Maine Supreme Judicial Court Decisions 2025

Justia Opinion Summary: Aaron A. Robshaw was convicted by a jury in the Penobscot County Unified Criminal Docket for gross sexual assault (Class A), unlawful sexual contact (Class A), and unlawful sexual contact (Class B) against a minor. The…

Justia Opinion Summary: Kathleen M. Barron filed for divorce from John D. Barron in April 2022. The District Court in Bangor held a contested bench trial where both parties testified and submitted evidence, including proposed calculations for…

Justia Opinion Summary: Rochelle Gleason was convicted of aggravated trafficking of a scheduled drug that caused the death of a person. In October 2021, Gleason communicated with the decedent about purchasing fentanyl and heroin. On October 16,…

Justia Opinion Summary: Heath G. Demerchant was convicted of domestic violence assault (Class C) after a jury trial. The incident involved Demerchant grabbing his wife's throat and hitting her during an argument about a debit card. The State…

Justia Opinion Summary: Newfield Sand, a Maine corporation engaged in mineral extraction, owns a nearly three-hundred-acre parcel in the Town of Newfield. In 1994, the Planning Board granted a permit to the previous owner for a five-acre…

Justia Opinion Summary: Jarae Lipscombe was convicted by a jury of hindering apprehension or prosecution (Class B) for actions taken to delay or prevent the apprehension of his brother, who was later charged with homicide in Waterville.…

Justia Opinion Summary: In 1996, Katherine Stovall, while employed at New England Telephone Company, experienced pain in her hands and wrists due to a work-related injury. By 1998, the pain had spread, leading her to take a leave of absence.…

Justia Opinion Summary: Sokunthim Nou appeals from a divorce judgment entered by the District Court in which the court allocated property between her and Rotanak Huot and awarded shared parental rights and responsibilities and shared residency…

Justia Opinion Summary: Marc A. Lesperance was found with his dog off-leash in Baxter Woods, Portland, despite a city ordinance requiring dogs to be leashed from April 1 to July 31. A park ranger informed Lesperance of the rule, but Lesperance…

Justia Opinion Summary: Kiril Lozanov and Capital City Renewables, Inc. (CCR) appealed a Superior Court decision granting summary judgment in favor of Lily B. Piel. Lozanov and CCR alleged that Piel, a former employee, accessed and disclosed…

Justia Opinion Summary: Patrick Bolduc and Savannah Getchius were married in 2011 and have three minor children. Bolduc filed for divorce in 2021. After two unsuccessful mediations, a final divorce hearing was held in June 2023. The District…

Justia Opinion Summary: Moosehead Mountain Resort, Inc., and OFLC, Inc. (collectively Moosehead) filed a civil action against Carmen Rebozo Foundation, Inc., alleging breach of contract, unjust enrichment, and breach of good faith and fair…

Justia Opinion Summary: Matthew W. Pendleton was convicted of manslaughter after a jury trial. Pendleton and the victim, Kevin Curit, were childhood friends, and Curit had moved into Pendleton's home. On January 5, 2023, Pendleton bought…

Justia Opinion Summary: Kateryna A. Bagrii sought to establish herself as a de facto parent of two children whose biological parents are John P. Campbell and Jie Chen. Bagrii claimed she had acted as a parent to the children since 2014, after…

Justia Opinion Summary: Fair Friend Enterprise Co., Ltd., a Taiwan-based company and majority shareholder of CNC Systems, Inc., sought access to CNC's corporate books and records under Maine law. Fair Friend alleged that CNC had failed to pay…

Justia Opinion Summary: An inmate at the Hancock County Jail, Monica J. Johnson, died by suicide after being incarcerated from September 21 to September 29, 2018. Her estate and surviving spouse filed a medical malpractice notice of claim…

Justia Opinion Summary: Kingfish Maine, Inc. sought permits from the Department of Environmental Protection to construct and operate a land-based aquaculture facility in Jonesport, Maine. The project included two primary buildings, access…

Justia Opinion Summary: Clifton Thomas was convicted of two counts of aggravated trafficking of scheduled drugs and one count of criminal forfeiture of property. The charges stemmed from a search of an apartment where Thomas was staying, which…

Justia Opinion Summary: Michaela Boland filed for divorce in October 2019. In September 2022, the parties reached a settlement agreement regarding the economic issues of their divorce, which was accepted by the court. The agreement included a…

Justia Opinion Summary: Craig A. Woodard was convicted of elevated aggravated assault, aggravated assault, and assault after a jury trial. The trial court found that the offense of elevated aggravated assault was committed with the use of a…

Justia Opinion Summary: Pat Doe and Jarrod Burnham each filed complaints for protection from abuse against each other in December 2021. Doe's complaint was transferred to Portland for a consolidated hearing, where the court found that Burnham…

Justia Opinion Summary: Christopher Ray was observed by a Cumberland Police Department officer riding his bicycle slightly to the left of the white fog line on Tuttle Road. The officer, traveling behind Ray and another cyclist, instructed them…

Justia Opinion Summary: Abdihamit A. Ali was convicted of elevated aggravated assault, reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, and criminal mischief following a jury trial in the Cumberland…

Justia Opinion Summary: Ethan C. Gervais was convicted of domestic violence assault, tampering with a witness, domestic violence criminal threatening, and violating a condition of release after a two-day jury trial. The charges stemmed from…

Justia Opinion Summary: Yolanda M. Currier and James M. Currier were married in 2000, and Yolanda filed for divorce in 2017. The divorce judgment, entered in 2019, awarded Yolanda sole parental rights and responsibilities for their three…

Justia Opinion Summary: Juanita and Stephen Clark, Linda and Cliff Trebilcock, and Dan Gurney reside on Fuller Mountain Road in the Town of Phippsburg. Gurney has operated a firewood business from his property for thirty years. In September…

Justia Opinion Summary: In November 2021, Lincoln Medical administered a COVID-19 vaccine to the five-year-old child of Jeremiah Hogan and Siara Jean Harrington at a school clinic without obtaining parental consent. Hogan filed a notice of…

Justia Opinion Summary: Pat Doe filed a complaint for protection from harassment against John Costin on behalf of her two minor children, alleging aggressive behavior by Costin, including blocking their car at school. The District Court issued…

Justia Opinion Summary: In 2002 and 2009, the town of Pembroke recorded tax liens against property owned jointly by Brian E. Priest and his wife, Lisa C. Priest. The Priests paid the delinquent taxes, and the town discharged the liens through…

Justia Opinion Summary: Charles R. Maples and Kathy S. Brown, owners of two condominium units, obtained a judgment against Compass Harbor Village Condominium Association and Compass Harbor Village, LLC for damages due to mismanagement. The…

Justia Opinion Summary: Pamela Gleichman, a real estate developer, established four affordable housing developments in Pennsylvania as limited partnerships in the 1990s. Gleichman and her company, Gleichman & Co., Inc., served as the general…

Justia Opinion Summary: Raymond N. Lester was convicted of intentional or knowing murder after a jury trial. The victim's body was found at the Schoodic Institute at Acadia National Park during a retreat. Witnesses testified that Lester had…

Justia Opinion Summary: Kulmiye Idris was convicted of gross sexual assault after a jury trial in Androscoggin County. The incident occurred on April 2, 2022, when Idris and the victim, who were close friends, attended a party. The victim…

Justia Opinion Summary: Calixte Fleury was convicted of aggravated trafficking, unlawful trafficking, unlawful possession of scheduled drugs, and operating under the influence. On September 18, 2020, Fleury was driving on I-95 when he crashed…

Justia Opinion Summary: Aubrey Armstrong was convicted of felony murder and robbery following a bench trial in July 2018. He was sentenced to thirty years for felony murder and a concurrent thirty-year term for robbery, with all but twenty-nine…

Justia Opinion Summary: Charles S. Keegan filed a complaint against the Estate of Phyllis C. Bradbury and its representatives, as well as Craig J. and Melissa M. Holmes, alleging that he had a right of first refusal to purchase a property at 1…

Justia Opinion Summary: Keara M. Bernier was convicted of aggravated assault after a jury trial in Aroostook County. The incident occurred on June 6, 2022, when Bernier struck the victim, her partner, in the head with an aluminum baseball bat…

Justia Opinion Summary: Michael Zani and Peter Zani, sons of Patricia M. Spofford, appealed a summary judgment from the Lincoln County Probate Court. The court found no genuine issue of material fact regarding Spofford’s testamentary capacity…

Justia Opinion Summary: Christian D., the father of a three-year-old child, appealed a judgment by the District Court (South Paris) that terminated his parental rights. The court found him unfit as a parent and determined that termination was…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Eastern Maine Medical Center and eight other Maine hospitals (the Hospitals) who filed a 509-page complaint against various businesses and individuals (the Opioid Sellers) involved in the marketing and…

Justia Opinion Summary: Alrig USA Acquisitions LLC, a commercial real estate developer, entered into a purchase and sale agreement with MBD Realty LLC for a property in Portland. MBD was aware that the City of Portland planned to redevelop the…

Justia Opinion Summary: James M. Day appealed a decision by the Town of Hiram Planning Board, which granted Brian and Sarah Schnell a conditional use permit to construct a microbrewery on a property in the Town’s Residential District. Day…

Justia Opinion Summary: Julio Cesar Hernandez-Rodriguez was convicted of two drug offenses after a trial court denied his motion to suppress statements made to Maine Drug Enforcement Agency (MDEA) agents. Hernandez-Rodriguez argued that his…

Justia Opinion Summary: Taylor M. appealed a judgment from the District Court terminating her parental rights to her child, arguing that her due process rights were violated and that the court failed to comply with the Indian Child Welfare Act…

Justia Opinion Summary: Robert E. Dupuis and twelve other plaintiffs filed lawsuits against the Roman Catholic Bishop of Portland, seeking damages for sexual abuse allegedly perpetrated by the Bishop’s clergy when the plaintiffs were minor…

Justia Opinion Summary: A District Court in Caribou, Maine, issued a judgment in February 2024 regarding the parental rights and responsibilities of a child born to Andrew M. Landeen and Ashley Burch, who were former romantic partners but never…

Justia Opinion Summary: Billy L. Beaulieu was charged with criminal OUI (Class C) under Maine law. He filed a motion to dismiss the charges, claiming immunity under Maine’s Good Samaritan statute, which provides immunity from prosecution if a…

Justia Opinion Summary: Dennis W. Lowery was convicted of gross sexual assault after a jury trial in Cumberland County. The incident occurred on December 19, 2021, when Lowery entered the victim's room at a Portland inn without her knowledge or…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a dispute over a 1944 deed that placed a 330-acre parcel of land, known as Camp Bomazeen, in a charitable trust for use by the Boy Scouts of America for camping. Pine Tree Council, Inc., Boy Scouts of…

Justia Opinion Summary: Richard W. Kelley was convicted of aggravated trafficking of scheduled drugs after a stop and search of a friend's vehicle in which he was a passenger. Law enforcement conducted the search as part of an investigation…

Justia Opinion Summary: Richard W. Kelley was convicted of aggravated trafficking of scheduled drugs after a stop and search of a friend's vehicle in which he was a passenger. Law enforcement conducted the search as part of an investigation…