Page 16 — THE PORTLAND DAILY SUN, Friday, May 27, 2011
Biddeford man pleads guilty to hate crime DAILY SUN STAFF REPORT
A Biddeford man who pleaded guilty to several charges including violations of the Maine Civil Rights Act has been sentenced to nine months in jail, state officials announced. Adam D. Goodwin, 36, pleaded guilty in York County Superior Court to assault, interference with constitutional and civil rights, and a criminal violation of a civil rights injunction. He was sentenced yesterday by Judge Arthur Brennan. The charges stem from a Dec. 18, 2010 incident involving Goodwin and a mixed-race couple at Rapid Ray’s Diner in Biddeford. Goodwin was accused of making a derogatory remark to the couple. When the victim, a black male, responded, Goodwin “closed his fist and punched (the victim) in the head," the attorney general's office reported. “It is unacceptable that acts of violence are committed against complete strangers because of their race or national origin. We will continue to vigorously pursue and prosecute those who commit crimes driven by hatred and intolerance,” Maine Attorney General William J. Schneider said in a statement. At the time of the assault, Goodwin was already under an injunction resulting from a 2008 assault against a Jewish man that was motivated by anti-Semitism, state officials said in a press release. Since 1992 the Maine Attorney General’s office has obtained over 200 injunctions against individuals under the Maine Civil Rights Act. Violations of those injunctions are Class D crimes punishable by up to 364 days in jail. There have only been eight criminal violations of these civil rights orders, all resulting in significant jail sentences, Schneider said in the release.