LEWISTON — A Bates College senior who mugged for news cameras after a campus melee in the spring was arrested once more Sunday.
Bates security and medical personel take care of Paul Chiampa after he was arrested at the end of school this past spring.
Police said Paul Chiampa, 21, was caught drinking during his first weekend back at the college, a violation of bail conditions set when he was charged in the fracas in May.
He was arrested shortly after midnight on Frye Street and charged with violating conditions of release.
On Tuesday, Chiampa appeared in court where he pleaded not guilty to the charge. He remained free on $200 bail.
Chiampa, of Pembroke, Mass., achieved brief fame in the spring when he was photographed, handcuffed but grinning and sticking out his tongue, as the early-morning melee was brought under control by police.
He was charged with refusing to submit to arrest and failing to disperse in the fracas that left a Lewiston police officer with a broken leg.
Ten other students were also arrested as police from several agencies swarmed on the college where they clashed with an estimated 300 students.
Lewiston police later said they had been called to help at the campus party after Bates security reported a large group of students who refused to make way for an ambulance.
Police said half of the group dispersed immediately but the other half refused to leave, which led to the clash. In the days following the incident, some Bates students protested, claiming police had used excessive force.
Chiampa, a chemistry major and a pitcher for the Bates College baseball team, could not be reached Wednesday for comment on the latest arrest. He is next scheduled to appear in court on Nov. 23.
Whether Chiampa's legal woes could threaten his academic future at Bates remained unclear. College spokesman Bryan McNulty said he could not speak about the status of a specific student.
However, the school does have policies to deal with such matters.
"It's not uncommon for a number of students to be suspended by the Student Conduct Committee for disciplinary reasons in a given year," McNulty said. "Each case is considered on its own evidence and circumstances."
Whether those policies apply to Chiampa is open to interpretation.
The Bates Student Handbook states that "any student who becomes disorderly, is involved in a disturbance, interferes with the rights of others, damages property, brings the name of the college into disrepute, or is individually or as a member of a group involved in unacceptable social behavior on or off campus shall be subject to disciplinary action by the Student Conduct Committee.”
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