Articles by Daniel Hartill
Maine gives Androscoggin County Jail more money to prevent closure
AUGUSTA, Maine — The Maine Board of Corrections on Tuesday averted a possible shutdown of the Androscoggin County Jail by approving a payout to the jail of about $210,000. Without the money, the Auburn jail would have been unable to pay its staff, beginning May 17. “It’s a weight off ...
Maine duo known as ‘Mentos guys’ shoot new video for McDonald’s
Buckfield-based duo Eepybird — better known worldwide as the Diet Coke and Mentos guys — have a new sponsor and a new online video. Details of the exact nature of the video, which launches May 7, are still a secret. However, this time Fritz Grobe and Stephen Voltz are working ...
Sheriffs, LePage agree jail system is broken
AUGUSTA, Maine — The worst effects of the county jail budget crisis, including closed jails, endangered corrections officers and widespread inmate furloughs, could be averted, Maine’s sheriffs said Tuesday after an hourlong meeting with Gov. Paul LePage. The governor also insisted that the Androscoggin County Jail in Auburn would remain ...
LePage calls jail summit as sheriffs warn of overcrowding, budget crisis
LEWISTON, Maine — A budget crisis threatening to force the early release of convicted criminals, layoffs of jail guards and even the closure of some Maine jails is headed to the governor’s office. Gov. Paul LePage said Saturday he is planning a summit this week with all 16 of Maine’s ...
What’s it like guarding inmates in the Androscoggin County Jail?
AUBURN, Maine — Travys Fecteau never leaves home without a ball cap. In public, he uses it to hide his face when he spots people he met while working as a corrections officer in the Androscoggin County Jail. “Most of the time, I wear my hat down low,” Fecteau said. ...
‘Survivorman’ Les Stroud greets fans in Lewiston
LEWISTON, Maine — Moments before Prose Gallery’s Lisbon Street doors opened Thursday to a stream of autograph seekers — kicking off the third annual Lewiston Auburn Film Festival — TV’s “Survivorman” Les Stroud looked out the street-level window and threw up his hands. “Send help!” he teased. On the sidewalk, ...
Cigarette blamed for apartment house fire that left 9 homeless in Jay
JAY, Maine — A discarded cigarette is being blamed for an afternoon fire Saturday that burned a three-story apartment house at 39 Church St., leaving nine people homeless. Everyone in the building, including three children, made it out safely, Jay Assistant Fire Chief Mike Booker said. Firefighters arrived about 12:30 ...
Former Maine candidate for governor Les Otten creating online hub for virtual golfers
BETHEL, Maine — Les Otten wants to build a worldwide, virtual golfing community. The Bethel entrepreneur and former gubernatorial candidate has launched a new online network meant to link each of the 11,000 golf simulators he has sold through his company, P3. “We took something that had an original application, ...
Longtime Appalachian Trail ferryman dies unexpectedly
LEWISTON, Maine — Stephen Longley, who achieved notoriety for his paddling across the Kennebec River rather than his Lewiston family’s politics, died Saturday. He was 55. “He was the most gentle person I ever knew,” his sister, former state Sen. Susan Longley, said Tuesday. He was quiet, independent and found ...
Audiobody brothers to open ‘Freeport Theater of Awesome’
FREEPORT, Maine — Jason and Matt Tardy discovered their new theater on Craigslist. The brothers from Turner tired of leaving their young families and packing their equipment-heavy act, Audiobody, into vans and planes. They wanted a high-traffic home base in Maine. They Googled “Freeport” and “stage” and were shocked when ...
Lewiston pays far less per inmate in county jail than any other town in Androscoggin
About half of all Androscoggin County residents confined in the county jail reside in Lewiston. Yet, Lewiston taxpayers pay less than one-third of the county’s jail costs, according to a Sun Journal analysis. The reason is more crime in the city and a state-mandated funding formula for county services that ...
Andoscoggin commissioners want tighter security at county courthouse
AUBURN — Androscoggin County leaders are in talks with Maine court security officials to lock down the county courthouse about half the time, funneling all public traffic into the front entrance and through a metal detector. The aim is to make the entire courthouse safer, said Michael Coty, the director ...
Money sought for more guards at Androscoggin County Jail
AUBURN, Maine — Commissioners unanimously approved a $6 million budget Wednesday for the Androscoggin County Jail, including additional money for four new guards. But even Capt. John Lebel, the jail’s longtime administrator, figures the new positions will not survive the state budget squeeze. “It’s disheartening,” he said. “My sense is ...
Baxter Brewing expanding production in Lewiston
LEWISTON, Maine — As cans clattered down the production line in the hops-heavy air of Baxter Brewing Co., founder Luke Livingston fretted over plans to quadruple the flow of beer from his corner of the Bates Mill. Outside, contractors had spent several days thawing the expansion site with heaters before ...
Sears Hometown Store planned for Shaw’s Plaza in Auburn
AUBURN, Maine — Sears is coming back to Lewiston-Auburn in a smaller package. Jeromy and Jennifer Hood of Turner plan to bring the massive retailer back to the community as a Sears Hometown Store. Rather than the Lewiston Mall’s 80,000-square-foot anchor store, which closed a few days ago, customers looking ...
Man accused of invading Auburn home dragged from courtroom after making comment to judge
LEWISTON, Maine — A Massachusetts man accused of invading an Auburn home and pistol whipping three people was dragged from a Lewiston courtroom Wednesday after a disagreement with Judge Rick Lawrence. Kourtney Williams, 22, of Dorchester, Mass., was in Lewiston District Court for his initial appearance on charges of aggravated ...
Marines give accused Maine deserter discharge with honorable conditions
POLAND, Maine — Elizabeth Tremblay’s worries of prison are over. Tremblay, 57, of Poland received her general discharge Monday morning from the U.S. Marines. The discharge, which was “under honorable conditions,” ends a decades-long odyssey for Tremblay that began with her enlistment in 1980, her departure from the Marines a ...
Filmmaker rushing to finish movie about 2,500 mile bicycle trek
LEWISTON, Maine — Documentarian Ramsey Tripp knows the date, the hour and the location his film, “The Peloton Project,” will be premiered to the world. The film is far from finished, though. Tripp doesn’t even know how many hours of high-definition footage were accumulated by him and a team of ...
31 years — and a gender change — later, Poland woman arrested for desertion
POLAND, Maine — Thirty-one years after Pvt. Donald Tremblay ignored his officers’ orders, drove away from a Marine Corps base in Southern California and returned home to Maine, Elizabeth Tremblay is facing the past. Elizabeth, 57, formerly known as Donald, was arrested and briefly jailed four months ago on a ...
Poland Fire and Rescue building addition collapses under high winds
POLAND, Maine — An unfinished, 8,000-square-foot addition to the Poland Fire and Rescue building collapsed early Thursday amid high winds. No one was hurt, Fire Chief Mark Bosse said. However, the collapse caused thousands of dollars in damage and likely will delay the project by about two weeks. The collision ...
Man accused of killing Glenburn teen denied bail, has received death threats, attorney says
Family remembers Nichole “CoCo” Cable, warns of social media dangers
Kyle Dube arrest, murder charge surprising to some who know him
Glenburn woman gets 18 months for embezzling $100,000 from beagle rescue group
Man linked to Boston bombing suspect killed by FBI in Florida
Nichole Cable: In our minds, hearts
Guest Post: “I’m about ready to name my daughter Revolution.”
How to humble a wing nut
Bucksport’s Wood enjoying the professional cage in MMA bouts
Unity Raceway heading in new direction when track opens for season Sunday
Former Dexter, Nokomis coach Pratt takes Mount View football post
UMaine’s Fransoso overcomes injuries, turns passion for baseball into stellar career
Houlton makes plans for new hockey boards at Millar Civic Center
Fun, informative or just plain strange: 8 museums in Maine worth a road trip
Bangor veteran of World War II exemplifies the way life should be