BIDDEFORD

Bereaved mother sues man convicted of sons’ deaths

The woman whose two sons were shot to death by Rory Holland last year has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against Holland, who was convicted of two counts of murder this month.

Tammy Cole filed a one-page complaint against Holland seeking judgment for pain and suffering, compensatory damages, funeral expenses, medical bills and punitive damages.

Holland was convicted of killing 21-year-old Derek Greene and his 19-year-old brother, Gage, outside Holland’s home in June 2009. Holland has not been sentenced.

Cole told the Journal Tribune of Biddeford that she hasn’t been able to work since the shootings. She said she’s now dependent on her boyfriend.

In a handwritten response, Holland says Cole’s complaint should be dismissed.

ROCKLAND

Police regard woman’s death as suspicious

State police say the death of a woman whose body was found in Rockland on Tuesday is suspicious.

Police believe the body is that of Katrina Windred, 47, of Friendship, who was reported missing on Sunday.

But state police spokesman Stephen McCausland told the Bangor Daily News that investigators don’t know how she died. Investigators are awaiting the results of an autopsy to make a definitive identification and determine the cause of death.

The body was found along Thompson Road by a man walking his dog.

Police had been looking for Windred since Sunday evening, when she was reported missing from downtown Rockland.

BANGOR

South Dakota man charged in death of homeless man

A South Dakota man has been indicted in the death of a homeless man whose body was found burning under a bridge in downtown Bangor more than four years ago.

Bangor police say a Penobscot County grand jury indicted Kenneth John Bruning, 25, of Rapid City, S.D., on Wednesday. Police said Bruning is in jail in Rapid City on unrelated charges and will be extradited to Maine. He is charged with murder in the death of Trevor Sprague, 34, on March 7, 2006. Sprague, who was from Lubec, was living in Bangor at the time of his death. 

No one indicted in death of beating victim; case closed

Police say a grand jury has declined to indict anybody in the death of a 48-year-old Bangor man who died four days after being beaten outside a bar.

A Penobscot County grand jury returned a “no true” bill Wednesday in the death of Ralph Greenleaf, meaning the case won’t go to trial. The panel heard from witnesses in October and again Wednesday.

Greenleaf fell and hit his head during a late-night altercation Aug. 29 outside Carolina’s Bar. The state Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the death a homicide.

Police say the case is closed, now that the grand jury has decided that criminal charges shouldn’t be brought.

PORTLAND

Disbarred lawyer should not be readmitted, court agrees

A former lawyer who took on high-profile cases before being disbarred has had his request to practice law again denied.

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court on Tuesday denied Charles Williams III’s appeal for reinstatement to the Maine bar. Williams made a name for himself in Lewiston nearly a decade ago as an advocate for victims of racial discrimination.

He was disbarred in 2004 for numerous ethical violations, including forcing a former client to have sex, failing to file court documents, overcharging clients and skipping court dates.

Supreme Court Justice Donald Alexander denied Williams’ reinstatement petition last spring, but Williams appealed that decision. The full court upheld Alexander’s decision.

TREMONT

Couple found in submerged SUV drowned, officials say

Medical officials say an elderly couple whose bodies were found in a submerged vehicle near a boat ramp on Mount Desert Island drowned.

Lewis Lawton, 92, and his wife, Inez, 86, were found Tuesday morning in their SUV in water off the Seal Cove boat landing in Tremont.

An official with the state Medical Examiner’s Office said the cause of death was drowning, but that there has been no determination on the circumstances that led to the deaths.

AUGUSTA

Settlement in price-fixing case tagged for food bank

Maine’s attorney general says a big settlement in a price-fixing case will help feed the hungry this holiday season.

About $135,000 from a multistate lawsuit against major vitamin companies will be donated to the Good Shepherd Food Bank.

Attorney General Janet Mills said the settlement money, which is aimed at compensating the public for high food prices from 1988 to 2000, will go to the state’s largest distributor of food to those in need.

A small portion of the settlement will go to the state’s Emergency Food Assistance Program, which buys food for low-income Mainers.

VINALHAVEN

State DEP asks company to muffle its wind turbines

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection is asking the company that operates three wind turbines on Vinalhaven Island to modify its operations because the turbines are too loud.

The state says the turbines run by Fox Islands Wind have exceeded nighttime noise limits.

In a letter sent Tuesday, the state found that the wind farm was producing noise levels of 47 decibels when it wasn’t supposed to exceed 45 decibels.

Fox Islands Wind CEO George Baker told the Bangor Daily News that a consultant hired by the company doesn’t agree with the state’s conclusions.