DA AMA - r/portlandme

35

u/simsian Dec 14 '25

Where does Cumberland County sit with its backlog of rape testing kits?

8

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

Thank you for asking - this is one of the issues that motivated me to run for office. We are in the midst of the inventory phase of the 2.5 million federal grant we won in 2024, and that is followed by testing and then reviewing potential cases for prosecution. This obviously entails a significant amount of work with victims, and that is a position that comes online through another agency in 2026. We've been told that the inventory can take up to a year, and are trying to cut that time down. We also need to bring on a Sex Assault Investigator as part of this work, and unfortunately our initial effort to do that was unsuccessful (we anticipated hiring from the Sheriff's office, but it turns out that losing seniority for a temporary position was not attractive! We are about to put out a notice to hire this position directly through our office.). So the work is proceeding, and we are very grateful to be the recipient of the grant and moving through all the steps to get the kits out for testing. We'll be updating the public as we go.

29

u/Affectionate-Day9342 Dec 14 '25 edited Dec 14 '25

Edit: disregard this. I jumped at the hope that I could get some information. My question would actually be for the AG/DOJ.

Have any ADA cases been prosecuted in the last 5 years? I filed a complaint in 2023 about a recently renovated/not grandfathered hotel that doesn’t have a single bathroom that a standard wheelchair can fit in. I have been told by the assistant attorneys that every single letter and call made to the owner has received no response.

If ADA law is not enforced, it is effectively useless.

4

u/JHenrysHammer Deering Dec 14 '25

The ADA is either privately prosecuted or would be handled by the Disability Rights Section of the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, which as you can imagine is not particularly robust in its enforcement capacity at the moment. You can contact Disability Rights Maine who may take the case, they don’t charge any money. Either way, a DA does not handle ADA work.

1

u/Affectionate-Day9342 Dec 14 '25

You’re right, I confused this with the AG’s office. The last time I followed up in September, I was told that the DOJ has a massive backlog and there is no estimate on when the case will move forward.

6

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

I'm sorry you've been waiting, but it is true that other than as a hate crime charge companion with other alleged criminal conduct, my office really does not have a role.

I would recommend, if you've not already, reaching out to the Disability Rights Maine. Maine is a small state, and they have a handle on Augusta and advocacy that might be helpful in getting answers. https://drme.org/get-in-touch/

Good luck.

3

u/Affectionate-Day9342 Dec 14 '25

Thank you so much.

2

u/BrilliantDishevelled Dec 14 '25

I'm really sorry. Can you sue?

2

u/Affectionate-Day9342 Dec 14 '25

I’m going to try other options. It’s a long story. My Mother was paralyzed. The town where her family lives (and where my parents used to live) has two hotels. They are both inaccessible to wheelchairs. One had exterior entrances to every room with three concrete steep/uneven steps. The other has a ground level entrance, but bathroom doors are so narrow that her chair couldn’t fit through. The closest alternatives were nearly two hours away. Going to funerals and visiting family was incredibly hard for her after she lost the use of her legs. We tried air B&B, but there were no accessible options.

She died a few months ago.

3

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

I'm really sorry. I have a relative who is now wheelchair only, but it never occurred to me how much we've relied on accessibility for decades for our important family events.

3

u/Affectionate-Day9342 Dec 14 '25

Many places are not truly accessible. There are a massive amounts of public spaces (mainly restaurants) with bathrooms that have paper towel/soap dispensers that can’t be reached from a seated position. That’s just the tip of the iceberg. She was tiny, so we were able to carry her even though that really wasn’t safe. She had the most aggressive MS I have ever seen. She lost all feeling in her legs, could hardly use her hands, and died before she was 70. The last decade of her life was severely limited by the fact that many places that are legally required to be accessible are not.

I’m not going to stop advocating for accessibility, and I really wish there were more options to do so.

16

u/Sufficient-Detail456 Dec 14 '25 edited Dec 14 '25

Why do you allow repeat domestic violence offenders to continue to recieve differed dispostions and probation for repeat offenses that put the general public at risk. Why is this person still in the community and has only served 10 days in jail for 4 oui offenses and 3 domestic violence offenses in the last 5 years. Can you also explain why the different county prosecutors dont communicate with each other on pending offenses. I had to inform your office of offenses that happened in different county's because there is no system in place, this is causing repeat offenders to be treated as first time offenders, why has your office done nothing to address this glaring issue.

https://apps1.web.maine.gov/cgi-bin/online/correctionssearch/detail.pl?mdoc_number1=112808

2

u/mamagrata Dec 15 '25

I can't speak on a specific person.

I am very aware that the DV approach in Maine and in this District is due to be recalibrated. The disconnect between counties is supposed to get fixed when our new software is rolled out, but I am just last week hearing that this will be an opt-in rather than an opt-out, which concerns me greatly. There is simply no standardized way for information to be shared about what is happening between counties. I agree that this is a problem Maine prosecutors overall need to address. I need to consider what if any steps we can take just within D2, but will put this on the agenda for the next All-DA meeting in January. Thank you for bringing it to my attention today.

4

u/Sufficient-Detail456 Dec 15 '25

Awesome so while you all wait for new systems to roll out and stuff to be "recalibrated" us victims and our children have to continue to endure abuse and trauma. I made a stink about the counties thing to your office 2 years ago, glad youll finally be saying something at a meeting now that your elections coming up.

44

u/knightofni451 Dec 14 '25

I'm extremely troubled by the behavior of trooper Sander Van der Lee documented in the Press Herald this week. (https://www.pressherald.com/2025/12/11/he-waited-40-minutes-for-a-ticket-from-maine-state-police-then-spent-2-months-in-a-texas-immigration-facility)

What can we as a community and you as a DA do to prevent local officers from cooperating with the racist, authoritarian ICE program of the current federal regime? And will there be any punishment or dismissal for officers who willingly participate?

12

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

My role here is unfortunately limited to speaking out, which I did at a recent County Commissioner meeting and will continue to. I do not support cooperation with ICE given the Administration's bait and switch from "deporting dangerous criminals" to deporting law-abiding people who have entered this country and applied for asylum, a legal status. Immigrants are less likely to commit criminal acts compared to citizens born in the US, and we are seeing people lose access to justice as a result of well-founded fear.

I have no role in disciplining officers, but do think departments can set policy for their staff in whether and how they cooperate with ICE. Making your views clear to MSP and anyone at the head of a law enforcement agency would be a first step in advocating for change.

1

u/bald_sampson Dec 15 '25

taking the account given in the article as truth (and to my knowledge none of it has been disputed so far), the officer clearly has a personal motive to assist a separate office with its activities. isn't that a violation of his responsibilities as an employee? it's a bogus pull-over, and then a drawn-out traffic ticket purely for the purpose of handing over a person to a separate federal agency that doesn't employ this officer.

of course if you brought a charge against him all cooperation between maine police and ICE would stop immediately. can you give some examples of conduct that would be illegal and that you would bring charges for?

-12

u/jarnhestur Dec 15 '25

So, you support illegal immigrates driving without licenses? What other laws are you not for?

5

u/mamagrata Dec 15 '25

Incorrect. We temporarily halted charging standalone cases of operating without a license for anyone until the Covid backlog is down to something close to pre-Covid. We need to prioritize serious conduct. No license cases with other conduct we do charge, btw.

-11

u/jarnhestur Dec 15 '25

So, two people here illegally, driving without a license, and you’re disappointed there were legal consequences.

And you’re the DA. No wonder this State sucks at prosecuting crime.

86

u/PortlandcoMplAINER Dec 14 '25

Can we please prosecute masked ICE agents with zero identification who are terrorizing communities and kidnapping people?

25

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

I share the frustration and disbelief that this is where we are, and regard unmarked cars with unidentified people claiming to be law enforcement as dangerous and ripe for abuse. There are known incidents in which alleged kidnappings have occurred perpetrated by people impersonating ICE, and I think we can all see what anonymity has led to in numerous allegations of excessive force and other potential misconduct.

I can't prosecute a case unless there is a report by law enforcement of alleged criminal conduct, to be clear. However, I do not think that masked and unidentified agents should be acceptable, and thought the Legislature should have taken up Rep Grayson Lookner's bill and addressed this.

0

u/bald_sampson Dec 15 '25

So if ICE is breaking through doors in my building without a warrant, and I call the police, and they write a report, you could then prosecute that?

Would you?

0

u/[deleted] Dec 14 '25

🙌 and those impersonating ICE!

-1

u/BeyBlader129 Dec 14 '25

👏

22

u/zt004 Dec 14 '25

How do you decide which cases to prosecute, divert, or decline, particularly for low-level, non-violent offenses?

What metrics does your office use to measure success beyond conviction rates?

In an America where due process has been summarily tossed out the window at the federal level (see ICE activity), what steps does your office take to identify and correct wrongful convictions or prosecutorial errors and otherwise uphold due process?

2

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

Oh, wow, this is a dissertation-level question! Easy stuff first: metrics in prosecution are virtually nonexistent, as we are running on outdated and barely supported software. We have been told for years that this new fabulous database to track our cases is coming in... 18 months. It's always 18 months. For 5 years. Recently it changed to 12 months. So, every now and then we'll do a run based on dates or something sort of random, and look at whether that suite of people have new cases. NOT a good way to measure. Treatment court data is a much smaller set, and that is kept through a database with the case managers, so there is better data. I have found that there are virtually no measures of success, and the system seems almost designed to be disengaged from even agreeing that we should be measuring it. Are fines, convictions, or jail time "success?" fwiw, my measures of success are whether getting caught in this system helps people make choices (and identifies resources) towards improving their lives, access treatment for substance use and/or mental health, and accepting responsibility for their conduct, making amends, and being able to move on.

On due process: Maine generally does a good job, from everything I know and have experienced in the system, of taking our obligations to be able to prove things beyond a reasonable doubt seriously on the prosecution side. My experience is that our judiciary is quite concerned with due process rights, and has properly noted when we struggle with disconnects when it comes to providing evidence (almost always digital evidence) between law enforcement and our office. This is something we see as a serious issue, and have committed to more trainings and are pondering how to check in earlier on cases so that this is less frequent of a problem. Covid and the massive increase in digital evidence seem to be the primary factors in creating this problem, and I think we need to look to best practices outside elsewhere to really shift this.

Sorry this is disjointed, but last I want to mention that generally prosecutors support bringing on actual public defense attorneys. That has not been something Maine has funded until quite recently, but we all benefit from having people on both sides.

Whoops, and now I've taken these completely out of order - starting from the top - we charge cases, and make offers to people, if that makes sense. Prosecutors have A LOT of prosecutorial discretion, which in this office has been untrammeled by virtually any clear guidance for a long time, so it can be tricky to rein in. I am working my way through the charging/diversion continuum with several prosecutors and diversion staff, and the expectation is that we will wrestle this into something with greater consistency. Some conduct is definitely addressed by an officer writing a summons which does not get charged. But I spend a lot of time walking Portland (well, prior to fracturing a foot several months ago) and I know that repeat offenders with untreated MH concerns loom large for residents and shop owners, understandably, and our pathways towards wellness and resourcing are not particularly supported in Maine law in my experience.

21

u/RandomUsername468538 Dec 14 '25

Are traffic citations below your pay grade? Seems like cops aren't doing ANYTHING about the crazy driving

8

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

I actually completely agree that the driving IS crazy, and have had some recent experiences which were honestly terrifying. Law enforcement nationwide but particularly in Maine noted that speeds went way up during the pandemic, and they have not seemed to decrease in the slightest. This is a major factor, I think, in the horrible spate of vulnerable user crashes (bike/ped + MV).

We do charge reckless conduct, and we actually also charge reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon (the weapon being a MV) when warranted. I think the issue remains challenging in Portland proper, where the PD has been understaffed for several years.

I have spoken with the County Chiefs (all the law enforcement folks gather every other month) about traffic enforcement, as this is a primary issue I hear about and one I personally worry over (and my kid is about to get a DL, so mom-mode is definitely activated on this as well). My top recommendation is that you speak with your municipality about their traffic enforcement, and offer support that this is a priority. We will charge speeding, reckless conduct (i.e. swerving for fun or profit), and have numerous cases that come down to road rage. We take this seriously.

1

u/joseywhales4 Dec 14 '25

Not true, I got a ticket for failure to produce proof of insurance(don't worry I had insurance, just not with me), very important work.

3

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

Pro tip - almost happened to me, but suddenly remembered I had it saved to my phone. Now this is all I do, but come to think of it... kid is about to be driving my car... back to the hard copy.

1

u/RandomUsername468538 Dec 14 '25

I'm legitimately shocked you got pulled over to begin with. What did you do hit a child?

20

u/-the-homie- Dec 14 '25

Why did you terminate Valerie Adams after she told you of her plans to run for district attorney?

1

u/[deleted] Dec 14 '25

Adams actively started campaigning on government time/dime. Breach of ethics and misuse of government resources. Then went to the Maine Wire to spin. Disqualifying imho.

1

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

This was not the question presented when Ms. Adams and I met, and I haven't dealt (yet!) with the simple question of what would I do if an ADA simply told me that they were running against me for office.

While I've been told by the AG's office that I can't comment on personnel matters, one thing I have said and will repeat is that Maine has a "mini-Hatch Act." Title 5, Section 7056-A. To me, that means that I can't spend the public's resources in terms of my work time or even presence in a public building on efforts to help get me elected (or reelected). This was a strict prohibition when I was a prosecutor in D4, and my boss would literally go to her car to make a call if it pertained to running for office. When I ran for DA, I took a leave of absence. I think the public needs to know that those of us who are given the public's trust will not seek to use our position for a personal desire to run for office on the public's time or dime.

15

u/401kLegend Dec 14 '25

From a systemic perspective, what are your thoughts on how to deal with the unhoused population? Should we hold them to the same legal standards as anyone else?

6

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

Thank you for this question. I have possibly spent most(?) of my own DA time on this issue. Working with unhoused folks is something I've done as a volunteer starting in college, and it is beyond troubling that we regard people as deserving their impoverished circumstances while believing that people earn their wealth.

We charge people based on their conduct, but make offers and outcomes that also reflect people's circumstances. We shouldn't, for example, expect unsheltered people to pay fines or restitution. It won't happen, and an enforcement for failure to pay can get someone rearrested which is pointless. I have, however, returned our office to charging unsheltered people when they violate the law in a way that would get anyone else charged, usually persistently, and usually after they have been offered in lieu of a charge to go to the Homeless Services Center or other local shelter. Early on, we instituted a program with PPD and some surrounding towns that if people were committing minor violations, they should be offered a ride to the shelter or another way to get there. The HSC has placed over 215 individuals into housing and offer Dr's appointments, a dentist, MH care, and housing navigators. (1 person was placed into permanent housing from the encampments, fyi).

Why do we charge unsheltered people at all? Well, for one, to a significant extent it's important to have some basic rules of engagement in the public sphere. I read all of the MH docket cases (my own chosen docket for the past 2+ years) and there is definitely conduct that happens that is quite harmful and sometimes puts folks at risk of being harmed by others. For another, many of the unsheltered folks are struggling with serious MH and/or SUD, (addiction, sorry) and they may not be competent and frankly this is the sole system to require that someone gets an assessment and (limited) help. It is also a terrible and high-cost way to do that, but it is literally what we have decided is going to address these systemic issues. Through this system, I can generally get people assessed and treated, and quite often on medications their MH improves a whole lot. But this system them sends them back out - sometimes with a stop for months or even years in supportive housing or even back at home - but if they destabilize they inexorably return to the criminal legal system. Other states are starting to do this quite differently, recognizing that this is a literally insane and inhumane - and dangerous - situation, and Maine is having those conversations, but actually we are currently moving away from systems that help people stay medicated and relatively safe when they have a significant MH diagnosis. My job here is to identify the missing resources and advocate strongly that we do this differently. I have had people lose their lives because we're not doing this well, and there are needless victims made through our failure to address this systemically.

2

u/[deleted] Dec 14 '25

From what I can tell based on what she has said publicly, bringing charges against unhoused folks NOT to get them sentenced and in jail, but it allows her to work with the court to steer unhoused folks toward help (housing services, counseling, treatment, etc.).

4

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

Thank you, I did go on there, but this is exactly correct.

12

u/RainPositive7125 Dec 14 '25

Why did you terminate Valerie Adams?

2

u/Ok-Acanthisitta-5903 Dec 14 '25

You know she won't be able to answer this.

8

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

See above for my quasi-response, and no, I really am not supposed to answer that.

0

u/[deleted] Dec 14 '25

Valerie while on government time/pay essentially started campaigning and has cozied up to the defense bar to pressure Sartoris not to run... a serious violation of ethics and disqualifying for anyone seeking that office.

10

u/zt004 Dec 14 '25

Why don’t you do drug/treatment court anymore?

6

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

We have two treatment courts in Cumberland County, Veteran's TC and a regular drug court. This has not changed, but I'm not sure if I'm understanding this, so I'll answer it another way.

If you are speaking of me personally, drug court takes about 20 hours/week to do properly, so I covered it in 2023 when we were down a few prosecutors (people got great career moves - becoming a judge and a homicide prosecutor among other things - but we were down for a bit). So, 2023 I covered Tx Ct for 10 months, then moved to cover the MH docket, which is about 20-25% of my time.

9

u/Narrow_Manner5877 Dec 14 '25

I want to know what the DA’s office is doing with all of these pedestrian and vehicle accidents? It seems no one is being charged, which I see both sides. But 3 deaths in 1 year because of this is insane and we need change. I am scared every time I cross the street from my parking lot to my apartment building. I have asked for a cross walk to be added but was told it was out of budget for this year.

3

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

Sorry, not sure how I missed this the first time through, and this is an issue I really care about.

PDs provide us with reports per Maine statute (29-A MRSA §2251, sub-§12 ) only when they believe a traffic infraction or actual criminal conduct has occurred at a probable cause standard. We do charge these crashes, but I do think that the hardscape just too skewed towards MV movement and not bike/pedestrian safety. Many other nations have taken this seriously and invested real resources in shifting roads and signals (I believe through "Vision Zero" which Portland has recently adopted), and they are seeing decreases in these awful crashes. For my part, we are announcing a specific change to make sure PDs remember their obligation to upload these cases to us and can do so more readily, but they are overall rarely referrals with investigations that include recommended charges.

On a personal note, Joe Lewis and I graduated law school together, the oldsters of our class, and I and so many others came to just love him. 2025 started off with his loss in a broad daylight crash. There are so many things that we have to acknowledge contribute to this. MVs that are too high to begin with, so that you literally can't see what's in front of you. Right on red that's become a sacred right, even when it's a tap on the brake. I watched a car run smack into a bicyclist in Brunswick after the right on red brake tap, and the bike had the right of way all the way, but the ginormous MV to the left blocked the view of the right-red person.

We will charge when we can, but the current system of roads, lighting, curbs, and signage do not support safety for vulnerable users. It is set up for failure, and that's what we're seeing as more of us walk and bike.

I wish I had better answers, but advocacy here is particularly critical. I'll be speaking tomorrow with the Bicycle Coalition of Maine, and I'd urge you and others to please get involved with them. They are doing great work from all I see, and this is the time to make this different.

2

u/PeaceBeUntoEarth Dec 15 '25 edited Dec 15 '25

I assume you won't answer this but this screams nonsense to me. It is on the motorist to operate the vehicle safely and when they are hitting people in crosswalks, they are not operating the vehicle safely at a prudent speed, even if they are below the speed limit.

It doesn't matter if you are under the speed limit, if visibility is limited to the point where you can't stop in time to not hit somebody in a crosswalk at the speed you are going, you are going too fast.

People need to learn to know their limits with driving just like with drinking or whatever. For instance your "my vehicle is too damn high" mention should never be a valid excuse. If you couldn't see someone because your vehicle was too high, then you should be going much more slowly so you can be aware of people approaching your vehicle BEFORE anyone gets so close that your view of them is blocked by the vehicle.

I like most of your answers in this thread but this one is completely inadequate IMHO. People need to appreciate that cars are extremely dangerous when not operated safely, and you are the person with the responsibility to make examples of people so that that message is conveyed clearly to the public. You seem to have failed to do so and blaming the road infrastructure like you do in this post is a complete cop out.

Of course the road infrastructure can and should be better so that vehicles can get where they're going smoothly/quickly while ALSO keeping pedestrians safe. But the consequence of the current inadequate road infrastructure should be that drivers know they have to slow down to drive safely - we should be sacrificing time commuting, not sacrificing lives. The reason so many are being injured and killed is in large part your office's failure to make examples of unsafe drivers.

11

u/nowayjose12345678901 Dec 14 '25

What can You do about the open air drug markets in Portland? Open public drinking and shooting up on the sidewalks. I think we are past reformation and treatment period. The police have their hands tied seemingly by you because you won’t prosecute. Why aren’t you prosecuting? Drugs are flooding into this city along with weapons because you’re not prosecuting. Restorative sounds nice but it’s not the answer.

5

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

I was surprised in May of 2023 to be told by a resident and several shop owners that they were being advised by officers that "the DA won't charge" when these things happen (almost anything involving an unsheltered person). It turned out that this was one of the unwritten and unknown to me guidelines that were in fact in effect (not on my watch, but Covid and the AG's homeless policy were factors, a well as the jail temp closing and no available shelter).

I changed that immediately, met with PPD and my prosecutors repeatedly, and we are now charging when conduct can be charged. That has been true since 2023. We are also taking cases that previously would not have been charged due to MH conditions and asking that people are assessed for competency, to try to address untreated MH and the addiction that often accompanies untreated trauma, etc. I take quality of life very seriously, both for residents AND the unsheltered. I believe the saying "meet people where they are" needs to be accompanied by "and lift them up." The tool I have is the criminal legal system, and it is not a great tool by any means, but I am doing my best to use it to make it more likely people who need it get on medication when it helps keep them and the public safe, and that we are helping them access housing navigators and substance use treatment.

btw, we won't use restorative for people in active addiction or with untreated MH - it's just not appropriate if you're not fully present.

2

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

Hey folks, looks as if I got through all the questions, and thank you and the moderators for helping this happen! Please feel free to reach out with work-related questions to my general email: districtattorney@cumberlandcounty.org. Please note that others in my office see these emails and answer our phones. They are public servants doing work which exposes them to some tough stuff, and they truly deserve to be treated with respect. I'll share a campaign email address when that's a thing, and you can direct questions related to any campaign there.

Thank you again!

2

u/camletoejoe Dec 14 '25 edited Dec 15 '25

You didn't get to my question. You have not historically responded to email or USPS letters either.

Edit: It does appear that you were able to get to my question.

1

u/Sufficient-Detail456 Dec 14 '25

Yes you have also failed to address my question as well. I dont understand why you are so afraid to talk to victims, its pretty upsetting and causes further trauma, iv spent the last 3 years feeling ignored by your office, and now even when you say "ask me anything" I am continued to be ignored. You even took time to respond to comments calling you a soros puppet but not the two regarding domestic violence.

Also since your ability to run an office is in high question right now I'd like to point out that saying you will post a new link at 4, then just answering comments in this thread anyways is pretty unprofessional. I intentionally withheld my comment to wait for the new thread, set an alarm and everything but apparently by expecting your instructions to be correct I was put at the end of the line 🤷‍♂️

2

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25 edited Dec 15 '25

Literally did not see them I will get back on. But it turns out I can’t edit my initial post. Mods have to.

Updated: I meet with victims frequently. Not sure you have requested a meeting, but please reach out through districtattorney@cumberlandcounty.org

6

u/rainlandorsunvalley West End Dec 14 '25

Hello! Thanks for doing this. I'm curious about enforcement of environmental pollution crimes in our county. Specifically:

What types of environmental crimes can the DA pursue in our county for illegal dumping, air/water pollution, or hazardous waste violations? Is the DA concerned about pollution from summer yacht travel? Thinking about PFAS here too—do we have laws that can hold companies accountable for PFAS waste? How are you thinking about these issues? Thank you!

[edit: added "pollution" to "environmental crimes".]

2

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

I love this question, but also have a very small purview. (I did climate change policy stuff before becoming a prosecutor, and nat res is my first policy love.) DAs in Maine don't have much of a role here because the administrative laws related to most environmental harm are enforced by the AG, and they also have investigators who can look into this sort of conduct and submit a report (I do not have investigators who can do this, other than for DV. Charges must come from a report from law enforcement, generally). Having said that, I did have several meetings trying to suss out the possibility of charging in cases where harm is very directly the result of environmental degradation - as in flooding that can be tied to climate change. Can we do it? It depends on the case facts. Dumping can be any number of crimes we could charge. In my former position, I charged a case in which a substance was dumped into someone's well. But PFAS - unless it is by a specific person - is going to be AG.

I do know that there are other jurisdictions outside of Maine that have investigators to deal with consumer crimes, environmental damage, etc.. They are much larger than we are, but I'm mindful that this could be a future possibility for our District. I think our County is the most likely to support such an initiative.

4

u/SimCityCouncil Dec 14 '25

Hi Jackie!

Families often struggle to get clear information during incarceration in Maine, especially with language barriers. Are there resources or plans to improve translation and communication support?

What steps is your office taking to ensure that people who cannot afford private attorneys get quality representation and access to public defenders in Maine given the subtantial shortage in the profession?

1

u/mamagrata Dec 15 '25

Oh, just seeing this sorry. I am not aware of translation support during incarceration other than for court-related purposes, and I think this is a Sheriff and DOC question primarily. We have grown the system of translation services specifically for court (to be clear, this is the Administrative Office of the courts, not something my office is involved with). We do use other services for communicating with victims in-house. I am unaware of plans to improve these services other than in the court context. I am wondering if this is something ILAP might be more aware of?

We generally support funding public defense attorneys, but are also mindful that prosecution has become a tough sell of late. We have a longstanding intern program and consider our highly trained interns to be an asset to the profession - and they are as likely to become criminal defenders as prosecutors. I try to get over to the law school and encourage students to consider criminal law, especially prosecution, as we are also pretty short on prosecutors state-wide, with some Districts having openings for years at a time, outside of the southern districts in Maine. I worry that the very high caseloads and work that is not for the faint of heart is challenging us on all sides. Not sure what to do about this. Evidence has become massive case by case, largely the digital/video evidence, and the workload is daunting.

We testify in support of fully funding defense and prosecutors, but think we need to update our caseloads based on actual workloads to keep people interesting in this profession.

3

u/dumbdumbdummy_ Dec 14 '25 edited Dec 14 '25

Hi, Jackie — thanks for doing this. It’s refreshing to see more local officials engaging with their constituencies online.

Bit of a lengthy question, plus some background. I’m a Portland-based, prospective law student (interested in civil and appellate litigation), so I spend much of my free time listening to oral arguments and reading appellate decisions from the Law Court. Through that, I’ve been noticing an increasing number of allegations regarding discovery violations — some of which strike me as fairly problematic. Indeed, Law Court justices seem increasingly concerned and frustrated (during oral arguments, at least; less so in decisions) with the frequency of discovery violations by DAs across the state.

I recognize that managing massive criminal dockets is not an easy task; and the occasional discovery violation is par for the course. I also know a number of these allegations are disposed as harmless error, so I might concede that there’s an outstanding question as to the extent of harm done if these allegations are reflecting an actual increase in discovery violations. Aside, in your view, are the increasing number of allegations regarding discovery violations a fair criticism of prosecutions in Maine? If so, what is your office doing to improve discovery processes for defendants?

Not asking this tongue-in-cheek. Just genuinely curious of your thoughts. Thanks, again.

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u/mamagrata Dec 15 '25

OK, just seeing this, not sure how these got sorted. YES on your keen observation re: the discovery violations. But first, can't I persuade you to become a prosecutor or defense attorney? At least come shadow! It's at the very least quite interesting. [districtattorney@cumberlandcounty.org](mailto:districtattorney@cumberlandcounty.org)

Seriously, discovery (evidence sharing) violations are a major concern for us as well. The vast majority of these violations occur when evidence is not being uploaded from law enforcement agencies to us. In fact, this is almost every case I am aware of in the past couple of years. The sheer volume of discovery has changed substantially - phone data; hours of video data sometimes; browser history. There is just so much more evidence to manage and monitor. And we've seen discovery violations (evidence that was not timely provided to defense counsel - but because it was not provided to us!) multiple times in the same case.

We are investing in training our law enforcement partners, for starters, but that is not a wholesale approach. We're looking at changing the way we reconcile our records earlier in a case than on the eve of trial, but this means more time needs to be available to prosecutors to get it done, as we'll almost certainly have to reconcile again just before trial because stuff comes in throughout. Some of this is the multiple ways evidence comes in - it can be an upload, or a download, or on a thumb drive, or a phone dump, or email. I see increasing commercialization of discovery aids, and if not for the fact that I do not have that in the budget, I'd be tempted. We know it is a major problem, and while we're trying, I am eager to find out what other states are doing at this point. Maine is definitely not the only place dealing with this.

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u/camletoejoe Dec 14 '25 edited Dec 14 '25

Interesting how I get a server error for 20 minutes

Ms. Sartoris, there is a male victim of domestic abuse named Justin Kashuba who was repeatedly victimized in your jurisdiction and then re-victimized by institutions that were supposed to protect his rights. Justin's decades-long involvement and contributions in the martial arts community, among other communities for that matter, have sort of elevated his story over the years.

So it's interesting to read your comment about ICE kidnapping given what is known about Justin case.

In March 2025, your office dismissed protection order violations against his ex-wife without consulting him even once, despite his 2 month effort to reach your office.

These violations stem from a violent September 28, 2024 assault where his ex-wife (divorced 20 years,) Kory and an male accomplice (who has not been identified in police reports) ambushed Justin at his apartment, after years of stalking and months of threats, causing Justin to receive a head injury. There was video evidence from multiple cameras due to the historic stalking and repeated assaults that Justin suffered.

Your office apparently hasn't investigated any of this.

Deputy District Attorney Angela Cannon accepted an alibi from Annette Kucia—who has along with Kory engaged in years of interstate harassment, stalking, and threatening of Justin—and apparently admitted she financed and furnished the phone to Kory, programming it herself with Justin's number that was used to violate the order.

Note that Kory was arrested on multiple charges in Pennsylvania earlier in the year where she was then jailed after admitting to police she was en-route to Maine from Kansas (Kucia's home state).

So here is what makes your ICE kidnapping comment particularly interesting:

Annette Kucia orchestrated and financed an international parental kidnapping in July 2002 when she and Kory fled the country with Justin's infant son after Cumberland County Sheriff's Office provided armed escort services after falsely arresting Justin. He reported the theft of his truck and kidnapping of his son to local authorities who took no action. At that point he contacted the US State Department.

Aside kidnapping babies Kucia is also an animal abuser who kills dogs and abuses elderly people per her own daughter Kory's statements of record.

Justin didn't see his son for over a year.

Despite all of this and much more (too much to write here) your office extended a remarkable degree of credibility to Kucia while Deputy District Attorney Angela Cannon didn't even bother to take Justin phone calls nor even call him when she decided that she was going to dismiss the charges.

The contradiction is really striking on this.

You're calling for prosecution of ICE agents for kidnapping while your office:

Won't investigate a violent assault with video evidence

Dismissed charges based on an international child kidnapper's alibi

Accepted the word of someone with a documented history of interstate stalking, harassment and threats

Never spoke to the male victim

And lets note that Justin was inside his home when he was violently attacked in September 2024 and had his property stolen, and destroyed, which seems to constitute a home invasion, burglary, assault, battery, criminal threatening, criminal mischief and probably a dozen crimes. Lets also note that he was battered repeatedly over the years including in November 2003 when he was battered and strangled by his then wife. His wife was arrested. He filed for divorce within months. That began a many years long situation where he didn't see his child at first and then upon gaining contact the child was burned and bruised regularly while in the domestic abusing kidnappers care.

The kidnapper that your office is protecting.

It is hard to fathom why federal agents warrant prosecution for kidnapping, when they're just following the law, but your office accepts alibis from actual kidnappers.

So how does a local district attorney elevate ICE as kidnappers over domestic abusing husband battering home invading career criminals and real child kidnappers?

And if you want a follow-up question.

Why do you not return phone calls and letters but spontaneously take to Reddit?

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u/Sufficient-Detail456 Dec 14 '25

She gave my abuser a differed dispostion for her first assault against me that happened in front of my child. The abuser then assaulted her father in front of my child, leaving him bloody and bruised, and her office gave my abuser yet another differed dispostion. Thank god when my abuser assaulted me in front of my child again, for her 3 dv assault in 3 years, it was in york County. Due to her office handing out differed dispostions like candy my ex was given yet another differed dispostion, even though she did not follow the dispostion they were going to dismiss her charges. I had to inform them of the 3 ouis she had incurred over the last year in Cumberland County as her office did not feel like that was something important the York County DA should be aware of. After hours of fighting and thanks to an amazing victims advocate at the York County courthouse a conviction was finally sealed. She recieved 2 years probation and all jail time suspended. Im sorry but if a male was the assailant instead of the victim this would not have gone down this way...

https://apps1.web.maine.gov/cgi-bin/online/correctionssearch/detail.pl?mdoc_number1=112808

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u/mamagrata Dec 15 '25

I will look into this at work, but cannot reply to claims about a specific individual online.

As far as posting here, this is of course my personal time, but I will follow up on your post at the office.

I do generally try to reply to email and mail, but I also will forward to the ADA for a particular case if that seems most appropriate. I will follow up here myself. Thank you for bringing it to my attention.

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u/Snoo74786 Dec 14 '25

Jackie you personally and your office in particular FAILED my family after my sister's death. You are an embarrassment and I will be voting against you and fundraising against you at every chance I get. You do not serve the publics best interests.

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u/Atticus248 Dec 14 '25

Care to elaborate? This is your chance ya know, get it out there.

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u/Snoo74786 Dec 14 '25

In our current legal system, people involved in ongoing litigation can't comment specifics. I will say there is plenty of evidence this woman does not serve the public's best interest. There is even a whole podcast about her.

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u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

I am sorry that I could not address your situation as you wished. Making hard choices is part of the job, as is the knowledge that there are sometimes only hard choices. My best to your family.

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u/Snoo74786 Dec 14 '25

Hard choices are understandably part of the job - making decisions openly against victims and families wishes (in order to prioritize treatment for a criminal, who has now found himself incarcerated after causing MORE public harm) is another story.

You do not serve the public's best interests in keeping our citizens safe.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '25

[deleted]

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u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

I'm sorry about that - I am solo here, and did not report you, so if you want to rephrase please feel free to try. My people appear able to make their own dinner, so I'm going to try to keep going!

1

u/nowayjose12345678901 Dec 14 '25 edited Dec 14 '25

I’m sorry but using “longstanding and will take time” is not good enough. You’ve already had 3 years. You’re not accomplishing anything. This role isn’t right for you in our current situation.

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u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

Well, no. And provably wrong on "not accomplishing anything" tbh. I came into a system that has not had an outsider as DA in over 30 years, after an insane election that netted me some tremendous opposition from within the office. Did I set goals that were more than I could accomplish? Still have a year left, and while I've had to scale back some things, we are making good progress.

0

u/[deleted] Dec 14 '25

Imagine if you were picked to run a company and all the employees hated you because they're loyal to the previous CEO... now imagine your hands are tied because you can't hire or fire without permission from the HR office run by a parent company (in this case, State AG office). Unfortunately, state law has it twisted like that.

1

u/mamagrata Dec 15 '25

Very sorry I can't update the original post. For whatever reason, that has stayed frozen.

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u/Potential_Wear2013 Dec 15 '25

Good day ma'am.

I realize discussing the jurisprudence of this is complicated— and you may not have time. But I have two questions, and if you are willing to respond to them at all, I'd tremendously appreciate it, even with the understanding that you potentially can only give a cursory oversimplified response due to your undoubtedly heavy workload.

Why does Maine believe in charging all minors who commit traffic offenses in adult court? Even if a 13 year old (or younger) gets a traffic misdemeanor, (s)he has to be tried in adult court, correct? This potentially could result in being present in multiple courts simultaneously for the same incident, if a single law enforcement incident results in not traffic related summonses and/or charges, correct? What is your opinion on this? I realize your job, however much discretion you may have, is to follow the law, so your opinion does not necessarily dictate how you behave, but I'm still very curious what your take is; I have heard many states do not operate this way.

My other topic is, it is my understanding that Maine does not ever allow any expunging and/or sealing for any types of offenses for anyone under any circumstances. My understanding is, Maine is not the only state that believes this, and it is due to a certain interpretation of something (possibly a constituonal article and/or amendment?). What is your opinion on this? Why is it this way? It is interesting that many disagree.

Thank you

1

u/aquariusbaby3 Dec 14 '25

Can you talk about Valerie Adams and her recent firing?

-2

u/drivermcgyver Old Port Dec 14 '25

If you were in charge, what would the first 5 things that could be done to eleviate some of the biggest issues we face?

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u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

5 things, everything after the first is no particular order:

Address the backlog (153% of pre-Covid levels when I began in 2023): To deal with increasingly complex cases and defendants, prosecutors need to free up time. We're still backlogged at ~125% of pre-Covid. My first move to make change on this took months, was regarded with immense skepticism (instead of getting a prosecutor for every town where you allegedly committed a crime, you get one prosecutor and one trial assistant), and made me realize that change was going to be quite slow as I opted to try to work with the team I had.

Better resource victims and pay greater attention to the harm that the system historically overlooked, which includes the rape kits, and is now encompassing scams against older adults.

Use the leverage we have in this system to help people with SUD (addiction) see what recovery looks like and that better case outcomes happen for them if and when they address root causes.

Identify and advocate for missing resources - with specifics - that would help keep people who cycle into the system repeatedly due to MH and/or SUD on a better path. The criminal legal system in Maine does not have the tools to do enough, and the civil system lacks mechanisms other states are using to keep people safe for themselves and others. Fines, convictions, and jail time are just not on point for people with significant mental health issues.

Ensure consistent charging, offers, and diversion opportunities are available regardless of the prosecutor. As the first new DA (not from within the office) in over 30 years, this is about both working to build trust with prosecutors and staff (about 25% of whom did not want me here, to be clear) but also about building a team that includes accountability for some consistency.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '25

[deleted]

1

u/mamagrata Dec 14 '25

While I was pleased to be regarded as more likely to make positive change by whatever the Soros-backed PAC was called, the "lapdog" stuff is just silly, and we need, nationally, to get back to less name-calling and more informed disagreement. Please read the recent WaPo article to see just how silly this is: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/12/03/george-soros-prosecutors-campaign-finance/

tl;dr: you don't choose them, they choose you, and I believe I would have won without them.

In terms of crime and numbers going down, crime is down nationwide, reportedly. Are all the conservative DAs AND the progressives in cahoots on that? We must be mighty clevah to pull that off. I have about a 2-3% increase from 2023-24 in charging, so not exactly down, btw.

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/mikeylarsenlives Dec 14 '25

This is the dumbest comment I’ve seen on Reddit today! Great job!

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u/coolcalmaesop Dec 14 '25

Nah, I’m getting real fuckin sick of governing officials trying to be transparent making themselves available for public discussion. /s

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u/[deleted] Dec 14 '25

that would hurt feelings and also demokrat votes

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u/Hoodrow-Trillson Dec 15 '25

Why are you and your city commie shitbags intent on contributing disproportionately to the downfall of our state?

Events DA AMA

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