AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Gov. Janet Mills plans to act within “a reasonable amount of time” on whether to remove a sheriff accused of improprieties following the completion of two days of hearings Wednesday, a spokesperson said.
Former Supreme Judicial Court Justice Donald Alexander, who presided over the sessions Monday and Wednesday, will make a recommendation whether Oxford County Sheriff Christopher Wainwright should be fired, but the final decision lies with the governor.
Wainwright has been accused of urging a deputy to go easy on an acquaintance cited for a traffic violation, letting two school resource officers carry guns even though they lacked the necessary certifications and transferring dozens of guns from an evidence locker to a dealer for sale without proper notification or documentation.
The sheriff, who was was elected in 2018 and reelected in 2022, said he believed he had the authority to sell the guns and did not benefit from the transaction. He also said that he was not involved in the hiring of the school resource officers in 2018, when he was chief deputy, and that he made a mistake in intervening in the traffic ticket.
Hairy Biker Dave Myers left wife Liliana £1.4m it's revealed
China warns 'military fans' they could face prison for posting photos online
Pharmac inks deal with GlaxoSmithKline for new cancer, HIV and COPD drugs
Shocking video of a Rottweiler mauling 2
Trump suffers pair of setbacks as judges reject calls to dismiss charges
Ombudsman decries lack of change in prisons since Covid
New Year likely to see highest number of temporary jobs since 2013
Judge declines to dismiss lawsuits filed against rapper Travis Scott over deadly Astroworld concert
New York appeals court rejects Donald Trump’s third request to delay Monday's hush money trial