The Norway man shot by police remained at
CMMC Monday.
LEWISTON – Prosecutors had to delay plans to arraign shooting victim Vince Berube on Monday because the 43-year-old Norway man was deemed unfit for the proceedings.
Shot by police last week, Berube was later charged with criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon and criminal mischief.
Investigators said Berube was shot at least a half-dozen times after he attacked an officer with a hammer in the police yard. He is expected to recover from those injuries and from knife wounds police believe were self-inflicted.
Portland lawyer Tom Goodwin was assigned to represent Berube in the criminal case. On Monday, police and prosecutors planned to go to Central Maine Medical Center with a court justice to read Berube an explanation of the charges against him.
However, medical experts determined the patient was not well enough to participate.
“I haven’t been able to talk to him and he wouldn’t have been able to listen to what was going on,” Goodwin said.
Once Berube is arraigned or indicted, the duty of guarding his room will pass from Lewiston police to the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office.
Lewiston police have kept an officer posted at the hospital since Berube was charged with smashing up police cruisers and attacking Officer Carley Conley last Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Berube’s family has asked that CMMC not release any details about his condition to the press or police. Instead, all information will be related by Berube’s lawyer.
“I have agreed to keep the court apprised of his medical condition,” Goodwin said.
He expects the arraignment will take place sometime at the start of next week. He did not know how long Berube would be in the hospital.
Officials from the Attorney General’s Office are investigating the circumstances that led to the police shooting. Local police have called it a “clean shooting,” saying Berube attacked Conley and would not surrender even after the first shots were fired.
Two officers who ran into the police compound from the station also fired at Berube until the suspect fell to the ground.
The three officers involved in the shooting remained on duty, although they were being kept off patrol rounds while the investigation continued.
mlaflamme@sunjournal.com
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.