ROCKLAND, Maine — A 28-year-old Falmouth man who phoned in threats to a Camden store after he thought it had been involved in a racial incident will avoid a criminal record if he adheres to a plea deal reached in court.
The store employee who received the calls, including two death threats, criticized the sentencing agreement accepted Thursday in Knox County Superior Court on behalf of defendant John Flumerfelt III.
Justice Jeffrey Hjelm defended the agreement and voiced his hope that the victim would agree to participate in the Restorative Justice Project with the defendant.
On Thursday, Hjelm accepted an agreement in which three criminal charges of telephone harassment and one count of terrorizing were dismissed in exchange for Flumerfelt’s guilty plea to a remaining count of harassment by telephone. If Flumerfelt undergoes psychological counseling, participates in the restorative justice program, performs community service work and refrains from additional criminal conduct, that final charge will be dismissed in 12 months.
The victim, a woman who works at the Camden store and answered the phone when the threats were made, wrote a letter that was read to Hjelm at Thursday’s hearing by victim witness advocate Lynn Talbot. In the letter, the woman said she still fears Flumerfelt, who she said made four calls that included two death threats. The victim said she could not believe that Flumerfelt was getting out of the charges without a criminal record.
The BDN is not naming the store or the employee because they are considered victims.
Assistant District Attorney Jeffrey Baroody said that while there was strong evidence that one of the calls was from Flumerfelt, later evidence showed that he did not make all the calls. In explaining the agreement, Baroody also said that Flumerfelt had no previous criminal record.
Defense attorney Robert Levine of Portland pointed out that his client has mental health problems. He said his client made the calls after seeing a Facebook post by a woman who alleged that another person at the store had made a racist comment toward her child and the child’s father. Levine also argued in court filings that the other calls and threats came from other people.
The restorative justice program will help the offender understand the impact of his action on the victim, Hjelm said.
“This is absolutely appropriate,” Hjelm said.
A complaint about the alleged racial slurs was referred to the Camden Police Department. Camden Police Chief Randy Gagne said that the matter was referred to the Maine attorney general’s office, which investigated and closed the case with a finding that no violation of the state’s human rights law had occurred.
Gagne said that his department investigated multiple threatening phone calls that were made to the store after the Facebook post and the only person charged was Flumerfelt.
Hjelm said he understands if the employee did not want to participate in the restorative justice program but he said it has been shown to help both parties.