SKOWHEGAN — The Somerset County district attorney’s office has declined to prosecute a domestic assault allegation against Ryan Morgan, chairman of the Farmington Board of Selectmen.

District Attorney Maeghan Maloney said Tuesday that a review determined that there was not enough evidence of an alleged assault on one of Morgan’s children to bring the case to trial.

“Parents are allowed to discipline their children, but the conduct cannot be a gross deviation from the norm,” Maloney said. “In this particular case against Mr. Morgan, the state could not prove that he ever even touched the person in question.”

Morgan, 40, was charged Nov. 10 by the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office with Class D domestic violence assault. At the time, the sheriff’s department said the charges were filed after referral to the Maine Department of Health and Human Services and involved an incident that allegedly occurred Nov. 6 involving a family member under the age of 14.

Morgan’s attorney, Woody Hanstein, said Morgan and his wife made their child available for interviews, examinations and photographs during the investigation.

Hanstein said Morgan spoke with the investigating officer and was cooperative with a DHHS worker looking into the case. “Mr. Morgan cooperated fully in this investigation from its inception,” Hanstein said in an emailed statement. “He is obviously gratified and relieved by this decision.”

Maloney said because Morgan is a public figure, the case was transferred from Franklin County courts to neighboring Somerset County.


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