More than a year after two people were killed in a Bangor car crash, new details have emerged about the police chase that preceded their deaths.
Noah Mushero of Bangor and Sheena Soctomah-Rolfe of Orono, both 39, died in a crash on Finson Road following a chase by the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office on July 22, 2024.
The chase started when Deputy Cam Fowler attempted to pull over a car for speeding but the driver did not stop, according to reports about the crash the Bangor Daily News obtained from the Bangor Police Department through a Freedom of Access Act request. The BDN also obtained the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office investigation summary.
The reports are the first look at what led to the police chase and the subsequent crash. The chase, which resulted in speeds higher than 80 mph, was determined to have followed the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office’s policies.
There is no dashboard camera footage of the police chase. The sheriff’s office had purchased dashboard and body-worn cameras but had not turned them on because of the high cost. The sheriff’s office activated the cameras in April of this year.
Penobscot County Sheriff Lt. Jordan Norton did an internal investigation into Fowler’s actions and found that Fowler did not violate any department policies.
The sheriff’s office has a 15-page policy outlining how and when a police pursuit should take place. Based on this policy and the information available about the pursuit, the police chase that preceded the double fatal crash likely shouldn’t have happened, two law enforcement experts told the Bangor Daily News a month after the crash.
Fowler was patrolling in Glenburn with a civilian doing a ride along when he saw a vehicle speeding toward them on Ohio Street near McCarty Road and turned on his radar. The driver, later identified as Mushero, was going 87 mph, the report said.
Mushero did not pull over after Fowler turned on his lights and sirens, the reports said. Fowler did not recognize the vehicle or know the occupants when he attempted to pull them over, he told police.
Fowler said the car was speeding and he did not think he could let it drive into Bangor at those speeds, the report said.
When Fowler started the pursuit, he saw Mushero run a red light at the intersection of Griffin Road and Ohio Street, Bangor’s report said. The driver was also making “bad passes.”
As Fowler approached construction on Ohio Street, he shut down the lights and sirens and stopped in the line of traffic, the report said. Bystanders then pointed him to St. Mary’s Church, located at 768 Ohio St.
With lights and sirens off, Fowler drove into the church parking lot and Mushero drove toward Fowler from the back of the parking lot, the report said. Fowler had to avoid being hit head-on by the other car.
The driver fled on Ohio Street and Fowler lost sight of the car after the intersection with Griffin Road, he told Bangor police. A bystander again pointed Fowler in the right direction, this time down Finson Road.
At that point, a corporal told Fowler to drop the person doing the ride along on the side of the road so the chase could continue. However Fowler said he did not have a chance to do so because he rounded a curve and saw the crash.
The vehicle left the road and hit a tree with so much force it wrapped around the tree, the report said.
Fowler said he initially wasn’t sure if it was the same vehicle but confirmed it was and then approached with his gun drawn, he told Bangor police. He gave the occupants commands but it was clear the parties were deceased, according to the reports.
Fowler was roughly five seconds behind Mushero’s car, according to security camera footage and a witness. The witness told police he had pulled his phone out of his pocket but had not had a chance to start dialing 911, the report said.
That confirms Fowler was not near the crash when it happened, the Penobscot County sheriff’s report said.
A Maine State Police crash reconstruction determined the crash was the sole result of Mushero’s actions.
Mushero had started driving about 50 mph on Finson Road and accelerated to 97 mph, according to a crash reconstruction. The speedometer was stuck at 78 in the car after the crash, the report said.
Fowler said he did not remember how fast he was driving on Finson Road to try to catch up to Mushero. A crash reconstruction found Fowler was “conservatively” driving 83 mph.
The civilian doing the ride along said “Fowler was pretty safe,” according to the report.
Bangor officers pursued Mushero and Soctomah-Rolfe in a chase two days before the fatal crash. An officer recognized both of them and started the pursuit after verifying Soctomah-Rolfe had an active warrant, police said previously. That chase ended shortly after it began.
Mushero and Soctomah-Rolfe were not allowed to have contact because of various probation terms, but the couple loved each other, their families previously told the BDN.
