Lance Tapley

12 posts

Lance Tapley, of Augusta, is a veteran investigative reporter and a co-author of “The United States and Torture: Interrogation, Incarceration, and Abuse,” published by New York University Press.

A black and white photo of the interior of an isolation cell at Maine State Prison.

11 min

After 27 years, Maine still fails to comply with the court-ordered decree to improve treatment of the state’s mentally ill

A new nonpartisan report finds significant shortcomings in Maine's treatment of its mentally ill, despite a 27-year-old court-ordered decree.

ByLance Tapley

September 27, 2017

A man looks down at the ground while sitting in a chair

7 min

Advocates: Inadequate funding undercuts consent decree’s potential for mental health care

Advocates believe Maine's refusal to appropriate enough money to meet a court decree is at the root of many problems in the mental health care system.

ByLance Tapley

September 27, 2017

a man sitting in a courtroom, appearing before a judge

7 min

‘Lack of will’, potential conflicts of interest plague comprehensive mental health solution

Critics say a comprehensive mental health solution for Maine's mentally ill has not been found, though drug courts and other innovative ideas show promise.

ByLance Tapley

September 27, 2017

illustration showing a man holding a telescope called Irving looking across the green lands of Maine and seeing dollar signs

7 min

Maine’s future with Irving

If the giant, ever-growing Irving corporations were to have a larger presence in Maine, what effects might there be on Mainers' daily life?

ByLance Tapley

September 18, 2015

at the roadway entrance to the Irving business complex

6 min

New Brunswick, Irving company province

Several books and a Canadian-government report have noted the Irving family business' power over the province of New Brunswick is probably unparalleled in the developed world. I spent a number of days in the province, getting an unusual tour of the Irving refinery, and talking with both critics and supporters of Irving’s influence in the province.

ByLance Tapley

September 16, 2015

7 min

Irving lost mining battle, but history says Canadian corporate giant will not give up

Irving corporate presence in Maine and New Brunswick and the Irving-family domination and its growing economic and political influence in Maine.

ByLance Tapley

September 16, 2015

5 min

Irving: No more ‘oil trains’ in Maine

Irving Oil has stopped and has no plan to resume shipping oil to its Canadian refinery via Maine rail lines. The decision was made earlier this year and confirmed recently in an email to the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting.

ByLance Tapley

July 14, 2015