AUGUSTA Maine must cut down on the number of nonviolent offenders who are jailed while awaiting trial to reduce rising jail costs, the state’s chief justice said Tuesday. During her annual State of the Judiciary address, Chief Justice Leigh Saufley announced that a new task force will study the issue and make recommendations for lawmakers […]

PORTLAND FairPoint’s unionized workers fear they’ll find a mess when they return today from a four- month strike in which replacement workers handled call center duties and maintained the telecommunications network in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. There were widely documented customer service problems during the strike of more than 1,700 workers, and union members […]

BANGOR(AP) — Testimony from a former colleague of a Maine man accused of killing a teenager contradicts the defendant’s alibi about the origin of scratches on his face. Twenty-one-year-old Kyle Dube of Orono is on trial for allegedly using a fake Facebook profile to set up a meeting with 15-year-old Nichole Cable of Glenburn and […]

PORTLAND (AP) — A Maine government survey says the average statewide cash price for heating oil climbed 19 cents in the past two weeks. The Governor’s Energy Office says the average price was $2.79 a gallon, according to the Feb. 23 survey. The average kerosene price of $3.31 was 17 cents higher than two weeks […]

AUGUSTA (AP) — A federal judge says that a Maine law that allows residents to import prescription drugs from foreign countries through the mail violates federal law. The law is aimed at lowering the cost of prescription medications. But the Maine Pharmacy Association, Retail Association of Maine and others argued in their lawsuit that allowing […]

AUGUSTA (AP) — Maine has a new director for its Center for Disease Control. Department of Health and Human Services Commissioner Mary Mayhew said Tuesday that Ken Albert will take over for Sheila Pinette as director and chief operating officer of Maine CDC. Albert has been serving as head of the Division of Licensing and […]

CASCO (AP) — Police say they are treating a road rage incident that caused a vehicle to crash into a Maine river as a “criminal matter.” The Cumberland County Sheriff ’s Office says the crash occurred off of Route 302 on Monday afternoon near the border of Casco and Naples. Three occupants of the vehicle […]

AUGUSTA (AP) — Nearly 80 percent of Maine residents who have signed up for health coverage on the exchange have selected plans with a Lewiston-based nonprofit co-op. Maine Community Health Options CEO Kevin Lewis said Tuesday that 57,600 residents have enrolled with the company through the exchange. Federal officials said last week that 74,792 people […]

PRINCETON (AP) — Maine police say a man charged with arson in connection with a Halloween house fire will appear in court next month. Jerald Stevens of Princeton is accused of entering an Indian Township home through an unlocked door and setting a fire that caused extensive damage. Police say the 33-year-old Stevens did not […]

WARREN (AP) — Two women are facing charges for allegedly conspiring to smuggle drugs into the Maine State Prison. The Maine Drug Enforcement Agency said 28-yearold Katlyn Graciale, of Haverhill, Massachusetts, smuggled Suboxone strips into the prison during an inmate visit. Officers allege the strips were then sold behind bars to other inmates for between […]