ELLSWORTH, Maine — A Jonesboro woman who was saved along with her two young children after she drove off a state highway and into a pond has been indicted on multiple charges in Hancock County.
Mandi Parker, 39, was driving home from a Bangor methadone clinic on April 9, 2016, when her car went off Route 182 and into Fox Pond. Parker was in the car with her two young children, who at the time were 2 months old and 3 years old.
The car went airborne before it landed in the pond, narrowly missing a couple from Steuben who were fishing on the shore. Leonard Wallace jumped into the 48-degree water and managed to pull Parker and her two children from the vehicle before it sank. Rosemary Wallace called police, and she helped the mother and two children get out of the water and stay warm before help arrived.
Parker was indicted in December 2016 on charges of operating a motor vehicle after suspension, aggravated assault, reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon, driving to endanger and endangering the welfare of a child. The charges of aggravated assault and reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon, which stem from the imminent threat that Parker’s operation of the vehicle posed to her children and to the Wallaces, are felonies. The others are misdemeanors.
Officials with Maine State Police said at the time that Parker’s license to drive had been under suspension since 2006 and that she may have been impaired. Information about why she was not indicted on any alcohol or drug-related charges was not available Tuesday.
The Maine Department of Health and Human Services took custody of the two children after the incident, police have said.
The Wallaces later were presented with bravery awards by Maine State Police for their roles in rescuing Parker and her two children.
Several people facing drug charges also were indicted Dec. 8, 2016, by the Hancock County grand jury.
Among them were Scott Bagley, 51, and Thomas R. Richardson, 30, both of Ellsworth, each of whom was indicted on charges related to manufacturing crystal meth.
Ronald Golden, 31, of Meriden, Connecticut, and Austin Kleffman, 28, of Trenton each were indicted on aggravated trafficking in heroin and other charges stemming from a Sept. 23, 2016, traffic stop in Trenton. Ajha Stanley, 20, of Tremont was indicted on a charge of unlawful possession of heroin and violating the conditions of her release in connection with the same incident.
