Maine

No criminal charges over Maine secretary of state’s Trump ballot ruling | Fact check

Published

1 month ago

May 25, 2024

Press Room

No criminal charges over Maine secretary of state’s Trump ballot ruling | Fact check

The claim: Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows convicted of treason, sentenced to death

A May 20 Real Raw News article claims Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows faces serious legal trouble for a decision she made against former President Donald Trump.

“The U.S. Navy Judge Advocate General’s Corps convicted and sentenced to death Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows on Wednesday for intentionally misconstruing Section 3 of the 14th Amendment of the Constitution to stop President Trump’s name from appearing on the state’s primary ballot last December,” the article begins.

The article was shared more than 100 times on Facebook according to CrowdTangle, a social media analytics tool.

More from the Fact-Check Team: How we pick and research claims | Email newsletter | Facebook page

Our rating: False

There is no credible evidence Bellows was ever charged with a crime, much less convicted of one and sentenced. She appeared in public after the date of her supposed arrest. Real Raw News frequently publishes false claims about the arrests of high-profile figures.

Bellows targeted with swatting call for ballot decision, but arrest claim is baseless

In December 2023, Maine voters challenged Trump’s nomination petition, saying he engaged in insurrection against the U.S. for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.

After a hearing, Bellows decided that Trump was ineligible to appear on the ballot due to Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which bars people from holding several public offices if they took an oath to support the Constitution and later “shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same.”

Bellows became the second secretary of state to remove Trump, following Jena Griswold of Colorado. However, she reversed that move in March after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Colorado’s objection.

But claims that she was arrested for her initial decision are baseless. Bellows has been seen in public after May 15, the date of her supposed arrest.

She appeared in a livestreamed interview May 17 with The Maine Monitor, a nonpartisan publication affiliated with the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting. The nearly hour-long interview covered the election process in the state.

Emily Cook, a spokesperson for the Secretary of State’s office, told USA TODAY the Real Raw News story is “just fiction.”

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While Bellows hasn’t been arrested, she did face backlash for her initial decision. On Dec. 29, 2023, her home was swatted – an illegal practice that involves making a phony call for help to cause a large number of police officers to respond to the home.

Bellows wrote about the situation in an Instagram post the following day and noted that her address had also been publicized online.

Real Raw News is a serial spreader of misinformation that often publishes fabricated stories about “white hats” trying to undermine “the deep state” by arresting government officials. USA TODAY has previously debunked numerous other claims about the arrests of high-profile figures stemming from Real Raw News.

USA TODAY reached out to Real Raw News but did not immediately receive a response.

Our fact-check sources:

Emily Cook, May 24, Email exchange with USA TODAY
Maine Department of the Secretary of State, Dec. 28, 2023, Maine Secretary of State Decision in Challenge to Trump Presidential Primary Petitions
Maine Department of the Secretary of State (YouTube), Dec. 15, 2023, Hearing Regarding Challenges to Trump Primary Nomination Petition
The Maine Monitor, accessed May 24, About Us

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USA TODAY is a verified signatory of the International Fact-Checking Network, which requires a demonstrated commitment to nonpartisanship, fairness and transparency. Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Meta.

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Maine

Off-duty officer hit by vehicle, driver arrested after fight, police say

Published

38 mins ago

June 26, 2024

Press Room

Off-duty officer hit by vehicle, driver arrested after fight, police say

An off-duty reserve police officer was undergoing surgery after an incident Tuesday in which he was hit by a vehicle, Maine State Police said.

Many details around the incident in Norway, Maine, involving the reserve officer for Oxford police and another man, who was arrested, weren’t immediately available. There was no danger to the public.

The off-duty officer, Joe Correia, a 31-year-old from Norway, was outside of his vehicle on Crocket Ridge Road and hit by a vehicle being driven by Michael Carleton, of Paris, Maine, about 6 p.m., police said.

That led to a fight between the two, according to police. Carleton was arrested on charges of aggravated assault and reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon; it wasn’t immediately clear if he had an attorney who could speak to the charges.

Correia is expected to survive his injuries, according to police, who continued to investigate what happened as of Tuesday night.

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Maine

Maine unemployment numbers continue to see positive change

Published

8 hours ago

June 25, 2024

Press Room

Maine unemployment numbers continue to see positive change

(WABI) – The unemployment situation in Maine continues to see little change as the year progresses.

According to a report from the Maine Department of Labor, the unemployment rate across the state remains well below long-term averages.

The preliminary 3% unemployment rate changed from 3.1% in April.

Unemployment has been below 4% for 30 months which is the second longest such period and below the U.S. average.

The full report is listed here.

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Maine

How The New York Times thinks you should spend 36 hours in Portland, Maine

Published

15 hours ago

June 25, 2024

Press Room

How The New York Times thinks you should spend 36 hours in Portland, Maine

Travel

The publication recommended places to eat and play.

Portland Head Lighthouse, Maine Office of Tourism

Travelers in Portland, Maine, a city bursting with culture, restaurants, and outdoor adventures, just received a helping hand from The New York Times.

2 New England destinations made CNN’s inaugural list of best towns to visit in America

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The publication recently focused on Portland for its popular “36 Hours” series, and recommended things to do and places to eat in the coastal city over a 36-hour time period.

“From the fishing piers and wharves lined up like piano keys along Commercial Street to the ocean views and historic Queen Anne-style homes atop Munjoy Hill, Portland offers a lot for visitors to take in,” wrote the Times. “And then there is the food. Maine’s largest city has long been nationally known as a top food destination, and just this year two Portland bakers won James Beard Awards.”

When hunger strikes, travelers should check out places like Hot Suppa! or Ugly Duckling for breakfast, wrote the Times. Other spots worth dining at are Terlingua for Texas-style barbecue; Izakaya Minato for sake and shared plates; Công Tử Bột for Vietnamese food; and Luke’s Lobster for fresh lobster on Portland Pier. For drinks, head over to Oxbow, one of many local breweries, or Anoche, a Basque-inspired cider house and bistro.

For culture, visitors can wander the Portland Museum of Art and check out “Jeremy Frey: Woven” through Sept. 15, wrote the publication. Meanwhile, music lovers will love the sounds at Blue Portland Maine, One Longfellow Square, or Thompson’s Point, an outdoor stage and “Portland’s go-to venue for summer concerts by nationally touring artists.”

Outdoor activities abound in Portland, and visitors can rent bikes at places like Brad & Wyatt’s Island Bike Rental, go on kayak tours with Portland Paddle, and more. It’s also worth grabbing a ferry to Peaks Island with Casco Bay Lines, noted the Times.

“Leave time for the 15-minute drive out to Fort Williams Park, a 90-acre park owned by the nearby town of Cape Elizabeth that has a cliff walk, a children’s garden and a panoramic view of Casco Bay,” wrote The New York Times. “It’s also home to Portland Head Light, a historic and much-photographed lighthouse.”

Read the full New York Times article for more recommendations.

Portland just made CNN’s inaugural list of best places to visit in America.

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