Brunswick police are investigating a stabbing they say took place Sunday afternoon near the downtown business district.

Patrol Cmdr. Marc Hagan said the victim, a 39-year-old man from Cleveland, Ohio, was transported to Maine Medical Center in Portland after suffering stab wounds to his chest and arm. His name has not been released by police, and his condition is not known.

Hagan said officers were called to Market Lane, which is off Federal Street, around 2:17 p.m. to investigate the report of a man who had been stabbed. Minutes later, police received a second call alerting them that there was a wounded man in the parking lot of the 7-Eleven convenience store at Pleasant and Maine streets – in the heart of Brunswick’s downtown district.

The victim told police he was attacked by two males in the area of Market Lane. Police said a witness told them two men ran away from the Market Lane area around the time they received the first call for assistance.

A Maine State Police canine unit responded to the neighborhood, but was unable to locate the suspects. Police do not yet have a description of the men.

Further information regarding the attack will be released when possible, Hagan said in a news release.

Brunswick police are searching for two men in connection with a stabbing that injured an Ohio man over the weekend.

Robert W. McKenny, 43, of Pleasant Street in Brunswick, and Wendall D. Casler, 38, of Oak Street in Brunswick, are being sought in connection with the stabbing, which was reported Sunday afternoon.

Patrol Cmdr. Marc Hagan said the 39-year-old victim, of Cleveland, Ohio, and a witness have been uncooperative so far, but stressed that the stabbing was a targeted assault and not a random act.

Hagan declined to identify the man who was stabbed and said he has been reluctant to volunteer information, including why he was in Maine. He was found by police in the parking lot of the 7-Eleven convenience store after 2 p.m. at Pleasant and Maine streets, but police determined the assault took place elsewhere.

“It was difficult to even locate the scene,” Hagan said. “We were originally told by the victim and the witness that it took place at a different location, at School Street, which is a short distance from the scene.”

Officers executed a search warrant for an apartment unit at 19 Market Lane, where the stabbing is believed to have taken place, and recovered evidence there, Hagan said. Arrest warrants for McKenny and Casler are being drawn up, he said.

The victim continued to receive treatment at Maine Medical Center on Monday for wounds to his chest and arm, but Hagan did not know his present condition.

A truck driver facing manslaughter charges after a fatal accident in March that killed two people made an initial appearance in court Monday.

Randall J. Weddle, 54, of Greeneville, Tennessee, did not enter a plea at his appearance in Knox County Unified Court.

He faces a maximum of 60 years in prison for the crash, in which the flatbed of his 1998 Freightliner loaded with lumber slid into the oncoming lane on Route 17 in Washington when it rounded a corner just west of Fitch Road.

Weddle’s truck began to roll onto its left side as it continued around the corner. As it rolled, three of four vehicles heading east were hit by the trailer.

The vehicles included a 2009 Chevrolet Colorado operated by Paul Fowles, 74, of Owls Head. Fowles’ car went off the road and rolled down an embankment. A 2014 Nissan driven by Tracy Cook, 51, of Union, was struck and also went off the road.

Cook’s vehicle rolled over and struck a 2015 Kia driven by Tracy Morgan, 33, of Washington.

Weddle remains in Knox County Jail on $100,000 bail following his arrest May 6 in Virginia on charges of manslaughter and aggravated operating under the influence. According to an investigative report, Weddle had alcohol in his system and was speeding at the time of the collision.

Investigators learned at the time of the collision Weddle had a suspended license in Louisiana, and his right to drive in Virginia had been revoked. He retained an active driver’s license in Tennessee.

Weddle’s attorney, David Paris, said he will reserve a bail argument after he talks with his client. The matter is expected to be presented to the Knox County grand jury before Weddle’s next court date in July.

A Litchfield man charged in late March with possession of sexually explicit materials of minors under 12 is free from bail conditions after no complaint was filed in court.

A judge on Monday lifted bail conditions against Ethan Francine, 29. He had been ordered to appear for a hearing Monday at the Capital Judicial Center in connection with the child pornography allegations, but the district attorney’s office did not file a complaint against him.

District Attorney Maeghan Maloney couldn’t be reached for comment Monday.

Francine had been free on $2,000 unsecured bail since March 25, with conditions that prohibited him from contact with children under 16 and from possessing devices that could access the Internet.

A press release from Maine State Police spokesman Stephen McCausland at the time of the arrest said Francine worked at the Bath YMCA pool at the Brunswick Landing.

AUGUSTA — A former Oakland man was ordered to serve an initial nine months and one day in prison for unlawful trafficking in cocaine base July 10, 2015, in Waterville.

The rest of the four-year prison term of Dwayne Holmes, 49, now of Waterville, was suspended, and he was placed on two years of probation. Holmes had pleaded guilty Tuesday at the Capital Judicial Center to one count of unlawful trafficking; a second count, from July 17, 2015, also in Waterville, was dismissed.

Holmes was fined $400 and ordered to pay $400 restitution for the benefit of the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency.

Holmes also pleaded guilty to a March 7, 2016, charge of violating a protection from abuse order and was ordered to serve a concurrent 30 days for that charge.

In a separate hearing Tuesday at the same courthouse, Wilbur Lee Austin, 53, of Readfield and formerly of Augusta, was sentenced to a six-month jail sentence after he pleaded guilty to three charges of theft by unauthorized taking or transfer from stores in Augusta and Waterville and one charge of violating conditions of release.

They were dated between Aug. 10 and Dec. 11, 2015.

Two additional counts of theft by unauthorized taking and two counts of violating conditions of release from July 26 to Aug. 16, 2015, were dismissed.

A gang of thieves who specialize in breaking into cars and stealing the driver’s licenses, personal checks and debit cards of women has arrived in Maine, at least two police departments are warning.

The Bath Police Department posted a warning Tuesday on its Facebook page about the “Felony Lane Gang,” a loosely organized group of criminals from Florida who target vehicles parked at gyms, fitness centers, parks and day care centers. The Winslow Police Department posted a warning on its Facebook page Monday.

Bath police Detective Marc Brunelle said he has seen evidence that the gang may have recently started operating in the midcoast area.

“We can’t pinpoint where they are, but we have investigated a couple of break-ins in this area,” Brunelle said Tuesday evening. “The best thing people can do to help us is to lock your cars and hide your valuables.”

Bath police said the gang, which originated in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, several years ago, has been known to recruit local women who resemble their victims to cash checks. The women also wear wigs and use makeup to enhance the resemblance.

The local operatives drive rental cars with tinted windows and fake or stolen license plates when they go to a financial institution to cash a check. Law enforcement agencies across the U.S. call them the Felony Lane Gang because its members prefer to use the drive-up lane farthest from the sight of a teller in an attempt to avoid detection.

A group of victims calling itself the Felony Lane Gang Task Force maintains a Facebook page to raise awareness about the criminal operation. On the page there is a map of the U.S. identifying locations where the gang has been active. In the corner of the map is a tagline that reads: “Felony Lane Gang. Targeting Moms.”

According to the task force, the Felony Lane Gang “has been operating for years, raking in millions of dollars with criminal activity that crosses multiple state lines. Up until recent months, many of these cases were filed away as local burglaries and the bigger picture was missed entirely. These cases are connected … very well connected and this page is working hard to put the puzzle pieces together.”

The task force says the gang likes to target vehicles operated by women because it believes there is an increased chance of finding an unattended purse.

Gang members conduct surveillance on cars left at gyms, parks, day care centers and sporting events and enter unlocked vehicles or locked vehicles by using a window punch to break the glass. The gang recruits local women – mostly prostitutes or drug addicts – to cash stolen checks.

Detective Brunelle said there is no particular reason he is aware of that the gang would come to Maine.

“They like to move around especially when they feel law enforcement is getting too close,” Brunelle said. “I think it’s more of a natural progression.”

Brunelle said local fitness clubs, including the Bath Area Family YMCA, have been made aware of the gang’s presence.

“In the past, YMCA parking lots have been hit by this group,” the Bath YMCA said in a warning posted on its Facebook page. “Just a reminder to keep your valuables at home, with you, or locked for safety.”

Bath police are urging residents not to confront gang members and to report all suspicious activity to the police department.

Maine’s highest court has upheld the escape conviction of a woman who tried to avoid arrest by telling police that she needed to put on a bra before going to jail.

A lower court judge had sentenced Tracy Dorweiler of Bangor to 14 days behind bars for using the bra excuse to climb out of a bedroom window, but she contended she never escaped because she was never physically placed into custody.

The state Supreme Judicial Court issued its decision on Tuesday.

The court concluded that the officer’s statement that he was there to arrest Dorweiler and her “show of submission” before her escape provided sufficient evidence that she knew she was under arrest. Her lawyer is filing a petition for reconsideration.

Portland police have released surveillance video of a man who went on a rampage and destroyed furniture at a Commercial Street restaurant early Sunday after being told it was too late to order a hamburger.

Police hope the video, posted Thursday on the department’s Facebook page, will lead to identification of the man who went onto the outdoor patio of Elevation Burger, at 205 Commercial St., and tossed furniture over a retaining wall and onto the nearby sidewalk while his companions – three women and a man – stood by and watched.

The other man lit a cigarette and held the door between the restaurant and the patio open for his friend.

“Detectives are looking to identify the male who was displeased about not getting an after hours hamburger at Elevation Burger on Sunday,” the Facebook post reads. “He caused substantial damage to their property and detectives are looking for your assistance in identifying him or his associates.”

Chris Marshall, an assistant manager at Elevation Burger, said the man and his companions entered the restaurant right around closing time, which is 2 a.m. The man asked to use the bathroom, and employees let him. But when he tried to order food, the staff told him that he couldn’t be served because the restaurant was closed.

“He started going off on the staff,” Marshall said. The man broke an umbrella on the patio valued at $500. No one was injured.

Police encourage anyone with information about the suspect to call 874-8595.

A New Hampshire man faces multiple burglary charges after allegedly breaking into two Berwick apartments, where he took a shower and drank beer before letting out the residents’ pets.

Berwick police say Todd LeGrand of Dover, New Hampshire, was arrested Thursday after he was discovered in an apartment on School Street by a woman returning home. LeGrand, 53, led police on a short foot chase before he was caught by Police Chief Timothy Towne.

“It appears Mr. LeGrand forced his way into two separate apartments where he ate, took a shower and drank several beers from the victim’s refrigerator. Mr. LeGrand spent several hours in the two apartments,” police said in a news release posted on the department’s Facebook page. “He also released several horses from the adjacent barn.”

LeGrand stole money and other items from the apartments, police said.

The woman who called 911 first realized something was amiss when she arrived home around 2 p.m. to find her pets outside of her apartment and several horses from the barn roaming free, police said. When she went inside, she found a man she didn’t know standing in her apartment wearing only sweatpants. The woman left to call police.

When police arrived minutes later, the man – later identified as LeGrand – had fled. Towne caught up to LeGrand several minutes later as other officers set up a perimeter around the area, police said.

LeGrand suffered minor injuries to his bare feet from running through bushes as he tried to evade the officers, police said. He was treated by the Berwick Fire Rescue Department.

Berwick police charged LeGrand with multiple counts of burglary, theft and violating conditions of release. Those conditions were in place because LeGrand had been arrested by Berwick police Monday on an outstanding warrant and taken to the York County Jail.

Police say LeGrand was released from jail Wednesday. On Thursday, he took a taxi from Sanford to North Berwick and was charged with theft of services when he couldn’t pay for his ride. He was released with a summons from North Berwick police and started to walk toward Berwick, where police say he broke into the apartments.

LeGrand was taken again to the York County Jail. He was expected to be arraigned Friday afternoon in Springvale District Court.

The 19-year-old Westbrook woman who had been reported missing since midnight Thursday night was found in Windham on Friday, Westbrook police said.

Torey Young, who has cognitive and mental health issues and left a group home walking down Locust Street, will be interviewed by Westbrook detectives, the department said in a statement.

She reportedly left the group home with 31-year-old Robert Silver, police said. Police did not immediately say whether Silver was found with her, or was involved in her disappearance.

FARMINGTON — A Franklin County grand jury handed up 23 indictments this week, including the indictments of a Strong man and a Freeman Township man on unrelated sex crime charges.

Michael Crandall, 54, of Strong, was indicted on two counts of sexual abuse of a minor, Class C, following his arrest on Jan. 22.

Crandall was arrested following a joint investigation by the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office and the State Department of Health and Human Services conducted after they received a report of a sex crime occurring in Strong.

Following a polygraph examination, Crandall was arrested on the charges.

Justin Robinson, 21, of Freeman Township, was indicted on charges of unlawful sexual contact, Class C, and unlawful sexual touching, Class D. Robinson was arrested in March on the charges after the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a sexual assault involving a girl under the age of 16.

An indictment is not a finding of guilt, but a determination that there is enough evidence to proceed with a trial.

Others indicted included:

Derek Cook, 31, of Wilton, on charges of robbery, escape, burglary, theft by unauthorized taking, eluding an officer, assault on an officer, assault, criminal mischief, driving to endanger, criminal speed and operating after suspension.

Michael A. Davis, 20, of New Sharon, charged with operating after revocation and violations conditions of release.

Ronald J. Davis, 26, of Livermore Falls, charged with trafficking in prison contraband.

Leslie Raymond Everett Jr. 38, of New Sharon, charged with theft by deception.

Timothy P. Gallagher, 47, of Jay, charged with theft by deception.

Lee R. Haines, 41, of Phillips, charged with theft by unauthorized taking and misuse of identification.

William D. Hamel 52, of Bridgton, charged with operating under the influence and operating after suspension.

Kevin E. Harris, 49, of Wilton, charged with domestic violence assault and assault.

Alic J. Hatch, 36, of Jay, charged with operating after revocation.

Arthur H. Knight III, 38, of Phillips, charged with burglary, aggravated criminal mischief and stealing drugs.

Jaymie L. Logan, 31, of Wilton, charged with unlawful trafficking of scheduled drugs, unlawful possession of scheduled drugs and two counts of violating conditions of release.

Travis A. Martin, 32, of Detroit, charged with terrorizing and violating conditions of release.

Randall S. McEwen, 19, of Corinna, charged with driving to endanger, operating after suspension and operating a defective motor vehicle.

Garrett M. Morrow, 25, of Eliot, charged with burglary, refusing to submit to arrest and two counts of assault.

Jason D. Oliver, 40, of Farmington, charged with aggravated operating under the influence, refusing to submit to arrest, failure to stop for an office, and operating beyond license conditions or restriction.

Anthony J. Penney, 18, of Jay, charged with aggravated criminal mischief, unauthorized use of property, operating under the influence and operating beyond license condition or restriction.

Arder Prinkleton, 45, of Wilton, charged with two counts of unlawful trafficking of scheduled drugs and one count of criminal forfeiture.

Lisa M. Puiia, 27, of Farmington, charged with theft by unauthorized taking.

Crystal Taylor, 42, of Wilton, charged with two counts of unlawful scheduling of scheduled drugs and one count of criminal forfeiture.

Dustin M. Towers, 28, of Jay, charged with theft by deception.

Jennifer L. Walker, 22, of Phillips, charged with burglary, aggravated criminal mischief and stealing drugs.

Timothy D. Witham, 30, of Wilton, charged with aggravated assault and domestic violence assault.

Lauren Abbate — 861-9252

labbate@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @Lauren_M_Abbate

SKOWHEGAN — The following cases were closed April 4-10, 2016, in Skowhegan District Court and Somerset County Superior Court.

Allen J. Asselin, 27, of Fairfield, aggravated assault Feb. 15, 2015, in Skowhegan; five-year Department of Corrections sentence, all but 12 months suspended, three-year probation, $1,000 restitution.

Scott Beaulieu, 53, of Starks, attaching false plates and failure to register vehicle, both Dec. 27, 2015, in Anson; $150 in fines.

John J. Bradley, 41, of Moscow, operating under the influence, failing to stop for officer, refusing to submit to arrest or detention and operating while license suspended or revoked, all Dec. 29, 2015, in Bingham; $1,100 in fines, 180-day jail sentence, all but 10 days suspended, one-year administrative release, one-year license suspension.

Vance Cayford, 45, of Norridgewock, operating while license suspended or revoked Feb. 14, 2016, in Skowhegan; $500 fine.

Deanna D. Chrisco, 49, of Anson, operating under the influence Feb. 4, 2016, in Madison; $500 fine, four-day jail sentence, 150-day license suspension.

Larry D. Corson, 67, of Skowhegan, keeping unlicensed dog Feb. 29, 2016, in Skowhegan; $50 fine.

Tobey Cox, 40, of Skowhegan, domestic violence assault Jan. 18, 2015, in Madison; 364-day jail sentence, all but eight days suspended, one-year probation.

Jessica L. Cowan, 30, of Madison, operating under the influence Jan. 21, 2016, in Madison; $500 fine, four-day jail sentence, 150-day license suspension.

Seth Curry, 22, of Newport, operating under the influence Feb. 13, 2016, in Pittsfield; $500 fine, 90-day jail sentence, all but 10 days suspended, one-year administrative release, 150-day license suspension.

Louis J. Feliciani, 52, of Garland, visual sexual aggression against a child May 14, 2015, in St. Albans; 364-day jail sentence, all but 75 days suspended, one-year probation.

Jeffrey S. Gilbert, 28, of Skowhegan, attaching false plates Jan. 15, 2016, in Skowhegan; $100 fine.

Cory A. Harpell, 37, of Waterville, failure to register vehicle March 9, 2016, in Fairfield; $100 fine.

Talmadge Allen Hollamon, 37, of Pikeville, North Carolina, commercial vehicle rule violation: possess or use alcohol on duty Jan. 21, 2016, in Fairfield; $100 fine.

Joshua S. Johnson, 34, of Clinton, two counts of theft by unauthorized taking or transfer Aug. 24, 2014, in Palmyra and Dec. 16, 2015, in Madison; eight-month jail sentence.

Alan A. Lessard, 48, of Canaan, failure to register vehicle within 30 days Feb. 4, 2016, in Hartland; dismissed.

Leon E. Maloon, 59, of Ripley, domestic violence assault Nov. 16, 2015, in Ripley; dismissed.

David Mansir, 40, of East Pittston, failure to provide and display registration March 6, 2016, in Pittston Academy Grant; $100 fine.

Sara A. Martin, 25, of Mexico, operating while license suspended or revoked Feb. 1, 2016, in Fairfield; dismissed.

Peter McAniston, 38, of Anson, violating condition of release and failing to make oral or written accident report, both March 1, 2016, in Starks; $600 in fines.

Micah T. Nichols, 34, of Madison, assault March 12, 2016, in Skowhegan; $300 fine, 364-day jail sentence.

Jeffrey David Raymond, 33, of Norridgewock, attaching false plates Jan. 7, 2016, in Madison; $100 fine.

Maxime Savoie, 32, of Marston, commercial vehicle rule violation: duty status not current March 23, 2016, in Sandy Bay Township; $191.66 fine.

Steven F. Shaw Jr., 29, of Augusta, violating condition of release Feb. 2, 2016, in Skowhegan; six-month jail sentence.

Stanley’s Septic Tank Service and Construction of Fairfield, failure to register vehicle Feb. 12, 2016, in Norridgewock; $100 fine.

Annette S. Towle, 58, of St. Albans, stealing drugs Jan. 18, 2013, in Hartland; $400 fine, four-year Department of Corrections sentence, all suspended, two-year probation.

Heather A. Tripodi, 30, of Palmyra, operating while license suspended or revoked and violating condition of release, both Jan. 26, 2016, in Hartland; $750 in fines.

William A. True, 63, of Mercer, littering Feb. 12, 2016, in Mercer; dismissed.

Mark J. Walston, 45, of Pittsfield, illegal possession of firearm Aug. 3, 2015, in Pittsfield; 30-day jail sentence.

Richard A. Wentworth, 51, of Hartland, terrorizing Jan. 20, 2016, in Hartland; $300 fine.

Thomas Weston, 58, of Madison, operating while license suspended or revoked Jan. 23, 2016, in Fairfield; dismissed.

Dana E. Williams, 61, of Embden, driving deer Nov. 27, 2014, in Embden; $200 fine. Hunting deer after having killed one, same date and town; dismissed.

A former Army Ranger who was armed with an assault rifle surrendered peacefully to police Sunday evening following a tense standoff at his family’s farm in Shapleigh.

A family member notified the York County Sheriff’s Office that there was an “out of control” man who had been randomly firing his AK-47 semi-automatic assault rifle near his home on Oak Hill Road in Shapleigh.

Sheriff William L. King Jr. identified the shooter as Robert W. Ferrera, 26, of Shapleigh. King said that Ferrera served in Afghanistan and returned to the United States a few years ago. Army Rangers are an elite regiment of the Army.

King said his deputies recovered at least 18 spent shells from the assault rifle that Ferrera used in the shooting spree. Ferrera also owns an M-4 semi-automatic rifle.

Police said Ferrera, who was upset over his living situation, began randomly shooting his weapon inside and outside his home. He lives on his family’s farm, which was once used to raise alpacas.

When the shooting started, another family member, who lives in a separate residence on the Oak Hill Road property, fled and contacted police.

“Once Ferrera started firing his weapon, the family member, fearing for his life, fled his residence and summoned the sheriff’s office,” King wrote in a news release.

Deputies, who arrived around 4:30 p.m., set up a perimeter around the property and began to monitor Ferrera’s movements.

“The deputies noticed that Ferrera emerged from his residence several times with a weapon and binoculars, almost appearing to be looking for the deputies,” King said.

About an hour later, Ferrera left his home and started walking toward the tree line and two deputies who were hiding in a wooded area. The deputies confronted Ferrera, who was not armed at the time, and took him into custody at 5:50 p.m.

Ferrera was arrested and charged with reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon, a Class felony, and violating conditions of his release, a Class E misdemeanor. He was transported to the York County Jail in Alfred, where he was being held without bail pending his video arraignment on Monday.

SPRINGVALE –– A former Army Ranger who allegedly fired an assault rifle numerous times and was arrested after a standoff was ordered held without bail Monday at the York County Jail.

Judge Richard Mulhern ruled that Robert W. Ferrera III should be held without bail because he violated conditions from previous charges, including criminal mischief and violating probation from July 2014 and carrying a concealed weapon from February 2013.

Ferrera, who was arraigned by videoconference in District Court in Springvale, was charged Monday with reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon as a result of the incident at the family farm in Shapleigh on Sunday.

Court documents filed Monday also indicated that Ferrera “did recklessly create a substantial risk of serious bodily injury to Robert W. Ferrera Jr. with the use of a firearm against the person of Robert W. Ferrera Jr.”

Robert W. Ferrera Jr. is Ferrera’s father.

No one was hurt in the incident, but the York County Sheriff’s Office reported that at Ferrera’s home on Oak Hill Road in Shapleigh, Ferrera, 26, had shot an AK-47 assault rifle at least 18 times. Sheriff William King Jr. said that Ferrera is a veteran who served with the Army Rangers – an elite fighting force – in Afghanistan a few years ago.

Ferrera lives on the family farm, which was once used to raise alpacas, according to the sheriff’s office. Ferrera was apparently upset over his living conditions, King said Sunday.

When the shooting started, a family member fled and called police. Deputies arrived about 4:30 p.m. Sunday, set up a perimeter and monitored Ferrera’s movements.

Ferrera left the home about an hour later and started walking toward a tree line, when he was confronted by deputies and arrested. Ferrera was unarmed at the time.

King said authorities are looking into whether post-traumatic stress disorder from Ferrera’s service in the military was a factor in the incident.

Ferrera did not enter a plea Monday, as the case is being transferred to York County Superior Court.

A federal judge has sentenced a Boston man to 30 years in prison for operating a sex-trafficking ring in 14 states, including Maine, where he was ultimately arrested in 2014, according to the office of Carmen Ortiz, U.S. attorney for Massachusetts.

Raymond Jeffreys, 28, of Dorchester, who went by the street names “Skame,” “Skame Dollarz,” and “Frenchy,” pleaded guilty in January to charges of sex trafficking, tampering with a witness by attempting to kill him, and making false statements to a federal agent. He was sentenced Monday in Boston by U.S. District Judge Denise J. Casper.

According to prosecutors, Jeffreys coerced women and underage girls into prostitution, using threats of force and manipulation. He and a co-defendant, Corey Norris, conspired to shuttle them across the country and throughout the Northeast.

A total of 20 women and girls were rescued following Jeffreys’ May 2014 arrest in Portland, including some who hail from Maine, and others who were brought here.

The criminal enterprise operated beginning as late as 2006, and continued until Jeffreys and Norris, who was sentenced to 15 years, were arrested.

“Raymond Jeffreys devastated the lives of his victims,” said Ortiz. “He feigned affection, instilled fear and used violence to control these young women. While no amount of jail time will undo the trauma he inflicted, his sentence demonstrates that those who violate the standards of human decency will face the force of justice.”

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court upheld on Tuesday the conviction of 73-year-old Merrill Kimball, who was found guilty by a jury last year of murder in the 2013 shooting of Leon Kelley at a bee farm in North Yarmouth.

The decision issued by the high court rejected several arguments that Kimball had made in his appeal, including his central claim that the trial judge failed to properly instruct the jury that Kimball was driven to extreme anger or fear after being physically assaulted by Kelley and should have been convicted of manslaughter instead of murder.

“We conclude that Kelley, who was unarmed, did not act in a way that was objectively sufficient, as a matter of law, to provoke extreme anger or fear in Kimball and thereby justify Kimball’s deadly response in wielding a firearm and shooting Kelley multiple times,” Justice Andrew Mead wrote on behalf of the court in a unanimous 6-0 decision.

The decision means that Kimball, a Yarmouth lobsterman with no prior criminal convictions, will likely spend the rest of his life in prison. He was sentenced last June 5 to the mandatory minimum penalty of 25 years for murder.

Since the shooting on Oct. 6, 2013, Kimball has maintained that he acted in self-defense when he shot the 63-year-old Kelley three times at Brown’s Bee Farm, after Kelley assaulted him and kept coming at him.

At the heart of the conflict was a rift between the two men’s families over the affections of Stan Brown, who was 95 when he died last year. Brown, a master bee farmer and Kelley’s father-in-law, had shown favor toward Kimball’s wife, Karen Thurlow-Kimball, who managed the bee business for him when he grew too old to tend it himself. The rift came to a head when Thurlow-Kimball and her family came to the bee farm to retrieve numerous pots of honey she had harvested. They were confronted by Brown’s daughter, Kathleen Kelley; Leon Kelley, her 63-year-old husband; and two of her adult children.

The fate of Brown’s estate is now pending in Cumberland County Probate Court, where Kathleen Kelley filed a petition to become representative for the estate last Nov. 18. Brown did not leave a will.

The Supreme Judicial Court also rejected that any hostilities between the two families over money could legally justify the shooting.

“Similarly, neither the threat of economic harm to Kimball’s wife posed by the potential loss of honey she had stored at the farm, nor any perceived threat resulting from the Brown family’s hostility to her inclusion in Stan Brown’s will, could constitute adequate provocation justifying Kimball’s shooting Leon Kelley,” Mead wrote in the 12-page decision.

Kimball’s attorneys, Daniel Lilley and Cheryl Richardson, also argued in the appeal that the trial judge erred in allowing the jury to hear testimony that Kimball had been drinking alcohol on the day of the shooting because no one said he seemed impaired.

Lilley said Tuesday he is reviewing the decision to determine whether to appeal to other courts.

The high court ruled that testimony that Kimball had drunk two rum and cokes over an hour during a visit at a friend’s house before the shooting was fairly admitted as evidence.

“Although there was no evidence that he was physically impaired, the fact that Kimball had been drinking on the afternoon of the shooting was relevant because the jury could consider the effect on Kimball’s state of mind, judgment, or impulsivity, as well as his credibility on other issues,” Mead wrote. The high court also rejected Kimball’s arguments in his appeal that the trial judge had improperly excluded evidence that Kathleen Kelley was upset with Karen Thurlow-Kimball over inheritance of the bee farm business.

“Contrary to Kimball’s contention, our review of the record reveals that the court admitted extensive evidence concerning the inter-familial dispute,” Mead wrote. “The court did not abuse its discretion in its very minor limitation of evidence concerning the issue in order to keep the trial focused on the central issue of whether Kimball was criminally culpable for killing Leon Kelley.”

CONCORD, N.H. — A nurse accused of diverting drugs at a New Hampshire hospital has been acquitted of four charges and jurors couldn’t reach a verdict on seven others after 12 hours of deliberation.

The Concord Monitor reports jurors handed down the decision on Monday against 47-year-old Kerry Bridges.

Prosecutors say the Warren, Maine, woman stole liquid painkillers and wrote bogus medication orders from doctors. But defense attorney Jim Moir says there was no evidence that his client committed the crime.

The traveling nurse worked at Concord Hospital for five weeks last year and was fired when the allegations came to light.

Assistant County Attorney Brooke Belanger says prosecutors haven’t determined whether they will pursue another trial on the seven undecided counts against Bridges.

The discovery of two teenagers handcuffed together behind a convenience store helped Lisbon police solve a series of motor vehicle break-ins in a residential neighborhood this month.

Officer Ellen Stewart found the boys on May 10 after she was called to Miller’s Variety and Convenience Store in Lisbon Falls to investigate a report of a suspicious vehicle, according to news release from the police department.

Stewart discovered a pickup truck disabled at the fuel pumps and located the boys behind the store. They were handcuffed together.

During the department’s investigation, police determined the handcuffs had been stolen during the motor vehicle burglary spree, which took place overnight on May 9-10. Police said between 40 and 50 unlocked cars were broken into by the boys in the Plummer, Pleasant and Center streets neighborhood of Lisbon Falls. All of the cars had been parked in residents’ driveways.

“A reminder that keeping your vehicles locked with valuable items out of sight even while parked overnight in your own driveway can be for the most part the greatest deterrent to becoming a victim of this type of crime,” Lisbon police said in a news release posted Tuesday on their Facebook page.

Police found a number of stolen items in the boys’ possession at Miller’s Variety while other items had been discarded in an area near the store. Most of the stolen items were loose change, knives, flashlights and GPS units. The disabled pickup truck had been taken by the boys from a friend without permission, but charges are not expected to be filed in that case.

Lisbon police said there is no connection between the Lisbon Falls car break-ins and the Felony Lane Gang, a loosely organized gang that recruits local people to break into cars and steal personal information and valuables.

Sgt. Ryan McGee said police do not know why the boys had handcuffed themselves together other than they were just playing around with the stolen cuffs. McGee said the investigation is continuing.

Charges are pending against the teenagers, who have not yet made an appearance in Lewiston Unified Court.

Police would like to hear from anyone whose vehicle was broken into, as several stolen times have been recovered by officers. Victims should contact the Lisbon Police Department at 353-2500.

AUBURN — A Maine man is heading to prison for two weeks for a 2013 road rage incident that a prosecutor says is one of the worst he’s ever seen.

The Sun Journal reports the sentence was handed down against 33-year-old Adam Getchell, who pleaded guilty to reckless conduct and criminal mischief on Thursday.

The Auburn man was convicted in March of driving to endanger, but acquitted of a hate crime in the incident.

Authorities had said Getchell tried to block 19-year-old motorist Matthew Wooten Jr. from passing him. When Wooten did pass him, Getchell apparently swerved and hit Wooten’s rear fender.

A police recording caught Getchell using racial epithets afterward inside a police cruiser.

Getchell wrote in a letter to the court that he apologized for his poor choices.

A man who was shot on Monday night in Portland’s West End neighborhood remained hospitalized in stable condition on Tuesday.

Detectives were still waiting on Tuesday morning for clearing from the medical staff at Maine Medical Center to speak to the man and are continuing to investigate the motive for the shooting, said Lt. James Sweatt, a spokesman for the Portland Police Department.

Police had taken another man into custody on Tuesday night, but have since released him without charging him, Sweatt said. He declined to comment on that man’s involvement in the shooting.

Police received a report on Monday at about 8:30 p.m. of a disturbance and a shot fired at a residence at 146 Chadwick St., less than a block away from Maine Medical Center, Sweatt said.

“Both parties knew each other,” Sweatt said, though he declined to comment on how they knew each other.

“They may not realize what they saw is important,” he said. “If they witnessed this, we do want them to give us a call.”

Sweatt said detectives were also waiting to further examine inside the apartment building where the shooting took place to look for evidence. He said police were still unsure at this point how the shooting occurred and where exactly it happened.

Police did not release the identity of either of the men, and described them only as adults.

Police are asking anyone with information about the shooting to contact the Portland Police at 874-8575.