SOUTHWEST HARBOR, Maine — A former local man convicted in 2007 of raping three women has been released from behind bars and moved back to town, according to police.
In an effort to alert local residents, the Southwest Harbor Police Department has printed notices about Peter D. Mills’ release from prison and has distributed them around town.
“Peter was convicted on several sex-related crimes and served nine years in the Maine State Prison,” the notice reads. “Peter is currently on probation, reporting to his Probation Officer David Cyr. Mr. Cyr may be reached at his office in Ellsworth at 667-1206, if necessary.”
Mills, 58, is required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
Southwest Harbor police Chief Alan Brown was not in the office Friday afternoon and was unavailable for comment about distributing the notices communitywide.
According to the Mount Desert Islander newspaper, Brown has said that it is his department’s policy to inform the public about sex offenders and that doing so is allowed by state law.
“This is the Southwest Harbor Police Department’s effort to inform the public that he’s been released,” Brown told the weekly publication. “We feel it’s our responsibility.”
Mills and a co-defendant, Stephanie Stark, went to trial in Bangor in 2007 on multiple charges of gross sexual assault for incidents that occurred in June 2005. Each was convicted on multiple counts, with Mills receiving a 10-year sentence and Stark receiving a seven-year sentence.
Mills was accused of drugging the victims with tainted wine in order to make them unable to physically resist the attacks. Mills was convicted of raping three women, and Stark was convicted of raping two of those same three victims.
Stark, 54, also is required to register as a sex offender for the rest of her life. According to the Maine Sex Offender Registry, Stark is now living in Winsted, Connecticut.
In addition to their prison terms, Mills and Stark also were each ordered to serve three years of probation upon their releases from prison.
More information is available at the registry’s website, sor.informe.org.
