BANGOR, Maine — Hearing that the Garland man accused of strangling her daughter and two grandchildren the weekend before Christmas now also is charged with sexually assaulting her granddaughter was like getting another blow to the stomach, Mary Wooster said Thursday.
“It sent everybody into a shockwave,” said Wooster, mother and grandmother of Christina Sargent, 36, and her children, Duwayne Coke, 10, and Destiny Sargent, 8, who were found deceased on Dec. 20. “All of a sudden it just sent everyone back to day one.”
Keith Coleman, 28, who lived with Sargent and her children in a trailer at 12 Paul Road in Garland, where their bodies were found, is charged with taking their lives. On Wednesday, Coleman also was indicted by the Penobscot County grand jury on one count of gross sexual assault involving Destiny Sargent and was reindicted on three counts of intentional or knowing murder.
“I just started to cry” after learning of the sexual assault, said Wooster, who lives in Ellsworth. “You don’t know the pain. You see it on TV all the time. You see people who lose their lives and you feel their pain, but it’s not the same pain when it’s yours.”
Coleman confessed to police that he killed his girlfriend in front of the children and then killed them because they witnessed the crime, according to the probable cause affidavit filed at the Penobscot Judicial Center in Bangor by Detective Greg Mitchell of the Maine State Police’s northern major crimes unit.
The victims’ bodies were found about 9 p.m. Dec. 20 by concerned family members. Coleman was arrested the following day in Bucksport.
Investigators declined to say whether the rape occurred before or after the child’s death.
“We are not commenting on the evidence except to say that the indictment alleges that the [gross sexual assault] happened the same day as her death,” Tim Feeley, spokesman for the Attorney General’s office, said in a Thursday email.
Coleman was scheduled to be in court Thursday afternoon on two motion hearings, one to allow him access to a computer to view court documents and a second one to release his competency evaluation to the prosecution, according to Assistant Attorney General Leane Zainea, who is prosecuting the case.
Coleman’s attorneys, Martha Harris and Logan Perkins, represented him in court and Harris withdrew the first motion for access to a computer. Superior Court Justice Ann Murray set Oct. 16 as Coleman’s arraignment date and indicated she will make a decision the same day on whether to order the release of Coleman’s competency evaluation.
Wooster and two other family members were in the courtroom.
Coleman is being held without bail at the Penobscot County Jail in Bangor.
If convicted of murder, Coleman faces between 25 years and life in prison and a fine of up to $50,000. The Maine Supreme Judicial Court has ruled that a defendant convicted on multiple counts of murder may be sentenced to life in prison.
Wooster said her daughter never had visible cuts and bruises, but now that she has had a chance to reflect, she recognizes that their were signs of emotional and verbal abuse. For example, her daughter’s daily visits became fewer and fewer and her phone calls were screened by Coleman.
“It’s not always just physical abuse, it’s verbal,” Wooster said. “There were little things we just didn’t pick up on.”
Wooster’s son, Phillip Sawyer, organized the Break the Silence annual coed softball tournament in Ellsworth two months ago to start the family’s healing process and also to advocate for action when it comes to domestic violence. The event raised $5,000 for Next Step.
“Don’t wait to see this happen,” Wooster said. “We need to break the silence of domestic violence.”
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence and would like to talk with an advocate, call 866-834-4357, TRS 800-787-3224. This free, confidential service is available 24/7 and is accessible from anywhere in Maine.