A sign for the long vacant Antlers Inn on Main Street in Bingham — estimated to be worth less than $25 — is at the center of a federal lawsuit seeking damages from the town, its first selectman and a Somerset County sheriff’s deputy. Morning Sentinel file

A dispute over the ownership of a restaurant sign worth less than $25 is at the center of a federal lawsuit a Bingham man filed earlier this month.

Daigan C. Small, 24, is seeking unspecified damages from the town of Bingham, the town’s first selectman and a Somerset County sheriff’s deputy for “their unreasonable, unlawful, and malicious violations of the (his) rights” over the course of the dispute, which led to a criminal charge against Small, a complaint filed by Small’s attorney says.

The complaint alleges that Steven L. Steward, described as Bingham’s first selectman and town manager, and Deputy Ashley Smith conspired to punish Small for taking a sign from a town-owned building that was being demolished. The lawsuit was filed by Walter H. Foster IV of the Augusta law firm STEVE SMITH Trial Lawyers on Sept. 4 in U.S. District Court in Bangor.

According to the complaint, on June 19, 2023, Small was driving on Main Street, or U.S. Route 201, in Bingham and stopped to watch the former Moose Alley restaurant being demolished. The building is on Main Street, on the north side of its intersection with Preble Street, Foster said in an email.

Small asked David Wave, an excavator operator with Costello Demolition Services, if he could buy a “Restaurant & Lounge” sign on the building for $5, the complaint says. Wave removed the sign and gave it to Small for free. Several bystanders told Small he should the leave the area, and he returned to his truck and drove down a four-wheeler path behind Camden National Bank.

Small noticed Steward, the first selectman, following him in his vehicle in what the complaint describes as an unsafe and aggressive manner. Small’s fiancée, Gabrielle Grover, “became terrified and afraid for her personal well-being as (Steward) tried to use his vehicle as a weapon and attempted to force (Small’s) vehicle off the road.”

Small was able to elude Steward and reached a relative’s home, the lawsuit says.

At that point, Steward “commenced his conspiracy to ensure that (Small) was punished in the manner he felt appropriate.”

According to the complaint, Steward that day created and signed a new contract with the demolition company, identified as Pine Tree Waste/Casella, specifying that the town of Bingham controlled all materials being disposed of in the demolition process and provided the contract to Smith, the sheriff’s deputy, as evidence of a criminal offense.

Smith interviewed Small at his home later that day and issued him a summons for theft by unauthorized taking, a Class E misdemeanor level charge, the complaint says, and seized the sign.

Prosecutors in the Somerset County District Attorney’s Office later declined to move forward with the case after reviewing evidence, the complaint says. District Attorney Maeghan Maloney, whose district covers Somerset and Kennebec counties, confirmed Wednesday that her office dismissed the charge after initially filing a criminal complaint.

Small claims the defendants violated his constitutional rights by manufacturing evidence that led to his arrest, were negligent in their duty to protect and care for him and inflicted emotional distress, among others.

Small is seeking a jury trial and for the court to award him compensatory, general and punitive damages, along with other relief.

He also wants the sign — estimated to be worth less than $25 — to be returned to him. The Sheriff’s Office turned it over to Steward after Smith took it, according to the lawsuit.

According to court records, the court issued summonses for three defendants — the town, Steward and Smith — on Sept. 12. No proof of service of the paperwork was on file with the court as of Wednesday morning. Defendants must respond to the summonses within 21 days of it being served to them.

Peter Marchesi, of the Waterville law firm Wheeler & Arey, is representing Smith on behalf of Somerset County. In a statement to the Morning Sentinel, Marchesi defended Smith.

“Deputy Sheriff Smith’s actions were highly professional and in keeping with all well recognized law-enforcement standards at all times. She conducted herself appropriately, professionally, and in a manner consistent with what the public expects of its law-enforcement officers. The allegations against her are nothing more than mere accusations, and lack any substance or merit. Deputy Smith is confident that she will be fully vindicated.  A formal answer denying all of the substantive allegations will be filed in due course.”

Somerset County Sheriff Dale Lancaster declined to comment on the specifics of the case Wednesday.

In general, Lancaster said, the county’s legal resources, through its risk pool, are used to represent deputies in litigation when it involves their performance of official duties and there is believed to be just cause for their actions, he said.

Steward, reached by telephone at the town office Wednesday, said he was aware of the lawsuit but could not comment on it. Steward declined to answer whether he or the town of Bingham has a lawyer.

In response to questions about his official capacity, Steward said that he currently holds only the position of first selectman, not town manager as the lawsuit states. He said the same was true at the time of the alleged actions in 2023 described in the lawsuit.

There are other inaccurate details in the lawsuit, among them the road Small was driving on. The complaint states it was Route 1, but Foster, the attorney representing Small, acknowledged the error in an email and confirmed the highway was U.S. Route 201. The complaint also states the property being demolished was at 844 Main St. in Bingham, and Foster said Wednesday he believed that was the accurate address. Google Maps street view archives show the property was numbered 334 Main St.

Steward, the selectman, confirmed that the property referenced in the lawsuit was a former commercial establishment, most recently known as the Antlers Inn.

The town had previously foreclosed on the property, he said.

The inn and restaurant, then known as Moose Alley Inn, was the site of a fatal bar fight in 2005.