Maine Supreme Judicial Court Decisions 2024

Justia Opinion Summary: Campbell and Jennie Clegg purchased first-class round-trip tickets from American Airlines for themselves and three family members for travel between Albany, New York, and San Francisco, California, in May 2022. They…

Justia Opinion Summary: Between 2007 and 2009, Susan McCarthy’s minor child, M, was in the care of McCarthy’s friend, Glynis McCormack, at McCormack’s home. During this time, McCormack’s minor nephew, Z, who also lived there, physically,…

Justia Opinion Summary: Ramel L. Sheppard was convicted of domestic violence aggravated assault after a jury trial in which the victim did not testify. The conviction was based in part on the victim's hearsay statement to a police officer…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a dispute between the Government Oversight Committee of the 131st Maine Legislature and the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) over access to confidential records related to the deaths…

Justia Opinion Summary: 15 Langsford Owner LLC (15 Langsford) acquired eleven condominium units in Kennebunkport between December 2020 and June 2021. The units were previously approved as residential dwellings under the Town’s Land Use…

Justia Opinion Summary: Dylan Ketcham was convicted of the murder of Jordan Johnson, attempted murder, and elevated aggravated assault against Caleb Trudeau. The incident occurred on January 24, 2020, when Ketcham and Johnson exchanged hostile…

Justia Opinion Summary: Trevor I. DesRosiers was convicted by a jury in the Penobscot County Unified Criminal Docket on three counts of sexual abuse of a minor and three counts of furnishing liquor to a minor. DesRosiers appealed, arguing…

Justia Opinion Summary: A healthcare consulting firm, Core Finance Team Affiliates, LLC (Core), provided data services to three Maine hospitals (the Hospitals) to support their claims for federal reimbursement for Medicare-eligible patients.…

Justia Opinion Summary: High Maine, LLC, challenged the Town of Kittery's issuance of a marijuana retail store license and approval of a change of use and modified site plan for GTF Kittery 8, LLC, to operate a marijuana retail store in the…

Justia Opinion Summary: Roger K. Moreau sought to operate an automotive repair shop on his lot in the Town of Parsonsfield, which is accessed via Reed Lane, a private road. The lot, created from a larger parcel, lacks frontage on a public road.…

Justia Opinion Summary: Steve L. Michaud sustained a traumatic injury to his left eye on December 26, 2014, while working as an auto mechanic, resulting in an immediate loss of more than eighty percent of his vision. Michaud underwent multiple…

Justia Opinion Summary: In October 2020, Elliot Fama, employed by Sanford Contracting, was working on a project in Scarborough, Maine. After work, he and his co-worker, Robert Clarke, consumed alcohol at a hotel and a tavern. Later, in the…

Justia Opinion Summary: The parties were married in October 1996, and John A. Jewell Sr. filed for divorce in February 2018. The divorce judgment, entered in March 2019, required Jewell to pay Carol L. Brewer $2,000 per month in spousal support…

Justia Opinion Summary: From 2018 to 2020, Central Maine Power Company (CMP) sent misleading communications to customers behind on their electric bills, threatening winter disconnection without providing accurate information about customers'…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a dispute between two condominium associations, Longview Hotel Condominium Association (Longview) and Pearl Inn Condominium Association (Pearl), over a strip of land used for parking. Longview owns a…

Justia Opinion Summary: Rebecca Adeyanju, a White woman, was employed by Foot and Ankle Associates of Maine, P.A. as a medical assistant and radiology technician since 2012. In 2018, she married a Black man from Nigeria. In August 2019,…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a property dispute in the Holiday Beach neighborhood of Owls Head, Maine, between John M. Carter and Christine C. Carter (the Carters) and their neighbors, Michael A. Voncannon and N. Kermit Voncannon…

Justia Opinion Summary: In May 2021, Ronald A. Harding lived with his girlfriend, her three children, and their infant son. On May 31, 2021, Harding was holding the infant when the child became unresponsive and later died. Medical examinations…

Justia Opinion Summary: In May 2021, Ronald A. Harding lived with his girlfriend, her three children, and their infant son. On May 31, 2021, Harding was holding the infant when the child became unresponsive and later died. Medical examinations…

Justia Opinion Summary: Geoffrey S. Stiff and Carolyn B. Stiff own a lot on Long Pond in Belgrade, Maine. Their neighbors, Stephen C. Jones and Jody C. Jones, own an adjacent 1.23-acre lot within the limited residential district of the Belgrade…

Justia Opinion Summary: A group of plaintiffs, including William Clardy, Michelle Tucker, two state representatives, and a nonprofit corporation, filed a lawsuit against Maine's Senate President, Speaker of the House, and Governor. They sought…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, Randall C. Belyea was the sole shareholder and president of Belyea Enterprises, Inc. (BEI), which had a contract with FedEx. Due to a misdemeanor charge, FedEx refused to renew the contract with Belyea,…

Justia Opinion Summary: Gregory R. Flagg filed for divorce from Shauna K. Bartlett in 2012, resulting in a settlement agreement that included shared parental rights and responsibilities, with a child support order requiring Flagg to pay $81…

Justia Opinion Summary: Patrick Gordon, an attorney, was suspended from the rosters of the Maine Commission on Public Defense Services, making him ineligible to represent indigent criminal defendants. The suspension followed an investigation…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Industrial Energy Consumer Group (IECG) appealed an order from the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) regarding the recovery of costs related to power supply obligations and state energy programs. The PUC decided that…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Connary heirs appealed a summary judgment favoring the Shea brothers regarding the reformation of the Shea Family Living Trust. The Trust, established by William and Patricia Shea, included a provision to distribute…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a divorce judgment from the District Court in Biddeford, where the court disposed of the marital property and awarded Cynthia (Pray) Wood McKenna $8,400 per month in general spousal support for life.…

Justia Opinion Summary: Matthew A. Dennis was convicted of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and violation of a condition of release following a jury-waived trial. The case arose when Officer Seth Burnes responded to a report of a…

Justia Opinion Summary: Steven Edwards was convicted by a jury of eighteen counts of possession of sexually explicit material involving minors under 12 years old. The charges stemmed from images found on his computer during a search executed…

Justia Opinion Summary: Michael T. Smith was convicted of twelve counts of unlawful sexual contact after a jury trial. The charges stemmed from allegations that Smith sexually abused his stepdaughter between 2011 and 2014 and his daughter…

Justia Opinion Summary: Pedro Rosario was convicted of aggravated trafficking of scheduled drugs in 2021 and sentenced to twenty-five years in prison, with ten years suspended, four years of probation, and a $25,000 fine. His conviction was…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, the defendant was convicted of gross sexual assault and unlawful sexual contact involving an eleven-year-old victim who frequently visited the defendant's home. The defendant admitted to engaging in sexual…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Ricky Whitney, who was convicted for sexual exploitation of a minor. Whitney had sent messages to a minor, soliciting her to send explicit photographs. The minor, disturbed by the request, showed the…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Moosehead Mountain Resort, Inc. (the Resort) and the State of Maine. In 1986, the State sold a ski area, along with easements and a portion of the abutting parcel, to the Big Squaw Mountain Corporation…

Justia Opinion Summary: Ernest B. Weidul was convicted of manslaughter and other charges in 2012. He later filed a petition for post-conviction relief, alleging that he had received ineffective assistance of counsel. The justice who presided at…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, a couple, Joseph R. and his wife, sought to adopt the wife's two minor children and terminate the parental rights of the children's biological father. The mother had been granted sole parental rights and…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a dispute over the Town of Bar Harbor's decision to present several proposed changes to its municipal charter as separate questions to voters, rather than as a single package. The changes were…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case revolves around Delanna Garey, who was employed as the director of operations of an apartment building managed by Stanford Management until her termination in January 2023. In February 2023, Stanford and its…

Justia Opinion Summary: Corydon Judkins was convicted of domestic violence assault after a jury trial. The case revolved around an incident where the police were called to Judkins' apartment, and the victim alleged that Judkins had assaulted…

Justia Opinion Summary: Wade T. Hamilton, a pediatric cardiologist, recommended a patient for a cardiac MRI scan but warned her that due to her COVID-19 vaccination, which he claimed included "magnets and heavy metals", it would be unsafe for…

Justia Opinion Summary: The defendant, James A. Green, was convicted of operating under the influence (OUI) after being found slumped over in his vehicle at a green traffic light. The arresting officer noticed signs of impairment, conducted…

Justia Opinion Summary: Tammy and James Rutledge filed a lawsuit against Pamela Menard and Randall Nappi, seeking to recover personal property. The Rutledges followed the instructions on Form CV-218, which was available on the Maine Judicial…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case revolves around the estate of Linda C. Giguere, who passed away in 2021. Her will, dated 2013, nominated her husband, William Giguere, as the personal representative and established a trust for his benefit if…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Nicholas P. Lovejoy, who was convicted of intentional or knowing murder. Lovejoy appealed his conviction, arguing that the court erred in denying his motion to suppress evidence obtained from an…

Justia Opinion Summary: Jamie Pacheco filed a divorce case against her then-husband, Kevin Pacheco, in 2015. She was represented by Jeffrey Bennett, Esq., and his firm, Legal-Ease, LLC, P.A. During the divorce proceedings, Bennett voluntarily…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case revolves around Jessica A. Williams, who was convicted for depraved indifference murder of her son, Maddox Williams. Maddox was born to Jessica and his father in 2018, and lived with Jessica after his father's…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Dennis G. Crosen, a former employee of Blouin Motors, Inc., who suffered two work-related injuries in 1984 and 2002, respectively. The 1984 injury occurred while Crosen was working for Rockingham…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Jaquille J. Coleman, who was convicted for murder and sentenced to forty-seven years in prison. The key facts of the case revolve around the murder of Natasha Morgan, Coleman's former partner and mother…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a dispute between Peter M. Beckerman and Ricky and Monica Conant over a deeded right-of-way over the Conants' driveway. The parties own abutting waterfront properties in Rome, Maine. Beckerman's…

Justia Opinion Summary: This case involves a dispute over an easement, a right to cross or otherwise use someone else's land for a specified purpose. The plaintiffs, Kinderhaus North LLC, Prime Properties ME LLC, and Karen and Brian Fullerton…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Richard Peters, who was convicted for hunting a deer after having killed one and unlawful possession of wild animals. Peters appealed his conviction, challenging the denial of his motions for a…

Justia Opinion Summary: This case involves a dispute over a contract zone agreement that would have allowed development on a property in Saco, Maine. The property owners, Amarjit Singh Dhillon and Ajinder Kaur, appealed from a lower court's…

Justia Opinion Summary: Michael G. Saucier was convicted by a jury in the trial court (Aroostook County, Nelson, J.) for one count of gross sexual assault (Class A), one count of unlawful sexual contact (Class B), and one count of unlawful…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a group of plaintiffs, led by Chris Calnan, who challenged a rule implemented by Maine Emergency Medical Services (Maine EMS) requiring emergency medical service (EMS) workers to be fully vaccinated…

Justia Opinion Summary: This case involves a dispute over an employer's vicarious liability under the Maine Human Rights Act (MHRA) for an employee's discriminatory behavior towards a customer. The plaintiffs, Tiffany Vargas and Erika Acevedo,…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case revolves around a dispute between MMG Insurance Company (MMG) and the Estate of Philip J. Greenlaw. The dispute arose after the death of Philip Greenlaw, who died while wrestling with his friend, Joseph McNeely.…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Roger Ouellette, who was convicted of Operating Under the Influence (OUI) following a police stop in his driveway. The police officer had observed Ouellette's vehicle crossing the center line of the…

Justia Opinion Summary: Randall J. Weddle was involved in a major motor vehicle accident in Washington, Maine, which resulted in the death of two drivers. The accident involved five vehicles, one of which was engulfed in flames. Weddle, the…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Mark Cardilli Jr., who was convicted of manslaughter after shooting and killing Isahak Muse, the boyfriend of Cardilli's sister. Cardilli claimed he acted in self-defense, fearing that Muse, who was…

Justia Opinion Summary: Tara L. Watson was charged with three crimes, including unlawful possession of scheduled drugs (cocaine base), refusing to submit to arrest, and violation of condition of release. Watson pleaded guilty to all three…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case at hand involves a dispute over the interpretation of a will left by Robert Pettengill Beckey, who was survived by his three children, Sandra L. Arthur, Angela M. Beckey, and Timothy E. Beckey. The will included…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Maine Supreme Court considered a case where Virginia and Joel Parker, a couple who secure some of their food through hunting, challenged the constitutionality of Maine's longstanding ban on Sunday hunting. The…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case centers around the dispute over the requirement for a supermajority vote in the Town of Bar Harbor's amendment to its Land Use Ordinance (LUO) concerning vacation rentals. Erica Brooks and Victoria Smith, both…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the case before the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, Christopher O’Donnell, as the personal representative of the estate of Erica J. O’Donnell, appealed a judgment from the York County Probate Court. The court had…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Maine Supreme Judicial Court addressed an appeal from Citibank, N.A., challenging a District Court judgment in favor of the defendant, Ashley Moser, in a case related to the collection of credit card debt. The bank…

Justia Opinion Summary: Two individuals, Ronald and Karen White, bought a used car from Real Deal Auto Sales & Service Center, LLC. After experiencing issues with the car, the Whites asked Real Deal to either replace the car's catalytic…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, Michael Bordick and Monica Bordick defaulted on a loan from Franklin Savings Bank, which was secured with a hunting cabin they owned on property they leased. The Bank filed a complaint for recovery of the…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court reviewed a dispute between Heather Keep and Christopher Indorf regarding the division of real estate they owned jointly. Keep and Indorf were unmarried domestic partners who…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, Jacob R. Labbe Sr. was convicted by the trial court on one count of domestic violence stalking and two counts of violation of a protective order. Labbe appealed arguing that the stalking statute was…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, the appellant, Barni A., appealed against an order from the District Court in Lewiston, Maine, terminating her parental rights to her older child. The child was born prematurely with a genetic abnormality…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Hans Utsch and Julia H. Merck's appeal against a denial of their petition for judicial review of an email from the mining coordinator of the Department of Environmental Protection. The case originates…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case before the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, the Office of the Public Advocate (OPA) contested an order by the Public Utilities Commission (Commission) that extended the waiver of the standard depreciation rate…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Judicial Court of Maine upheld the conviction of Ralph A. Tripp Jr., who was found guilty of several drug-trafficking offenses, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, and criminal forfeiture of…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court reviewed a decision by the District Court granting Camille J. Moulton's motion for summary judgment against J.P. Morgan Mortgage Acquisition Corp. Moulton's property in…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the State of Maine v. Dale F. Thistle, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court upheld the conviction of Dale Thistle, an attorney, for theft by misapplication of property. Thistle was hired by Donna Friend, personal…

Justia Opinion Summary: Mario Gordon appealed a judgment that denied his petition for post-conviction review in which he alleged ineffective assistance of counsel. In the underlying case, Gordon had pleaded guilty to multiple charges pursuant…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruled in favor of the University of Maine System (UMS) in a case involving Robert Bocko, who claimed that UMS failed to pay him wages on time as mandated by Maine law. Bocko, who was…

Justia Opinion Summary: Patrick S. White appealed a judgment from the District Court in Lewiston, Maine, which determined parental rights and responsibilities concerning his minor child with Darcy L. Howard. The main issue on appeal was whether…

Justia Opinion Summary: In Maine, former President Donald J. Trump submitted a petition for his candidacy for the Republican Party’s presidential primary. Three challengers subsequently claimed that Trump was disqualified from running because…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the case before the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, Dana A. Healey appealed his conviction for domestic violence assault. Healey argued that the trial court exceeded its discretion by not allowing him or his attorneys…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the case before the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, George E. Gooley appealed and Danielle L. Fradette cross-appealed from the District Court’s judgments on their post-divorce and post-trial motions. The court held that…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the case before the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, the dispute involved U.S. Bank, N.A. (the Bank) and Charles D. Finch. The Bank had a mortgage on Finch's property due to a loan he had taken out. When Finch defaulted…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Billie S., who appealed from a judgment by the District Court (Bangor, Roberts, J.) which terminated her parental rights to her children pursuant to 22 M.R.S. § 4055(1)(B)(2) (2023). The mother argued…