Castine officials have looked into a resident’s complaint about the behavior of Maine Maritime Academy students, but have concluded the complaints are likely without merit.
The complaints about two separate incidents were brought to the attention of town officials during an Oct. 7 meeting of the Select Board. One incident allegedly involved a truck that nearly ran an 11-year old child on a scooter off the road, while in the other MMA students allegedly offered beer and cigarettes to other children.
Gordon MacArthur, chair of the Select Board, said Tuesday that the town has looked into the complaints. The town does not have its own police department but, because the truck had a firefighter license plate, officials asked Fire Chief Randy Stearns to investigate, MacArthur said.
One complaint proved to be unsupported by what Stearns found out, and the other so far has been inconclusive, MacArthur said.
The fire chief found out whose vehicle it was and talked to people who were riding in it at the time, and found out the driver was using a dashboard camera, MacArthur said. The camera recorded a speed of 22 mph when the truck passed the child, and showed that the driver saw the child “well in advance” and gave “more than adequate room” when it passed the scooter on the right, he said.
“The young person appears to have misinterpreted the situation,” MacArthur said of the child.
The other incident occurred during the academy’s homecoming weekend in late September, when alumni and others who are not MMA students often come to town, MacArthur said. Without being able to identify who offered beer and cigarettes to the children, town and MMA officials are not sure that any current student was involved.
“That allegation is still under investigation,” MacArthur said. “We shall continue to pursue the investigation until results of some nature become unavailable.”
MMA officials said Friday that they cooperated with the town in looking into the complaints and reached the same conclusions.
Peter Stewart, MMA’s director of campus safety and facilities, said that the school addresses general complaints about student behavior internally. When it comes to specific allegations of inappropriate behavior, MMA works with campus security and law enforcement to investigate and, when appropriate, takes disciplinary action against the students involved, he said.
Kate Noel, vice president of advancement and college relations for MMA, said administrators meet monthly with town officials to discuss common issues and how they can cooperate. Plus, many students have community connections through working for local businesses, volunteering with the fire department or elementary school, or being paired with local host families.
“MMA respects and values its more than 80-year relationship with the town of Castine, and we work hard to always remind our students that they are members of a broader community,” Noel said.
Derik Goodine, Castine’s town manager, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Friday morning.
