GORHAM – Gorham Town Councilor Suzanne E. Phillips, accused of driving drunk and leaving the scene of an accident in Gorham on May 4, faces a hearing for a dispositional conference at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 4., in Cumberland County’s Unified Criminal Docket in Portland.

Attorney Amanda J. Doherty, on behalf of Phillips, filed a not guilty plea to both charges in a waiver of appearance on July 10. Because of the waiver, Phillips did not have to appear in court for an arraignment. (Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story contained an error saying she did have to appear for arraignment.)

According to court documents, a trial date has been set for Monday, Oct. 22, for either jury selection or non-jury trial.

Gorham police summonsed Phillips at 12:39 a.m. on May 4 on School Street, according to the police log. The incident had sparked controversy on the council with past attempts to discuss the issue publicly in meetings failing.

Meeting last week, the Town Council in a 6-0 poll (Phillips abstaining) found that Phillips did not have a conflict of interest in discussing and voting on a referendum to renovate the Public Safety Building that houses Gorham police.