State of Maine v. Erkson

STATE OF MAINE UNIFIED CRIMINAL COURT
KENNEBEC, SS. AUGUSTA
Docket Nos. CR-2022-2244

STATE OF MAINE

V. ORDER

ZACHARY ERK.SON . . .. •. . ­

Before the court is the Defendant's Motion to Dismiss or Other Relief filed
on December 30, 2022. The' , motion' to dismiss was denied by the court for the
reasons stated on the record on January 5, 2023. The court would add to that record
the following: At some point after the initial appearance, the clerk's office became
aware that Mr. Erkson was represented by Attorney Catherman on unrelated charges
and were working on having him appointed to represent the Defendant on the
charges in this case, but he was no longer on our roster here at the CJC. Ultimately,
Attorney Erkson was not able to accept the case. Attorney French was then
appointed to the case, but that order was vacated when he could not accept it. Then,
on December 29, 2022, Attorney Bourget was appointed.
As an alternative to dismissal, the Defendant, through Attorney Ruffner who
has entered a limited appearance, seeks personal recognizance or unsecured bail.
The court has listened to the recording of Mr. Erkson's in-custody initial appearance
before the court (Gilbert, J.) on December 19, 2022. The court has also listened to
a sampling of 5 other in-custody matters that day. The court has also read the
probable cause affidavit and other statements. Judge Gilbert was aware at the time
of Mr. Erkson's initial appearance that the complaint had some "deficiencies,"
including that the prior conviction alleged in the complaint was slightly more than
10 years old, because they were brought to her attention by Attorney Bourget acting
as lawyer of the day for Mr. Erkson. The Judge made it clear that her bail decision
was not based on the classification of the alleged crimes, but on the factual
statements in the probable cause affidavit, including the allegation that Mr. Erkson
discharged a gun into the woods while in a motor vehicle with the complaining
witness and his minor child, and pointed the gun at the head of the complaining
witness and said he would kill her. The court understands that these allegations are
strongly disputed in many material respects. Nevertheless, the serious nature of the
allegations, the existence of probable cause to support those allegations, and the
Defendant's prior criminal record persuades the court that no change to the
Defendant's bail is warranted. In the court's view, the bail set at the initial
appearance was and is reasonable. Moreover, there is no basis to reduce the bail as
any type of "sanction" for an alleged violation of M.R.U.Crim.P. 5(e), which the
court finds did not occur.
The entry is:
Motion to Dismiss or for Relief is DENIED.

Dated: January 9, 2023

Justice, Superior Court

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Entered on the docket \ c( ,?._::>

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