Sheriff won’t run for re-election (WVII)
(Machias) – Washington County Sheriff Barry Curtis says he is not going to run for re-election this fall. Curtis has been the elected Sheriff since 2014. He served as a Maine State Trooper for 25 years, retiring from that job in 2010. He began his law enforcement career as a game warden. Curtis said he’s enjoyed the responsibility of being sheriff even with recent county financial issues.
Brooklin Church (Ellsworth American)
(Brooklin) – Voters in Brooklin will cast ballots in April to decide whether the town will accept a gift of a former Baptist church and Bowden Hall. The offer comes with $100-thousand dollars for work on the properties. Residents answered a survey and architect Mike Sealander said they had 350-responses, so there is a lot of interest. The town will hold a public hearing in a month before the April 3rd referendum vote.
Washington County Loan Payment
(Machias) – Cash strapped Washington County has made the final payment on a loan it took out in anticipation of taxes as all but 9-towns in the county agreed to pay their 2026 tax allocation early. The $1-point-8 million dollar payment this week avoids default on the loan. The Maine Legislature is considering a bill that would allow the unorganized territories to make an early payment. Lax accounting practices led to the budget shortfall and the resignation of the former county treasurer.
(Bangor) – A judge has agreed to delay the trial for two people charged with murder following the death of a 10-year old Bangor boy. WABI TV reports Joshua Smith and his mother, Mistie Latourette are charged with killing his son, Braxtyn Smith. The attorney general’s office reported that Smith’s attorney was not ready for the trial and still awaits two expert witnesses. The boy’s mother was charged with murder, but pled guilty to manslaughter a few days ago.
Elver Lottery
(Augusta) – If you like getting up in the cold and dark, setting up fike necks with the hope of trapping baby eels, you’ve got until 4:30 this afternoon to enter a lottery. The eels can fetch a lot of money, and Maine’s Department of Marine Resources will draw names of 20-Maine residents to join the elver industry. The season starts on March 22nd and ends June 7th. There’s a cap of 425 elver licenses, and the 20-license lottery came about by licenses not renewed in the past two years. It costs $35-dollars to enter the lottery. Entrants who choose not to submit an on-line application will have to travel to Augusta to submit one on paper.
Sorrento Planned Outage
(Sorrento) – Folks who live on the East Side Road in Sorrento will be without power on Monday morning. Versant Power says they will turn off the juice at 9:30 in the morning to do scheduled maintenance work. They anticipate the outage will last about 4-hours. The work involves replacing equipment which will help prevent future outages.
Mt. Desert Wharf (MD Islander)
(Mt. Desert) – Voters in Mt. Desert will likely get to decide to approve working with engineers to replace the wharf at the Northeast Harbor Marina. The project could start construction in the fall of 2028 according to the Mt. Desert Islander. The town’s harbor committee said engineering costs are higher than expected and the funding would hire a Camden based firm to design the replacement cement wharf which would be at least 3-feet taller to accommodate sea level rise.
Suspicious Package
(Augusta) – The State Republican party headquarters in Augusta received a suspicious package which reportedly contained a while power. That prompted evacuation around 1-o’clock yesterday afternoon and brought in city police and other law enforcement agencies. Authorities isolated the package and there are no reports of injury or illness. Investigators declined to identify what was in the package.
Pharmacies raided
(Machias) – Drug agents raided two Washington County pharmacies earlier this month, seizing controlled substance records from both the Machias Family Pharmacy and Eastport Family Pharmacy. Benjamin Okafor of Bangor owns both businesses and has a history of running afoul of the Maine Board of Pharmacy. Most of the discipline incidents include controlled substance record errors. No one has been charged in connection with the raids.
