Justia Maine Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed the order entered by the district court dismissing Grandmother's petition for grandparent visitation for lack of standing, holding that there was no error.Grandmother petitioned against Mother and Father for visitation rights with the three children at issue in this case under the Grandparents and Great-grandparents Visitation Act, Me. Rev. Stat. 19-A, 1801-1806. The district court dismissed the petition for lack of standing, concluding that Grandmother did not prove that she had a sufficient existing relationship with the children. The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed, holding that the court applied the correct standard of proof and that the record did not compel the court to make factual findings in Grandmother's favor. View "Fiske v. Fiske" on Justia Law

The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed Defendant's conviction for operating under the influence, entered after a jury trial, holding that Defendant was not entitled to relief on her allegations of error.After a trial, a jury found Defendant guilty of operating under the influence and of having a blood-alcohol level of .15 grams or more per 210 liters of breath at the time of the offense. The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed, holding that the trial court (1) did not err in denying Defendant's challenge for cause to a prospective juror based on implied bias; and (2) did not violate Defendant's constitutional rights by factoring into her sentence the court's view that her testimony was untruthful without making perjury findings. View "State v. Hemminger" on Justia Law

The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed in part and vacated in part the summary judgment entered by the superior court in favor of the City of Lewiston on the City's land use complaint alleging two violations of City ordinances, holding that the court did not have the discretion to allow William Verrinder to pay less than the minimum statutory penalty for each violation.On appeal, Verrinder argued that the superior court erred in concluding that his challenge to the City's notice of violation was barred by the doctrine of administrative res judicata and that the financial penalties imposed for the violations were unconstitutionally excessive. The Supreme Judicial Court vacated in part, holding (1) the superior court correctly determine that the City was entitled to judgment as a matter of law; but (2) the court erred in making the civil penalties it imposed for the two separate violations concurrent with each other rather than cumulative. View "City of Lewiston v. Verrinder" on Justia Law

The Supreme Judicial Court dismissed this appeal from a decision of the superior court denying the City of Bangor's motion for summary judgment in a personal injury suit brought by the estate of Albert Bean (the Estate), holding that an issue of fact remained as to the City's insurance coverage.Following Bean's death, his widow and the Estate filed a complaint against the City alleging negligence, wrongful death, and loss of consortium. The City moved for summary judgment, arguing that it was immune from liability pursuant to the Maine Tort Claims Act, 14 Me. Rev. Stat. 8101-8118, because it did not have insurance to cover the incident. The superior court denied the motion. The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed, holding that the City failed to meet its burden of establishing that there was no insurance coverage. View "Estate of Bean v. City of Bangor" on Justia Law

The Supreme Judicial Court vacated the judgment of the superior court affirming the judgment of the district court that denied Landlord's forcible entry and detainer (FED) action to oust Tenant from possession of Landlord's property, holding that Tenant's breach of the terms of its lease entitled Landlord to issuance of a writ of possession.The district court concluded that Landlord was not entitled to possession of the subject property because Tenant's failure to pay its rent was at least in part excused by the force majeure clause in the parties' lease. The Supreme Judicial Court vacated the judgment, holding that Tenant's breach of the terms of its lease entitled Landlord to issuance of a writ of possession. View "55 Oak Street LLC v. RDR Enterprises, Inc." on Justia Law

The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed Defendant's conviction for certain domestic violence incidents, including possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, holding that Defendant was not entitled to relief on his allegations of error.After a jury convicted him of six offenses Defendant appealed, raising several allegations of error. The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed, holding (1) the trial court did not err in denying Defendant's request for sanctions for the State’s alleged discovery violations; (2) the trial court did not commit obvious error by admitting testimony of a police officer, including certain statements under Me. R. Evid. 801(d)(1)(B); (3) the trial court did not abuse its discretion in admitting an unauthenticated letter that Defendant claimed was written on behalf of the victim; (4) the court did not err when it denied Defendant's motion to dismiss because of the makeup of the jury venire; and (5) there was sufficient evidence for the jury to have rationally found that every element of each count Defendant was convicted of was proved beyond a reasonable doubt. View "State v. Thomas" on Justia Law

The Supreme Judicial Court dismissed this appeal from an order entered in the business and consumer document granting a motion to dismiss Plaintiffs' complaint seeking to enforce a prior judgment awarding them damages for their claims against Defendants, holding that the appeal was interlocutory.Plaintiffs recorded writs of execution against Defendants but did not receive payment for the final judgment. Plaintiffs then filed a complaint to commence the enforcement action. Some of the defendants filed a motion to dismiss several counts, which the court granted. The Supreme Judicial Court dismissed the appeal, holding that the appeal was interlocutory and that no exception to the final judgment rule applied. View "Maples v. Compass Harbor Village Condominium Ass'n" on Justia Law

The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed the judgment of the trial court convicting Defendant of murdering a deputy sheriff and sentencing Defendant to life imprisonment, holding that there was no error.After his conviction, Defendant filed a motion for a new trial on the ground of newly discovered evidence. In the motion, Defendant asserted that a newly discovered disciplinary report concerning a member of the law enforcement team that arrested him could have been used as impeachment evidence at his trial. The trial court denied the motion. The Supreme Judicial Court affirmed, holding (1) Defendant failed to show the disciplinary report to him was favorable to him in the first instance; and (2) therefore, Defendant failed to show a reasonable probability that the report would have produced a different verdict at trial if it had been admitted into evidence. View "State v. Williams" on Justia Law

The Supreme Judicial Court vacated in part the judgment of the superior court affirming the Board of Environmental Protection's decision to upheld a cleanup order issued by the Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection pursuant to Me. Rev. Stat. 38, 1365 against Sultan Corporation for hazardous substances located on its property, holding that the Board improperly declined to address the availability of a third-party defense.In upholding the Commissioner's remediation order the Board expressly declined to reach the issue of whether the third-party defense afforded by Me. Rev. Stat. 38, 1367(3) was available to Sultan in an appeal of a Commissioner's section 1365 order because of the Board's conclusion that even if the defense were available, Sultan failed to prove the elements of the defense by a preponderance of the evidence. The superior court affirmed. The Supreme Judicial Court vacated the portion of the Board's order in which the Board declined to address the availability of the third-party defense, holding that the question of whether the defense was available was a threshold issue that must be determined before the Board or a court can consider the merits of the defense. View "Sultan Corporation v. Department of Environmental Protection" on Justia Law

The Supreme Judicial Court vacated the judgment of the trial court suppressing Defendant's blood test results in the State's prosecution of Defendant for operating under the influence, holding that the findings of the court did not support its legal conclusion that Defendant did not voluntarily give his consent.In suppressing the blood test results the trial court concluded that the blood draw was a result of simple acquiescence to the trooper's authority. On appeal, the State argued that the trial court erred in concluding that Defendant did not voluntarily consent to the blood draw. The Supreme Judicial Court agreed and reversed the the trial court's order suppressing the evidence, holding that, in the totality of the circumstances, holding that Defendant's response to the trooper's request objectively manifested free and voluntary consent. View "State v. Croteau" on Justia Law