LePage stalled in closing Down East prison under legal agreement
AUGUSTA, Maine — The state’s dismantling of the Downeast Correctional Facility in Machiasport must halt while the Legislature decides whether to fund the prison for another year and a lawsuit to prevent its closure moves forward, a Superior Court judge said Wednesday.
Most states disenfranchise felons. Maine and Vermont allow inmates to vote from prison.
Advocates say the rehabilitative effects of letting inmates have a voice is profound.
Maine Voices: Gov. LePage coldly wreaks havoc on the lives of prison workers in a poor county
The loss of scarce jobs and work-release inmates from the sudden closing is a big deal for Machiasport and the surrounding community.
Maine attorney general won’t defend LePage administration in prison closure lawsuit
Janet Mills, in fact, wants to argue for the other side, that the state Constitution was violated by LePage officials when they emptied the Downeast Correctional Facility last week.
Don’t buy into this billionaire’s push to improve rights for crime victims in Maine
Marsalee “Marsy” Nicholas should not have been stalked and killed by her ex-boyfriend in California in 1983. And family members should never have had to encounter the killer in a grocery store just a week after her death, unaware that he had been released on bail.
Anthony Sanborn, Maine’s 1st convicted killer to be released on bail, gets taste of freedom
Anthony Sanborn was jailed for nearly three decades before he became Maine’s first convicted murderer released on bail, adjusting to a world that left him behind. The greatest unknown comes this fall, when he returns to court to learn his fate.
What ex-cons say they need to stay out of jail
PORTLAND, Maine (NEWS CENTER) -- Re-entering the workforce can be a challenge for people who have been convicted of a crime. Employers almost always ask if someone has ever been convicted of a crime, or run some type of background check. Checking the box "yes" can sometimes cost a person a potential job.