BIDDEFORD — A current Saco resident who plans to move to Biddeford and run for District 12 in the Maine House of Representatives has served time in prison for trafficking in heroin.

Philip Eugene Perry, 37, declared his candidacy on the Libertarian ticket earlier this month. Court records show he pleaded guilty in 2014 to a Class B felony charge of unlawful trafficking in heroin stemming from an incident on Aug. 1, 2013, in Kennebunkport. 

According to the Maine Secretary of State’s Office, those convicted of felony crimes are eligible to seek elective office.

“You can vote and you can run for office as a convicted felon in Maine,” said SOS spokeswoman Kristen Muszynski.

Perry said he had developed a back problem from a diving accident he sustained when he was younger and was prescribed pain pills. When he was taken off the pills, he said, he wasn’t educated about what would happen.

“I began to self medicate,” said Perry.

He said he was working and paying his bills, but he began selling heroin to support his habit.

“I started to supplement by selling some on the side, got caught up in the middle of that,” he said.

According to the state of Maine, Perry was indicted on several charges stemming from alleged incidents in Saco and Kennebunkport in July and August 2013. All but one was dismissed.

Court files show Perry pleaded guilty and was convicted of the Class B felony crime of unlawful trafficking in heroin, on Aug. 1, 2013, in Kennebunkport. Four other Class B unlawful trafficking charges in Saco and Kennebunkport were dismissed. A Class A felony indictment of aggravated trafficking in heroin, which had alleged Perry sold more than 6 grams or more than 270 individual bags of heroin in Kennebunkport on Aug. 1, 2013, was also dismissed.

Perry was sentenced to five years in prison, with all but 18 months suspended, and placed on probation for three years.

On Tuesday, Perry said he was released about four months early for good time he earned while in prison.

Perry’s court file shows that earlier this year, on Feb. 3, he was sentenced to 90 days in jail, with credit for time served, when his probation was partially revoked for heroin possession in connection with an incident on March 24, 2016, in Augusta. A Maine state trooper observed an erratic driver throwing something out the window of his vehicle just prior to being stopped, according to court records.

His record shows he paid a $250 fine in 2003, on a misdemeanor drug possession conviction.

Perry said he was offered no help for his addiction in prison, except for a 12-step meeting he attended once a week.

“Luckily I had a good support system to get things back on track,” said Perry of his 14 months in prison. “Locking people up is not the answer to someone having an addiction problem. Taking them away from their family is not the proper solution in my opinion.”

“I am completely changing everything about my life,” he said. “Most people going through that have nobody. They’re just sitting there alone. Part of the biggest issue I see is the mental health crisis, which is not being addressed.”

Perry said if elected he will  advocate for less-restrictive sentencing for those convicted of non-violent crimes in Maine, freeing up funding spent in the state on prisons for other services, such as drug treatment programs, infrastructure repairs and education.

He said he will push for treatment over corrections for all non-violent drug offenders in Maine.  

“There could be safeguards for people selling small amounts to other addicts to support their own habit — they don’t deserve the same as those bringing the stuff to the area … small time (dealers) need help because they’re in it to support their habit,” he said Tuesday.

Perry, a father of five, is presently living in Saco and said he works for a cleaning company. He is looking for a home in District 12  in Biddeford. He must live in the district he hopes to represent for a minimum of three months before the election.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 (local call in Sanford) or 282-1535, ext. 327 or twells@journaltribune.com.