Governor Urges Congressional Delegation to Support Funding for Cold Case Homicide Squad

AUGUSTA – In the attached letter to Maine’s Congressional Delegation, Governor Paul R. LePage wrote Friday to request financial support to create a cold case homicide squad dedicated exclusively to unsolved homicides. The bill, LD 1734, “An Act To Create a Cold Case Homicide Unit in the Department of the Attorney General,” faces an uphill battle in Maine’s Legislature where appropriators refuse to see it as a priority.

Today, there are 120 unsolved homicides in Maine. LD 1734 creates a cold case homicide squad to focus on helping families who have lost a loved one to murder.

“I believe that we as elected officials have a duty to provide for the public safety. For me, the duty is one that I see as primary,” wrote Governor LePage. “As this legislative session has progressed, I have anxiously watched to see whether the legislature will fund the cold case homicide squad and other initiatives that are needed to ensure public safety.”

Governor LePage requested federal financial support due to budget constraints on the State. The Department of Public Safety is now severely underfunded and understaffed and is without the financial stability to fund the homicide team.

“If you can assist the Department of Public Safety in obtaining federal grants of other federal monies, then I believe that we can finally bring justice to Maine families who have lost loved ones,” the Governor wrote. “I urge you to please join my effort to get this cold case homicide squad off the ground.”