drugcrimedefender

New Federal Drug Cases

From the Bangor Daily News:

BANGOR, Maine — A New Brunswick man has been sentenced to more than four years in federal prison on drug charges.

Jamie Kitchen, 37, whose hometown is not listed in court documents, was sentenced Thursday in U.S. District Court to 50 months in prison and three years of supervised release after he completes his sentence.

. . .

He was indicted by a federal grand jury in January 2006 but was not arrested until February 2007 when he attempted to cross the border in Calais.

Kitchen, while still in handcuffs at the Milltown border crossing station, bolted for the bridge to Canada. He was apprehended, according to court documents, when he tripped and fell about 10 feet short of the border.

. . .

The following men have been sentenced in connection with Kitchen’s drug activities:

• Wayne Dow, 40, of Tower Hill, New Brunswick, to 21 months, three years supervised release in June 2005 after pleading guilty.
• Jon Dow, 26, of Princeton to one year and one day in prison for the importation of oxycodone, three years of supervised release and a $500 fine in October 2005 after pleading guilty.
• Jerry McPhail, 37, of Princeton to 37 months, three years of supervised release and a fine of $2,700 in July 2005 after being convicted by a jury.
• Travis Nicholson, 35, of Princeton to 32 months, three years of supervised release in September 2005 after pleading guilty.
• John Gagner, 29, of Princeton to 19 months, three years of supervised release and a $1,000 fine in January 2006 after pleading guilty.

All six men faced up to 20 years in federal prison and fines of up to $1 million.

Jail Consolidation in Maine

This will significantly affect family visitation for people in the smaller counties.  It will also make visiting pretrial detainees in federal cases much tougher as the US Marshalls already shift them all over the state.

From the Bangor Daily News:

The governor would have the state take over Maine’s 15 county jails, close four — in Oxford, Franklin, Piscataquis and Waldo counties — and consolidate administration. As with Baldacci’s school-district administration consolidation, more savings would come through greater efficiencies in central offices, through purchases — in the jails’ case, medical costs and pharmaceutical contracts are big — and more effective use of bed space throughout the system.

For instance, while jails in Knox or Penobscot counties are overcrowded, those in Cumberland and York are operating under capacity. Yet because counties set their own rates, according to Corrections Commissioner Martin Magnusson, York might have a per-day cost of $45 per prisoner but charge $105. That’s an added tax burden on the sending county.

Maine county jails have additional burdens that raise costs but need to be met: better service for the mentally ill, treatment for substance abuse, and services for women. Over the last three years, county jail budgets have cumulatively risen more than 12 percent annually, as the state prison costs have risen at less than half that rate. New county jail construction — even as some jails have enough space —will keep that rate high.

Pelham Cocaine Bust

From the Manchester Union-Leader:

A two-month investigation into local drug trafficking paid off big Wednesday night when police arrested eight people while observing a alleged crack cocaine manufacturing operation on Hobbs Road.

Police said Priscilla Champagne, 50, of Pelham has been running a large cocaine and crack manufacturing and distribution operation out of her home at 14 Hobbs Road.

. . .

Although a number of customers Champagne was allegedly supplying can't be known precisely, Fisher said police consider her to be an uncommonly large supplier in the border town that receives most traffic from Lowell and Dracut, Mass.

. . .

Fisher said police began investigating Champagne following information gathered through other drug investigations in town.

UPDATE:  In response to Charles's comment below I have redacted (more) portions of the article in keeping with the fair use doctrine.  I am a believer in free enterprise and the right to protect one's intellectual property.  Feel free to read the whole article at the Manchester Union-Leader.

Drug Related Home Invasion

From the Manchester Union Leader:

MANCHESTER – Marijuana was stolen in a home invasion Tuesday night at a residence in the south end of the city, police said.

At 6:52 p.m., a gunman forced his way into 44 King's Court, in the Brown Avenue and Frontage Road area of the city.

Capt. Richard Valenti said the gunman was chased by two people as he ran into some woods with the drugs.

Police recovered a 9 mm handgun in the woods, apparently dropped by the robber.

Ellsworth Drug Bust

From the Bangor Daily News:

Three people will face drug charges following a bust by state and local officers earlier this week.

Agents of the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency, working with the Ellsworth Police Department and the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department, arrested Jake Demakis, 18, of Springvale, Michael Mitchell, 28, of Hancock and Ashley Ouellette, 19, of Casco late Tuesday night.

According to MDEA Division Commander Darrell Crandall, agents received information that the three suspects were in the area to sell crack cocaine, heroin and marijuana.

They used an informant to buy heroin and cocaine from the suspects and then stopped their vehicle on Route 1.

The bust netted 77 bags of heroin and 70 grams of marijuana from the vehicle. The drugs have a retail street value of $4,500, according to Crandall. Ellsworth Police Officer Shawn Willey and his police dog, Vegas, located the drugs hidden in a secret compartment in the trunk of the vehicle.

. . .

The three were taken to the Hancock County Jail. Demakis is charged with trafficking and possession of schedule W drugs. His bail was set at $5,000 cash or $25,000 surety.

Mitchell is charged with trafficking in schedule W drugs, and his bail was set at $2,500 cash or $10,000 surety.

Ouellette was charged with trafficking in a schedule W drug. Her bail was set at $1,000 or $5,000 surety.

Streetsweeper Program in Manchester

From the Manchester Union Leader:

MANCHESTER – While city leaders keep up their fight to restore federal funding for a street-level drug fighting program, the new city budget passed Tuesday will have taxpayers pick up the entire cost of an identical operation - including paying overtime for state troopers and state drug agents.

An eleventh-hour budget several aldermen presented Tuesday gave police $632,000 more than the $1.8 million hike the mayor proposed - including $291,890 for a special anti-drugs and guns initiative.

Manchester police asked for $291,890 to fund Operation Streetsweeper this year, but were told the money wasn't available after Congress slashed funds for all federally earmarked programs.

Police Chief John A. Jaskolka and Deputy Police Chief Glenn S. Leidemer said they were unaware the aldermen's budget set aside money for an identical initiative to make up for the lost federal funds until they got confirmation from city officials yesterday.

Leidemer said he had several discussions with the mayor's office and some alderman on how to make up the loss of Streetsweeper money. But he said neither he nor the chief received advance notice that the aldermen's budget contained funds to continue the program under another name. The budget takes effect in the fiscal year beginning July 1.

The new budget will pay for 10 additional police officers - which would increase the force to 225 - and requires the department to have 220 sworn officers on board before it can begin spending money for the anti-drugs and guns initiative, Jaskolka said.

Operation Streetsweeper is a multi-agency initiative primarily geared to fighting street-level drug trafficking that had been funded through grants by the U.S. Attorney's Office. It involves city officers partnering with state police narcotics investigators and agents with the Attorney General's Drug Task Force. Most of the money is used to pay overtime, drug-buy costs, arrest "round ups" and overtime for state laboratory staff to do drug testing.

New York Maine Held In Maine

I'm surprised this one hasn't gone Federal yet.  From the Bangor Daily News:

BANGOR — The New York man charged with running a $300,000 cocaine distribution ring in Greater Bangor appeared Wednesday in Penobscot County Superior Court after being returned to the state over the weekend.

Edwin Devaughn Keys, 25, was arrested in New York last month. He is one of 11 people facing charges in connection with the drug ring, according to the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency.

Between October 2005 and June 2006, Keys lived in Bangor and allegedly earned $5,000 to $6,000 a week from selling drugs.

Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Hjelm set Keys’ bail at $50,000 cash or $500,000 surety.

. . .

Keys is charged with three counts of Class A aggravated trafficking in scheduled drugs. He did not enter a plea at Wednesday’s short hearing.

He is expected to be indicted Monday by the Penobscot County grand jury.

If convicted, he faces up to 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $50,000.

Keys also is charged with violating his probation on a drug conviction out of Kennebec County. He was sentenced in 2001 to 10 years in prison with all but three suspended for dealing cocaine out of a Waterville motel.

. . .

Although Keys qualified for a court appointed attorney, Larson told the judge that between January 2005 and January 2007, the defendant received more than $60,000 in wire transfers from the couriers who allegedly delivered drugs for him.

Real Life "The Departed"

From the Boston Globe:

A 45-year-old Boston police officer who has served on the force since 1986 was arrested yesterday on drug-related charges, Commissioner Edward F. Davis said in a statement last night.

Jose Ortiz, a patrol officer with 21 years of service, was arrested in Revere and is to be arraigned this morning in federal court in Boston, said Elaine Driscoll, a police spokeswoman.

Ortiz last worked in District D-4, which covers the Back Bay and South End. Authorities did not indicate why he was arrested in Revere, nor would they elaborate on the case against him.

"Today is a sad day for the Boston Police Department," Davis said in the statement. "Becoming a Boston police officer and serving the City of Boston is a privilege. Any individual who abuses their authority or takes advantage of that privilege will be dealt with swiftly and aggressively."

Drug Sweep in Maine

Via the Bangor Daily News

AUGUSTA — The Maine Drug Enforcement Agency said it teamed up with other law enforcement personnel to make 82 arrests in the state during the past week as part of a nationwide effort to draw attention to federal cuts to drug task forces.

The sweeps in Maine resulted in the seizure of drugs, including heroin, crack cocaine, powder cocaine, crystal meth and marijuana. More than $44,000 in cash and two handguns were also seized as undercover operatives wrapped up numerous investigations with drug purchases that led to the arrests, officials said.

Agents arrested 20 suspected drug dealers in Washington County alone. In Aroostook County, MDEA concluded investigations that focused primarily on the growing availability of methamphetamine.

Pills Drug of Choice for Teen Girls

From AOL Crime News

WASHINGTON (AP) - Females are bucking the traditional drug abuse trends when it comes to prescription drugs such as antidepressants and tranquilizers.

Normally, usage rates for illicit drugs such as marijuana and cocaine are much higher for men than women. But for prescription drugs, the reverse is the case for teenage girls, said the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Nearly one in 10 teenage girls reported using a prescription drug to get high at least once in the past year, officials said Monday. For teenage boys, the ratio was close to 1 out of 13.

Federal officials theorized that the trend reversal may be due to unique pressures faced by girls. Men typically abuse drugs and alcohol for the sensation, while surveys indicate women do so to increase their confidence, reduce tension or to lose weight.