AUGUSTA — A 46-year-old Augusta man indicted on a murder charge entered a series of no contest pleas Friday to a separate series of car burglaries and thefts that occurred largely in October and November 2015, shortly before the slaying occurred.

Michael Sean McQuade, 46, automatically was found guilty of those offenses by Justice Daniel Billings, and he is to be sentenced later to two years in prison, the term recommended both by the prosecutor Assistant Attorney General Kate Marshall and McQuade’s defense attorney, Andrew Dawson.

Immediately before that hearing at the Capital Judicial Center, Billings met with the attorneys representing McQuade and two other defendants also indicted in the Nov. 23, 2015, death of Joseph Marceau, 32, of Augusta.

The case is scheduled to go to trial in November 2017.

Marceau was found beaten to death in what police said was a drug-related slaying in an apartment at 75 Washington St., where McQuade and his girlfriend, Zina Marie Fritze, lived. Fritze, 27, also was indicted in Marceau’s murder, but she died after she hanged herself at the Kennebec County jail a day after pleading not guilty in court.

On Friday, Billings warned McQuade that the convictions on the burglary and theft offenses could come up should McQuade testify at any trial in the future.

Marshall, too, said there were no promises by the state about the murder charge and that the burglary and theft cases were entirely separate.

McQuade, who was shackled at the waist and around the ankles, said he understood and indicated he had discussed the matter with Andrew Wright, the attorney representing McQuade in the indictment on charges of intentional or knowing or depraved indifference murder — three versions of the same crime — as well as felony murder and robbery, all on Nov. 23, 2015.

McQuade has pleaded not guilty to those charges.

Marshall told Billings Augusta police had taken reports about a rash of car burglaries between October and November 2015. According to a series of summonses issued by Augusta police, the vehicles were burglarized Nov. 6-11, 2015, on River, Washington and Water streets as well as Julianne Lane and Northern Avenue.

McQuade was charged later with theft by deception for apparently taking merchandise from Kmart and Target and attempting to return it to get cash.

In all, McQuade pleaded no contest Friday to two counts each of burglary and burglary of a motor vehicle, seven counts of theft by unauthorized taking and one count of receiving stolen property. Eight other charges were dismissed in exchange for the plea.

Marshall said Walgreens notified police on Nov. 5, 2015, that Fritze had been there, attempting to pass business checks belonging to Shenanigans, a night club on Water Street in Augusta.

The checks had been reported stolen earlier that day from a vehicle belonging to one of the business owners.

Police found video showing Fritze walking around that vehicle, and when they confronted her, she indicated McQuade was involved.

En route to search their Washington Street apartment, police saw McQuade and picked him up, and he admitted the vehicle break-ins.

“He was quite blunt with them and admitted to retaining certain items from those vehicles,” Marshall said. “Some were at the apartment and some in his backpack, including a GPS device and Galaxy phone.”

McQuade also allowed police to search his apartment, where they found other items that had been reported stolen from various vehicles, including keys, a DVD player and a scanner.

Marshall also said McQuade admitted stealing a snowblower from a garage on Oxford Street and tools from a vacant Washington Street building.

When Billings asked if McQuade wanted to correct anything Marshall said about the evidence she had, McQuade said, “I do not.”

Marshall also indicated she was seeking $1,326 restitution from McQuade.

Damik Davis, 26, of Queens, New York, was the first man arrested in connection with Marceau’s slaying. Davis, too, pleaded not guilty to murder in three separate forms — intentional or knowing or depraved indifference — as well as felony murder, murder and robbery, all related to Marceau’s death. Davis is represented by attorneys Stephen C. Smith and Caleb Gannon.

A third man charged in Marceau’s killing, Aubrey N. Armstrong, 27, of Far Rockaway, New York, is serving a sentence at the Downstate Correctional Facility in Fishkill, New York. He was arrested in July 26 in Queens.

Court documents from New York state indicate Armstrong was convicted in February 2014 in Queens Criminal Court of sale of a controlled substance in the third degree and criminal possession of a controlled substance in the seventh degree. The verdict initially was reversed and then reinstated following an appeal, which was decided in April 2016.

Armstrong has opposed extradition and has yet to be brought back to Maine to face the charges. Attorney Brad Grant has been appointed to represent Armstrong in the murder case.

Assistant Attorneys General John Alsop and John Nathans were representing the prosecution at Friday’s conference.

Betty Adams — 621-5631

badams@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @betadams

A Clinton man who was on the run for much of the day Thursday after allegedly threatening a family member and her daughter was arrested later on a misdemeanor charge of domestic violence terrorizing.

Joseph Gagnon, 31, turned himself in to Clinton police about 4:40 p.m. Thursday, according to Kennebec County Sheriff Ryan Reardon. A Clinton officer gave Gagnon a ride to Winslow, where he was picked up by Sgt. Galen Estes of the sheriff’s office and taken to the county jail in Augusta.

He was scheduled to see a judge Friday afternoon.

Gagnon took off in his car after allegedly threatening a family member and her daughter and vowing to “take down” police or anyone else who entered the home where the three live on Morrison Avenue in Clinton.

Four Kennebec County sheriff’s deputies arrived at the scene, along with two police officers from Fairfield and a Clinton police officer. Police took a couple of hours to set up a perimeter around the house, and when they approached, they found that Gagnon was gone and his car was missing.

Police tried to call Gagnon on his cellphone and attempted to text him, but he did not respond.

Reardon said Gagnon was described by the woman as having been drinking, saying he would “take her down and anyone else who come inside the house.” When asked if he was suicidal, Gagnon reportedly replied that he wanted “to end it.”

Reardon said no weapon was involved.

Doug Harlow — 612-2367

dharlow@centralmaine.com

Twitter:@Doug_Harlow

AUGUSTA — Relatives of a Litchfield woman wailed aloud Friday in the courtroom as she was put in handcuffs and taken to jail after being sentenced for welfare theft.

Kelly J. Burgess, 49, was sentenced at the Capital Judicial Center to an initial 120 days in jail, the unsuspended portion of a two-year jail sentence. She also was placed on probation for three years and ordered to pay restitution for the $24,000 in MaineCare and food stamp benefits stolen.

She had pleaded guilty on June 10, 2016, in the same courthouse to theft by deception and four counts of unsworn falsification that occurred June 1, 2011 through Jan. 31, 2014.

Burgess’ daughters, who spoke briefly to the judge during the sentencing hearing, and others in the courtroom began cursing and wailing as Burgess was taken into custody. Several asked why she was going to jail immediately. Court security officers told the people to leave or be arrested, and they eventually left.

According to the indictment, Burgess applied for benefits from the Department of Health and Human Services and indicated that the father of her children was not living with her and not contributing to the household.

On Friday the prosecutor, Assistant Attorney General Darcy Mitchell, said that was untrue and that the father was living there and contributing regularly to a joint account to which Burgess had access.

“This was a man who had been with her for 30 years,” Mitchell told Justice Michaela Murphy, adding that the father continued to support Burgess and their two children and that neighbors saw him coming and going during the period of more than two years covered in the indictment.

“There was no evidence they were anything but an intact household,” Mitchell said.

In fact, Burgess said Friday that she borrowed $5,000 from the father of her children to pay toward the restitution.

“I never thought about how the consequences of my actions would affect my family,” Burgess told the judge. “I couldn’t work and lost health insurance. I asked state for help; it was a poor decision.”

She apologized to everyone and promised, “I will never ever ever do anything like this again.”

She said she hoped to go back to college to become a registered nurse.

However, the judge warned her it was unlikely the state would license her, given the felony conviction.

In response to questions from her attorney, Leonard Sharon, Burgess said the father of her children didn’t want to marry her when she asked him to in order for her to get on his health insurance.

She said she lost her health insurance in one instance because she missed work because of the pain from fibromyalgia.

“It’s a miserable thing to have,” she said. She had been working as a certified nursing assistant. “Physically, I just wasn’t capable of doing the job I had.”

At one point, Murphy told Sharon, “The crime is not being poor or struggling economically or having difficult family life. The crime is lying to get benefits.”

Betty Adams — 621-5631

badams@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @betadams

WATERVILLE — The state has probable cause to charge one former Colby College student in connection with a dumpster fire investigated as arson on May 22 at the college, and may be charging as many as three more, according to Kennebec County District Attorney Maeghan Maloney.

The former student allegedly set off a firecracker inside the 20-cubic-yard dumpster, which was loaded with furniture and others item, igniting the fire. Maloney said Friday that two other former students named by that student have come forward with their attorneys. A fourth student believed to be involved hasn’t come forward or retained an attorney.

The state is offering plea deals to all the students and is awaiting their decisions, Maloney said. The names of the four, all of whom graduated May 22, were not released because they haven’t been charged. Maloney said once the case goes to court, the names and other details will be released.

Jonathan Sdao was charged with assault and resisting arrest for allegedly throwing a red Solo cup of beer at a police officer at an earlier bonfire and ensuing melee that day. Maloney also said charges against him still are pending.

The dumpster fire was reported at 4:30 a.m. May 22, a few hours before the school’s commencement ceremony. The state fire marshal’s office said at the time that two students probably would be charged with arson. No charges aside from the ones Maloney anticipates have been brought, however.

The dumpster fire started a few hours after a crowd of more than 200 people at the bonfire at the senior dormitory reportedly taunted and threw items at firefighters and police called to the scene.

The bonfire melee was not related to the dumpster fire and the three arson suspects are being looked at only in relation to the dumpster fire, Maloney said.

“I want this to be clear,” Maloney said. “No students were ever identified and law enforcement has no leads (on the bonfire). There is no information on who set (the bonfire).”

Firefighters were called to the bonfire scene around 1 a.m. They encountered students drinking alcohol and burning furniture and other items. Some students were aggressive toward firefighters and police, Waterville police Chief Joseph Massey said at the time. He said the students were unruly enough that firefighters were afraid to approach the fire until police arrived.

Sdao, 24, of Niwot, Colorado, a member of the class of 2016, was arrested at the bonfire and did not participate in graduation exercises later that day, college officials said at the time. Sdao was originally due in court July 19 on the class C felony charges. Maloney said the charges have yet to be adjudicated.

Colby officials said in May they intended to investigate the bonfire and the behavior surrounding it, but a college spokeswoman Friday said she didn’t have any information the results of the investigation or whether any students were disciplined.

Madeline St. Amour — 861-9239

mstamour@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @madelinestamour

AUGUSTA

Thursday at 9:21 a.m., a well-being check was performed on Mount Vernon Avenue.

9:22 a.m., harassment was reported on Old Belgrade Road.

9:51 a.m., a hit-and-run traffic accident was reported on Cross Hill Road.

10:20 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Wilson Street.

10:48 a.m., a well-being check was performed on Water Street.

11:49 a.m., shoplifting was reported on Cony Street.

11:49 a.m., disorderly conduct was reported on East Chestnut Street.

11:58 a.m., a well-being check was performed on State Street.

12:07 p.m., shoplifting was reported on North Belfast Avenue.

1:10 p.m., theft was reported on Washington Street.

3:02 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Winthrop Street and Winthrop Court.

3:13 p.m., criminal mischief was reported on Melville Street.

3:43 p.m., theft was reported on Civic Center Drive.

5:01 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Fairbanks Street.

5:05 p.m., property was recovered on Prescott Road and Western Avenue.

5:21 p.m., a 60-year-old Litchfield man was issued a summons on a charge of theft by deception after an investigation was performed on Union Street.

6:27 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Washington Street.

7:52 p.m., a well-being check was performed on State Street.

7:58 p.m., harassment was reported on Leighton Road.

9:46 p.m., a mental health and well-being check was performed on Hospital Street.

10:41 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Mount Vernon Avenue.

Friday at 1:53 a.m., disorderly conduct was reported on State Street.

CHELSEA

Friday at 12:52 a.m., a suspicious vehicle was reported on Togus Road.

GARDINER

Thursday at 1:41 p.m., suspicious circumstances were reported at an unidentified location.

HALLOWELL

Thursday at 12:54 p.m., property was recovered on Water Street.

WINTHROP

Thursday at 10:22 p.m., trespassing was reported on Middle Street.

11:44 p.m., a suspicious person was reported on Union Street.

1:25 p.m., a suspicious person was reported on Town Hall Lane.

2:16 p.m., a suspicious person was reported on Old Lewiston Road.

7:01 p.m., a traffic offense was reported on U.S. Route 202.

7:10 p.m., a suspicious person was reported on Main Street.

7:54 p.m., criminal mischief was reported on Sturtevant Hill Road.

ARRESTS

AUGUSTA

Thursday at 2:23 p.m., Jacob Jennings, 21, of Augusta, was arrested on a warrant after a pedestrian check was performed on Water Street.

8:34 p.m., Davina Renee Cutchall, 42, of Modesto, California, was arrested on a charge of being a fugitive from justice on Eastern Avenue, after police received an extraditable warrant from Florida for a probation violation.

8:46 p.m., David Andre Gordon, 34, of Augusta, was arrested on a warrant after a medical rescue was performed on Winthrop Street.

11:33 p.m., Jason S. Brann, 41, of Augusta, was arrested on a warrant after an attempt to locate was performed on Cushman Street.

IN ANSON, Friday at 9:23 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Horseback Road.

IN BINGHAM, Friday at 5:53 p.m., harassment was reported on Village Street.

Saturday at 12:06 a.m., a disturbance was reported on Owens Street.

IN BRIDGTON, Friday at 12:24 p.m., a traffic accident was reported on Main Street.

IN CANAAN, Friday at 7:12 p.m., harassment was reported on Maple Lane.

IN FAIRFIELD, Friday at 10:15 a.m., a traffic accident was reported on Main Street.

3:07 p.m., a brush fire was reported on Williams Street.

10:45 p.m., trespassing was reported on Island Avenue.

11:31 p.m., theft was reported on Norridgewock Road.

Saturday at 4:03 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Blueberry Lane.

IN FARMINGTON, Friday at 12:41 p.m., theft was reported on Lucy Knowles Road.

8:12 p.m., a traffic accident causing injuries was reported on New Vineyard Road.

IN INDUSTRY, Friday at 2:51 p.m., harassment was reported on Rand Road.

IN KINGFIELD, Friday at 11:14 a.m., theft was reported on School Street.

IN MADISON, Friday at 9:06 a.m., mischief was reported on Winter Street.

9:55 a.m., a disturbance was reported on Oak Street.

4:19 p.m., an unexpected death was reported on Golf Course Road.

IN OAKLAND, Saturday at 2:06 a.m., an assault was reported on Goodwin Street.

IN PITTSFIELD, Friday at 12:46 p.m., a traffic accident was reported on Somerset Plaza.

IN SALEM TOWNSHIP, Friday at 12:33 p.m., a traffic accident causing injuries was reported on Salem Road.

IN SANDY RIVER PLANTATION, Friday at 7:48 a.m., a traffic accident causing injuries was reported on Main Street.

8:12 p.m., theft was reported on Main Street.

IN SKOWHEGAN, Friday at 12:28 p.m., theft was reported on Oak Pond Road.

2:07 p.m., a traffic accident was reported on Commercial Street.

2:53 p.m., theft was reported on Madison Avenue.

4:13 p.m., a traffic accident was reported on Waye Street.

4:28 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Court Street.

4:56 p.m., a scam was reported on Stevens Road.

5:02 p.m., a scam was reported on Waterville Road.

8:45 p.m., shoplifting was reported at the Fairgrounds Market Plaza.

9:13 p.m., loud noise was reported on Mt. Pleasant Avenue.

Saturday at 2:29 a.m., a complaint about shots being fired was reported on Madison Avenue.

2:44 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Winter Street.

IN SMITHFIELD, Friday at 5:04 p.m., a theft was reported on Fitzgerald Lane.

IN STARKS, Friday at 10:48 a.m., a traffic accident was reported on Sandy River Road.

3:15 p.m., a scam was reported on Todds Corner Road.

IN WATERVILLE, Friday at 10:45 a.m., a theft was reported on Kennedy Memorial Drive.

11:26 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Temple Street.

1:19 p.m., shoplifting was reported at JCPenny in Elm Plaza.

3:13 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Water Street.

3:28 p.m., a traffic accident causing injuries was reported on Carter Memorial Drive.

6:44 p.m., a motor vehicle burglary was reported on Industrial Road.

10:13 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on the Concourse.

Saturday at 1:04 a.m., a fight was reported on Temple Street.

1:24 a.m., criminal mischief was reported on North Street.

1:25 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Front Street at Head of Falls.

IN WILTON, Friday at 10:05 a.m., a traffic accident was reported on U.S. Route 2.

IN WINSLOW, Friday at 9:53 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Whipporwill Drive.

10:13 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Monument Street.

11:48 p.m., suspicious activity was reported at Fort Halifax Park.

ARRESTS

IN FRANKLIN COUNTY, Friday at 1:57 a.m., Catherine Zachary, 25, of Wilton, was arrested on a charge of operating under the influence.

IN SOMERSET COUNTY, Friday at 7:59 p.m., Frederica Sylvia Goodale, 44, of Clinton, was arrested on a charge of operating after suspension.

9:38 p.m., Melinda Jean Colby, 24, of Canaan, was arrested on a charge of theft by unauthorized taking or transfer.

Saturday at 12:43 a.m., Adam Ernest Edgar Johnson, 24, of St. Albans, was arrested on a charge of reckless conduct.

1:38 a.m., Dustin David Hubler, 21, of Bingham, was arrested on charges of domestic violence assault and domestic violence reckless conduct.

2:00 a.m., Luis Antonio Malave, 33, of Hartford, Connecticut, was arrested on a charge of disorderly conduct.

2:37 a.m., Nicole Christine Gormley, 23, of Madison, was arrested on a warrant.

2:48 a.m., Dick Raymond, 27, of Fairfield, was arrested on a charge of domestic violence.

5:02 a.m., Richard P. Tarsook, 45, of Anson, was arrested on a charge of domestic violence criminal threatening.

IN WATERVILLE, Friday at 3:13 p.m., Allen Michael Jenness-Libby, 26, of Waterville, was arrested on a warrant.

8:18 p.m., Joseph Michael Poulin, 56, of Oakland, was arrested on a charge of operating under the influence.

Saturday at 1:36 a.m., Pamela Lee Rich, 43, of Skowhegan, was arrested on a charge of operating under the influence.

IN WINSLOW, Saturday at 12:30 a.m., Ronni Allan Reynolds, 37, of Fairfield, was arrested on a charge of operating under the influence.

SUMMONS

IN WATERVILLE, Friday at 10:45 a.m., William D. Heuerman, of Burnham, was summoned on a charge of theft by unauthorized taking or transfer.

AUGUSTA

Friday at 4:47 p.m., a disturbance was reported on Water Street.

Saturday at 11:08 a.m., a Civic Center Drive caller reported fraud.

2:17 p.m., a Glenridge Drive caller reported disorderly conduct.

ARREST

HALLOWELL

Saturday at 12:06 a.m., Todd J. Perkins, 39, of Windsor, was arrested on Water Street on charges of operating under the influence and refusing to sign a summons.

AUGUSTA — Here is a roundup of cases closed Aug. 18-24, 2016, in courts in Augusta and Waterville:

Robert L. Adams, 32, of Winthrop, illegal possession of firearm Feb. 13, 2016, in Winthrop; $1,000 fine. Unsworn falsification Jan. 30, 2016, in Augusta; $250 fine. Unsworn falsification Oct. 31, 2015, in Winthrop; $250 fine. Fraudulently obtaining license or permit Jan. 30, 2014, in Augusta and false registration of deer Oct. 31, 2015, in Winthrop, dismissed.

Andrew W. Allen, 55, of Farmingdale, (permitting) operation of personal water craft age 16-18 without safety course July 4, 2016, in Winthrop; $100 fine.

Lewis G. Bamberg, 48, of Sidney, domestic violence assault Nov. 5, 2015, in Augusta; 30-day jail sentence. Operating vehicle without a license June 16, 2016, in Waterville; 48-hour jail sentence. Failure to register vehicle June 16, 2016, in Waterville; 48-hour jail sentence. Domestic violence assault July 19, 2016, in Vassalboro; 364-day jail sentence, all but 30 days suspended, two-year probation. Violating condition of release July 19, 2016, in Vassalboro; 30-day jail sentence.

Shauna J. Beck, 40, of Skowhegan, operating after habitual offender revocation April 3, 2015, in Waterville, dismissed.

Logan K. Benedict, 18, of Augusta, possession of marijuana, up to 1.25 ounce, July 11, 2016, in Gardiner; $350 fine.

Brandon J. Benson, 22, of Chelsea, motor vehicle speeding more than 30 mph over speed limit June 30, 2016, in Augusta; $500 fine.

William P. Berbera, 26, of Quincy, Massachusetts, operating without safety equipment May 28, 2016, in Readfield; $200 fine.

Rachel Blackerby, 43, of Lewiston, operating under the influence June 24, 2016, in Monmouth; $500 fine, 150-day license suspension.

Steven T. Blackwell, 61, of Bangor, operate/permit operation unregistered motorboat June 11, 2016, in China; $200 fine.

Sarah E. Bolduc, 36, of Benton, fishing without valid license July 3, 2016, in China; $100 fine.

Randall Boulanger, 60, of Albion, operating under the influence Jan. 21, 2016, in Benton; $500 fine, 150-day license suspension.

Sean L. Bourgeois, 27, of Winslow, operating unregistered ATV June 26, 2016, in China; $200 fine.

Richard Brassard, 31, of Fairfield, theft by unauthorized taking or transfer June 2, 2015, in Waterville; two-day jail sentence.

Jessica L. Bridges, 25, of Oakland, theft by deception Nov. 25, 2015, in Waterville, dismissed.

Kennedy Brooks, 21, of Augusta, domestic violence assault April 13, 2016, in Augusta, dismissed.

Kenneth Buck, 35, of Livermore Falls, criminal trespass Aug. 19, 2016, in Winthrop; 72-hour jail sentence. Violating condition of release Aug. 19, 2016, in Winthrop; 72-hour jail sentence.

Zachary M. Burnham, 25, of Winslow, violating protection from abuse order July 6, 2016, in Vassalboro; 24-hour jail sentence.

Samuel D. Caison, 32, of Whitefield, domestic violence terrorizing May 31, 2016, in Augusta; 32-month Department of Corrections sentence.

Amber A. Church, 21, of Gardiner, operating vehicle without license July 9, 2016, in Gardiner; $100 fine.

Dalton Cole, 43, of Farmingdale, possession of marijuana, up to 1.25 ounce, June 8, 2016, in Gardiner; $350 fine.

Joshua L. Crosby, 33, of Fayette, operating while license suspended or revoked May 14, 2016, in Fayette; $500 fine. Operating ATV on public way May 14, 2016, in Fayette; dismissed.

Michael F. Davis, 25, of Weeks Mills, operating ATV on land of another without permission May 29, 2016, in China; $200 fine.

Nicholas S. Dudley, 29, of Vassalboro, domestic violence assault July 28, 2016, in Vassalboro; 364-day jail sentence, all but 30 days suspended, two-year probation. Criminal mischief July 28, 2016, in Vassalboro; 10-day jail sentence. Unlawful possession of scheduled drug, same date and town, dismissed.

Tucker A. Dumas, 18, of Merrimac, Massachusetts, minor consuming liquor June 22, 2016, in Winthrop; $200 fine.

Brian S. Farrington, 53, of Readfield, failure to register vehicle July 12, 2016, in Winthrop; $150 fine.

James R. Feagin, 49, of Kents Hill, operate/permit operation unregistered motorboat June 22, 2016, in Fayette; $200 fine.

Adam Joseph Flaherty Jr., 19, of Augusta, domestic violence assault Jan. 18, 2015, in Augusta; 25-day jail sentence. Domestic violence terrorizing July 27, 2016, in Augusta; 364-day jail sentence, all but 25 days suspended, two-year probation. Refusing to submit to arrest or detention, refusing to stop July 27, 2016, in Augusta; five-day jail sentence. Violating condition of release July 27, 2016, in Augusta; five-day jail sentence. Domestic violence assault July 27, 2016, in Augusta, dismissed.

Douglas D. Gardiner, 20, of Windsor, operating while license suspended or revoked July 1, 2016, in Hallowell; $500 fine.

Linda A. Gero, 70, of Waterville, assault July 31, 2015, in Waterville, dismissed.

Bryan L. Gervais, 39, of Wayne, domestic violence assault April 9, 2016, in Wayne; 364-day jail sentence, all but 30 days suspended, two-year probation. Violating protection from abuse order Aug. 9, 2016, in Wayne; 14-day jail sentence. Violating condition of release, Aug. 9, 2016, in Wayne, dismissed.

Shannon Grant, 37, of Waterville, burglary, refusing to submit to arrest or detention, violating condition of release and theft by unauthorized taking or transfer, all July 17, 2016, in Waterville, dismissed.

Lee E. Hamel, 29, of Augusta, operating while license suspended or revoked April 1, 2016, in Waterville, dismissed.

Nickalaus G. Hartin, 18, of Benton, theft by unauthorized taking or transfer Nov. 16, 2015, in Waterville; $200 fine.

Russell Hilton, 28, of Farmingdale, violating condition of release July 8, 2016, in Augusta; 48-hour jail sentence.

Dakotah E. Knox, 18, of Winthrop, minor consuming liquor June 22, 2016, in Winthrop; $200 fine.

Albert C. Lamar, 19, of Merrimac, Massachusetts, minor consuming liquor June 22, 2016, in Winthrop; $200 fine.

Alfred Lavallee, 68, of Readfield, operating under the influence Aug. 21, 2016, in Belgrade; $500 fine, 48-hour jail sentence, 150-day license suspension.

Ashley L. Loisel, 22, of Winthrop, unlawful possession of oxycodone Dec. 11, 2013, in Waterville; $400 fine, 30-month Department of Corrections sentence, all but five months suspended, two-year probation. Violating condition of release, July 8, 2016, in Waterville, dismissed.

Robert J. MacDonald, 79, of Augusta, operating under the influence June 16, 2016, in Monmouth; $500 fine, 150-day license suspension.

Andrew Maiers-Nesbitt, 20, of Nobleboro, motor vehicle speeding more than 30 mph over speed limit July 11, 2015, in China, dismissed.

Andrew L. Michaud Jr., 53, of Lewiston, theft by unauthorized taking or transfer Feb. 15, 2015, in Augusta; two-year Department of Corrections sentence, all but 45 days suspended, one-year probation, $229.95 restitution. Violating condition of release Feb. 15, 2015, in Augusta; five-day jail sentence.

Daniel Michaud, 61, of Gardiner, attaching false plates June 22, 2016, in Farmingdale; $100 fine.

Scott M. Newton Jr., 30, of Chelsea, failure to present ATV registration July 4, 2016, in China; $100 fine.

Richard Marshall O’Leary, 64, of Falmouth, driving to endanger Dec. 29, 2014, in Sidney; $575 fine.

Sherri L. Pelletier, 48, of Monmouth, unlawfully permitting operation of ATV July 10, 2016, in Monmouth; $200 fine.

Paul W. Peters, 58, of Corinna, failure to register vehicle March 16, 2016, in Winthrop, dismissed.

Jason Pratt, 38, of Gardiner, theft by unauthorized taking or transfer March 11, 2016, in Gardiner; 12-month Department of Corrections sentence, $90 restitution. Violating condition of release March 11, 2016, in Gardiner; six-month jail sentence. Theft by unauthorized taking or transfer April 23, 2016, in Augusta; 12-month Department of Corrections sentence, $396 restitution. Theft by unauthorized taking or transfer May 13, 2016, in Farmingdale; 12-month Department of Corrections sentence, $71.98 restitution. Operating while license suspended or revoked May 12, 2016, in Gardiner, dismissed.

John A. Racine Jr., 27, of Randolph, domestic violence assault June 7, 2016, in Randolph; 364-day jail sentence, two-year probation. Assault July 31, 2016, in Chelsea; $300 fine, 30-day jail sentence. Violating condition of release July 31, 2016, in Chelsea; five-day jail sentence. Violating condition of release July 30, 2016, in Chelsea, and reckless conduct July 31, 2016, in Chelsea, dismissed.

Adam W. Record, 45, of Fayette, operating ATV to endanger May 14, 2016, in Fayette, dismissed.

William Reynolds, 32, of Jackman, violating condition of release Aug. 21, 2016, in Waterville; 24-hour jail sentence.

Jaycent Duvalle Ricketts, 28, of Bronx, New York, commercial vehicle rule violation: not possessing previous seven days status May 20, 2016, in Augusta; $250 fine.

Pamela F. Rines, 58, of Waterville, theft by unauthorized taking or transfer Dec. 16, 2015, in Waterville, and theft by unauthorized taking or transfer May 27, 2016, in Waterville, dismissed.

Jake W. Robinson, 22, of Benton, criminal mischief Dec. 18, 2015, in Waterville, dismissed.

Nicole Rogers, 35, of Augusta, fishing without valid license May 18, 2016, in Manchester; $100 fine.

Kyle A. St. Marie, 22, of Wales, Massachusetts, operating without safety equipment May 30, 2016, Farmingdale; $300 fine.

Nicholas Sapiel, 20, of Waterville, operating while license suspended or revoked June 5, 2016, in Winslow; $250 fine. Operating while license suspended or revoked July 8, 2016, in Waterville; $250 fine. Possessing suspended driver license same date and town, dismissed.

Eric S. Sargent, 18, of Merrimac, Massachusetts, minor consuming liquor June 22, 2016, in Winthrop; $200 fine.

Eric S. Scott, 61, of Corinna, operating without safety equipment June 24, 2016, in Winthrop; $200 fine.

Christopher N. Screen, 37, of Augusta, violating condition of release July 26, 2016, in Augusta; 25-day jail sentence. Unlawful possession of scheduled drug same date and town, dismissed.

Patrick T. Shea, 24, of Jefferson, operating ATV on land of another without permission May 29, 2016, in China; $200 fine.

Derrick Silliman, 34, of Hartford, Connecticut, operating without safety equipment June 2, 2016, in China; $100 fine.

Dominicke J. Simard, 18, of Gardiner, minor consuming liquor June 22, 2016, in Winthrop; $200 fine.

Ryan D. Skidgel, 30, of Woodland, operating while license suspended or revoked March 5, 2015, in Clinton; $500 fine.

Curtis D. Snyder, 24, of Augusta, refusing to submit to arrest or detention, refusing to stop July 12, 2016, in Augusta; five-day jail sentence. Criminal trespass March 13, 2016, in Waterville; 48-hour jail sentence.

Todd J. Sousa, 33, of Gardiner, unlawful possession of scheduled drug July 5, 2016, in Randolph; $400 fine, 180-day jail sentence, all but 48 hours suspended, one-year probation.

Augusto F. Souza Jr., 36, of Wilmington, Massachusetts, fishing without valid license July 3, 2016, in China; $100 fine.

Vaughan H. Stevens Jr., 72, of Augusta, operating while license suspended or revoked June 17, 2016, in China; $250 fine.

Crystal L. Taylor, 31, of Chelsea, aggravated criminal trespass March 20, 2015, in Gardiner; three-year Department of Corrections sentence, all but 90 days suspended, two-year probation, $433.59 restitution.

Nathan Leeon Theoberge, 36, of West Gardiner, obstructing report of crime March 26, 2016, in West Gardiner, dismissed.

Alison Thomas, 36, of Waterville, robbery March 5, 2016, in Waterville; four-year Department of Corrections sentence, all but one year suspended, two-year probation. Criminal threatening with dangerous weapon March 5, 2016, in Waterville, dismissed.

George A. Trask, 42, of Duluth, Minnesota, unlawful possession of scheduled drug March 22, 2016, in Augusta; $400 fine, 10-day jail sentence. Violating condition of release March 29, 2016, in Hallowell; 48-hour jail sentence. Attaching false plates March 29, 2016, in Hallowell; 48-hour jail sentence. Possession of hypodermic apparatus same date and town, dismissed.

Ryan Turner, 30, of Nashua, New Hampshire, operating under the influence March 19, 2015, in Waterville; $600 fine, 96-hour jail sentence, 150-day license suspension.

Michael R. Vallee, 55, of Manchester, operating without safety equipment July 4, 2016, in Winthrop; $100 fine.

Dalton M. Valley, 21, of Palmer, Massachusetts, operating without safety equipment May 30, 2016, in Manchester; $100 fine.

Rachel Ward, 29, of Seekouh, Massachusetts, fishing without valid license July 5, 2016, in Readfield; $100 fine.

Ronald Brandon Williams, 24, of Bridgeport, Connecticut, aggravated trafficking of schedule W drug Jan. 20, 2016, in Waterville; $400 fine, six-year Department of Corrections sentence. Aggravated trafficking of scheduled W drug Jan. 15, 2016, and criminal conspiracy Jan. 19, 2016, in Waterville, dismissed.

Rusty B. Wonsey, 44, of Allen, Michigan, motor vehicle speeding more than 30 mph over speed limit Nov. 1, 2015, in West Gardiner, dismissed.

William J. Young, 49, of Augusta, theft by unauthorized taking or transfer March 20, 2014, in Augusta, and use of drug paraphernalia, Dec. 22, 2015, in Augusta, dismissed.

SKOWHEGAN — Closed cases for July 25-29, 2016, in Skowhegan District Court and Somerset County Superior Court.

Kasandra D. Abbott, 20, of Fairfield, assault Dec. 31, 2014, in Fairfield, dismissed.

Thomas L. Batchelder Jr., 44, of Madison, theft by deception April 1, 2013, in Hartland, dismissed.

Nikki L. Bean, 35, of Norridgewock, unlawful possession of scheduled drug March 1, 2015, in Madison; $400 fine, 48-hour jail sentence. Unlawful possession of hydrocodone same date and town, dismissed.

Amanda Bourdeau, 29, of Benton, operating while license suspended or revoked March 24, 2016, in Fairfield; $500 fine.

Nicole J. Bowden, 43, of Cambridge, violating condition of release June 14, 2016, in Hartland; 24-hour jail sentence. Criminal mischief same date and town, dismissed.

Kimberly Brown, 43, of Skowhegan, theft by unauthorized taking or transfer March 21, 2015, in St. Albans; 36-hour jail sentence.

Craig A. Cianci, 43, of Hartland, operating moped or scooter without license July 16, 2016, in Palmyra, dismissed.

Mark P. Decarlo, 42, of Carmel, possession of marijuana up to 1 1/4 ounce June 17, 2016, in Pittsfield; $350 fine.

Joann E. Demorro, 51, of New Sharon, theft by unauthorized taking or transfer Jan. 23, 2016, in Skowhegan; 20-day jail sentence. Violating condition of release Jan. 23, 2016, in Skowhegan; 20-day jail sentence.

Richard J. Ford, 53, of Safety Harbor Hills, Florida, commercial vehicle rule violation: operated by unqualified driver Nov. 25, 2015, in Pittsfield; $250 fine.

Derek R. Gagne, 29, of Fairfield, motor vehicle speeding more than 30 mph over speed limit March 30, 2016, in Anson; $500 fine. Violating condition of release same date and town, dismissed.

Brandon Michael Hipple, 18, of Skowhegan, violating protection from abuse order April 1, 2016, in Skowhegan; 364-day jail sentence, all but six months suspended, one-year probation. Violating condition of release April 1, 2016, in Skowhegan; six-month jail sentence. Violating condition of release April 1, 2016, in Skowhegan; six-month jail sentence.

Patrick Hotchkiss, 56, of Augusta, theft by unauthorized use of property March 5, 2016, in Norridgewock; 60-day jail sentence.

Roger D. Lacasse, 63, of Durham, possession of marijuana up to 1 1/4 ounce July 3, 2016, no town listed; $350 fine.

Logan R. Lamphere, 27, of Madison, violating protection from abuse order July 26, 2016, in Skowhegan; five-day jail sentence. Violating condition of release July 26, 2016, in Skowhegan; five-day jail sentence.

Melissa Landry, 43, of Athens, failure to register vehicle June 24, 2016, in Madison; $100 fine.

Marialynn E. Lieberman, 24, of Skowhegan, reckless conduct April 22, 2015, in Bingham; four-year Department of Corrections sentence, all but six months suspended, two-year probation.

David R. Long, 37, of Skowhegan, violating condition of release July 26, 2016, in Skowhegan; 30-day jail sentence.

Leon E. Maloon, 59, of Ripley, violating condition of release Dec. 9, 2015, in Madison; seven-month jail sentence.

James D. Marcoux, 35, of Fairfield, violating condition of release May 28, 2016, in Fairfield; 48-hour jail sentence.

Eric McCarthy, 32, of St. Albans, theft by unauthorized taking or transfer Oct. 21, 2015, in St. Albans; four-year Department of Corrections sentence, all but 90 days suspended, two-year probation, $225 restitution.

Brad Miller, 32, of North Anson, refusing to submit to arrest or detention, refusing to stop May 21, 2016, no town listed; 48-hour jail sentence. Harassment May 21, 2016, no town listed; 48-hour jail sentence. Disorderly conduct, offensive words, gestures same date, dismissed.

Ryan Scott Owens, 37, of Skowhegan, unlawful sexual contact Dec. 31, 2015, in Skowhegan; eight-year Department of Corrections sentence, all but three years suspended, 12-year probation.

Frank Quirion, 75, of Skowhegan, failure to register vehicle Feb. 27, 2016, in Canaan, dismissed. Kindling fire without permission April 10, 2016, in Johnson Mountain Township, dismissed. Operating while license suspended or revoked, attaching false plates April 13, 2016, in Madison, dismissed.

Jonathan Rivera, 37, of Bingham, domestic violence terrorizing May 14, 2016, in Bingham; 18-month Department of Corrections sentence. Assault May 14, 2016, in Bingham; $300 fine, 18-month Department of Corrections sentence. Criminal mischief May 14, 2016, in Bingham; nine-month jail sentence. Violating condition of release June 5, 2016, in Madison; 16-month jail sentence. Violating condition of release June 6, 2016, in Madison; 16-month jail sentence. Violating condition of release June 7, 2016, in Madison; 16-month jail sentence. Violating condition of release June 8, 2016, in Madison; 16-month jail sentence. Violating condition of release June 9, 2016, in Madison; 16-month jail sentence. Violating condition of release June 9, 2016, in Madison; 16-month jail sentence. Violating condition of release June 13, 2016, in Madison; 16-month jail sentence. Domestic violence criminal threatening May 13, 2016, in Bingham, dismissed.

Rebekah L. Rodrigue, 24, of Skowhegan, assault July 27, 2016, in Skowhegan; $300 fine, 180-day jail sentence, all but five days suspended, one-year administrative release.

Edward Sincyr, 44, of Madison, criminal threatening July 24, 2016, in Skowhegan; 180-day jail sentence, all but 15 days suspended, one-year administrative release. Criminal threatening July 24, 2016, in Skowhegan; 15-day jail sentence. Disorderly conduct, loud unreasonable noise July 24, 2016, in Skowhegan; 15-day jail sentence. Refusing to submit to arrest or detention, physical force July 24, 2016, in Skowhegan; 15-day jail sentence. Possession of marijuana up to 1 1/4 ounce same date and town, dismissed.

Justin E. Stevens, 24, of Oakland, unlawful possession of oxycodone June 28, 2014, in Solon; 24-month Department of Corrections sentence.

Christopher N. Wallace, 25, of Fairfield, violating condition of release April 24, 2016, in Fairfield; 10-day jail sentence. Assault April 24, 2016, in Fairfield; $300 fine, 10-day jail sentence. Driving to endanger and operating vehicle without license same date and town, dismissed. Failure to stop, remain, provide information April 24, 2016, in Fairfield; 10-day jail sentence.

Chad E. Wheeler, 33, of Augusta, fishing violation of number, amount weight or size June 5, 2016, in Dennistown; $120 fine.

Jeremy A. Yeomans, 35, of Waterville, unlawful possession of scheduled drug May 14, 2016, in Fairfield; $400 fine, $400 suspended, 14-day jail sentence. Unlawful possession of scheduled drug May 14, 2016, in Fairfield; $400 fine, $400 suspended, 14-day jail sentence. Violating condition of release May 14, 2016, in Fairfield; 14-day jail sentence. Violating condition of release May 14, 2016, in Fairfield; 14-day jail sentence. Unlawful possession of scheduled drug same date and town, dismissed.

IN BENTON, Saturday at 2:23 p.m., threatening was reported on Pleasant Drive.

IN BINGHAM, Saturday at 10:09 p.m., a traffic accident was reported on Mayfield Road.

Sunday at 8:29 p.m., theft was reported on Bingham Road.

IN CANAAN, Sunday at 8:50 a.m., a motor vehicle burglary was reported on Strickland Road.

IN CLINTON, Saturday at 3:35 p.m., harassment was reported on Hinckley Road.

4:20 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Main Street.

4:30 p.m., harassment was reported on Main Street.

6:15 p.m., harassment was reported on Hinckley Road.

5:15 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Clinton Avenue.

IN EUSTIS, Saturday at 10:25 a.m., vandalism was reported on Park Street.

IN FARMINGTON, at 12:16 a.m., noise was reported on High Street.

12:44 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Main Street.

2:31 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Middle Street.

11:33 a.m., a traffic accident with injuries was reported on Wilton Road.

1:27 p.m., a traffic accident was reported on Wilton Road.

2:18 p.m., theft was reported on Starling Street.

5:45 p.m., theft was reported on Farmington Court.

IN FAIRFIELD, Sunday at 1:19 a.m., a motor vehicle burglary was reported on Kelley Street.

IN JACKMAN, Saturday at 11:12 p.m., threatening was reported on Main Street.

IN JOHNSON TOWNSHIP, Saturday at 2:36 p.m., a traffic accident was reported.

11:18 p.m., a disturbance was reported at the intersection of Broadway and High Street.

IN KINGFIELD, Saturday at 9:25 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on West Kingfield Road.

IN MADISON, a disturbance was reported on Pine Street.

10:00 p.m., threatening was reported on Weston Avenue.

IN NEW SHARON, Saturday at 9:20 p.m., a burglary was reported on Beans Corner Road.

IN OAKLAND, Saturday at 8:35 a.m., theft was reported on Tilton Point Trail.

IN PITTSFIELD, Saturday at 6:13 p.m., a traffic accident was reported on Interstate 95.

8:00 p.m., trespass was reported on Crosby Street.

IN SALEM TOWNSHIP, Saturday at 9:51 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Salem Road.

IN SKOWHEGAN, Saturday at 1:40 p.m., a scam was reported on Madison Avenue.

2:47 p.m., theft was reported on Constitution Avenue.

4:16 p.m., a theft was reported on Madison Avenue.

5:10 p.m., harassment was reported at the Fairgrounds Market Place.

6:24 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Fairgrounds Market Place.

6:33 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Madison Avenue.

6:51 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Cleveland Street.

7:32 p.m., a theft was reported on Water Street.

IN SMITHFIELD, Saturday at 11:51 p.m., a traffic accident was reported on East Pond Road.

IN WATERVILLE, Saturday at 10:42 a.m., a traffic accident was reported on Kennedy Memorial Drive.

10:45 a.m., harassment was reported on Crawford Street.

3:30 p.m., theft was reported on Silver Street.

4:15 p.m., a personal injury accident was reported on Interstate 95.

6:40 p.m., a theft was reported on Silver Street.

10:38 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on North Street.

10:16 p.m., a personal injury accident was reported on Kennedy Memorial Drive.

Sunday at 12:15 a.m., an assault was reported on Silver Street.

2:47 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Carey Lane.

IN WILTON, Saturday at 12:08 a.m., noise was reported on Depot Street.

1:52 a.m., a disturbance was reported on Main Street.

8:34 p.m., noise was reported on Sewall Street.

9:02 p.m., noise was reported on Village View Street.

IN WINSLOW, Saturday at 9:54 a.m., harassment was reported on Boothby Street.

12:01 p.m., fraud or forgery was reported on Cone Street.

2:07 p.m., harassment was reported on Quimby Lane.

Sunday at 12:10 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Stobie Street.

ARRESTS

IN FRANKLIN COUNTY, Saturday at 7:50 a.m., Benjamin Fillmore, 23, of Naples, was arrested on charges of unlawful possession of scheduled drug and violating condition of release.

3:49 p.m., David Taylor, 54, of Gilead, was arrested on a charge of operating under the influence.

6:50 p.m., Charles McCausland, 32, of Livermore Falls, was arrested on a charge of operating under the influence.

11:10 p.m., Kelly Kadziela, 49, of Boston, Mass., was arrested on a charge of violation of protection order.

IN SOMERSET COUNTY, Saturday at 7:35 p.m., Tina May Stadig, 40, of Skowhegan, was arrested on a warrant.

IN WATERVILLE, Sunday at 4:22 p.m., Larry Taylor, 46, of Watervillle, was arrested on a warrant.

4:46 p.m., Samantha S. Beatham, 21, of Waterville, was arrested on two warrants.

Sunday at 1:24 a.m., Jacob Darveau, 26, of Gardiner, was arrested on a charge of operating under the influence.

SUMMONS

IN WATERVILLE, Sunday at 2:03 a.m., Alisa Marie Fitzpatrick, 24, of Clinton, was summonsed on charges of possession of marijuana and sale and use of drug paraphernalia.

IN WINSLOW, Robert Edward York, 59, of Winslow, was summonsed on charges of operating while license suspended or revoked and possession of suspended or fictitious license.

In the book “Kindling,” the fictional town of Chaldea, Maine, is terrorized as a 15-year-old boy burns his high school to the ground and then goes on a fire-setting spree through the town, attempting to destroy the nearby junior high school, homes and a business.

The story is fiction, but it’s a reality that many Madison residents know all too well.

In October 1986, Madison High School was destroyed in an early morning fire that tore through the landmark school, destroying classrooms, collections of books and band instruments and displacing more than 400 students.

Two weeks later, an attempt was made to burn Carrabec High School in Anson, where Madison students were sent in the aftermath of their own school’s destruction.

In the following weeks, attempts were made to burn Madison Junior High School, including one that resulted in the destruction of the principal’s office.

And on a cold Monday night in December, three homes and a dairy business on Jones Street were set on fire. The dairy was leveled, and one of the homes was no longer inhabitable.

Town residents were on edge, forming a neighborhood watch and sitting up nights wondering if they were next.

“It was very unnerving, especially when homes started to burn,” said John Krasnavage, principal of Madison Junior High School at the time and now a member of the Madison school board. “People didn’t know who it was, and all of a sudden homes would go up (in flames). I think it’s one of the most traumatic things Madison has ever seen.”

Weeks went by with no one charged.

Then, in December, shortly after the fires on Jones Street, investigators linked evidence at the Carrabec scene to fingerprints left at Madison Junior High and footprints in the snow that tracked back to the home of 15-year-old Toby Thibeault. Thibeault lived on Jones Street, and his house was one of those burned the night of Dec. 1.

Thibeault was convicted in April 1987 on charges of arson and attempted arson and was sentenced to three years in the Maine Youth Center in South Portland followed by two years of probation — the maximum penalty allowed for a juvenile at the time.

The fires — which were 30 years ago this fall — would be a distant memory for many residents of Madison if not for the recent release of “Kindling,” a novel by former Madison High School English teacher David Cappella.

The book, self-published by Cappella and released in January, follows 15-year-old Zeke Titcomb through his incarceration at the youth center with flashbacks to fires that Titcomb set in Chaldea — a western Maine mill town where the school colors, like Madison’s, are blue and white and the local newspaper is the Sentinel.

In a phone interview last week, Ercell Thibeault, Toby Thibeault’s father, said his son, who runs a machinery business with him in Tennessee, has stayed out of trouble since the family left Maine several years ago. He said they hadn’t heard a book based on the fires had been published.

Thibeault said Toby, who has a son of his own, wouldn’t want to comment on the fires.

“I don’t believe he did it,” Ercell Thibeault said. “He’s never said he did or didn’t do it, and I don’t ask the question. I didn’t believe it then, and I don’t believe it now. It’s all behind us.”

INTO THE FIRE

Cappella is a poet and professor at Central Connecticut State University. At a book reading Thursday at Madison Junior High School, built since the fires on the site of the old Madison High School, Cappella stressed that his book is fiction. While he knew who Toby Thibeault was, he didn’t have the teenager as a student.

But the book’s subject has brought back memories for many residents. Some who attended the reading said it is eerily true to the actual events.

“That all happened,” said Julie Forbus, a Madison librarian and member of the Madison High School class of 1985. “I think there’s a real difference among people who lived through this and have read the book and those that didn’t. For those of us that lived through it, the fires were one of those before and after moments in people’s lives.

“I’d say (the book) is pretty accurate,” said Forbus, who was in her freshman year at Colby College in Waterville, commuting from Madison when the high school burned.

She was scheduled to take a French test the day of the fire, but skipped it.

“When your school burns down, that’s a day you don’t go to class,” she said.

At the book reading, which was part of the Madison-Anson Days celebration, held Thursday to Saturday, Ross Turcotte, a former student of Cappella’s, said he said he feels the book is “99 percent” true to events.

“Everything was just spot on,” said Turcotte, 50, who worked at Madison Paper Industries before it closed in May. “I don’t read a lot of books, but I just had to pick this up. I could relate to it, too.”

In the early morning of Oct.14, 1986, fire tore through the high school, causing a minor explosion, canceling classes for the rest of the week and leaving the school’s 420 students stranded.

Krasnavage, the junior high principal at the time, got a phone call in the middle of the night telling him that the school next door to his was on fire. The old junior high building, which survived two subsequent attempts at a fire, has since been demolished and replaced by a playground. The new junior high is on the site where the shell of Madison High School was torn down after the fire.

“I remember seeing the high school was totally engulfed in flames,” Krasnavage said last week. “There was fire coming out everywhere. You couldn’t really get close to anything because the heat was just tremendous.

“It was really something because there was a big trophy case in the auditorium with all kinds of old trophies and mementos from Madison and Skowhegan games from, you know, the very first one, pieces of goal posts, that kind of thing. All of that history was lost,” he said.

Al Veneziano, a long-time science teacher at Madison Junior High and current chairman of the Madison Board of Selectmen, was in his first semester teaching at the school when he learned about the fire.

“I remember being called and told it was happening in the early morning hours,” Veneziano said in a telephone interview. “Obviously when something like that is happening in a small town, you kind of run to it.”

Chris LeBlanc, the high school’s current athletic director, was a freshman in the fall of 1986.

“All of a sudden it was, ‘Where are we going to go to school?'” said LeBlanc, 44. “What are we going to do? That type of thing. Even as a kid, I think that was more of my thought process as opposed to, ‘Hey, we have a fire. Hooray! We don’t have to go to school.’ I don’t think that was in my thoughts.”

Fire departments from Madison, Anson, North Anson, East Madison and Starks all rushed to the scene.

The fire was reported to have included an explosion that knocked a school janitor 40 feet when the school’s library windows blew out, according to stories in the Morning Sentinel at the time.

Firefighters saved the school’s gymnasium, which is part of Madison Junior High today, but the rest of the building was destroyed.

The school lost its library collection — about 7,500 books — as well as practically all of the band instruments, prompting pleas for donations published in the Sentinel.

Construction had already started that fall on the new high school at 205 Main St., and in the meantime the district worked out a special agreement with the neighboring school district in Anson to send their students to Carrabec High School for the remainder of the school year.

A ‘PRIME SUSPECT’

By late November, there was no suspect in the fire or the attempted one at Carrabec High School when there was a second fire, this time at Madison Junior High School. It damaged the principal and secretary’s office and caused smoke and water damage to other areas.

Then, on Dec.1, three homes on Jones Street — including Thibeault’s — and a storage building used for a milk-distributing business were set ablaze.

All the homes were damaged — the Thibeaults’ sustained the worse, according to the Sentinel’s coverage — and the dairy was destroyed.

Fire and police personnel stepped up neighborhood patrols and residents formed a watch group.

“I remember everything,” said Ellen Parker this week in a telephone interview. Her home was one of the ones set on fire. “When you almost lose your house and your son, you don’t forget it.”

Parker, who still lives in the same house, described the scene on Dec.1, 1986, as a war zone. She had been planning on going out, but in a last-minute change of plans stayed home to do crafts with a friend. She thinks the decision saved the life of her 16-year-old son, Chris, who was home but had headphones on and probably wouldn’t have heard the smoke detectors, she said.

Other houses on the street were already burning.

“The fire department didn’t believe we were on fire,” Parker said. “They were so concentrated on these other two buildings (down the street) that you couldn’t see past all the flames.”

Louis Fourcaudot’s home on Jones Street wasn’t one of those that burned, but he said Thursday that he remained on edge throughout the days that followed and helped start a neighborhood watch to patrol the streets at night.

“You wouldn’t sleep real soundly,” said Fourcaudot, 59. “I would sleep downstairs, and anytime you’d hear anything outside, you’d get up and you’d look.”

Fourcaudot is pictured in a photo in the Morning Sentinel, holding his 6-year-old son, Marcel, in one arm and a shotgun in the other. He told the Sentinel he slept on the couch armed with a shotgun and a fire extinguisher.

He asked Ercell Thibeault if he and Toby wanted to be in the watch group. Thibeault said they didn’t.

David Crook, the Somerset County district attorney, said in mid-December 1986 that Thibeault was a prime suspect in a total of 10 fires, but no charges were brought for most of them.

Crook, who is retired, said in a telephone interview Friday that the judge who oversaw the juvenile hearing to resolve Thibeault’s case did not allow the state to use a pattern in the way the fires were set as evidence that they were connected.

The state had strong evidence for the two fires that Thibeault was ultimately convicted of being responsible for — the arson at the junior high and attempted arson at Carrabec — based on fingerprints and footprints found around the junior high and a matching footprint that was found in the urinal of the boy’s bathroom at Carrabec, where Thibeault had stepped in order to put two bottles full of gasoline above the ceiling tiles for use as an accelerant.

Crook couldn’t remember the details of why charges weren’t brought in the Madison High School fire, but said it “did not matter, because he was obviously a sick kid and the punishment could not have been increased.” A New York Times story at the time said that Crook directed the Madison Police Department to close its investigation of the other fires upon Thibeault’s conviction.

Krasnavage said there was too much damage to the high school for any evidence to be recovered.

Thibeault was also charged with burglary for break-ins Oct. 27 and 30 at the dairy that later burned, according to a Sentinel story at the time. He was apparently never prosecuted on those charges.

Thibeault’s parents testified in the four-day trial that their son was in bed asleep when they went to bed on the night of the junior high school fire and he was there when they awoke the next morning, according to the New York Times.

Thibeault was found guilty April 3, 1987, and sentenced to confinement at the Maine Youth Center in South Portland until he turned 18 and to probation until the age of 21 — the maximum sentence for a juvenile. Crook said he served the entire sentence and was only arrested once that he knew of after that for a burglary in Vassalboro.

Authorities estimated the fires did more than $2 million in damage, according to a New York Times story.

‘IT’S A HORROR’

The fires were the subject of widespread interest at the time and generated several stories in the New York Times describing the nightly police patrols, the rarity of such a crime in a small Maine town and an atmosphere that one church administrator likened to terrorism.

Part of the aim of “Kindling,” Cappella said, is to explore the psychology of pyromania, which he said is rooted in psychosexual desire. The other aim of the book is to show the effects that a traumatic event can have on a small town.

“It’s a horror,” he said. “People in small towns have integrity. They survive. But it’s a scar and a wound they have to live with, and often times they keep it to themselves.”

Cappella said he got the idea for the book in 2008, honing in on the voice of 15-year-old Zeke Titcomb. The introduction to “Kindling” says Zeke was bullied at school, didn’t have real friends and was stifled by an overbearing father.

The book opens with the line “I like flames.”

A psychologist interviewed by the Morning Sentinel said whoever was setting the fires was on “a real power trip.”

“If there’s a burglary, the police are going to show up,” said David Staples of Kennebec Valley Mental Health Center in the Dec. 7, 1986, Sentinel. “But if there’s a fire, everyone comes … Dramatic things happen.” He also said the arsonist was probably an extremely angry person who felt misused by society rather than a “chronically mentally ill person who sees things and hears voices.”

He said arsonists he’d treated had in common that they were angry over perceived mistreatment at the hands of family or society. “They feel they’re not getting from life what they deserve,” he said. He said that the arsonist likely didn’t consider the destruction he would cause, but was more focused on the power of the act, that people underestimate “how crazy we can get, how unbelievably self-centered we can be.”

Ken Quirion, who investigated the fires for the state fire marshal’s office, said there are different reasons for arson, but that with Thibeault he felt there were issues going on, probably at home, for him to cause that much damage.

For instance, evidence that Thibeault allegedly set his own house on fire led Quirion to believe it was set in anger. Thibeault, who was home alone, told firefighters that night he had just finished eating dinner when the blaze started. Quirion said that when he studied the damage to the house, he found a barely touched upside down TV dinner on the floor.

“I think there was something going on and he was home alone again,” Quirion said. “I think he threw the dinner down and just up and burned his own house. I think there was a lot of anger. I don’t know if anybody ever addressed that.”

Krasnavage said that while no one was ever charged in the high school fire, most residents in Madison “were pretty well convinced the fires were all connected.”

Like others, he said he isn’t sure what prompted Thibeault to try to set the junior high and Carrabec High School on fire and possibly set other fires. Over the years there has been no shortage of speculation, though ultimately many of Thibeault’s teachers and neighbors said they were puzzled.

“He was a good kid,” Fourcaudot recalled. “He helped me do work around the house one day. He wasn’t a bad kid at all, other than that he liked to light fires.”

“I had him in class and you wouldn’t expect him to do something like that,” said Norman Dean, a former town manager and high school science teacher. “I didn’t know he was that mixed up.”

Quirion said he was on a late-night watch in a marked police car outside the boy’s home one night after Thibeault had been identified as a suspect in some of the fires and Thibeault brought him coffee and doughnuts.

Crook said he thinks the fires were the result of “psychological issues,” and that Thibeault was seeking attention from his parents.

“If you were to look at him in terms of his school performance … the opinion people held of him at that time, he was a most unlikely candidate,” Crook said. “But as the evidence mounted, it was like one piece of evidence was a string and when you put all the strings together it becomes a very strong rope.”

Rachel Ohm — 612-2368

rohm@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @rachel_ohm

The former Industry man sentenced in 2012 to 70 years in prison for the murder of Rita St. Peter in 1980 has been assigned a new lawyer by the court — his third — in his bid for post-conviction review.

Jay Mercier, 61, is challenging his murder conviction, saying there were flaws in the delivery of evidence during his trial and that his court-appointed attorneys since he was convicted in 2012 did not assist him adequately in appealing his case. Mercier even points a finger at another man, whom he said dated St. Peter at the time of her death and who since has moved to another state, as the person who killed her.

Post-conviction review comes after an unsuccessful appeal and is usually the last resort.

Defense attorney George Hess of Auburn has been assigned to represent Mercier in the review. In an email, Hess said he is new to the case and wasn’t yet comfortable to comment on it.

Assistant Attorney General Lara Nomani was unavailable this week to discuss the case.

Mercier and the attorneys are scheduled for a telephone pretrial conference at 3 p.m. Sept. 19.

Mercier’s appeal was denied by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court in 2014. Another appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court to return the case to the lower court also was denied.

The St. Peter murder was the oldest cold case on the books in Maine until Mercier was arrested in September 2011. Mercier was found guilty in a jury trial in Somerset County Superior Court in September 2012.

Mercier denied killing St. Peter, who was 20 when she was last seen walking across the bridge over the Kennebec River that connects Madison and Anson late on the night of July 4, 1980. Her bloody and battered body was found the following morning on a field trail off Campground Road in Anson.

Mercier had sexually assaulted St. Peter, beat her with something like a tire iron, then ran her over with his truck, according to prosecutors. Sex assault charges were never brought against Mercier, a point he raises in his request for post-conviction review.

Trying a case that was decades old had its challenges, Assistant Attorney General Andrew Benson, now a District Court judge, said after the verdict.

“Many pieces of evidence were lost, but in this case, fortunately, all the most important pieces of evidence remained and that was very important to the jury,” Benson said. “Because of the age of the case it was a difficult trial.”

The pieces of evidence that were lost are at the heart of Mercier’s post-conviction review. He says there are photos from the crime scene that are missing and that “blood spatter” evidence was never introduced in his defense.

Mercier contends that there were items of clothing that were either soaked in blood or had blood on them at the scene and were not properly examined. He says there may have been other DNA evidence with genetic material from someone other than him also at the scene.

He offers alternative theories in documents filed in Somerset County Superior Court in Skowhegan, including that St. Peter was urinating next to a motor vehicle that ran her over and a second one, apparently unrelated, that a boyfriend at the time confessed to killing her. He doesn’t say what the man, who now lives out of state, confessed to or offer other details.

Mercier also contends that there was “some sort of paint” or other material on or inside St. Peter’s skull that was never identified. He also notes that Benson improperly influenced the jury by repeatedly showing images of St. Peter’s body.

He also says she was not sexually assaulted.

The tire iron-like weapon Mercier was said to have used to kill St. Peter was never found, but tire tread evidence from Mercier’s pickup truck matched photographed tire treads at the scene.

DNA evidence taken from St. Peter’s body also matched Mercier’s DNA.

Mercier had been a suspect from the beginning, but the case had hit a dead end. In 2005, Maine State Police Detective Bryant Jacques and Maine State Police Crime Lab forensic analyst Alicia Wilcox began their investigation of the cold case.

When DNA was extracted in 2009 from sperm cells found in biological evidence taken in 1980 from St. Peter’s body, Jacques established contact with Mercier through a series of casual conversations at Mercier’s home, according to Law Court documents from his appeal. In January 2010 after one of these conversations, Jacques collected a cigarette butt that Mercier had discarded on the side of the road. The DNA obtained from Mercier’s cigarette butt matched that found on St. Peter’s body. Jacques later used the evidence to get a search warrant for a swab of Mercier’s mouth for a more conclusive sample.

Mercier was arrested in September 2011.

Tire impressions taken from the scene in 1980 also were consistent with the unusual tires Mercier had on his vehicle at the time, according to documents.

Doug Harlow — 612-2367

dharlow@centralmaine.com

Twitter:@Doug_Harlow

AUGUSTA

ARREST

Saturday at 11:13 p.m., Joseph David Denis, 64, of Augusta, was arrested on a charge of operating under the influence on Arsenal Street after police responded to a report of a disturbance.

A Gardiner man is facing a federal charge of distributing cocaine base.

Bradford Christopher, 36, was arrested on the charge Wednesday and had an initial hearing later that day before U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge John C. Nivison in Bangor.

Christopher then was released on $5,000 unsecured bail.

The offense carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Court records indicate Christopher is represented by attorney Jon Haddow and will be back in court on Sept. 2.

The complaint against Christopher says the offense occurred April 27, 2016, and involved a confidential source and a controlled purchase of illegal drugs that afternoon that occurred first in the parking lot of St. Joseph Church and then at a home on Lincoln Avenue.

An affidavit by Mathew J. Cain, an officer with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, describes the buy. It says five small bags of what appeared to be crack cocaine were purchased first for $250 from Christopher in the church parking lot.

Christopher then went with Cain and the other individual to get the other half of the drugs sought at the Lincoln Avenue address when an additional $250 exchanged hands.

Cain said that 3.2 grams of crack cocaine were purchased from Christopher.

Betty Adams — 621-5631

badams@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @betadams

FAIRFIELD — Police are closing in on charging suspects in a string of car burglaries last year, while at the same time dealine with a new spate over the last 10 days.

There have been reports of about 16 car burglaries since Aug. 19 on downtown streets, according to Chief Tom Gould. Most are happening late at night and the burglars seem to be targeting unlocked vehicles, he said. Burglaries occurred on Kelley, High, Main, Savage and West streets.

He said his department just received results from DNA testing of evidence from last summer’s approximately 40 car burglaries, meanwhile, and may bring charges within the next two weeks, Gould said.

The recent burglaries also seem to be progressing in seriousness, Gould said, and the windows of some cars were broken.

He said a burglary spree like the recent one isn’t uncommon. It’s the second or third string of car burglaries he’s seen in Fairfield since he became police chief three years ago, including last summer’s.

There were a large number of car burglaries last summer in both Fairfield and Skowhegan, stretching from June to August. The Somerset County Sheriff’s Office worked with Fairfield and Skowhegan police to investigate the dozens of burglaries that affected the areas of Bigelow Hill Road, Six Rod Road and Center Road. Police believed the burglaries were related.

One string of burglaries last summer involved seven cars in June that were all unlocked and burglarized in the early morning hours of June 17.

Police are reviewing video footage to narrow down the list of suspects in the recent burglaries. Gould said residents and businesses with exterior surveillance cameras should check their footage and call Officer Shanna Blodgett at the Police Department at 453-9322 if they see anything suspicious.

Gould also encouraged people whose cars have been burglarized but have not yet notified the police to do so.

He said people should be careful to secure their cars and should report any suspicious activity to the police.

Madeline St. Amour – 861-9239

mstamour@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @madelinestamour

The Corinna Elementary School was in lockdown for about an hour and a half Monday afternoon following a report of a suicidal man in the area who was taken into protective custody shortly before 2 p.m., according to reports.

Police were responding to a report of a man who had threatened to harm himself with a knife in an apartment or residence about 200 or 300 yards away from the school, according to Lt. Mark Brooks of the Maine State Police. The man was reportedly taken into protective custody shortly before 2 p.m. when the lockdown was lifted, but police were not immediately available to confirm that.

The school was in lockdown starting at around 12:15 until just before 2, according to Principal Ellen Surprenant.

“We have resumed all normal activity,” Surprenant said around 2 p.m., adding that there was no threat to safety at the school.

At around 1 p.m. Brooks said troopers were at the scene talking with the man and trying to get in touch with his family to get him help. Brooks said the man had only threatened to hurt himself and had not made threats against others.

“Anytime you have something like that happening so close to a school they advise the school to go into a lockdown to make sure nobody goes in or out until they resolve the situation,” Brooks said.

Additional information was not immediately available from police.

Rachel Ohm — 612-2368

rohm@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @rachel_ohm

IN ANSON, Sunday at 2:41 a.m., loud noise was reported on Valley Road.

IN BINGHAM, Sunday at 8:18 a.m., mischief was reported on Rollins Street.

8:29 a.m., theft was reported on Bingham Road.

IN CAMBRIDGE, Sunday at 9:47 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Ham Hill Road.

IN CANAAN, Sunday at 8:50 a.m., a motor vehicle burglary was reported on Strickland Road.

3:28 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Strickland Road.

11:06 p.m., a suspicious person or activity was reported on Equipment Lane.

IN CARRABASSETT VALLEY, Sunday at 9:09 p.m., a noise complaint was taken on Johnson Circle.

IN CLINTON, Sunday at 5:24 p.m., a citizen reported a traffic offense on Hinckley Road.

11:42 p.m., a suspicious person or activity was reported on Hinckley Road.

IN DETROIT, Sunday at 7:47 a.m., a fire was reported on North Road.

7:38 p.m., a fire was reported on North Road.

IN FAIRFIELD, Sunday at 8:22 a.m., a motor vehicle burglary was reported on West Street.

9:35 a.m., a motor vehicle burglary was reported on Savage Street.

6:31 p.m., a motor vehicle burglary was reported on High Street.

11:31 p.m., a suspicious person or activity was reported on Main Street.

11:35 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Hinckley Road.

11:50 p.m., an assault was reported on Military Avenue.

Monday at 12:29 a.m., a suspicious person or activity was reported on Main Street.

8:15 a.m., a motor vehicle burglary was reported on High Street.

IN FARMINGTON, Sunday at 1:13 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Trestle.

4:45 p.m., trespassing was reported on Perham Street.

5:22 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Hannaford Drive.

IN HARTLAND, Sunday at 11:29 a.m., a harassment complaint was taken on Ford Hill Road.

IN MADISON, Sunday at 3:39 p.m., a fire was reported on Blackwell Hill Road.

IN MERCER, Sunday at 4:42 p.m., trees were reported down on Beech Hill Road.

IN NEW PORTLAND, Sunday at 1:01 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Colegrove Road.

IN NEW VINEYARD, Sunday at 11:06 p.m., suspicious activity was reported at New Vineyard Road and Lake Street.

IN NORRIDGEWOCK, Sunday at 4:42 a.m., trees were reported down on Father Rasle Road.

12:20 p.m., threatening was reported on Martin Stream Road.

1:40 p.m., an assault was reported on Willow Street.

4:33 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Meadow Ridge Road.

4:43 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Walnut Drive.

6:13 p.m., a disturbance was reported on Martin Stream Road.

IN OAKLAND, Sunday at 5:56 p.m., harassment was reported at The Cascades on Powell Avenue.

7:14 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Oak Street.

8:38 p.m., fraud or forgery was reported on Edgewood Street.

IN PITTSFIELD, Sunday at 10:43 a.m., a suspicious person or activity was reported on Leighton Street.

12:19 p.m., a scam was reported on Somerset Avenue.

1:52 p.m., a brush, woods or grass fire was reported on I-95.

IN SKOWHEGAN, Sunday at 1:30 a.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Indian Ridge.

9:53 a.m., a disturbance was reported on Chandler Street.

12:05 p.m., a suspicious person or activity was reported on Commercial Street.

12:38 p.m., a suspicious person or activity was reported on Madison Avenue.

1:07 p.m., a suspicious person or activity was reported on French Street.

1:57 p.m., mischief was reported on Canaan Road.

2:43 p.m., a suspicious person or activity was reported on Russell Road.

6:24 p.m., vandalism was reported on Norridgewock Avenue.

8:43 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on North Avenue.

11:29 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Waterville Road.

Monday at 1:24 a.m., theft was reported on Russell Road.

8 a.m., theft was reported on Court Street.

IN ST. ALBANS, Sunday at 9:55 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Ripley Road.

AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MAINE AT FARMINGTON, Sunday at 6:37 p.m., theft or fraud was reported on Lincoln Street.

IN WATERVILLE, Sunday at 7:26 a.m., suspicious activity was reported in the Wal-Mart parking lot in Waterville Commons.

8:21 a.m., harassment was reported on Silver Street.

8:56 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Kennedy Memorial Drive.

10:14 a.m., harassment was reported to the Police Department.

2 p.m., suspicious activity was reported in the Concourse.

4:08 p.m., harassment was reported on First Rangeway.

4:40 p.m., a citizen reported a traffic offense on Kennedy Memorial Drive.

7:02 p.m., an unwanted subject was reported at Temple Street Tavern.

8:27 p.m., an unwanted subject was reported on Gray Avenue.

10:54 p.m., a noise complaint was taken on Green Street.

Monday at 12:38 a.m., a domestic dispute was reported on College Avenue.

1:21 a.m., a disturbance was reported on College Avenue.

3:08 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Mayflower Hill Road.

IN WAYNE, Sunday at 7:55 a.m., theft was reported on Pond Road.

1:13 p.m., theft was reported on House Road.

IN WILTON, Sunday at 3:22 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on Temple Road.

IN WINSLOW, Monday at 5:25 a.m., a noise complaint was taken on Clinton Avenue.

ARRESTS

IN FRANKLIN COUNTY, Sunday at 12:55 a.m., Emanuel Kadziela, 41, was arrested on a charge of operating a vehicle under the influence.

7:47 a.m., Dennis Weeks, 47, of Bowdoinham, was arrested on a charge of operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol.

11:08 a.m., Benjamin Savage, 23, of New Sharon, was arrested on a warrant.

4:33 p.m., Kathyrene Searles, 42, of New Vineyard, was arrested on four warrants.

IN SOMERSET COUNTY, Sunday at 11:43 a.m., Christopher Landis Williams, of New Portland, was arrested on a charge of failing to appear in court.

4:47 p.m., William Lenard Olson, 66, of Canaan, was arrested on a charge of domestic violence assault.

IN WATERVILLE, Sunday at 6:03 p.m., Emmanual Hurtado, 25, of Skowhegan, was arrested on Pleasant Street on a warrant.

AUGUSTA

Sunday at 7:35 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Northern Avenue.

8:48 a.m., a well-being check was performed on Western Avenue and Memorial Circle.

9:46 a.m., criminal threatening was reported on Winthrop Street.

11:45 a.m., theft was reported on Mount Vernon Avenue.

12:16 p.m., a mental health and well-being check was performed citywide.

1:46 p.m., criminal trespass was reported on Civic Center Drive.

1:52 p.m., a caller on Mount Vernon Avenue reported a sex offense.

2:04 p.m., a well-being check was performed on Water Street.

4:44 p.m., criminal mischief was reported on Church Hill Road.

5:28 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Washington Street.

5:48 p.m., a disturbance was reported on Washington Street.

5:59 p.m., theft was reported on Eastern Avenue.

6:15 p.m., a mental health and well-being check was performed on Mud Mill Road.

7:16 p.m., needles were recovered on Quimby Street.

7:39 p.m., a domestic disturbance was reported on York Street.

7:39 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Bridge Street.

8:05 p.m., a well-being check was performed citywide.

8:21 p.m., a disturbance was reported on Water Street.

8:27 p.m., a well-being check was performed on Swan Street.

9:26 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Bond Street.

9:35 p.m., harassment was reported on New England Road.

10:55 p.m., a disturbance was reported on Medical Center Parkway.

11:26 p.m., suspicious activity was reported on Lambard Road.

11:47 p.m., disorderly conduct was reported on Water Street.

11:47 p.m., simple assault was reported on Water Street.

Monday at 12:07 a.m., suspicious activity was reported on Crosby Street.

12:20 a.m., disorderly conduct was reported on State Street.

1:44 a.m., disorderly conduct was reported on Western Avenue.

BELGRADE

Monday at 2:51 a.m., a suspicious person was reported on Augusta Road.

5:24 a.m., suspicious circumstances were reported on Augusta Road.

GARDINER

Friday at 7:43 p.m., telephone harassment was reported on Church Street.

Saturday at 3:12 p.m., trespassing was reported on Fillmore Place.

10:50 p.m., disorderly conduct was reported on Main Avenue.

Sunday at 6:15 a.m., vandalism was reported on Bridge Street.

10:24 a.m., theft was reported on Cobbossee Avenue.

LITCHFIELD

Sunday at 1:52 p.m., suspicious circumstances were reported on Hallowell Road.

MONMOUTH

Saturday at 6:04 p.m., harassment was reported on Route 126.

READFIELD

Sunday at 12:13 p.m., theft was reported on Mooer Road.

WAYNE

Sunday at 7:55 a.m., theft was reported on Pond Road.

1:52 p.m., theft was reported on House Road.

WINDSOR

Saturday at 8:07 p.m., a hit-and-run traffic accident was reported at an unidentified location.

ARRESTS

AUGUSTA

Sunday at 2:53 p.m., James A. Chesley, 53, of Augusta was arrested on a charge of operating under the influence (alcohol) after a traffic complaint was made on South Belfast Avenue and Hicks Road.

RANDOLPH

Friday at 11:42 p.m., Jacob Eseley McMillan, 22, of Gardiner was arrested on a charge of disorderly conduct (loud, unreasonable noise) after disorderly conduct was reported on Water Street.

AUGUSTA — A man who fled into the woods in China late Saturday night after allegedly threatening to kill family members with a screwdriver went before a judge on Monday via video from the Kennebec County jail.

Dwayne A. Kuse, 46, was arrested in the woods near the Mann Road home, the site of the alleged threats, after a police dog tracked him and bit him.

Kuse was treated at the Augusta hospital for bite wounds before being brought to Kennebec County jail early Sunday.

According to an affidavit by Sgt. Jacob Pierce of the Kennebec Sheriff’s office, police responded to a Mann Road address after a woman reported that her ex-boyfriend was intoxicated, pushed her and “threatened to stab everyone at the residence with the screwdriver and that he was holding it in a threatening manner.” There were seven people at the home, including Kuse.

Then the woman called again to indicate Kuse was hollering in the driveway “that he was going to kill everyone and to ‘come find me.'” Later, she called again to say he was yelling, “I’m going to slice your throats tonight.” She also said there was a loaded handgun in the home.

Kuse then fled into the garage and finally into the woods.

He was located about 80 meters inside the woods, according to the report, and was bitten by Maine State Trooper G. J. Neagle’s dog, Draco.

Kuse was treated on site for the bite wounds and then taken to MaineGeneral Medical Center.

Kuse, who was wearing a short-sleeved green jail uniform, had no visible wounds on Monday.

Maine State Police Sgt. Scott Dalton, who runs the K-9 Training Center at the Maine Criminal Justice Academy, said Monday, “Apprehension canines are trained to bite and hold suspects.”

Pierce wrote that Kuse hollered at him during the ride to the jail and again threatened to kill people, including Pierce, after he was released from jail.

“He threatened to kill the officer by putting a bullet between his eyes,” Assistant District Attorney Alisa Ross told Judge Evert Fowle at Monday’s hearing in the Capital Judicial Center, adding, “Alcohol was certainly a factor.”

Attorney Dennis Jones, serving as lawyer of the day, represented Kuse at the hearing and said, “There’s no question alcohol was involved. I believe there was serious intoxication.”

However, Jones sought a lower bail amount of $1,000 cash with a Maine Pretrial Services contract, saying Kuse hopes to get admitted to a detoxification unit at the VA Maine Healthcare System at Togus. Jones said Kuse is a longtime employee of Togus, a homeowner and had previously completed a probationary period successfully.

Kuse was held without bail over the weekend. On Monday, Fowle set bail at $5,000 cash or alternatively at $1,500 cash with a Maine Pretrial Services contract. Bail conditions prohibit Kuse from contact with his ex-girlfriend, from being anywhere in the Town of China, and from using alcohol and illegal drugs.

“These allegations are quite serious, and a significant bail is mandated,” Fowle said.

Kuse did not answer to the charge of domestic violence criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon, a felony level charge which would have to be presented to a grand jury. However, Kuse pleaded not guilty to two related misdemeanor charges, domestic violence assault and domestic violence terrorizing. All the offenses allegedly occurred on Saturday in China.

Newspaper records indicate Kuse graduated from the Co-Occurring Disorders and Veterans Court, a specialty court aimed at helping defendants with mental health and substance abuse problems, in late December 2014. He was admitted to the veterans court program, which operated out of Kennebec Superior Court, on Oct. 18, 2013, about eight months after he was charged with assault in South China.

After successfully completing that program, he was sentenced in January 2015 to 364 days in jail with all but 10 days suspended, those to be served in the alternative sentencing program, and one year probation.

He completed that probation several months ago, Ross told the judge. Ross also said the victim in that assault was not the same victim in the new charges.

Kuse’s next court hearing is set for 2 p.m. Dec. 6 at the Capital Judicial Center.

Betty Adams — 621-5631

badams@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @betadams

GARDINER — More than 30 people spent about two hours discussing ways to reduce the impact of substance abuse in local communities during a forum at the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Gardiner Monday.

The forum was part of a three-year project by Healthy Communities of the Capital Area to determine what the greatest health-related problems affecting the area are, as well as how to address them.

“We need to build communities, we need to reduce stigma and we need to teach each other about how we care,” said Joanne Joy, the executive director of the Gardiner-based organization.

Gardiner Police Chief James Toman said he continues to encourage his officers to be seen throughout the community.

“It’s the old adage of get out of the car and go to events that are occurring, whether that be a Little League game or a concert at the waterfront,” Toman said after the meeting. “I tell them to be approachable and be a part of the community, and let the citizens get to know you on a first-name basis because that breaks down barriers.

“Good things happen when there are no barriers,” he said.

Reducing the stigma associated with substance abuse was a focus during the meeting.

One of the ways to do that, Joy said, is to increase the community understanding of the impact of substance abuse and to educate the community about the impact that adverse childhood experiences and trauma have on substance abuse.

Bob Creamer, of Hallowell, spent more than two decades as a recovery counselor and said stigma is a big part of the problem.

“If we continue to focus on the people and not the problem, we’ll keep having these meetings until we’re all gone,” said Creamer. “Addiction is an illness and that is the problem. The person is the victim.”

Creamer said part of the stigma comes from the language people use when talking about substance abuse, including “clean.”

“You hear someone say they are clean when they aren’t using,” Creamer said. “Well, the other side of that would be someone is dirty if they are using, but we don’t use those words when talking about any other disease.”

Nobody says a person who is in remission from cancer is clean, and when they are fighting the disease they are dirty, Creamer continued.

Before the meeting broke out into group discussions, Joy shared a number of alarming statistics from the most recent Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey.

Data showed that 63.1 percent of high schoolers from Southern Kennebec County, which includes 18 towns from Wayne to Richmond and on both sides of the Kennebec River, don’t believe that marijuana is harmful and 42 percent of local high school students said they’ve vaped.

Boys and Girls Club of Greater Gardiner program director Nate Mitchell recently spoke to a group of mostly high schoolers and said peer pressure and the desire for attention are among the reasons kids use alcohol and/or drugs.

The same survey found that 50 percent of area high school students feel like they don’t matter to other people. Later in the meeting, the discussion focused on increasing community connections by increasing shared activities between students and their parents or guardians and by identifying safe places and safe spaces for youth to be with their peers.

Last week, data released by the Maine attorney general’s office showed drug overdose deaths continuing to climb in Maine with opioids including heroin, fentanyl and prescription pain killers at the heart of the problem.

There have been 189 drug overdose deaths this year in Maine through June 30, an increase of 50 percent over the same period last year, when there were 126 overdose deaths, according to the attorney general’s office data.

Joy said she wasn’t shocked when she read the report from the attorney general’s office.

Joy said her organization has interviewed foster families, local teens, Head Start program providers, people in recovery and health care providers in researching ways to reduce the risk factors associated with substance abuse.

The Mayo Clinic says people of any age, sex or economic status can become addicted to a drug, but the health care organization identifies several factors that can affect the likelihood and speed of developing an addiction. Those facts include lack of family involvement, peer pressure, anxiety, depression and loneliness and having another mental health disorder.

An application is due in September for a grant that would provide $60,000 per year for the organization to continue the community collaboration fostered in these meetings. Joy is confident the Gardiner-based organization will receive the additional funding.

Healthy Communities of the Capital Area will hold a similar forum at the Buker Community Center in Augusta at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Jason Pafundi — 621-5663

jpafundi@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @jasonpafundiKJ