A judge on Tuesday denied a motion by a former Maine State Police chief – accused of sexually assaulting a 4-year-old child – that sought permission for him to have supervised contact with four of his grandchildren.

Andrew Demers Jr., 74, of New Gloucester has remained free on $5,000 bail since his arrest March 17. He pleaded not guilty on April 16 to a two-count indictment charging him with gross sexual assault and unlawful sexual contact.

Demers’ attorney, Walter McKee, filed a motion at the Cumberland County Courthouse in Portland seeking to amend the conditions of Demers’ bail. He is currently barred from having any contact with the alleged victim in the case and any children younger than 16. McKee asked that Demers be allowed contact with his four grandchildren.

Superior Court Justice William Brodrick quickly denied the motion after a hearing that lasted only a couple of minutes.

Cumberland County District Attorney Stephanie Anderson, who is prosecuting the high-profile case, opposed the motion and sought to have bail remain unchanged.

“The defendant is undergoing an evaluation at this time, and we would prefer to see the results of this psychological evaluation before we change any bail conditions,” Anderson said.

Advertisement

McKee argued that the parents of the grandchildren with whom Demers is seeking contact are aware of the criminal allegations against him and have told the District Attorney’s Office that they had approved modifying Demers’ bail conditions.

If Demers is convicted, he would face as many as 30 years in prison for gross sexual assault, a Class A felony. The charge of unlawful sexual contact is a Class B felony, punishable by a maximum of 10 years in prison.

Cumberland County Sheriff Kevin Joyce has said that Demers admitted to assaulting the child multiple times, but McKee has said he has not seen a written confession.

State police got a tip about the alleged crimes March 10 and referred it to the district attorney, who asked the sheriff’s office to investigate. The District Attorney’s Office and McKee arranged for Demers to turn himself in at the county jail.

Demers, named a Legendary Trooper in 2003, served 26 years with the state police and held the department’s top position from 1987 to 1993, when he retired.

Demers’ trial is tentatively set for Sept. 22.

Scott Dolan can be contacted at 791-6304 or at:

sdolan@pressherald.com

Twitter: @scottddolan


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.