High court upholds murder conviction

PORTLAND – Maine’s highest court has upheld the murder conviction of Jeffrey “Russ” Gorman, ruling his mother’s recorded grand jury testimony could be used as evidence against him.

Gorman was convicted in the shooting death of Amy St. Laurent, 25, of South Berwick. St. Laurent was last seen with Gorman before she disappeared in Portland on Oct. 21, 2001, setting off an intense search.

Police found her body eight weeks later in a shallow grave in woods near the home of Tammy Westbrook, Gorman’s mother, in Scarborough.

Westbrook told a Portland grand jury that her son confessed to the crime, but during the trial she said she had no memory of the confession.

Gorman appealed his conviction, arguing that his mother’s statements should not have been admitted into evidence.

Christopher MacLean, his lawyer, argued that Westbrook’s testimony violated a constitutional requirement that a defendant be allowed to confront his accusers and question them about evidence presented to a jury.

Because Westbrook was not cross-examined, and because she later had no memory of her statements, MacLean argued Westbrook’s grand jury testimony should not have been allowed.

Gorman remains at the Maine State Prison, where he is serving a 60-year sentence.