PORTLAND — Maine’s highest court has vacated the 29-year sentence of a former music teacher from Blue Hill convicted of molesting five of his students, but he will stay in prison while his case is sent back to a lower court for resentencing.

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court today ruled that a superior court judge misapplied mandated guidelines when sentencing 52-year-old Theodore Stanislaw in January 2010. Stanislaw pleaded guilty to molesting the five girls between 10 and 14 from 2002 and 2008.

In his appeal, Stanislaw argued the sentence was too long and the sentencing judge misapplied a three-step analysis in calculating his sentence.

In a unanimous decision, supreme court justices agreed that the judge erred by not articulating why Stanislaw was given a sentence near the maximum allowed.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.