Staff Writer

Good news for York County Sheriff Maurice Ouellette was countered by bad news for York County District Attorney Mark Lawrence as the York County Budget Committee voted to accept the 2009/2010 county budget.

The sheriff’s office was spared $152,000 in budget cuts Ouellette previously said would lead to the loss of four deputies. As county commissioners prepare to accept the budget, Lawrence must present a plan to accommodate for a loss of more than $68,000 from his allocation.

The sheriff’s department was not spared from budget cuts completely, but Ouellette said the initial $192,000 reduction was already accounted for through the elimination of a colonel’s position and trimming fuel and uniform expenses.

“It is obviously a good feeling to be able to provide good service to the citizens of York County,” Ouellette said.

While Lawrence could not immediately say how he will restructure the office to make up for the cuts, he said it would mean a job will be lost. 

“The decisions will be on what least affects the criminal process,” Lawrence said after the hearing. 

Lawrence also said the reduction from more than $1.22 million in 2008 to $1.16 million in 2009 could stretch his staff thin at district courts in Biddeford and Springvale.

In the seven years Lawrence has been district attorney, he said those courts, where misdemeanor cases are heard, have seen an increase from 10,000 cases per year to 14,500 cases a year.

One staff position has already been eliminated through attrition, Lawrence said.

Lawrence also said the lack of money hampers efforts to prosecute cases in York County Superior Court.

Lawrence said that 14 full time prosecutors handle 1,000 cases per year and have an average of $215 to spend for each one. Some cases, such as sex offender Tina Bickart’s conviction and appeal to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court cost more than $30,000, he said.

Sanford Town Council Chairman Joseph Hanslip urged the committee not to cut any of the district attorney’s budget because “with staffing at its current level, there is a backlog” on cases, he said.

Hanslip said with crime rates rising and cases getting dismissed for lack of a speedy trial, more cuts to the district attorney’s budget are a “bad idea.”

Law enforcement officials expressed concerns about budget cuts, but Ouellette said he will have to wait and see how cuts affect his department. 

“I don’t like to deal in hypotheticals,” Ouellette said.

Sanford Police Chief Thomas Connelly worries that a smaller staff will mean less preparation time for prosecuting cases.

“We are all concerned about cuts, especially in the last few years,” Connelly said. “Lawrence has always been very attuned to me when I needed something.”

The budget was approved by the committee of volunteers by a 6-3 vote. 

Municipalities will pay an average increase of 3.18 percent to fund the $19.5 million county budget – 77 percent of the budget.