FARMINGDALE

Police say rebuffed request led to fatal confrontation

Investigators say a man who started an armed confrontation before being killed by a state police tactical team member was angry after a friend rebuffed his request to play cards.

Investigators said that, before his death, Paul Fritze, 41, locked a man in a basement and fired shots into the door of a bedroom where a woman was hiding. Both escaped before the police standoff last Sept. 24.

The attorney general concluded that Trooper Timothy Black met the legal requirements for using deadly force when he fired a single shot that killed Fritze, who’d pointed his gun at an armored truck used by police.

Authorities say Fritze’s previous convictions include commandeering a bus at gunpoint in New Jersey and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

AUGUSTA

Statewide gaming policy recommended by panel

As a planned casino in Oxford moves toward hiring dealers and a Bangor casino expands its offerings to include table games, Maine lawmakers are taking a small step toward a statewide gaming policy.

A subcommittee of the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee on Monday recommended that the full committee consider a gaming policy that could include non-refundable application fees. The committee is also being asked to develop a bill regulating Internet state lottery sales.

The Oxford Casino, which is scheduled to open this summer, will hold a job fair Saturday. It is seeking applicants to fill more than 50 open positions as table games dealers.

Last week, the Gambling Control Board approved Maine’s first full-fledged casino. Hollywood Slots will become Hollywood Casino Bangor and will open March 16.

Work session set on bill for reporting MaineCare fraud

A legislative committee will take another look at a bill to authorize payments to people who report MaineCare fraud.

The Judiciary Committee has scheduled a work session on the bill for this afternoon.

At a hearing last week, the committee heard from some individuals and groups who praised the idea as a potential money maker for the state, and others who found the idea of bounties distasteful.

Lincoln Republican Rep. Jeffrey Gifford’s bill allows payments for a person who brings action citing fraud in MaineCare. Supporters said the state could recover $15 for every $1 spent investigating those cases.

But critics said those pluses are overstated, and Maine could get bogged down in multi-state litigation that costs money.

ALFRED

Four arrests made in string of York County break-ins

Maine State Police say four arrests have been made in connection with a burglary ring responsible for a dozen break-ins in York County during the past month.

Troopers say four people have been taken into custody and additional charges and arrests are likely.

Police recovered stolen goods including two TVs, gaming systems, electronic equipment and prescription drugs from the thefts in Shapleigh, Newfield, Alfred and Waterboro. In addition, thousands of dollars worth of new clothing, sunglasses and sneakers are believed to have been taken from outlet stores in Kittery.

Those arrested include two men from Maine and a man and woman from New Hampshire.

BANGOR

Woman in murder case says victim assaulted her

Court documents indicate a woman charged with murdering a man in a Bangor apartment acknowledged stabbing him because he tried to force himself on her.

Gail Judd, 53, told police in an affidavit that she used a knife for protection but didn’t realize that she’d killed Michael Drouin, 47, on the night of Feb. 22. Drouin died from a stab wound to the chest.

Judd, who made her first court appearance Monday, is being held without bail.

The Bangor Daily News says Judd’s brother is in prison for murder. Jeffrey Cookson, 47, formerly of Guilford, is serving two consecutive life sentences for the 1999 execution-style shooting of his ex-girlfriend and the 21-month-old boy she was baby-sitting.

PARIS

Woman hospitalized after crashing her car two times

Police say a Turner woman crashed the same vehicle twice on the same road over the weekend.

The woman was hospitalized after the second crash about 2:30 p.m. Sunday.

Police say Maria Alleano, 54, drove her SUV into a snow bank on Route 117 in Buckfield just before 2 p.m. Sunday. She was apparently unhurt, because about 45 minutes later she fell asleep at the wheel, crossed the center line and crashed into a tree in Paris.

After the second crash, Alleano was taken to Stephens Memorial Hospital.

LEWISTON

Mass. man held after police find marijuana at traffic stop

A Massachusetts man is in trouble after police say they found 20 pounds of marijuana in his pickup truck during a weekend traffic stop.

Mark Lyons of Braintree was held on $20,000 bail on a charge of unlawful trafficking in scheduled drugs after he was pulled over Sunday afternoon on Interstate 95 in Lewiston.

Police told the Sun Journal that they became suspicious when Lyons refused to drive past an officer during an unrelated traffic stop, despite being waved through.

Police followed him and observed him swerving between lanes.

Police smelled marijuana during the traffic stop and after Lyons assented to a search, found the pot in the bed of the truck along with $2,000 cash in the cab.

MOUNT DESERT

Trenton woman identified in fatal weekend crash

The victim of a single-vehicle crash on Mount Desert Island over the weekend has been identified by police as a 43-year-old Trenton woman.

Investigators say Hope Cummings was driving north on Route 102 about 2 p.m. Saturday when her car went off the side of the road, struck a ledge and rolled over at least twice before coming to rest on its wheels on the opposite side of the road.

Police tell the Bangor Daily News that Cummings was pronounced dead at the scene. The investigation is continuing and will include toxicology testing.

RICHMOND

Bowdoinham man sought in assault on woman, child

Police are looking for a Bowdoinham man they believe assaulted a woman and young child over the weekend.

Richmond Police Chief Scott MacMaster said Leo Caron, 43, is wanted in connection with the assaults, which took place on Caron’s Way shortly before 7 p.m. Saturday.

MacMaster said a warrant has not yet been issued for Caron.

“We have probable cause for an arrest and a probation violation,” MacMaster said.

The incident was initially reported as a family fight. Responding officers determined an adult woman and a 2-year-old child had been assaulted, MacMaster said. Neither suffered serious injuries, MacMaster said. An ambulance was not required.

According to the Department of Corrections website, Caron is 5 feet 6 inches tall, weighs about 150 pounds and has brown eyes and brown hair.

PORTLAND

Group promoting report on options for home heating

A nonprofit group is promoting its new report aimed at giving Maine consumers facts about different home heating options.

Environment Northeast says it has produced heating facts reports outlining the costs of different heating options in Maine and other New England states. They serve as guides to residential heating energy usage, costs and emissions information and will be updated monthly as prices change.

The Maine report includes information and charts on average household usage and costs for different fuels based on home efficiency.

The report says the best way to bring down heating costs is through home weatherization that makes houses more energy-efficient.