seller continues to send another bottle and charge the customer’s card another $100 every month, indefinitely.

Modell-Dion said she called the phone number listed on Aurora Bella’s website to demand a refund as soon as the charges appeared on her card. But by then, the two-week “free trial” period had lapsed. The company canceled Modell-Dion’s monthly subscription but would not refund the $200, saying she should have read the fine print on the website before placing her order.

“They do this very deceiving, short ad – they don’t disclose things clearly and properly,” Modell-Dion said. “It takes you 30 days to figure out what the (expletive) they’re doing.”

As for the products themselves, Modell-Dion said they came in tiny bottles and were about as effective as something you could buy at the local drugstore for $1.50.

OVER 250 CONSUMER COMPLAINTS

Aurora Bella’s listed address for product returns, and the phone number for customer complaints, belong to Ship-Right Solutions, which offers order fulfillment and other services to dozens of different online product sellers on a contract basis.

Jill Modell-Dion said Aurora Bella items she bought arrived without packing slips. South Portland’s Ship-Right Solutions handles returns for the firm, but doesn’t ship its products. Photo courtesy of Jill Modell-Dion

Ship-Right’s business model, which involves not asking too many questions before agreeing to do business with a particular client, has made it the object of many consumers’ anger, including Modell-Dion’s.

The Maine Attorney General’s Office has received more than 250 consumer complaints involving Ship-Right over the past 14 years, according to Assistant Attorney General Brendan O’Neil. Of those, roughly 110 consumers have requested mediation of their complaints by the office’s consumer mediation service, he said.

Over the past two years, the state Attorney General’s Office has procured judicial orders or settlements against three clients of Ship-Right. The targets of those cases were health supplements sellers Direct Alternatives and Original Organics LLC, Better Health Nutritionals and Health Research Laboratories.

In those cases, all of which involved deceptive marketing practices, Ship-Right’s tangential role was noted by the Attorney General’s Office, and the company was not listed as a defendant.

O’Neil said he is legally barred from elaborating on Ship-Right’s responsibility in those cases beyond what is described in the official legal complaints.

“What I can say on the record is, to the extent that consumers have complaints about or relating to Ship-Right Solutions or 165 Pleasant Avenue, our office would be interested in hearing about them,” he said.

UNINVOLVED IN PRODUCTION, SALES

Ship-Right President Drew Graham said his company does not actually ship Aurora Bella products like it does for other clients, but that it does handle product returns for the company. Graham noted that Ship-Right is not involved in the production, sales or marketing of Aurora Bella.

“We are a service provider,” he said. “We don’t sell the product. We don’t make the ads up.”

Graham said Ship-Right handles fulfillment for many different companies, including top-tier online retailers such as Wayfair. He said it is difficult to obtain in-depth information about the sales and marketing practices of each business his company works with.

But Graham acknowledged that Ship-Right doesn’t ask too many questions. “This is kind of a volume game, to be honest,” he said. “We don’t overly scrutinize these folks.”

If Ship-Right does learn that a company is engaging in deceptive marketing practices, it tries to steer clear of that company, Graham said. However, he said that as a smaller player in the industry, Ship-Right cannot always afford to be choosy about its clients.

“We’re not a Fortune 500 company,” Graham said. “We have to take some chances.”

Modell-Dion said one of her issues with Ship-Right is that the customer service representative she spoke to refused to give her any information about the company that markets and sells Aurora Bella products.

Ship-Right Solutions at 165 Pleasant Ave. in South Portland. Google photo

“I asked her for the corporate phone number, and she said she wouldn’t give it to me,” she said.

Modell-Dion said that when her beauty products arrived in the mail, the boxes contained no packing slips indicating what she had purchased, the amount she was charged, or how to reach the seller if she was dissatisfied.

‘WE’RE NOT THE BAD GUYS IN THIS’

Graham said Aurora Bella products are shipped by another company, and that Ship-Right would never ship a product without a packing slip.

“Everything that leaves here has a packing slip,” he said. “I assure you, we’re not the bad guys in this.”

Modell-Dion said she managed to track down the parent company of Aurora Bella by doing her own research online. According to Modell-Dion, the parent company has an office in St. Petersburg, Florida, and operates under a variety of names including Decollage Institute Cream, Decollage LLC, LF Skin Cream, Replenish Your Skin Health and others.

The Better Business Bureau of West Florida gives Decollage an “F” rating with more than 30 customer complaints.

“I wish I would have read the BBB reviews regarding Decollage Institute Cream before purchasing the free trial,” one complaint says. “I was charged $186 for the products because I didn’t cancel within 14 days. I had no idea that I was supposed to do this as the ‘terms’ were listed under ‘Online Support.’ ”

The Portland Press Herald was unable to confirm that Decollage is the maker of Aurora Bella products, because the company refused to answer media questions.

“I’m unable to provide you with any information related to the company,” said a representative who refused to give her name.

Federal Trade Commission attorney Kati Daffan said scams involving free or low-cost trial offers have been around for years. They are particularly prevalent among beauty, health and wellness products, she said, but such scams can be found involving most any product or service.

There is nothing inherently illegal about a free trial offer that triggers an automatic monthly subscription, said Daffan, assistant director of the FTC’s Division of Marketing Practices. But what can make it illegal is the lack of adequate disclosure, she said.

“Unless that’s clearly and conspicuously disclosed, it’s not legal,” Daffan said. She recommended that consumers who believe they have been scammed check their bank card statements carefully and file a complaint with the FTC.

Rachel Vrabel, a Florida-based blogger who runs the website WomensBlogTalk.com, has been studying beauty product free-trial scams for the past five years. Vrabel has amassed a list of more than 500 products sold online through deceptive practices, and she said there are still hundreds more.

In some cases, the deceptive free trial offers are combined with other shady marketing practices, such as falsely claiming that a product has been endorsed by a major celebrity or featured on a popular TV show such as “Shark Tank.”

A GAME OF WHACK-A-MOLE

Trying to keep up with all the companies offering bogus free trials is akin to playing whack-a-mole, Vrabel said. A product website will pop up on the internet for a few weeks or months, which will be heavily advertised on Facebook, Google and other services before disappearing.

“It makes it impossible for people (who want to cancel their product subscription) to find a phone number or even find the site where they ordered it from,” she said.

Vrabel said her inbox is filled each week with comment after comment from readers about their bad experiences with free trial offers. Ninety-nine percent of products sold via free trials are garbage, she said.

“They’re basically subpar moisturizers,” she said. “Certainly not worth $100.”

J. Craig Anderson can be contacted at 791-6390 or at:

canderson@pressherald.com

Twitter: jcraiganderson

A Sidney man serving 50 years in prison for child rape has won an appeal from the state’s high court that will toss out his conviction and get him a new trial.

Attorney’s for Eric L. Bard, now 28, argued in December that he deserved a new trial on the basis that a judge discussed the case with the prosecutor without the defense present.

On Thursday, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, sitting as the Law Court, agreed with that argument.

“We are persuaded that Bard was deprived of the fair process to which he was entitled,” says the opinion published Thursday on the court’s website. No specific associate justice was listed as its author.

Gina Yamartino, Bard’s attorney, who argued in front of the Law Court on Dec. 13, 2017, said Bard, who is being held at the Maine Correctional Center in Windam, knows about the Law Court’s decision, and that she plans to meet with him Friday. She also said she is likely to seek bail for Bard.

“Every defendant has the right to an impartial judge at his trial,” said Yamartino, in a prepared statement that she read over the phone. “The court was persuaded that our client was deprived of the fair process to which he was entitled. … The court based their decision on our client’s due process rights and the importance of public trust and confidence in the procedures used by the courts.”

The prosecutor in the case, Assistant Attorney General Paul Rucha, who initially screened the case when he was part of the Kennebec County District Attorney’s Office, had asked the Law Court to keep Bard’s conviction intact.

On Thursday, Rucha said, “We’re reviewing the decision, but we believe the court’s previous order prohibiting comment by us is in effect.” He declined to say anything else.

Bard’s trial in August 2014 in Kennebec County Superior Court was cut short when he entered conditional guilty pleas to 11 charges of sexual exploitation of a minor, seven charges of gross sexual assault on a child under 12, two charges of unlawful sexual contact and one charge of assault. Those pleas were conditional on the issues being appealed to the Law Court.

The trial judge, Superior Court Justice Donald Marden, explained at the time that if the rulings by the Law Court indicated he was wrong in pre-trial decisions, Bard could withdraw his guilty pleas.

The offenses occurred in the period of Dec. 1, 2011, to April 30, 2012, while Bard was baby-sitting the 4-year-old girl in Augusta. Investigators say he had befriended the child’s mother in 2010.

The investigation began when another mother seeking day care services for her child in May 2012 came across an ad on Craigslist offering to babysit, photograph and bathe children. She reported it to Maine State Police, who learned that Bard had placed the ad.

The Law Court’s decision dealt largely with the June 23, 2014, conversation between Marden and District Attorney Maeghan Maloney, whose office prosecuted the case.

Maloney could not be reached immediately for comment Thursday.

Transcripts of the meeting show the conversation centered on the release of an affidavit that had been impounded and calls by Maloney to agencies considering supervising Bard while he was free on bail. The judge had issued a gag order in the case a week or so earlier that prohibited attorneys, court personnel, potential witnesses and law enforcement officers from commenting on Bard’s case.

“Had the conversation at issue here occurred in the presence of defense counsel, with an opportunity for counsel to be heard on any of the factual or legal positions presented by the DA, the asserted claim of a due process violation would hold little merit,” the Law Court’s opinion says.

It quotes from a court reporter’s transcript of that conversation and says, “Here, a due process infirmity arose when the court held an ex parte conference, without Bard’s knowledge or consent, on a subject directly related to the viability of the charges against Bard and the process for adjudication of those charges.”

The opinion also includes a footnote regarding Marden, the trial judge: “In the matter before us, the trial court must be credited for taking precautions by having the conference recorded and stating at the outset that its purpose was only to alert the prosecutor about her office’s possible ethical violation in contravention of the court’s impoundment order or bail order.”

The Law Court also indicated that the matter should be specially assigned to one judge and dealt with expeditiously “given that this matter has now been pending for more than five years, that the alleged victim is young, and that Bard has been incarcerated for several years.”

Rulings in the case have been appealed several times, and Bard has had a number of hearings to determine whether he was competent to enter a plea and stand trial.

Betty Adams — 621-5631

badams@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @betadams