Hermon man charged with assaulting his girlfriend

A Hermon man was arrested after he allegedly assaulted his girlfriend after refusing to help with her baby Sunday morning.

At 9:40 a.m. Bangor police officers Dennis Lally and Robert Hutchings received a call about an assault at a Bald Mountain Drive address.

Hutchings spoke with the boyfriend, 20-year-old John Hawes, while Lally went upstairs to speak with the complainant. Lally said she had red marks on her neck.

According to the police report, the girlfriend said she was getting ready for work and asked Hawes, asleep on the couch, to help with the baby. She said he swore at her, jumped off the couch and pushed her down.

The woman said Hawes put his hand on her throat, saying, “Die, [expletive], die.” She managed to get away and ran upstairs to the closet, where she phoned police.

When Lally asked Hawes about the red marks on his girlfriend’s neck, Hawes said, “Yeah, I choked her, she’s a [expletive].”

Hawes explained he doesn’t live at the residence, but his girlfriend always asks him to come over and help with the baby. He said she doesn’t let him leave when he wants to.

Lally arrested Hawes and charged him with domestic assault.

Old Town police arrested a man for domestic assault Sunday afternoon.

Officers Tom Adams and Seth Burnes received the call at about 4:45 p.m. and responded to a Front Street address, where they arrested Matthew Stetson, 28, of Old Town.

Stetson’s girlfriend had called police from another house. She alleged Stetson threw her around, hit her in the head and tried to strike her with a beer glass.

A prolonged high-speed chase led to the arrest of a Bangor man Saturday.

Shortly after 9:30 p.m., Bangor police officers Edward Mercier and Larry Woolley saw a red Nissan run a red light at the intersection of Interstate 95 and Broadway.

Mercier said they chased the car and stopped it on the highway. When the officers approached on foot, the driver looked at them, hit the gas and squealed away. Mercier said the driver was Jason Phillips, 19.

By the time it passed the Union Street overpass, the Nissan had exceeded 100 mph, Mercier said, and accelerated to 130 mph after passing the Hammond Street overpass.

The car encountered traffic near Cold Brook Road and passed a pickup truck in the left-hand breakdown lane, running slightly off the road and kicking up dirt.

Mercier said the car slowed to 30 mph as it approached Exit 43, where the Maine State Police had set up a roadblock with spike mats.

When Mercier turned his spotlight on the car, he saw a female passenger try to grab the steering wheel. Mercier said Phillips pushed the girl against the side door and slapped her.

As the Nissan approached the roadblock, Mercier said it accelerated and pulled into the turnaround, nearly hitting a state trooper. The chase continued.

After speeding down Cold Brook Road, the Nissan ran a red light and turned left onto Route 202, nearly hitting another car.

Mercier said Phillips drove down Main Trail Road, accelerating as if he did not realize it was a dead end.

Mercier used his spotlight to light up the houses lining the end of the road. Phillips turned around in a driveway.

The Nissan became stuck in the snow while driving across a lawn, Mercier said.

Penobscot County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Bill Birch and state Trooper Darren Vittum helped Mercier arrest Phillips as he fled his car.

Phillips was taken to Penobscot County Jail and charged with criminal speeding, assault, operating after suspension, eluding police, passing a roadblock and driving to endanger.

– Compiled by NEWS reporter Isaac Kimball