2 lawmen linked to Maine’s deadliest shooting are vying for job as county sheriff

BATH, Maine (AP) — Two law enforcement officers who were allies when they faced tough questions about their interactions with an Army reservist who last year killed 18 people in Maine’s deadliest shooting are squaring off to become sheriff.

Neither four-term Democratic incumbent Sagadahoc County Sheriff Joel Merry, nor his Republican rival, patrol Sgt. Aaron Skolfield, want their career to be defined by the mass shooting that also injured 13 others. But it’s impossible to escape their connection on the verge of a grim one-year anniversary that will be marked less than two weeks ahead of Election Day.

For his part, Skolfield was criticized by Democratic Gov. Janet Mills’ independent commission — and by the governor herself — for failing to use Maine’s yellow flag law to take Robert Card into protective custody in the midst of a spiraling mental health crisis, and start the process of removing his access to guns.

Skolfield said his hands were tied during the welfare check because Card refused to answer the door: The law required a face-to-face interaction, and Skolfield said it would’ve been illegal to knock down the door. Card lived in Bowdoin, in Sagadahoc County. The shooting happened in Lewiston, in a neighboring county.

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