PORTLAND – A lawsuit alleging that a former Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School guidance counselor sexually assaulted a former student has been dismissed, according to Cumberland County Superior Court documents.
Judge Thomas Delahanty II signed a dismissal order July 5 after the complainant, Matthew Higgins, 20, of Portland, failed to provide information requested by a defense attorney.
A counterclaim against Higgins previously filed by defendant Craig Howland, formerly of Lovell, was not dismissed.
Howland’s attorney, Lenny Sharon of Auburn, could not be reached for comment Tuesday. However the counterclaim, filed March 17, alleges Higgins was guilty by “comparative default” and made false statements to four different newspapers. Higgins’ conduct “was deliberate in such a way that was certain to result in injuries” to Howland, the document states. It accuses Higgins of showing malice and calls for the award of punitive damages.
The counterclaim also alleges Higgins “has engaged in this course of conduct with others in which he makes false allegations of sexual misconduct in order to make financial gain.”
Higgins’ attorney, Sean Farris of Gardiner, denied such claims in an answer filed March 31. He requested that the counterclaim be dismissed.
Farris could not be reached for comment Tuesday. Nor could attorney Elizabeth Stouder of Portland, who represented the school district and high school. On May 25, Stouder filed a motion to dismiss Higgins’ complaint after he failed to answer discovery requests and to set a deposition date.
Higgins filed his lawsuit in the Cumberland County Superior Court on Jan. 3, alleging he was assaulted by Howland eight to 11 times in 2001, when he was 16 and still a resident of Oxford Hills.
Howland, the town of Oxford, the Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School and SAD 17 all were named as defendants in the lawsuit.
Comments are no longer available on this story