Mario Moretto
Ellsworth Bureau
Attorney general says state has authority over Passamaquoddy fishing licenses
ELLSWORTH, Maine — In a March letter, Maine’s attorney general told the Department of Marine Resources that it was within its statutory authority to enforce state rules for elver harvesting on Passamaquoddy fishermen. The opinion, made available Tuesday, gives some clarification to the state’s legal argument in a dispute between ...
Tribe says LePage threatened Passamaquoddy over elvers during ‘enraged’ phone call
ELLSWORTH, Maine — Gov. Paul LePage issued an ultimatum to the Passamaquoddy Tribe on Monday morning: Play by the state’s fishing rules or face consequences from his office, tribal officials said. According to a Passamaquoddy official who sat in on a phone call from the governor, LePage threatened to withdraw ...
25-year-old man dead after jumping off Penobscot Narrows Bridge
PROSPECT, Maine — An Eddington man is dead after jumping off the Penobscot Narrows Bridge around noon Monday in an apparent suicide. Waldo County Chief Sheriff’s Deputy Jeff Trafton identified the man as 25-year-old Brandon Cossette. Cossette did not survive the jump and was pronounced dead at the scene. Trafton ...
Sovereignty battle brewing over elver dispute between Passamaquoddy, state government
ELLSWORTH, Maine — Passamaquoddy leaders are decrying what one official called an “extreme show of force” by Marine Patrol, who confiscated three elver nets from tribal fishermen after a confrontation with tribe officials at the Pennamaquan River. A confrontation occurred around 10:30 p.m. Sunday between members of the Marine Patrol, ...
Ellsworth man incapacitated after motorcycle accident
ELLSWORTH, Maine — An Ellsworth man was left with incapacitating broken bones after a motorcycle accident on Thursday, according to police. Around 6:10 p.m., Branden Stubbs, 24, lost control of his ’06 Harley-Davidson while traveling west on Bucksport Road. Stubbs was thrown from the motorcycle after he went off the ...
POLL QUESTION
Effort to unionize Maine lobstermen attracts 250 members
STONINGTON, Maine — Lobstermen and union organizers are taking aim at an established industry group in an effort to form Maine’s first union for lobster harvesters. About 250 lobster harvesters have signed up for the union so far, and organizers have submitted an application for a charter with the International ...
Police charge man, teen in Ellsworth armed robbery
ELLSWORTH, Maine — Police say they’ve charged a 17-year-old Bangor boy with Class A Robbery in connection with an August 2011 robbery in Ellsworth. Ellsworth Officer Chad Wilmot summoned the boy on March 8, according to a media release issued Tuesday. Wilmot said the investigation is ongoing, with other suspects ...
Ellsworth, RSU 24 reach agreement on city’s withdrawal from school district
ELLSWORTH, Maine — Nine months after negotiations began, Ellsworth and Regional School Unit 24 have signed off on a plan to see the city withdraw from the 4-year-old school district. The 57-page document was signed March 21 and shipped to Augusta, where it awaits a decision from Commissioner of Education ...
POLL QUESTION
Mainers see explosion of artisan coffee roaster market in past decade
By some estimates, the U.S. specialty coffee market is worth as much as $16 billion. While Maine’s coffee roasters are just a drip in the pot, industry insiders say the state’s market is growing. No government or trade association tracks the coffee roasting industry in Maine, so definitive data on ...
Eastport security worker awarded $200,000 after jury finds employer wrongly fired him for 2006 whistleblowing email
MACHIAS, Maine — A jury in Washington County Superior Court found that a Hampden-based security company violated the Maine Whistleblower’s Protection Act when it fired an employee who sent an email to Gov. John Baldacci in 2006. The jury awarded the plaintiff, Richard Hickson, of Eastport, more than $200,000 in ...
VIDEO
Businesses, workers brace for impact of Acadia’s extended winter closures
BAR HARBOR, Maine — Thanks to deep a federal budget cut, some of the most popular destinations in Acadia National Park will open a month later than usual — a reluctant decision on the part of park officials that could stifle the an island economy dependent on tourism. Acadia saw ...
Congress enacts additional $30 million cut to national parks; effect on Acadia unclear
ACADIA NATIONAL PARK, Maine — On the heels of a 5 percent funding cut thanks to sequestration, Congress has reduced the operations budget of the National Park Service by another $30 million. The additional cut was passed as part of a stop-gap spending bill to fund the government for another ...
Accidents aside, railroads in Maine seen as safe
ELLSWORTH, Maine — Despite their headline-grabbing nature, train derailments in Maine are few and mostly inconsequential, according to federal reports and state and private railroad officials. A series of derailments on Maine tracks — including a 15-car March 7 derailment of a train carrying crude oil through Mattawamkeag — has ...
To soften funding blows from Augusta, Bucksport seeks 15 percent budget cut
BUCKSPORT, Maine — Municipal department heads have been told to whittle their budget proposals by 15 percent to accommodate expected revenue shortfalls as a result of the state budget proposed by Gov. Paul LePage. “It would not make up for all of [the cuts], but it would make up for ...
Two-car collision Thursday morning limits traffic on busy Ellsworth street
ELLSWORTH, Maine — Traffic was held up briefly Thursday morning after a car and pickup truck collided on High Street. No one was hurt in the accident, but both vehicles needed to be towed from the scene. Traffic on High Street — usually a four-lane highway — was reduced to ...
Rowdy cousins break Stonington shop window during early morning scuffle
STONINGTON, Maine — Two local cousins have agreed to pay the Harbor View Store for breaking a window during an early-morning fight Tuesday, according to the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office. The two men are not being identified because the shop’s owners, Tony and Lauren Bray, opted not to press charges, ...
Ellsworth officer charged with domestic violence no longer receiving city paycheck
ELLSWORTH, Maine — An Ellsworth police officer charged with domestic-violence assault in January has been placed on unpaid administrative leave, according to the city’s manager. Andrew Weatherbee, 30, was arrested on Jan. 27 after allegedly pushing down his 32-year-old girlfriend and then repeatedly holding her down after she got upset ...
Ellsworth man accused of hitting school crossing guard with Buick
ELLSWORTH, Maine — An Ellsworth man was summoned Monday on charges of assault and driving to endanger after allegedly striking a crossing guard with his car at Ellsworth Elementary-Middle School. The crossing guard told police Monday that he had been having a problem with Ryan Winder, 29, dropping his child ...
State reassures drivers that traffic won’t suffer from Deer Isle-Sedgwick bridge work
DEER ISLE, Maine — The state is planning four months of repair work at the 74-year-old Deer Isle-Sedgwick Bridge this summer, but motorists can breath easy as the traffic impact is expected to be minimal. Project Manager Steve Bodge, of Maine Department of Transportation, said drivers shouldn’t expect a trip ...
L.L.Bean Outlet expanding, set to hire 10 more in Ellsworth
ELLSWORTH, Maine — The L.L.Bean Outlet store in Ellsworth is poised to expand, adding jobs and products to its only Down East brick-and-mortar location. Construction began late in February and will continue through May, company spokesman Mac McKeever said on Wednesday. The store is expanding into an adjoining suite at ...
Police seeking tips about pickup truck possibly connected to Glenburn teen’s disappearance
Since 1971, seven Maine children reported missing have not been found
Apartment squeeze in Portland: Single renters, immigrants, poor hardest hit
A better way to help people escape welfare
A letter to Michelle Obama in light of military sex assault epidemic
Five steps to remedy IRS wrongs
Manchester 15-year-old off to impressive start for Earnhardt Jr.’s JR Motorsports
Houlton council, community still concerned about costly Millar Civic Center
Bangor’s Marcus Davis hopes to counter opponent’s height, reach advantage in Lewiston MMA main event
Kitchen Nightmares meltdown or: How to lose an argument online
Farmers markets embracing food stamps with the help of USDA
Arguments over gun control and abortion will never be settled
For those who are too fat for Abercrombie and Fitch
A spot of tea, a spread of treats, at Camden’s Fromviandoux