A man from southern Maine accused of leading a high-speed police chase through Bar Harbor before smashing into a stopped police cruiser has been indicted by a Hancock County grand jury on a charge of attempted murder.
Riley McClure, 23, was indicted Thursday in connection with the April 18 pursuit that ended with him striking a stopped Bar Harbor police cruiser in the village of Hulls Cove, leaving both vehicles badly damaged but neither driver with serious injuries, according to police. McClure was indicted Thursday on a total of 14 charges.
He is accused of failing to stop for another officer who was giving chase, and leading a high-speed chase on State Route 3 before crashing head-on into officer Nathan Formby’s cruiser near the popular Chart Room restaurant.
A state trooper’s report on the crash said McClure, who was driving a black 2014 Subaru Impreza, swerved into the cruiser, a 2022 Ford Explorer, which was “at a dead stop.”
After the crash, police found two empty alcohol cans on the passenger floorboard of McClure’s vehicle. A dash camera on his vehicle also noted that the Impreza’s speedometer was stuck at 58 miles per hour, according to the report.
The officer sustained minor scrapes treated on scene, and McClure was transported to Mount Desert Island Hospital for internal injuries and a possible leg trauma before being transferred to Hancock County Jail.
McClure is also accused of assaulting staff at the hospital. He also was indicted Thursday with assaulting emergency room personnel, a class C felony, and a misdemeanor charge of criminal mischief in connection to the hospital incident.
A Hancock County grand jury indicted McClure on 12 charges stemming directly from the vehicle chase and crash, including attempted murder, two counts of aggravated assault, assault on an officer, eluding an officer, three counts of aggravated criminal mischief, reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon, driving to endanger, failure to stop for an officer and criminal speed.
The attempted murder charge, a class A felony, is punishable by up to 30 years in prison or a fine of up to $50,000. The aggravated assault charges are class B felonies, which each carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $20,000. The remaining charges are class C felonies and class E misdemeanors, which respectively can each carry up to 5 years in prison and a $5,000 fine and up to 180 day jail sentence and a $1,000 fine.
McClure was on probation out of York County at the time of the crash.
McClure’s bail was set at $50,000 cash or $100,000 surety. He will appear next in Ellsworth District Court on Aug. 13, according to the Bar Harbor Story.
April’s crash was not the first time McClure has been accused of fleeing law enforcement. In November 2022, McClure, then 19, allegedly failed to stop for a sheriff’s deputy after making an unsafe pass on River Road in Windham, according to WMTW. Two people were injured in that incident.
Will Ashe, an attorney for McClure, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Bangor Daily News.