Ellen Gorman

From Judgepedia

Ellen A. Gorman is a justice on the Maine Supreme Judicial Court. She was appointed to the state's highest court on October 1, 2007 by Democratic governor John Baldacci^[1]. Her current term expires in 2014^[2].

Biography

Gorman graduated from Trinity College in 1977, and is a 1982 graduate of the Cornell Law School. ^[1]

Legal career

From 1982 to 1986, Justice Gorman was an associate lawyer at the firm of Richardson, Tyler and Troubh. In 1986, Gorman was appointed by then-Governor McKernan to the Workers' Compensation Commission, who would later appoint her to the Maine district courts in 1989. She was later appointed to the Maine Superior Court by then-Governor King where she served for seven years.^[3]

Notable cases

Moore v. Abbott

Can government officials "pass" on Freedom of Access laws by delegating chores to others?

Dennis Dechaine, an Aroostook County native of the St. John Valley, was convicted in 1989 for the murder of Sarah Cherry in the lower part of the state. Friends and family who thought Dennis was innocent organized a group and called it Trial and Error.^[4]. Though Dennis had a jury trial, the prosecutor from the attorney general's office kept evidence out of trial which would have helped Dennis... and the state's evidence was circumstantial. Dennis' guilt was never proven by that famous standard "beyond a shadow of a doubt."

In 2005, legislation changing Maine's post-conviction DNA statutes were passed, which took effect in September of 2006. Around that time, Maine Attorney General Steve Rowe, pressured by allegations of a flawed investigation and trial, ordered an investigation. He chose two attorneys (one with the last name Abbott) and a retired judge to perform the investigation; they were named the "Beaulieu Commission." When the investigation was completed in the autumn of 2006, the Commission's finding of "no wrongdoing" was reported to the public. James Moore - a retired Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agent and the author of books about the murder case - made Freedom of Access requests to obtain the information the Commission had relied on to form its opinion. After his requests were denied, James Moore filed a lawsuit... and subsequently an appeal of the Cumberland County Superior Court decision^[5]. The Maine Civil Liberties Union filed an amicus curaie in support of petitioner, Moore. The Maine Supreme Court upheld the ruling^[6]. Justices Alexander, Gorman, and Silver made up the majority, which felt since the Commission members volunteered their services, they were not subject to Maine's Freedom of Access laws. From Justice Levy's dissent, in which Justice Mead joined:

"The investigatory panel organized by the Attorney General was clearly performing a traditional government function—the internal investigation of allegations of prosecutorial and law enforcement misconduct"... and thus concluded that "the records of the investigatory panel organized by the Attorney General are subject to the Freedom of Access Act, 1 M.R.S. §§ 401-412 (2007)."

Before his trial in 1989, Dennis asked to have his DNA tested and offered to pay the cost, but his request was denied. Supporters believe that a jury of reasonable persons could come to a different conclusion based on new evidence, or evidence previously withheld from the jury^[4]Dennis' attorney filed a motion for a new trial in August of 2008.^[7].

External links

• Official biography of Justice Gorman
• Trial and Error website
• Moore v. Abbott (2008 ME 100)
• Dechaine case - Motion for New Trial

References

v • d • e Maine Supreme Court Current Chief: Saufley • Alexander • Clifford • Gorman • Levy • Mead • Silver Former Parris • Hornby • Fox • Carter • Lipez • Brody • Mellen