News from August 22, 2012

August 23, 2012

After 'long process,' time to upgrade Portland arena Several photos included in this story

20120822_CCCCGBreak Expanded seating, new entrances and other improvements will take about 13 months to complete.

August 22, 2012

Fewer hunters mean more Mainers feel economic pinch Several photos included in this story

 With fewer big deer in northern Maine, out-of-state hunters are going elsewhere, causing economic difficulties for guides, sporting camps and rural communities.

August 22, 2012

Celtics re-sign forward Jeff Green

Jeff Green The 6-foot-9 Green had been expected to play a key role for the Celtics last season, before undergoing heart surgery.

August 22, 2012

Murder convict released in Vt. after DNA results

John Grega, now 50, had been serving a sentence of life without parole for the sexual assault and strangulation of his wife.

August 22, 2012

MGM unveils $800 million Mass. casino plan Several photos included in this story

The proposal includes a 250-room hotel, 89,000 square feet of gambling space, a movie theater, a high-end bowling alley and 70,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space.

August 22, 2012

Waterville soup kitchen will temporarily stay open thanks to donations

Dick Willette, director of the kitchen, had planned to close for good on Sept. 1, but will now stay open through at least 2012.

August 24, 2012

Tropical storm threatens Republican National Convention

All Isaac needs to do is come close to Tampa to bring a lot of problems to the Republican National Convention.

August 22, 2012

Police arrest three juveniles in Bowdoinham burglary

The police say they recovered $270 in cash and $1,200 worth of cigarettes taken from the Bowdoinham Country Store.

August 22, 2012

Maine education leader Charlie Lyons dies at 68

Known as an advocate for students, Lyons headed several Maine colleges and universities in his 30-year career.

August 22, 2012

Penobscot Indians sue Maine government over river

The Indians say they have jurisdiction over the Penobscot River along their reservation, but Maine AG William Schneider says the state has exclusive control of the entire river.

August 23, 2012

Maine's Ron Paul delegates stand their ground Several photos included in this story

Charlie Webster of the Maine Republican Party says a compromise was offered to take away half of Ron Paul's 20 elected Maine delegates and give them to Romney. But the elected delegates say that's not acceptable.

August 22, 2012

Talks continue on Ron Paul's Maine delegates

The discussions that were ongoing Wednesday in Tampa, Fla., could determine whether 20 of Maine's 24-member delegation will be seated at the convention.

August 22, 2012

J. Crew uses Maine as backdrop for fall style guide

At the back of the September catalog, a 12-page spread leads with the headline "Maine Attraction."

August 22, 2012

CDC: Alarming increase in West Nile cases

"We're in the midst of one of the largest West Nile outbreaks ever seen in the United States."

August 22, 2012

Officials break ground at Civic Center

Reconstruction of the Free Street entrance, the first phase of the $33 million project, is set to start within days.

August 22, 2012

Brunswick air show up for the challenge

The Great State of Maine Air Show, which kicks off this weekend with the Air Force Thunderbirds and other top flying acts, requires a ton of work.

August 22, 2012

Rise in US home sales reflects steady improvement

The industry's recovery has grown more consistent, though it remains sluggish and uneven.

August 22, 2012

Kennebunk police offer lecture on 'bath salts'

The synthetic cocaine-like stimulants are sometimes sold as jewelry cleaner or plant food.

August 22, 2012

Woman's body recovered from Maine lake

An autopsy on the body of 50-year-old Carol Baird of Dover-Foxcroft is under way.

August 22, 2012

Moose no longer loose in Westbrook

Police feared that the cow moose would pose a hazard during the morning commute.

August 22, 2012

Lucid Stage will close in the fall

Many small theater companies use the Baxter Boulevard space, including Mad Horse.

August 23, 2012

School chief defends his lambasting of Gov. LePage

Superintendent Paul Perzanoski says he wanted to let teachers know they have a right to defend themselves from the governor's "manipulation of facts."

August 22, 2012

Analysts project $1.1 trillion federal deficit this year

The Congressional Budget Office also says it expects the economy to continue recovering at only a modest rate the rest of this year.

August 22, 2012

Cruise line developing appetite for lobster

Celebrity Cruises plans to buy 3,800 pounds of live lobster when its ship visits two Maine ports in September and October.

August 22, 2012

Cape Elizabeth explosion caused by gas poured on fire

A Saco man was injured Wednesday morning when he poured gasoline on a brush fire outside a home off of Valley Road.

August 22, 2012

Burned nuclear sub expected back in service by 2015

The Navy's top officer says he's confident the Kittery shipyard can complete the overhaul of the USS Miami for $450 million.

August 22, 2012

Poland Spring signs deal with Olympian Aly Raisman

The 18-year-old who won two gold medals and a bronze says Poland Spring has been an important part of her training regimen for years.

August 22, 2012

Maine Warden Service swears in 6 new officers

One Penobscot tribal warden was also sworn in.

August 22, 2012

Maine man gets 6 years for videotaping young girl

Prosecutors say the 43-year-old Thomas King hid a tiny camera inside a clock on the windowsill to make the recordings.

August 22, 2012

Campaign tactic for Democrats: Quote Todd Akin

From Colorado to New Hampshire to Illinois, Democrats are using the Missouri congressman's comments about rape as a political bludgeon.

August 22, 2012

Maine summer camp owners charged after drinking party

Police say the owners of Camp Waziyatah in Waterford were on the premises while about 15 underage counselors were drinking.

August 22, 2012

Poll shows White House race still tight

Mitt Romney's selection of Rep. Paul Ryan as his running mate has not altered the race against President Barack Obama.

August 22, 2012

First lady announcing new hiring push for vets

"These companies know that if you can prepare a helicopter engine in Mayport, if you can coordinate thousands of pounds of supplies and deliver them to villages across Afghanistan, then clearly you have what it takes for a manufacturing or a logistics job right here in the U.S," she says.

August 22, 2012

Alert clerks aid arrests in Waterville pharmacy robbery Several photos included in this story

The Rite Aid robbery was Maine's 37th this year, a record.

August 22, 2012

Portland school cafeterias ending use of foam trays

The additional $30,000 annual cost will be offset by savings from district recycling and composting programs.

August 22, 2012

Fictional Maine town declared TV murder capital

British researchers find that Cabot Cove, with a fictional population of 3,500, had a shocking murder rate of 1,490 per million.

August 22, 2012

Maine officials ready their alternative to No Child Left Behind

If approved, public school goals would be based on how well they are doing to start with, rather than holding every school to a single standard.

August 22, 2012

Court lets Texas cut Planned Parenthood clinic funding until trial

Planned Parenthood is challenging a law that bans state money from going to groups linked to abortions.

August 22, 2012

Bill Nemitz: Recipe for junk news calls for a grain of salt

Today we examine the art of cooking up your own junk news. Not familiar with it? Check out Maine's U.S. Senate race . . .

August 22, 2012

Akin defiant as calls for him to quit Senate race escalate

Todd Akin After two days of apologizing, he grew angry and let a deadline pass for an easy withdrawal.

August 22, 2012

Mercy Hospital sale could yield $1 million-plus in taxes

Steward's purchase of a hospital in Brockton, Mass., has been a plus for that city, its mayor says.

August 22, 2012

Portland's new rules would reduce business tax breaks

A City Council committee will begin review of a proposal that would be less generous for developers.

August 21, 2012

Maine baby-sitter, 17, earns praise for her action in fire Several photos included in this story

A teenage baby-sitter got two children and the family dog out of a house that was destroyed by fire Monday afternoon.

August 22, 2012

Dispatches

'Come get me,' teen suspect tells authorities in 911 call / Man dies in Waldoboro motorcycle crash / After maggots, follow-up inspection finds no deficiencies at Maine nursing home ... and more news from around the state.

August 21, 2012

Mainers see EPA court ruling as a ‘tremendous setback’

The EPA rule was developed to reduce harmful emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen from power plants.

August 22, 2012

Rights panel rules in favor of fired Maine cop

 It says the Waterville PD did not try to reasonably accommodate him when he tried to return to work while in cancer remission.

August 21, 2012

Federal court kills downwind pollution rule

A divided federal court finds that the Environmental Protection Agency's cross-state air pollution rule exceeded the agency's statutory authority.

August 21, 2012

PHOTOS: The Frog Days of Summer

 In the top photo, 3-year-old Lucy Wetzel and her 7-year-old brother hunt for frogs in Falmouth. In the bottom photo, a frog sunbathes.

August 22, 2012

Mercy Hospital's tax status not critical to its mission

 If sold, the Portland institution would become Maine's first for-profit hospital, but that doesn't necessarily mean the quality would decrease.

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