Disgruntled Calais woman charged in vandalism at library

CALAIS – A woman who apparently had a beef against some library rules allegedly threw paint on the windows in the entryway on the first floor of the Calais Free Library.

Kristine Miller, 47, of Calais has been charged with criminal mischief as a result of the Feb. 7 incident. She also was charged with filing a false report in connection with another incident.

Early in the evening Feb. 7, police who were patrolling the downtown area while doing their building checks saw Miller in the vicinity of Union Street.

When library staff members opened up the next morning, they found the painted windows. “She allegedly threw some latex base paint on the windows at the library and attempted to scrawl some sort of writing in there,” Officer Jason Fowler said Tuesday.

Fowler said he would not elaborate on the incident other than to say that Miller allegedly “was dissatisfied with some of the rules” at the library.

Overlooking the St. Croix River, the library is on the site of the home of James Shepherd Pike, who was a friend of Abraham Lincoln and an associate of editor and politician Horace Greeley. Pike, a prominent abolitionist, served as U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands during the Lincoln administration. In his will, he left his homestead property and some money for establishing a library.

The yellow-brick building with red granite trim was built in 1892. It was designed by architect A.H. Vinal and built for about $10,000. It opened to the public on July 4, 1893.

A few years ago, a drainage problem forced city officials to undertake a $285,000 renovation of the library. The windows Miller alleged splashed paint on were near that renovation area.

Police also have charged Miller with filing a false report.

Again, Fowler did not elaborate but did say it happened on the same night. “It involved making a report of a crime taking place that the officer did not believe happened,” he said.

Miller is scheduled to appear in 4th District Court in Calais on April 4.