PORTLAND, Maine — A Standish lawyer who was the focus of a controversy earlier this week when a Portland District Court judge imposed a gag order on reporters covering his court appearance was arrested Friday after he allegedly violated a protection order that prevented him from seeing his children.
Anthony J. Sineni III, 52, was arrested about 2:30 p.m. at Edna Libby School in Standish, where at least one of his children attends school, according to a news release issued Friday by the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office. He is charged with violating the protection from abuse order and violating the conditions of his release after his arrest last fall on assault and disorderly conduct charges.
On Monday, Sineni had pleaded guilty to misdemeanor counts of assault and disorderly conduct as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors from the Maine attorney general’s office.
A misdemeanor count of domestic violence assault, as well as three counts of witness tampering and a possession of a stolen gun charge — all of which are felonies — were dismissed by the court.
As part of the deferred disposition deal reached, the misdemeanor counts to which Sineni pleaded guilty were to be expunged from his record within two years if he abided by certain legal and behavioral conditions.
Sineni and his former girlfriend each have accused the other of physical and emotional abuse during their 11-year relationship. The couple have three children, two together and one from the former girlfriend’s prior relationship.
According to the news release, the sheriff’s office received a complaint Thursday alleging that Sineni entered SAD 6 schools for purposes of seeing his children — contact that is prohibited by Sineni’s protection order.
On Friday, Sineni turned up at Edna Libby School, where he was arrested in the parking lot. He was taken to Cumberland County Jail, where he was charged with the two violations, both of which are Class D misdemeanors, according to the news release.
The sheriff’s office said that Sineni did not remove the children from their schools.
The gag order that put the spotlight on Sineni’s legal troubles was lifted after members of the Maine media and other First Amendment advocates condemned it as unconstitutional.
By statute, Sineni is not eligible for bail. He is scheduled to be arraigned in Portland Unified Court on Monday, Jan. 12.