March 29, 2024
BANGOR DAILY NEWS (BANGOR, MAINE

Suit in Red Garter shooting to be heard

SKOWHEGAN — A civil lawsuit filed by three men who were shot more than four years ago at the Red Garter Bottle Club in St. Albans finally will be heard in early January in Somerset County Superior Court.

The hearing was prompted last June by a high-court ruling that threw out the earlier conviction of John Sullivan of St. Albans for shooting the three men. It had to be rescheduled after Sullivan pleaded no contest in October to charges of aggravated assault and reckless conduct. He was sentenced in mid-November to four years in jail.

Shirley Brooks, Carlton Nichols, both of St. Albans, and Forest Davis of Brewer have filed a civil lawsuit seeking damages against the Red Garter, Eileen and John Sullivan, and George Roundy of St. Albans. The three men received gunshot wounds during a barroom fight at the club. Brooks owns the club, and therefore, in essence, is suing himself. Davis was a patron, and Nichols was the bouncer.

Nichols received a small wound in his thigh. Davis was shot in the arm, and Brooks was shot in the abdomen. All three men have recovered from their injuries.

The Sullivans and Roundy came to the club to question Brooks about a fight that had occurred the week before.

Eileen Sullivan and George Roundy weren’t tried in connection with the matter, but John Sullivan was convicted nine months ago of three counts of aggravated assault and one count of reckless conduct with a weapon after a jury trial in Somerset County Superior Court, a conviction that ultimately was overturned.

In court testimony, Sullivan argued that when he pulled a .357 Magnum and fired randomly, he was reacting in self-defense after a crowd of people charged him in the doorway of the club. Sullivan is a decorated Vietnam veteran and former police officer who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. He originally was sentenced to eight years in prison.

In April, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court threw out Sullivan’s conviction for shooting Brooks, Nichols and Davis, citing Justice Frances Marsano’s failure to instruct the jurors on self-defense.

During his weeklong trial in October 1996, Sullivan was acquitted of the more serious charge of attempted murder in the Oct. 9, 1993, shootings. In trial testimony, Sullivan was portrayed as a Bronze Star-decorated, Vietnam War veteran who suffers nightmares, flashbacks and other symptoms of PTSD, along with lingering physical damage from the war. Terrified of strange situations and crowds, Sullivan was nearly a recluse on his St. Albans farm, teaching karate to small classes and never leaving his property without a gun for protection.

On the night of the shooting, Sullivan maintained, he had gone to the club to find out why his wife, Eileen, had been mistreated the week before. Friends and family described Sullivan as a quiet, kind man who avoided confrontation and trouble. He had never been to the Red Garter before the night of the shooting.

The state had argued that because Sullivan was the initial aggressor, self-defense was not an issue and portrayed Sullivan as a vigilante who packed a pistol the night of the shootings because he was avenging his wife’s honor at the club.

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court disagreed, however, citing reasonable doubt on that question, as well as whether Sullivan and his wife could have retreated safely from the encounter.

How aggressively the Red Garter trio acted toward Sullivan and his party will likely be a key issue in the civil suit. The civil case will be heard in January, but no specific date has been set.


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