PORTLAND – The Maine Supreme Judicial Court on Friday unanimously upheld the conviction and sentence of a Sangerville man for his part in a 2003 home invasion.

Walter S. Cobb II, 34, was sentenced in March 2004 to 25 years in prison after being convicted by a Penobscot County jury after a three-day trial. The two other men who participated in the armed robbery and burglary with him were sentenced to significantly less prison time.

Cobb’s attorney, Kirk Bloomer of Bangor, argued before the state’s high court in November that the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in 2004 overturning so-called sentencing “enhancements” in Washington state applied to Maine.

Bloomer argued that in determining a sentence, Superior Court Justice Jeffrey Hjelm incorrectly considered police reports going back more than a decade.

The justices did not consider the broader question of whether “enhancements” were applied to Cobb’s sentence. Instead, the court found that Hjelm did not abuse his discretion in sentencing Cobb to a basic sentence of 20 years, then adding five years due to his criminal history.

“In sum, taking into account the court’s justifiable decision to set a basic sentence of 20 years based on the nature and seriousness of the crime,” Chief Justice Leigh I. Saufley wrote for the court, “Cobb’s prior convictions are sufficient to justify an elevation [to 25 years].

“It is clear from the record that, even if the court may have erroneously considered evidence other than the fact of prior convictions,” she continued, “the court would have elevated the sentence … without considering non-conviction information. Any possible error was, therefore, harmless.”

Cobb and two other men entered a LaGrange home abut 8:45 a.m. March 9, 2003, according to testimony at Cobb’s trial. All three wore ski masks over their heads. They left with about $1,000 in cash, two 1-gallon bags filled with marijuana, and the family’s SUV after Cobb threatened the male head of household by firing shots over his head.

Co-defendant Roderick Cole, 26, of Sangerville was sentenced to 16 years in prison with all but five suspended, and co-defendant Albert Severance, 26, of Sangerville was sentenced to 18 years with all but eight suspended for their parts in the home invasion.