Bangor Daily News

City Councilor On Trial Today in Forgery Case

BANGOR - City Councilor Richard Greene is scheduled to go on trial at 8:30 a.m. today before Judge Jessie Gunther in 3rd District Court for submitting to the city a document on which he allegedly forged City Manager Edward Barrett's signature. Greene, 52, also is scheduled at 1 p.m. today to plead guilty in the same courthouse to charges of theft and violation of condition of release in an unrelated shoplifting incident last month.

Woman Uses Hose to Save Burning Father

LEE - An Arab Road man suffered second-degree burns before he was saved by his quick-thinking daughter when an explosion and subsequent fire leveled his repair garage on Monday. Mark Stevens Sr., 45, was underneath a junk car trying to remove its gasoline tank at 481 Arab Road shortly after 1:30 p.m. Stevens and his daughter Elizabeth Stevens weren't aware the tank contained any gasoline, she said. But it leaked a puddle and the fumes were thick along the garage floor when something ignited, ...

Dump Truck Damages Highway Overpass

BANGOR - An empty dump truck struck a highway overpass early Monday morning, causing the vehicle to roll over several times before coming to rest in the northbound lane of Interstate 95. The truck's driver, Benjamin Lamb, 24, of Brewer, was trapped inside the vehicle for several minutes but suffered only minor injuries, according to Maine State Police Trooper Josh D'Angelo.

Bangor Man Indicted in Attempted Murder

BANGOR - The Penobscot County grand jury Monday indicted a Bangor man previously charged with elevated aggravated assault for attempted murder. David Archer, 33, allegedly stabbed his former girlfriend twice in the stomach with a knife on April 26 outside a Hudson Street house in Bangor. The victim, according to Greg Campbell, assistant district attorney for Penobscot County, has been released from Eastern Maine Medical Center and is recovering.

Car Show, Race, Swap at Winterport Dragway

WINTERPORT - Winterport Dragway will hold its eighth annual Spring Car Show, Drag Race and Swap Meet beginning at 8 a.m. Saturday, June 7. The event will feature a Street Night and Camp-Out Weekend with a Gassa Guys Nostalgia Reunion, Gamblers Race, ATV Challenge and Lawn Mower-Small Tractor Shootout. Races also will be held Sunday, June 8, and will feature a Pontiac Day, Winterport Residents Day and Bikes-Sleds Shootout.

Old Town Councilors Ok School, City Budgets

OLD TOWN - The City Council gave final approval Monday night to proposed city and school budgets that will mean a mill rate increase for residents, who will vote June 10 on the budget proposals. The council voted 6-1 on the proposed increases of 6.29 percent for both the city and school budgets for the fiscal year that starts July 1, which would put the new mill rate at $17.45 per thousand, up from the current $16.60.

Courts

Millinocket District Court Cases May 1-15

Bangor Council Oks School Budget

BANGOR - In a series of eight consecutive unanimous votes Monday, city councilors approved a $41.5 million school budget for the fiscal year ahead during a special meeting at City Hall. The school budget now goes to city voters, who for the first time are being asked to approve it either at the polls on June 10, the day set for the statewide primary elections, or sooner, through the early voting program that kicked off Monday at the Bangor Civic Center.

Hermon Town, School Budget to Keep Taxes Stable

HERMON - When town and school officials sat down to draft the 2008-2009 budget, they had one common goal - tax rate stability. The proposed 2008-2009 school and municipal budget came in at $17.5 million, a nearly $1.3 million increase. Despite the 7.9 percent increase, residents shouldn't expect major fluctuations in tax bills, since the revenues and town's valuation also rose, said Town Manager Clint Deschene. The mill rate is expected to settle around 11.1, or $11.10 per $1,000 in valuation...

Fuel Causes Biggest Hike in Sad 38 Budget

ETNA - There are few surprises in the proposed SAD 38 2008-2009 budget, according to a school official. The proposed $3.57 million budget is an increase of nearly $250,000, or almost 7.5 percent, when compared to last year, said Superintendent John Backus. Residents of Etna and Dixmont will pay $68,500 more than they did last year to support the $956,000 locally- supported portion of the budget.

Dixmont Boy Scout Earns Eagle Designation

DIXMONT - The town now boasts a new Eagle Scout. Andrew Braley was awarded his Eagle Scout rank on May 17 at the Etna-Dixmont School in front of his family, friends and fellow Scouts. He is the son of Karl and Carolyn Munster.

Alcohol May Have Been Factor in Eddington Crash, Police Say

Deputies from the Penobscot County Sheriff's Department continued Monday to investigate the cause of a single-vehicle crash over the weekend in Eddington. Alcohol is suspected to be a contributing factor in the accident early Saturday morning which snapped a power pole and sent two people to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor with minor injuries, Deputy John Knappe said Monday.

Milestones

BANGOR - Brendan Murphy of John Bapst Memorial High School has been honored by President George W. Bush with the 2007 Presidential Award for Excellence in mathematics and science teaching, the nation's higher honor for teaching in these fields. Murphy is the only math winner from Maine and one of 99 teachers nationwide to receive this award.

Good Will-Hinckley Gets Grant for Books

HINKLEY -The Laura Bush Foundation for America's Libraries has awarded a $3,900 Grant to Good Will-Hinckley to purchase school library books. The funds will purchase 270 new books representing a variety of interest areas and will further the foundation's goal to provide books most needed to support learning and develop a love of reading.

Hampden Students Looking to Volunteer

HAMPDEN - A group of four students from Reeds Brook Middle School is looking for any form of volunteer work to help out the community. Although they are open to suggestions, the group would enjoy spending time with the elderly, helping out with small tasks around the house, or just talking to someone in need of a friend.

Bangor Garden Club Plans Coastal Bus Trip

BANGOR - The Bangor Garden Club will host a bus trip to the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens in Boothbay Harbor Tuesday, July 15. The trip will be a fundraiser to support the Garden Club's civic plantings and scholarship at UMO.

2 Americorps Volunteers Helping River Trust

Community liaison-outreach coordinator Cheryl Daigle of Penobscot River Restoration Trust e-mailed recently that the organization "has two AmeriCorps volunteers working with us this summer, on community outreach, focused on the effort to restore sea-run fish to the river, while rebalancing energy production." The volunteers are Ashley Hoskins of Bucksport, who is enrolled in the parks, recreation and tourism program at the University of Maine, and Jillian Allen of Old Town, who is majoring in...

Two Men Indicted in Mistaken Identity Beating

BANGOR - Two men were indicted Monday by the Penobscot County grand jury in connection with the April 17 beating of a Virginia man with a hammer and a baseball bat in an apparent case of mistaken identity. Christopher Brown, 31, of Brewer and Edward Record, 31, of Bucksport were indicted on charges of robbery, aggravated assault and burglary. Brown also was indicted on three counts of unlawful trafficking of scheduled drugs and unlawful possession of scheduled drugs stemming from an unrelated...

Usda Makes Available Some Acreage for Hay

SKOWHEGAN - The U.S. Department of Agriculture has authorized some acreage enrolled under the conservation reserve program to be available for hay and forage after the primary nesting season ends for grass-nesting birds. Valerie L. Porter, Somerset County executive director of USDA's Farm Service Agency, said the action is designed to provide much- needed feed and forage while maintaining the conservation.

Dirigo Claims $190m in '07 Savings

The Dirigo Health Agency announced Monday that it saved the Maine health care system $190.2 million during 2007, the fourth year of Gov. John Baldacci's multifaceted Dirigo Health initiatives. The figure represents a significant increase over previous years. The agency faces stiff opposition from Maine insurance companies, businesses and health care policyholders who will have to pay the agency an as-yet-undetermined portion of the calculated savings to fund its operating expenses and subsidi...