by Brad Rogers TOPSHAM (WGME) -- The hazing investigation into the Mt Investigators hired by the district found a pattern of misconduct intimidation and sexually inappropriate conduct on the part of one or more student athletes on the team According to a two-page summary of the investigation into the Mt "The investigation revealed a pattern of behavior including the use of homophobic language intentional urination on teammates in the shower humping teammates in the locker room while nude taunting with sexually inappropriate gestures and other degrading and unwelcome conduct." "It makes me sick to my stomach to think about that,” Topsham resident Linda Colwell said Colwell says this inappropriate behavior would affect everyone on the team the ones who experienced it and the ones who were aware of it there’s nothing positive about that to try to humiliate others,” Colwell said The investigation focused on two incidents one on a bus ride home and one in the locker room A man whose son is on the team says the student accuser is the one who started this behavior and that some students were sick of it and decided to give it back to him saying teammates who denied the allegations likely had their own ulterior motives “to close ranks or protect themselves from potential retaliation.” I’d say that they definitely overstepped,” Topsham father Brad Hojara said "And it definitely gives me some reservations about putting my kids in sports.” Hojara’s two children play sports at school I think maybe that should be the end of it,” Hojara said “I don’t think it should be the end of the program I think that’s the program should continue "We understand the behaviors and events described in the summary are very troubling," Topsham School Board Chair Amy Spelke said Spelke and Superintendent Heidi O’Leary say they plan to offer additional training to educate students and improve procedures and training for coaches and athletic staff O’Leary says she can’t talk about disciplinary actions that may have been taken against students or staff The school has appealed the Maine Principals’ Association’s two-year suspension of the boys hockey team for forfeiting the last two games by Matthew Bourgault TOPSHAM (WGME) -- The Topsham Police Department says its officers rounded up a group of horses Tuesday morning The horses were reportedly running down River Road towards Route 196 Officers were able to find the horses near Pejepscot Village and return them to their rightful owners by Ariana St Pierre Maine (WGME) -- Police say officers shot a man who was armed with a machete on the Merrymeeting Bridge in Topsham Police say they got a call from 33-year-old Joseph Mendez around 1:30 a.m He also said they “would be finding him soon.” Topsham Police Officers Mathew Bowers and Frasier Vachon found Mendez on the Merrymeeting Bridge on Route 196 Police say Mendez was armed with a machete and the officers told him to drop the weapon He then advanced towards officers and was shot police say Mendez continued to resist and refused to follow commands and was eventually tased before being taken into custody Mendez was wounded and taken to Maine Medical Center in Portland Police say he is expected to survive his injuries Officers Bowers and Vachon have been placed on administrative leave which is standard protocol in police shootings The Office of the Maine Attorney General is investigating the use of deadly force Officer Bowers was involved in another police shooting Police got a call check on the well-being of 37-year-old Kourtney Sherwood of Brunswick who was stopped on the side of the road on the Merrymeeting Bridge in Topsham on Route 196 She was reportedly making homicidal and suicidal statements and was possibly armed with a gun Police say Officer Bowers shot Sherwood after she aimed a pistol outside the car at officers The shooting was ruled justified and the investigation concluded Bowers protected the officers TOPSHAM (WGME) -- The Topsham Police Department is introducing the public to its new comfort dog Comfort dogs are used for community outreach and interviews with victims of trauma and abuse The police department says it chose the name Garver to honor the members of the Corey Edwin Garver American Legion Post 202 in Topsham who helped raise money for the comfort dog program Garver is a 10-week-old male English Labrador that comes from Boonefield Labradors in New Hampshire Boonefield specializes in breeding English Labrador support dogs for law enforcement agencies in every state in New England with plans to grow the supplemental and enrichment education brand across Maine *This brand is a paid partner of 1851 Franchise. For more information on paid partnerships please click here. The Crafts’ Successful Journey from New Parents to Children’s Lighthouse Franchisees How Robert Trujillo Expanded His Construction Business With UWRG Texas-Sized Ambition: How a Shared Dream Turned Into Three Crust Pizza Co. Locations Health Care Professional in the Non-Profit Space Brings TruBlue to North Pittsburgh TSG Consumer Partners Takes Minority Stake in Crumbl, Signaling Franchise Growth Potential Yum Brands Reports Strong Q1 Results with Big Boost from Taco Bell QSR: McDonald’s Gains Momentum With Chicken Innovation, Value Deals and Franchisee Support The Future of Franchising: Trends and Predictions for 2025 and Beyond From Grease to Green: How Filta's Recurring Revenue Model Fuels Franchise Success Pool Scouts Expands Hope Floats Fundraising Efforts for 2025, Aiming to Surpass $100,000 in Total Donations Why Rochester, New York, Is a Great Market To Open a Filta Environmental Kitchen Solutions Franchise Fresh Coat Cares: Painting a Brighter Future for Communities Nationwide the following states regulate the offer and sale of franchises: California If you are a resident of one of these states we will not offer you a franchise unless and until we have complied with applicable pre-sale registration and disclosure requirements in your jurisdiction Franchise offerings are made by Franchise Disclosure Document only TOPSHAM (WGME) – School bus drivers in Topsham are picketing to raise awareness about the fact that they've been working without a contract since July and to say their bosses pulled a bait and switch Transportation department staff say their members voted and passed a contract recently but when they sent it back to the superintendent's office they claim management changed a significant part of the deal Union representatives won't get into specifics about what was changed after the contract was agreed to but say they feel duped "We haven't had a contract since July and they've been working on this with the negotiation team for that long and they finally came to some terms that were agreeable to everybody and then they went back and just turned one of the terms it just isn't fair for us," MSAD 75 Bus Driver Helena Strang said CBS13 reached out to the superintendent's office multiple times Tuesday for their side of the story TOPSHAM (WGME) -- A Gray man is facing drug trafficking charges after authorities say they found fentanyl and crack hidden near the steering column of his car The Sagadahoc County Sheriff's Office says 27-year-old Michael Colon-Guerrero was pulled over in Topsham on Wednesday because he was using a handheld device while driving Deputies became suspicious when Colon-Guerrero claimed to not understand English but responded to every question A K-9 unit responded and indicated drugs were in the car Deputies say they searched the vehicle and found 107.7 grams of fentanyl and 17.6 grams of crack cocaine hidden in the dash near the steering column A digital scale and glassine baggies were found in the trunk Colon-Guerrero was arrested and charged with aggravated trafficking in schedule W drugs and unlawful trafficking of schedule W drugs He was taken to Two Bridges Regional Jail in Wiscasset There's another pizza place opening up in Maine soon and this latest one is serving up New York-style Jason's New York Style Pizza announced on its Facebook page recently that it hopes to open in Topsham sometime in April In September 2024, Jason's revealed on Facebook that it was expanding to Topsham and what was supposed to be a simple project turned into "a full-scale renovation," Jason's said in a February 2025 update Jason's had good news to share: all their hard work was nearly done and they were hoping for an April grand opening is really not that long from their original announcement The original Jason's New York Style Pizza was started in Bangor, Maine, back in 1997, according to the restaurant's website The family-run business expanded to a location in Brewer in 2000 along with another Bangor spot in 2023 READ MORE: Food Network Names the Best Slice of Pizza in Maine The Topsham establishment would mark the first southern Maine spot for this pizza place Maybe there's more to come in the future Will you be checking out Jason's when it opens Where's your favorite pizza place in Maine Gallery Credit: Lori Voornas Jason's New York Style Pizza provided an update for its opening at its new Topsham, Maine, location.\nRead More Jason's New York Style Pizza announced on its Facebook page recently that it hopes to open in Topsham sometime in April In September 2024, Jason's revealed on Facebook that it was expanding to Topsham we hear you!\n\nMany of you have been asking when Jason’s will be opening The original Jason's New York Style Pizza was started in Bangor, Maine, back in 1997, according to the restaurant's website Did you know that we’re home to the 24” Monster Pizza?!Looking to feed a houseful of kiddos for Winter Break READ MORE: Food Network Names the Best Slice of Pizza in Maine A man armed with a machete was shot and tased by police early Tuesday morning on the Merrymeeting Bridge in Topsham on Tuesday the Sagadahoc Regional Communications Center received a call from 33-year-old Joseph Mendez who “[thanked] them for their service,” and informed the dispatcher “that they would be finding him soon.” and Topsham Police Officers Mathew Bowers and Frasier Vachon responded to Route 196 on the Merrymeeting Bridge in Topsham the two officers attempted to communicate with Mendez and commanded him to drop a machete he was holding Police say Mendez did not respond to the officers’ commands and was shot as he advanced towards the officers while brandishing the machete He was also tased after he continued to resist and failed to follow commands Mendez was eventually taken into custody by Brunswick and Topsham Police He was taken to Mid-Coast Hospital and then transported to Maine Medical for further treatment Police say Mendez is expected to survive his injuries Topsham Police Officers Bowers and Vachon have both been placed on administrative leave as is standard protocol for Maine police departments in cases of use of deadly force The Maine Officer of the Attorney General will be investigating the incident to determine whether the use of deadly force by the officers was justified Any underlying criminal charges against Mendez will be investigated by the Topsham Police Department’s Criminal Division Edward Tomic is a reporter for The Maine Wire based in Southern Maine Massachusetts and is a graduate of Boston University He can be reached at tomic@themainewire.com Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value" glad they didnt kill him just because they could The Topsham Police Department says its officers rounded up a group of galloping horses Tuesday morning Officers were able to find the horses near Pejepscot Village and return them to their owners Rihanna shut down a rainy Met Gala on Monday in a pinstripe look and a huge hat her newly announced baby bump on display after announcing her pregnancy with baby No Cardinals wrapped up their pre-conclave meetings Tuesday trying to identify a possible new pope who could follow Pope Francis and make the 2,000-year-old Catholic Church credible and relevant today King joins a field of seven candidates so far seeking to replace Democratic Governor Janet Mills The wording of a ballot measure asking voters to approve a photo ID requirement for elections is now finalized Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter Support our mission and join our community now you can subscribe for as little as €0.50 per week which will also give you access to all of our premium content and archived articles Thank you for supporting Ireland's best local journalism Planners have given their unanimous backing to a scheme to repair and restore a key piece of Exeter’s maritime history The city council owns the building in The Strand at Topsham which houses the town’s popular museum which is currently closed and shrouded in scaffolding It had to apply to itself for listed building consent to go ahead with repairs to the 17th century merchant’s house The Society for the Protection on Ancient Buildings (SPAB) had been the only objector to the proposal saying windows should be repaired rather than replaced and making other observations about how floor joists and roof trusses should be handled a meeting of the city council’s planning committee heard that the work was outside the society’s brief There will be roof and floor repairs along with work to fix external masonry and walls A parapet will be rebuilt and 20th century windows in a sail loft will be replaced The aim is to repair failing structural elements and replace inappropriate modern additions conserving the building’s ‘important historic fabric’ Topsham Labour councillor Gemma Rolstone said: “If we don’t do something here we are going to exacerbate the problems in this beautiful building that was gifted to the people of Topsham as a museum “Listed buildings need lots of care and attention Hopefully we can unpick some of the damage that was previously done and do a sensitive restoration of this very beautiful building.” " + $(".testo_articolo").html().replace(//g please subscribe and support local journalism Subscribing will allow you access to all of our premium content and archived articles To continue reading this article for FREE,please kindly register and/or log in Registration is absolutely 100% FREE and will help us personalise your experience on our sites You can also sign up to our carefully curated newsletter(s) to keep up to date with your latest local news Controlled burning is one method of managing gorse on Dartmoor This fire was unplanned and is under investigation (Image: Herbythyme/Wikimedia Commons) Emily Pink from Stitch by Stitch at an SDG Teach In event at University of Exeter (Image: Kay Cameron) Subscribe or register today to 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