Prosecutors drop charges against council candidate

PORTLAND — Charges have been dropped against a former City Council candidate who claimed he was making a citizen’s arrest when he confronted a fisherman with a toy gun.

John Harrigan won an appeal for a new trial after he was convicted on robbery charges in Cumberland County Superior Court, but prosecutors decided to drop the charges, a court clerk confirmed Tuesday.

Harrigan appealed for a new trial because he was not allowed to present his defense that he was making a citizen’s arrest on what he thought was a drug dealer operating near a school.

Harrigan ended up with Robert Baker’s briefcase after the struggle. Police said it contained business documents, not drugs.

The state supreme court awarded a new trial last June. His lawyer said at the time it was unlikely prosecutors would pursue a new trial because Harrigan had already served his jail sentence.