2 men accused of slaying U.S. soldier appear briefly in 13th District Court

DOVER-FOXCROFT – Two Madison men accused of killing a U.S. soldier from Kentucky last month in Parkman and their Bangor attorneys made brief appearances Monday in 13th District Court.

Arthur “Artie” Belanger Jr., 21, and Chad Slimm, 20, both donning orange prison jumpsuits, sat quietly as Judge Kevin Stitham quizzed their attorneys about dates for Harnish hearings, to determine whether the men should be released on bail.

Both men have been held at Piscataquis County Jail without bail since they were arrested and charged with the murder of Brian Vines. Vines, 23, died of multiple gunshot wounds and his body was found on Oct. 6 at a hunting camp in Parkman. Police believe the active-duty soldier was in Maine to visit Belanger, who reportedly had served with Vines at Fort Campbell.

Marvin Glazier, Belanger’s court-appointed attorney, and Jeffrey Silverstein, Slimm’s attorney, both told Stitham Monday that they were not ready to schedule a hearing. Glazier said he had received some initial discovery late last week while Silverstein said he had received only minimal discovery.

Stitham suggested he would give the Harnish hearings a priority among court proceedings, if the attorneys requested them later.

Monday’s court appearances were actually a follow-up of the pair’s preliminary court hearings held last month in Bangor. Attorney General Andrew Benson told Stitham that it was his understanding that Bangor court officials neglected to commit some of the findings from that hearing into writing.

Benson said he expected the cases against Belanger and Slimm would be presented on Dec. 29 to a Piscataquis County grand jury. The grand jury session has been expedited for the matter, he said.

Outside the courtroom, Benson said there will be no formal arraignment of the pair until they have been indicted by the grand jury. He expected the arraignments to be held in January and trials held within six to nine months.

Family members of both men attended Monday’s hearing and Slimm managed to get a quick hug from his mother, Paula Flood of Madison, before he was led from the courtroom.