SACO

Old Orchard Beach man dies when van crashes into trees

A 30-year-old Old Orchard Beach man was killed when the van he was driving crashed into trees then rolled onto its side on Jenkins Road.

Bradford Ferguson was driving south on Jenkins Road headed toward Route 112 at 9:30 a.m. when the crash occurred near Winding Brook Lane, police said. Witnesses told police that Ferguson had passed two cars in a 40-mph no-passing zone just before the crash.

A statement issued by Deputy Chief Jeffrey Holland said that excessive speed and improper passing appear to have contributed to the crash.

Firefighters had to use an extrication tool to get Ferguson out of the demolished vehicle. 

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The road was shut down for about four hours while the Saco Police Department’s accident reconstruction team investigated the crash.

SCARBOROUGH

‘Music at the Track’ series will deliver heavy metal blast

A daylong music festival featuring heavy metal bands is the first announced show for the new “Music at the Track” concert series at Scarborough Downs.

The show – an annual Maine rock festival known as Oxxfest – is scheduled for noon on Friday, Aug. 10. The headliner will be nationally known heavy metal band 5 Finger Death Punch. Other national acts will include Killswitch Engage, Trivium, Pop Evil, God Forbid, Emmure and Battle Cross. The festival will include local bands on a separate stage.

The show is the first in the series to be announced by the promoters, Waterfront Concerts of Bangor.

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Waterfront Concerts got Town Council approval to hold outdoor concerts at Scarborough Downs earlier this spring, but had no specific dates or shows to announce at that time. Alex Gray of Waterfront Concerts said at the time he didn’t know for sure how many shows would be held this summer.

Tickets for Oxxfest will go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday online at waterfrontconcerts.com or by calling (800) 745-3000. The price is $39.50, general admission. Previously, Oxxfest had been held in various Maine locations over the past few years, including Oxford and Wiscasset.

Last year, Scarborough Downs hosted a country concert featuring Brad Paisley, but it has not hosted a regular concert series featuring national acts.

BELFAST

Jurors convict Maine Guide of animal cruelty in bobcat death

A Master Maine Guide and state prison guard has been convicted of animal cruelty for tethering a bobcat and allowing his dogs to kill it.

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Randall Carl of Knox was convicted Monday in Waldo County Superior Court after an hour of jury deliberations.

Prosecutors say Carl, 46, tethered the bobcat to a pole with a rope wrapped around its neck. He let the bobcat out of the cage, and his hunting dogs attacked and killed it. The February 2009 episode was captured on video.

Prosecutor Eric Walker says the so-called training exercise was offensive to hunters.

The Bangor Daily News reports that Carl’s attorney called it an accident.

Carl was sentenced to 15 months in prison with all but 10 days suspended. He was also fined more than $1,300.

TOWNSHIP 16, RANGE 6

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Body of Eagle Lake fisherman recovered from Blake Lake

Wardens have recovered the body of a 57-year-old man who didn’t make it to shore after his boat capsized on a small northern Maine lake.

The Maine Warden Service says the body of Ronald Toussaint of Eagle Lake was recovered shortly before 10 a.m. Tuesday in 14 feet of water in Blake Lake, in Township 16, Range 6 east of Eagle Lake in northern Aroostook County.

Officials say Toussaint and 37-year-old Jason Dube of Eagle Lake were fishing on a 12-foot boat when it capsized early Monday night. Dube made it to shore safely.

The warden service says the men had life jackets in their boat but weren’t wearing them.

AUGUSTA

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Institute crunches data, calls Maine most peaceful state

A state-by-state assessment measuring crime, guns and other factors lists Maine as the most peaceful state.

The nonpartisan, independent Institute for Economics and Peace released its second annual peace index on Tuesday. The ranking is based on analysis of homicide, violent crime, policing, incarceration rates and availability of small arms data.

Overall, it finds the Northeast to be America’s most peaceful region, with the lowest homicide, violent crime and incarceration rates in the country. The South is the least peaceful region, with the highest homicide, violent crime and incarceration rates, as well as the highest prevalence of gun ownership, and the second-highest police employee rate.

Maine is America’s most peaceful state with recorded reductions in the homicide and incarceration rates as well as the number of police employees.

Governor signs budget law, calls for structural changes

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Gov. Paul LePage formally signed a law Tuesday to balance the state budget through June and at the same time urged lawmakers to make structural changes as part of the unresolved budget for the next fiscal year.

“In order to make the systemic changes that are needed to put Maine on better financial ground we must work together,” LePage said in his written statement. “As members of the Appropriations Committee begin working toward common ground to resolve the shortfall, I encourage an open dialogue, which acknowledges the need for structural changes within government.”

The budget bill signed into law Tuesday effectively closes the shortfall in Health and Human Services programs through June 30.

Lawmakers will return to the Capitol on May 15 to once again try to close an unresolved budget shortfall for the 2013 fiscal year. LePage usedthe line-item veto earlier this month to reject the Legislature’s compromise plan to cut spending on General Assistance, a welfare program administered by cities and towns, and Medicaid funding for institutional care. He is calling on lawmakers to make deeper cuts.

“Structural changes that will generate ongoing savings to our welfare programs must be considered. Difficult decisions must be made, but legislators must summon the courage necessary to restore Maine’s fiscal health,” LePage said.

Governor endorses revisions to state’s mining regulations

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Gov. Paul LePage has signed a bill to revise Maine’s mining regulations.

In a State House ceremony Tuesday, the governor said the legislation opens the door to good jobs while protecting the environment. Supporters said it was adopted after an unusually thorough review process.

The commissioner of the state Department of Environmental Protection, Patricia Aho, said the new law starts a process of updating the state’s mining rules and regulations, which will be presented to the Legislature in 2014.

The legislation was prompted by J.D. Irving Co.’s interest in mining gold, silver, copper and other metals in Aroostook County’s Bald Mountain. The bill’s supporters said current restrictions in the law hamper the ability to develop potential mines in the state.

PORTLAND

Maine Historical Society names new executive director

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Stephen Bromage will become the new executive director of the Maine Historical Society beginning June 1. He succeeds Richard D’Abate, who is retiring.

Bromage has been assistant director since 2006.

“He’s the very best choice,” Katherine Pope, president of the historical society’s board of trustees, said in a statement. “He has played a vital and integral role in the success and growth of MHS over the last 10 years. We have ambitious goals, and Steve has the vision and creativity to lead MHS into the future.” 

Bromage has planned and implemented all public programs at MHS, increasing numbers and diversity through better communications and partnerships with many Maine cultural organizations, she said.

Bromage received his bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Richmond in Virginia and his master’s in American History from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, where he focused on 20th-century U.S. cultural history.

Scarcelli family legal dispute has hearing scheduled today

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A hearing is scheduled this morning in the legal battle between former Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rosa Scarcelli and her stepfather and mother.

Scarcelli has sued Karl Norberg in U.S. District Court, alleging that he allowed Pamela Gleichman, her mother, to mismanage several family-run housing projects that now are in danger of being taken over by the federal agency that provided financing.

The lawyers for Norberg and Gleichman no longer want to represent them. Lee Bals and Daniel Rosenthal said they are in a dispute with their clients over representation and fees. The lawyers are asking for 30 days for their clients to get new lawyers.

Scarcelli’s lawyers – James Poliquin, Paul Driscoll and Russell Pierce – raised concerns about delaying the case, noting that USDA Rural Development is accelerating the debt on one of the projects.

A telephone conference before Magistrate Judge John Rich III is set for 11 a.m. today.

Rock band forced to postpone tonight’s State Theatre show

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The O.A.R. concert scheduled tonight at the State Theatre has been postponed because one of the band members must attend to a family medical emergency. O.A.R. is a Maryland-based rock band; the acronym stands for Of A Revolution.

The show has been rescheduled for Sept. 6. All tickets to tonight’s show will be honored. Refunds will be available at point of purchase.

Tickets to the Sept. 6 show will be available at the Cumberland County Civic Center box office, by phone at (800) 745-3000 and online at www.statetheatreportland.com. Tickets cost $30 advance, $35 on the day of the show.

BANGOR

City and state authorities investigate infant boy’s death

Officials are investigating the death of an infant boy in Bangor.

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Bangor police say they responded at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday to a report of an unresponsive infant at an Allen Street residence. The child was pronounced dead after being taken to Eastern Maine Medical Center.

Bangor police and the Maine Medical Examiner’s Office are working to determine the cause and manner of death.

Officials say a post-death examination is scheduled for today.

SEBAGO

Helicopter flies woman hurt in crash to Lewiston hospital

A female driver had to be flown by LifeFlight helicopter to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston after her sport utility vehicle left Route 114 in North Sebago and rolled down an embankment into Nason Brook.

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A dispatcher for the Standish police and fire department said the woman, whose name and age were not available, was ejected from the car.

A wrecker had to be called to the crash site because her legs became pinned under the vehicle.

The helicopter landed on Nason’s Beach, where it took off for the Lewiston hospital. Her condition was not available.

Police said Route 114, which serves as a major connector road between Sebago and Naples, had to be shut down for more than two hours.

The cause of the crash is being investigated by the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department.


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