Jan. 8—AUGUSTA — Democrats in the Maine House of Representatives launched on ethics investigation Wednesday into actions of a Republican lawmaker from Sanford who is accused of assaulting his wife.
On the Maine Legislature’s first official day of business, the House voted 74-69 along party lines to launch an ethics investigation into Rep. Lucas Lanigan, who was charged with felony assault only weeks before the election for allegedly choking his wife. Lanigan won reelection by a single vote in a recount.
House Majority Leader Matt Moonen, D-Portland, said the House code of conduct requires civil and responsible conduct inside and outside of the State House. He acknowledged that Lanigan has only been charged and that he is entitled to due process, but the seriousness of the charges raises the question of whether Lanigan still has the public’s trust and confidence.
“The people of Sanford and all the people of Maine deserve elected leadership that’s held to the highest standards of conduct. Referring this matter to the ethics committee will ensure the public’s confidence that the House of Representatives takes these allegations and the integrity of the members serving in this institution seriously.”
Republicans opposed the motion while also denouncing domestic violence and expressing solidarity with victims.
Assistant House Minority Leader Katrina Smith, R-Palmero, said the House investigation would “trample the constitutional rights” of Lanigan, who is entitled to due process. She said the charges should be litigated in court, not in the House.
“We, as a body, are entering a slippery slope,” Smith said. “If we assume a posture that regardless of the right to be innocent until proven guilty, then we are applying an unfair standard to members of this body. Furthermore, we’re concerned that this order creates a civil liability for the House during an ongoing judicial matter.”
Lanigan was in attendance on the first day of the new session but did not speak on the motion to launch an investigation.
Lanigan did not immediately respond to a text message seeking his response to the referral. He has previously said his lawyer has advised him not to discuss the charges publicly.
The order directs the House Ethics Committee to conduct an investigation to see if Lanigan violated the House’s code of conduct. The committee would report its findings and any possible recommendations to the full House for further action.
The timeline and process for the investigation were not immediately clear. The order requires the committee to report back within a month of convening.
Lanigan has been charged with felony domestic violence assault. An arrest warrant states Lanigan grabbed his wife’s neck and choked her for about 20 seconds on Oct. 25 before she was able to leave and call her friends for help.
Sanford police were searching for him before he turned himself in to the York County Jail on Oct. 28. He was charged with domestic violence aggravated assault, a Class B crime that could bring up to 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.
Lanigan did not enter a plea at his first court appearance. His wife asked the judge and prosecutors to drop the charges, but Assistant District Attorney Linda Holdsworth-Donovan said victims regularly recant, sometimes because of pressure from the alleged perpetrators, and that the state was still pursuing charges against Lanigan.
Lanigan’s Democratic opponent, Patricia Kidder, appeared to win the seat on election night. But election officials in Sanford discovered a mistake in the tally. Once corrected, the race ended in a tie, with each candidate earning 2,476 votes. A recount gave Lanigan the one-vote edge.
About a quarter of the ballots in the race had been cast before news of Lanigan’s arrest became public. According to the Department of the Secretary of State, 1,306 absentee ballots were received before the incident was reported, including 394 Republicans and 370 unenrolled voters.
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