SKOWHEGAN — From when he was first accused right up to the weeks leading to his arrest last year for the murder of 20-year-old Rita St. Peter in 1980, Jay Mercier maintained his innocence.
Doug Harlow
Doug Harlow is a veteran Morning Sentinel reporter now covering Skowhegan municipal government and police, court activity and general news from around Somerset County. In his spare time he raises chickens for eggs, cayenne peppers, fingerling potatoes, garlic and other organic vegetables with his wife, Mary Lou, who also maintains lovely flower gardens. Their little farm also produces maple syrup and heritage apples. Doug and Mary Lou moved to Maine in 1987 Doug, a Stone Soup Society poet and cab driver in Boston in the 1970s, was hired as a contracted correspondent for the Sentinel in January, 1988. His interests include baseball, especially the Boston Red Sox, and feeding the wild birds that visit them in the winter.
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Mercier Trial: Samples from victim of 1980 murder said to match defendant
SKOWHEGAN — DNA samples taken from murdered 20-year-old Rita St. Peter in 1980 match the DNA profile of Jay Mercier, of Industry, the man accused of sexually assaulting and killing her, a state witness said in court Monday.
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Mercier murder trial: Expert doesn’t rule out truck tire tracks
SKOWHEGAN — What first looked like a clash of old-school police work and modern forensics in the 1980 murder of Rita St. Peter merged Friday into compelling evidence in the trial of the man accused of killing her.
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Tire talk dominates first day of Mercier murder trial in Skowhegan
SKOWHEGAN — State Police Sgt. AJ Carter had a Polaroid instant camera with him July 5, 1980, when Rita St. Peter’s body was found off Campground Road in Anson.
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DNA evidence debated at opening of Mercier murder trial
The prosecutor tells jurors that new evidence from improved forensic technology will prove Jay Mercier’s guilt in the death of Rita St. Peter 32 years ago.
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Sappi wins industry award
SKOWHEGAN — Sappi Fine Paper North America has been named the 2012 Maine Manufacturer of the Year by the Maine Forest Products Council.
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Olsen named executive director of Waterville Main Street
SKOWHEGAN — Jennifer Olsen, executive director of Main Street Skowhegan, has been named the new executive director of Waterville Main Street.
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State police on trail of ‘backpack burglar’
SKOWHEGAN — State police are calling him the backpack burglar.
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Alleged Bingham bank robber among indicted
SKOWHEGAN — A Waterville man has been indicted by a Somerset County grand jury on a charge that he robbed the Bingham branch of Camden National Bank last month.
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Murder trial set to begin
SKOWHEGAN — Fading memories, lost witnesses and decades-old forensic evidence will be among the challenges in a 32-year-old murder case set for trial this week.