The Law Office of Tina Heather Nadeau

05/13/2026

04/25/2026

Maine residents! Click this link to send off an email to your state representatives to overturn the Governor’s cruel and harmful veto of LD 1911. Everyone deserves a second chance!

https://actionnetwork.org/letters/urge-maine-lawmakers-to-override-the-ld-1911-veto/

04/09/2026

A Maine man whose yearslong plight in the Maine State Prison’s isolation unit was chronicled in a 2021 Bangor Daily News investigation has settled a lawsuit against the state for $250,000.

Zachary Swain accused the state prison officials of violating his constitutional rights by subjecting him to an “endless cycle of punishment” instead of treating his mental health issues.

Read the story: https://www.bangordailynews.com/2026/04/09/mainefocus/mainefocus-police-courts/zachary-swain-maine-solitary-confinement-settlement-joam40zk0w/

📝: Callie Ferguson / BDN
📸: Troy R. Bennett / BDN File

04/09/2026

We currently have requests coming in for tents and sleeping bags from York County to Franklin County to Penobscot County. So we're raising $10,000 to purchase tents and sleeping bags in bulk for our unhoused neighbors.

Whether you can contribute $5 or $500, please give what you can so we can help make sure people living outside can stay safe.

givebutter.com/tentfund

We also accept these items donated gently used, in GREAT shape, or new.

📍2385 Congress Street, Portland

WEEKLY DONATION HOURS

Tues 10am-1pm, 6pm-8pm
Thurs 10am-1pm
Sat 10am-12pm

03/31/2026

“Today is Trans Day of Visibility. Far too many trans people are targeted by the carceral system and caught in its vicious conditions.

Trans folks—and the LGBTQ+ community at large—can’t get left behind in the fight to end mass incarceration."

03/27/2026

Tina Nadeau, director of the Maine Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers - MACDL, said it’s already hard enough to obtain police text messages and other communications, so it’s especially frustrating to her that officers are choosing to delete other communications that could be useful in court.

“How do we believe in the word of an officer who, as a matter of course, deletes communications with other officers?” she asked. “If I was a supervisor, I’d be very concerned about that. Because how do you put officers on the stand if they’re engaged in the intentional deletion of information?”

City leaders say they're considering a review of the department's use of Signal and its auto-delete function. The police chief says his officers are acting in accordance with state law.

03/24/2026

The I-Team also asked the Maine Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers - MACDL whether having jurors in their late 70s plays a role during jury selection when the goal is to seat a “jury of your peers.”

The group said that phrase is often misunderstood.

It doesn’t mean jurors must match a defendant’s age. Instead, it refers to selecting jurors from a representative cross-section of the community.

Attorneys say age may come up during jury selection, but it is rarely the deciding factor. A person’s health and ability to sit through a trial typically matter more.

They also noted that many Mainers over 80 still choose to serve, while some people younger than 80 are excused for health reasons.

The I-Team also asked the state how jury duty rules are enforced, given it is not tracked.

03/19/2026

If you want a story that makes you proud to be an American, get caught up in the amazing case that Afroman won yesterday against some cry-baby sheriff’s deputies, who, by virtue of suing him, are more famous than they ever thought possible. 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🦅🦅🦅

After two days of testimony on the plaintiff's side, the civil trial of Afroman ended with the jury siding with the 'Because I Got High' rapper.

03/18/2026

After a disastrous budget cycle last spring, where MCPDS was intentionally and maliciously underfunded in the biennium, and after months of begging and pleading, the Legislature has finally approved full funding for the rest of FY2026 and FY2027. On Gideon's Day, where we recognize the invaluable contributions of public defenders and all those who represent the most vulnerable among us, all I can say is: it's about damned time.

The Maine Commission on Public Defense Services has been about $13 million short of what it needs to pay private attorneys who re...

03/18/2026