PORTLAND – The state supreme court Wednesday upheld the murder conviction of an East Corinth man for what prosecutors described as the torture killing of his girlfriend more than three years ago.

Franklin A. Higgins II is serving a 45-year sentence in the stabbing of Katherine Poor, who was found dead on the kitchen floor of her Kenduskeag home on Feb. 28, 1999.

In his appeal, Higgins argued that incriminating statements he made to police should have been suppressed because his questioners failed to inform him of his Miranda rights, including his right to remain silent and his right to counsel.

The Supreme Judicial Court disagreed, saying Higgins was not in police custody when he voluntarily met with detectives on March 10, 1999, at the Kenduskeag fire station for what turned out to be a four-hour interview. During that time, Higgins contradicted his earlier statements, saying he got into a fight with Poor and struck her with a knife.

The justices noted that the interrogation took place in a wide-open room with the door open and that Higgins never was informed that he was a suspect.

“Viewed objectively, the detectives’ conversational and non-confrontational response would have caused someone in Higgins’ position to conclude that, as stated at the outset of the meeting, he remained free to discontinue the interrogation and leave if he so chose,” the opinion read.

The court also found sufficient basis for a magistrate’s probable cause finding that allowed police to search Higgins’ home and vehicle. DNA tests of a stain on the toe of a work boot found at the home revealed a match with the victim’s DNA.