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QUOTE OF THE DAY
— Bob England, interim superintendent of Belfast-area schools, on parents keeping their children home from school out of concern about the federal immigration enforcement surge.
TODAY’S TOP STORIES
U.S. Sen. Susan Collins announced Thursday morning that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has ended its surge in Maine. That comes as the bipartisan backlash over the fatal shooting of ICU nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis threatens to shut down the federal government.
Belfast-area schools approved a plan for if ICE agents show up. Some parents have kept their children home from school over concerns about ICE, the superintendent said.
From Janet Mills to Ron DeSantis, school cellphone bans are catching on. A bell-to-bell cellphone ban has quickly gone from a fringe issue to one with strong support in the Maine Legislature.
The wreckage from Sunday’s deadly plane crash remains on the runway at Bangor International Airport. Investigators are working to piece together what caused the disaster that claimed the lives of four passengers, who worked for a luxury travel company, and two crew members. A fifth victim was tentatively identified Wednesday.
Eric Furry, longtime owner of Pro Libris bookstore in Bangor, died earlier this month. He is remembered for his love of books and his customers.
NEWS FROM AROUND THE STATE
- Maine business groups ask congressional delegation to rein in ICE
- Maine’s AG wants you to report civil rights violations by ICE agents
- Maine’s hottest housing markets have 1 surprising thing in common
- The 10 hottest Maine housing markets in 2025
- Penobscot County funds diversion program to keep people out of overcrowded jail
- Caribou’s fire station has no sprinklers or fire alarm. A $2.5M upgrade will change that.
- Intern who died from gas exposure at Down East mill was UMaine student
- Border Patrol arrests 4 immigrants Down East
- Group seeks to buy Blue Hill adult day care center out from under liens
- Belfast district still trying to figure out Plan B for high school track
- George Stevens Academy’s head of schools is leaving for a midcoast district
- A Maine pastor searched for a missing congregant. He found a car with the keys on the floor.
- How one Brazilian asylum-seeker has been repeatedly transferred after being arrested in Maine
- Social media plea leads to kidney donation in Maine
- Cooper Flagg feels ‘really blessed and honored’ to be chosen as NBA Rising Star
MAINE IN PICTURES
FROM THE OPINION PAGES
“It is an attempt to rationalize, research and justify one’s way to a logistical response for a deeply moral issue.”
Opinion: When it comes to ICE, we can’t afford another Kavanaugh moment from Susan Collins
LIFE IN MAINE
UMaine’s baseball team is returning to Hadlock Field after a 15-year absence.
PETA’s lawsuit against Rockland Lobster Festival was thrown out by a judge.
This is what winter rowing in Maine looks like.