CHESTERVILLE – A convicted felon living in Chesterville was arrested in connection with the rape and assault of a longtime woman friend.

Douglas Harris, 49, of 209 Adams Road was arrested by Franklin County Sheriff’s Department Deputy David Rackliffe after a short investigation.

According to the deputy, a Chesterville woman came to police asking how she could get a restraining order against a man who had been bothering her.

Harris was arrested and charged with felony Class B gross sexual assault, punishable by up to 10 years and a misdemeanor domestic-related assault, punishable by up to 364 days in prison.

Lewiston:

Brawl breaks out in bar; six arrested

LEWISTON – A love triangle, an upbeat country song on the Karaoke and a hurled pitcher of beer. Police said those classic ingredients started a barroom brawl that spilled onto Walnut Street.

One man was taken to a hospital after his head crashed through a pane of glass. A half dozen more were arrested in the brawl.

The fight ended with a pile of people battling in the middle of Walnut Street while police tried to break it up and sort out the details.

The scrap had started during Karaoke night at Del’s Bar and Grille.

It started about 8 p.m. when a woman was singing “Guys Do it all the Time” on the Karaoke, police said.

As the singer crooned, a man she knows walked in with another woman, according to a witness. Jealousy brewed in the bar and shortly after 8 p.m., someone hurled a pitcher of beer across the room.

Greene:

4 hurt in crash

on slick road

GREENE – Four people were injured when two cars and a sport utility vehicle collided on Route 202. Police said speed and slick roads were likely factors in the crash.

Police said Tyra Turgeon, 21, of Sabattus was driving north near the IGA when her vehicle skidded head-on into a car driven by John Chick, 44, of Monmouth, police said.

Both vehicles spun in the road, with Chick’s car landing in a snowbank. Turgeon’s van spun into a southbound car driven by Peggy Young of Monmouth, police said.

All three drivers as well as a passenger from Turgeon’s vehicle were taken to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston.

Lewiston:

City’s Bates Mill exit proceeding

LEWISTON – Councilors paved the way for a Bates Mill exit over the next few months, agreeing to let City Administrator Jim Bennett sign a contract with developers Bates Mill LLC.

Bennett said he expects to sign the contract with the business’ principal, Tom Platz, and his partners, after city attorneys have given the agreement one last look.

“Then, we’ll take a little time on both sides to work everything out,” Bennett said “I expect to close in about 90 days.”

Bennett said there have been few changes made to the deal since councilors last discussed it on Nov. 25.

“Mostly, it’s been word-smithing between our lawyers and their lawyers,” Bennett said. “They’ve finally gotten to the point where the words say what we told you they said, and both sides agree about what they say.”

Sabattus:

Resident told to follow sand rules

SABATTUS – Selectmen told a town resident that he must follow rules when obtaining sand from the town.

Selectman Chairman William Luce said Code Enforcement Officer Richard Behr caught Rick Therrien getting sand at the town garage. Luce said residents can take sand, but only from the transfer station and there is a two-bucket limit. He asked Therrien to keep the discussion civil.

“It was just sand and for them to call the cops on me. I wasn’t stealing town-owned property. My tax dollars paid for it,” Therrien said.

He also responded to a comment that he could have legally collected sand during the summer. “You can’t plan for winter snowstorms in the summertime,” Therrien said.

Lewiston:

Small changes made in Wal-Mart plan

LEWISTON – Wal-Mart’s grocery warehouse will be slightly taller and farther back from River Road and Plourde Parkway than planned.

Work on the retailer’s distribution center is to begin in April. “We’re getting closer to it, and the plans are getting more concrete,” said Deputy Development Director David Hediger.

Plans include adding another 6 feet on top of the warehouse, but reducing the building’s footprint by about 43 feet along the southern side. Original plans set the building height at 100 feet, and the size at 485,000 square feet.

“The end result is that the building is moving farther away from the intersection of River Road and Plourde Parkway,” Hediger said. “It’s a little change and shouldn’t have much impact.”

Hediger said the designs of machinery to be housed in the warehouse made the shape change needed. The building will be a huge grocery and produce transfer facility, full of conveyor belts and storage areas.

“Originally, they were planning to build a shell and then put the mechanics inside,” Hediger said. “Now, they’re planning on building the actual conveyors and mechanics into the building. To do that, they needed more room on top.”

Lisbon:

Selectmen seek to extend contract

LISBON – Selectmen have authorized Town Manager Curtis Lunt to begin negotiations for a new, longer contract with Earthtech Inc., the firm that operates the town’s wastewater treatment plant.

Their decision came after a performance review Tuesday night indicating “significant improvement” in the first six months of a one-year contract that began July 1.

Minot:

Lack of water closes school

MINOT – A crisis at the Minot Consolidated School gave students and teachers an early start on their holiday vacation.

A failed well prompted school officials to cancel school due to lack of water. No water means no school lunches and no use of bathrooms for the approximately 300 kindergarten through eighth-grade students. It also may mean between $5,000 and $20,000 in unbudgeted expenditures to resolve the problem, said school Principal Don Bilodeau.

“This has really created a crisis for the school,” said Bilodeau.

The school’s 50-year-old well is 220 feet deep and normally pumps 20 gallons per minute.

The problem was originally thought to be a failed pump caused by a power surge during high winds and heavy rains and snow. However, the problem has become more complicated and will probably mean putting in a new well, said Union 29 Assistant Superintendent Bill Doughty.

Minot:

Expansion at school supported

MINOT – School Committee officials said they support a parent group’s efforts to push forward a $2 million expansion at the Minot Consolidated School and that they have no problems with selectmen dealing directly with a parent group.

Selectmen Dean Campbell and Steve French told the School Committee that their board had received a draft copy of a petition that would place the expansion plan on the March town meeting warrant. Selectmen were asked to determine whether the petition’s wording passed legal muster.

“We are feeling stuck in the middle. If you folks aren’t thoroughly behind us, we want to know,” Campbell said.

Turner:

Stolen car found on frozen river

TURNER – A car reported stolen was found on the ice after being driven across the frozen Androscoggin River Wednesday morning.

Androscoggin Sheriff’s Sgt. Dan McGinley said investigators believe the car was driven onto the river at the boat launch on Center Bridge Road.

The car struck the bank on the other side of the river before being abandoned.

Lewiston:

Warren man’s charges reduced

LEWISTON – Charges were reduced Tuesday against one of two suspects nabbed a day earlier in a stick-up at a Lisbon Street pharmacy.

Originally arrested for robbery, 35-year-old Stephen Peterson was charged instead with hindering apprehension.

Police believe the Warren man waited in the car while Asa Troy Thorn, 30, went into Rite-Aid and demanded OxyContin from a store clerk.

The two men drove away from the scene moments before police arrived at the scene, according to witnesses. Investigators believe Peterson may have driven the getaway car at some point during their escape.

The pair was caught when a police officer pulled over the vehicle at Ferry and Apple roads minutes after the heist was reported.

Auburn:

Homeowner, neighbor douse small fire

AUBURN – A homeowner and her neighbor fought a small Hotel Road fire with an extinguisher Monday, helping to douse the fire before firefighters arrived.

No one was hurt and “minimal damage” resulted in the blaze at 253 Hotel Road, Fire Investigator Gary Simard said.

Reported to emergency workers at 1:27 p.m., the fire broke out in a second floor wall. Homeowner Gerry Brushwein said plumbers had been working in the same spot earlier in the day, soldering a heating pipe.

A neighbor who saw the smoke called for help and came over with an extinguisher.