PORTLAND

Community leaders speak against domestic violence

Additional Photos

Community members taking a public stance against domestic violence Thursday included Drew Wing, executive director of Boys to Men; Portland Schools Superintendent Jim Morse; Assistant Police Chief Michael Sauschuck; Michael Bourque, incoming president of the Portland Community Chamber of Commerce; and former Attorney General Steve Rowe. John Patriquin/Staff Photographer

Portland’s police chief, a former state attorney general and others spoke out against domestic violence Thursday, in response to homicides in Maine in recent weeks.

The group Boys to Men held a news conference in Portland’s Lincoln Park to draw attention to sexual and domestic violence and discuss what can be done to combat it.

They said domestic-violence homicides in Dexter and Winslow in the last three weeks leave them outraged, and they want to channel that anger into action.

Speakers included Police Chief James Craig, Superintendent Jim Morse, former Attorney General Steve Rowe and Drew Wing, executive director of the social change organization Boys to Men.

WISCASSET

Downtown lanes of Route 1 to close for holiday parade

Both lanes of Route 1 in downtown Wiscasset will be closed for about an hour Monday to accommodate the town’s July 4th parade, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department said Thursday.

Wiscasset’s Main Street will be closed from 11 a.m. to noon, the sheriff’s department said. Electronic signs in the midcoast have started flashing warnings about the shutdown.

The heavily traveled stretch of Route 1 is notorious for massive traffic jams in the summer as traffic backs up in both directions from Wiscasset’s congested downtown.

OLD ORCHARD BEACH

Turcotte says he’s resigning from town manager’s job

Jack Turcotte is stepping down after nearly two years as town manager.

Turcotte, 64, announced his resignation June 21 and said he will work through the end of July. He said a recent “medical scare” and his need for a knee replacement are prompting him to leave the “fast paced” position.

“I’m not leaving for any particular reason,” he said. “I really like this job.”

Turcotte stepped into the position in August 2009 after serving as superintendent for Old Orchard Beach schools, which consolidated with Saco and Dayton. Most of his career was spent as an educator.

The Town Council is expected to discuss plans for filling the position during a private meeting Tuesday.

AUBURN

Family of 10-year-old girl gets $3 million in damages

The family of a 10-year-old disabled girl has been awarded $3 million in a medical malpractice case involving a midwife who assisted in the girl’s delivery.

An Androscoggin County Superior Court jury found Thursday that Irene Meyers breached the standard of care when she oversaw the birth of Hannah Tilton at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston.

Born with severe mental retardation, Tilton is blind, cannot speak or walk, and receives sustenance through a feeding tube. The Sun Journal newspaper said Tilton was diagnosed with Kabuki Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder. But Tilton’s attorney, William McKinley, argued that the disorder doesn’t explain all of the girl’s symptoms. Christopher Nyhan, an attorney for Meyers, contended that Meyers followed standard medical care procedures.

BELFAST

Court upholds long sentence in attempted-murder case

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court has upheld the 45-year prison sentence for a man who robbed and kidnapped a woman before slashing her throat and leaving her for dead in 2009.

Stanley Ward of Belfast contended that his long prison sentence amounted to cruel or unusual punishment, that the judge erred in imposing consecutive sentences, and that the judge’s fact-finding to support consecutive sentences violated his constitutional right to a jury trial.

The court rejected all of his contentions.

Ward pleaded guilty in April 2010 to robbery, kidnapping and attempted murder for the attack. Police say he forced Patricia Moss, 72, to write a check to him for $300 before attacking her and leaving her to die. She regained consciousness and called for help.

SAD 61

Voters reject school budget for fiscal year starting today

For the second time, voters have rejected the proposed School Administrative District 61 budget for the fiscal year that starts today.

Superintendent Patrick Phillips did not have exact vote totals Thursday night, but said the $26.6 million budget passed by one vote in Naples and a slightly larger margin in Sebago. However, more voters in Bridgton and Casco rejected the budget.

“It’s very disappointing,” Phillips said Thursday — his last day as superintendent.

Phillips will become superintendent of Regional School Unit 23, covering Saco, Dayton and Old Orchard Beach.

In May, voters from all four SAD 61 towns rejected a $26.8 million budget. School officials then cut $262,000, eliminating a kindergarten teacher, a part-time library clerk and a transition program for eighth-graders who aren’t ready for high school.

By state law, Phillips said, the last budget approved by voters will remain in effect until a new budget is passed.

STATEWIDE

Maine coastline featured during ‘Dual Survival’ show

Some of Maine’s most beautiful coastline will be featured tonight on the Discovery Channel’s show “Dual Survival.”

The episode was filmed early this spring at Cutler Coast Public Reserved Land and Quoddy Head State Park in Washington County, properties managed by the Bureau of Public Lands in the Maine Department of Conservation.

The episode, “Road to Nowhere,” will begin at 9 p.m. and feature survival experts Cody Lundin and Dave Canterbury. According to the show’s website, they “take on the role of two travelers, lost and out of gas on an abandoned logging road. Their only resource is a broken down truck which they pillage for all its worth including a can of dog food.”

Tom Morrison, director of operations for the Bureau of Public Lands, said the show will give viewers a chance to enjoy “this special region of Washington County.”

“Dual Survival” is in its second season, and tonight’s program is the season closer.

TURNER

Teens involved in fight face disorderly conduct charges

Two 17-year-old girls face disorderly conduct charges after getting into a fight that left one with a concussion and a broken bone in her face.

Maine State Police used video footage of the fight that was posted online to help identify the girls who fought on June 16 at a baseball field in Turner.

Trooper Ricci Cote said there appears to be no connection to what has been described as an organized fight club out of Leavitt Area High School in Turner, but brawling among students at the school continues to be a problem.

The Sun Journal newspaper said the names of the girls charged in the most recent incident have not been released.

BAR HARBOR

Wednesday fire destroys Maine Lobster Museum

The Maine Lobster Museum has been destroyed by fire.

Capt. John Lennon of the Bar Harbor Fire Department said the fire was reported about 6:30 p.m. Wednesday. The cause has not been determined. There were no injuries.

The Bangor Daily News said a lobster hatchery and other buildings were not damaged.

The museum, which opened in 1990, had been visited by thousands of schoolchildren and tourists a year.

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