Lawmakers stripped away penalties in favor of a 16-person committee to look at the problem.
Eavesdropping in Maine Jails
Maine man recorded by jail while on phone with lawyer won’t get new trial
Judge William Stokes denies Steven Clarke’s request to set aside 2016 plea deal.
Maine lawmakers, defense attorneys say jails ‘must stop’ recording and listening to attorney calls
Gov. Janet Mills instructs the Department of Corrections to work with lawmakers to protect attorney-client privilege in jails and prisons.
One man fights to undo plea deal due to jail recording of attorney calls
Steven Clarke gambles that a justice will let him take back his guilty plea.
Eavesdropping in Maine Jails
Jailed defendants have a legal right to privately speak with their attorneys. Yet, in Maine, county jails are eavesdropping on these calls. Four jails recorded nearly 1,000 attorney-client calls in a single year and shared recordings with police and prosecutors before trial.
Attorney calls recorded by Maine jails
Maine jails recorded nearly 1,000 calls from inmates to their attorneys at the Aroostook, Androscoggin, Franklin and Kennebec county jails. The Maine Monitor filed public records requests to obtain the records, which span June 2019 to May 2020. Public records requests...
Jailed defendants expected private attorney calls. They didn’t always get them.
Murder suspects fear they can’t get a fair trial after state police acknowledge listening to portions of phone calls with their attorneys.
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