TMCnet News
Trenton man who pointed gun at police in '08 sent back to prisonAug 23, 2012 (Bangor Daily News - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- ELLSWORTH, Maine -- A Trenton man was ordered Thursday to serve more than two years behind bars for violating the terms of his probation. Justice Ann Murray, presiding in Hancock County Superior Court, fully revoked the probation of Patrick Seavey, 42, and sent him back to prison for 26 months. Seavey failed to maintain contact with his probation officer for 18 months and, when he was located in February, was in possession of alcohol, marijuana, and ammunition, all of which violated his probation, according to officials. Seavey was on probation as a result of an incident four years ago in which he pointed a rifle at an Ellsworth police officer, according to court documents. Seavey was arrested Aug. 13, 2008, after his relatives called police from their home on Bayside Road to say that Seavey was at the house and was intoxicated and disorderly. When police arrived at the house, Seavey was sitting in a chair on the front porch, drinking a beer and holding a loaded rifle. Police ordered Seavey to put the rifle down but he instead briefly pointed it at one of the responding officers before he laid it down on the porch. According to police, Seavey failed to comply with their other commands to stand up and to put his hands over his head. One officer ended up using a stun gun on Seavey before he was taken into custody. Seavey's family told police that he was despondent over a breakup with his girlfriend, according to court documents. He already had a prior felony conviction and so was not supposed to possess any firearms, the documents indicate. As a result of that incident, Seavey pleaded guilty in January 2009 to reckless conduct and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, both of which are felonies, and to misdemeanor charges of threatening display of a weapon and violating conditions of release. He was sentenced to serve three years in prison with all but nine months suspended and then, upon his release, two years of probation. According to Carletta Bassano, district attorney of Hancock County, Seavey violated his probation later in 2009 by allegedly possessing illegal drugs and by assaulting someone. Seavey had his probation partially revoked as a result, and was sent back to jail for 27 days. In the fall of 2010, prosecutors again moved to revoke his probation because Seavey failed to stay in touch with his probation officer. Bassano told Murray that police learned where he was in February of this year because Seavey allegedly threatened a utility company and the company reported it to police. Bassano said Thursday that she did not know where Seavey was living when the alleged threat was made. "He's demonstrated a lack of compliance [with his probation] that is profound," Bassano told the judge. The prosecutor recommended that Seavey's probation be fully revoked, which would send him back to prison for 26 months. Seavey's attorney, Will Blaisdell of Ellsworth, acknowledged to Murray that there is no evidence that his client had been receiving substance abuse counseling, which was one of the terms of his probation, while his whereabouts were unknown to officials. Nonetheless, Blaisdell told the judge that he thought Seavey's probation should be only partially revoked. "We think a partial revocation of six months is appropriate," the defense attorney said. Blaisdell said that Seavey has been taking prescribed medication and has been held in jail since his arrest in February. Murray sided with Bassano and ordered Seavey to serve the remainder of his sentence from the 2008 incident. "Missing from probation for some 18 months is a substantial violation of probation," the judge said. "I think there's been an utter failure of [Seavey's] probation." Follow BDN reporter Bill Trotter on Twitter at @billtrotter. ___ (c)2012 the Bangor Daily News (Bangor, Maine) Visit the Bangor Daily News (Bangor, Maine) at www.bangordailynews.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |