State Budget
(Augusta) – Still no state budget for Maine and the fiscal year runs out Friday. That raises the probability that state government will shut down just as the busy summer tourist season starts. Both parties blame each other for the budget stalemate that appears to center on education funding. Democrats want guaranteed funding increases that came from a tax increase on high income earners passed last fall. Republicans want to repeal that tax increase and included temporary education funding increases in their budget version.
Gunshot Wound
(St. George) – A 22-year old woman is recovering from a gunshot wound. The Knox County Sheriff’s Department reports to Star 97.7 that Amber Kinney sustained an abdomen wound when she picked up a loaded 9-millimeter handgun and it went off accidentally. Her boyfriend had been asleep on Friday night and woke up when the gun fired. Kinney was listed in stable condition at Pen Bay Medical Center.
Baby Death
(Warren) – State police have taken over an investigation into a mid-coast baby’s death. The 2-and-a-half week old girl died during the overnight hours Saturday morning in Warren. Her mother and father immediately reported the death. Deputies secured the scene until the State Police major crimes unit could respond. State Police investigate all deaths of children under 3-years old.
Orono Motor Cycle Fatal
(Orono) – Authorities have identified an Eddington man who died in a motorcycle crash in Orono during the weekend. The Bangor Daily News reports 55-year old Peter Gooden slammed into a utility pole on Forest Avenue early Saturday morning. A passing motorist spotted the crash and called for help. Investigators say friends last saw Gooden at about 1-o’clock in the morning. He was not wearing a helmet.
Burglary Arrest
(Bangor) – Police in Bangor have arrested a 34-year old man in connection with a rash of vehicle burglaries. Spokesman Tim Cotton reports to Star 97.7 that Matthew Wiley is charged with motor vehicle burglary and violating bail conditions. Police caught Wiley near the Ride Aid Pharmacy on Union and 3rd Streets in Bangor. Police advise residents to make sure their vehicles are locked.
Embezzler Sentenced
(Bangor) – A federal judge called a 57-year old Orland woman fundamentally dishonest as he sentenced her to 16-months in prison for embezzling $142-thousand dollars from her former employer. Carolyn Saunders entered a guilty plea last September, admitting she swiped money from deposits for Coastal Eye Care and Coastal Eye Surgery Center over a 3-and-a-half year period. The US Attorney’s Office says Saunders than made defamatory statements against the eye center after they fired her, which Judge John Woodcock called deplorable and egregious.
New Busses
(Trenton) – Shiny new busses will join the Island Explorer fleet in the coming months. The Mt. Desert Islander reports the brand new buses will replace aging propane powered buses in the fleet that carries more than a half million riders around Mt. Desert Island and Acadia National park during the summer months. Explorer bus service for the summer began last Friday. The Maine Department of Transportation placed the nearly $5-million dollar bus order last week.
Hospice Group
(Hancock Cty) Hospice Volunteers of Hancock County is offering a new services to businesses or organizations who may have experienced the recent passing of an employee or may have a client with a life-limiting illness. Bereavement services coordinator Janice Ronco says the Bereavement Workshop for Professionals teaches communicating with compassion, understanding grief and supporting your team.
Missing Boaters
(Square Lake) The Maine Warden Service dive team located one of the missing boaters at the bottom of Square Lake early Friday morning. Side-scan sonar detected the body of Eric Sherwood in 50-feet of water over night. Divers waited ’til daylight to remove Sherwood from the Aroostook County lake. Game wardens continue searching for Mark Chambers. He and 3 other men were in a boat that capsized June 13th. Charles Guimond of Fort Fairfield was the only person wearing a lifejacket and the only survivor. The body of Martin Chambers was recovered the following day.
Aaron Wagner Update
(Ellsworth) The man who was the subject of a 31-hour manhunt in Ellsworth last October when he shot out the window of an occupied car then fled, appeared in court last Wednesday. A judge ordered Aaron Wagner to have another psychological examination. No one was injured when Wagner allegedly shot out the back window of a car parked at the Deane Street Apartments on October 23rd last year. Police arrested him without incident when he later returned to his apartment. Wagner is said to suffer from schizophrenia.
Sports
Los Angeles Angels 4 Boston Red Sox 2 (Doug Fister took the loss but looked strong in his debut for Boston)
Tonight Chris Sale starts against the Minnesota Twins. (Sox & Yankees still tied for 1st place)
Harrisburg Senators 11 Portland Sea Dogs 4 (Sea Dogs open a series with the New Hampshire fisher cats tonight)
Kevin Harvick wins the NASCAR race at Sonoma yesterday.
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