Three police officers who fatally shot at a Portage Lake man during a Feb. 3 standoff acted in self-defense, Maine Attorney General Andrew Frey said Friday.
The standoff involved Stephen Righini, 29, whose alleged assault of a woman led to a tense, 12-hour standoff at a Ranger Street house and an exchange of gunshots that resulted in Righini’s death.
Sgt. Reid Clark of the Aroostook County Sheriff’s Office, along with Sgt. Jonathan Russell and Specialist Andrew Hardy of the Maine State Police, reasonably believed Righini was about to shoot them or fellow officers, according to a letter Frey sent to Aroostook County Sheriff Peter Johnson and Col. William Ross of the state police.
The ruling comes nine months after the standoff that riveted the small Aroostook County town. Officers from multiple law enforcement branches descended on the area that morning. Righini shot a deputy and a police dog before officers killed him.
The events started when a woman called 911, saying she had been assaulted by her boyfriend at the Ranger Street home and needed help to leave with her 4-week-old baby, Maine Public Safety spokesperson Shannon Moss said on Feb. 3. When police arrived, the woman had left the house, but the baby was still inside with Righini.
Righini’s father owns the two-story home, according to Frey’s report. The bottom floor is a business with a garage, whose owner is not identified, and Righini, the woman and the child lived in a second-floor apartment.
Maine State Police Trooper Anthony Repetto was first on the scene and had learned Righini was known to have weapons, Frey wrote in his report. Repetto and other officers tried but failed to persuade Righini to surrender.
Deputy Shane Campbell went to the house and told Righini he would be arrested for domestic assault, according to Frey’s report. Righini refused to surrender and to release the child to police. He later came out, with the baby, to meet with Repetto, when Campbell and another officer tried to arrest him. Righini ran and pulled a gun from his waistband, shooting unsuccessfully at officers before returning to the house.
“Realizing Mr. Righini was back inside the residence at an elevated position with a weapon, the officers decided to back away from the residence to a safer location,” Frey wrote.
While Campbell and Clark were attempting to retreat in a cruiser, Righini fired three shots from an upstairs window and hit Campbell in the shoulder. Clark shot back but did not hit Righini.
Righini repeatedly told officers he had done nothing wrong, according to the report. At about 7:35 p.m., he left the baby in the house and stole a pickup from the first-floor business and tried to drive away. It is not clear who owned the pickup. A state police vehicle struck and disabled the truck, and another police vehicle blocked Righini in, Frey wrote.
Righini left the truck and started running with a gun in his hand toward a neighbor’s house, where Russell, Hardy and state police Specialist Patrick Flanagan were standing, the report stated. Russell released his dog Preacher to help apprehend Righini, and as the dog lunged at him Righini fired, shooting the dog.
Righini continued running, then turned and pointed the gun at the officers. The document states Russell and Hardy shot at him and Righini was declared dead at the scene.
The baby was returned unharmed to her mother, Moss said at the time.
Preacher, though rushed to an emergency veterinarian, later died from his wounds. The state police Gray barracks and the town of Portage later dedicated memorials to the dog and honored Russell for their actions in protecting residents.
During the standoff, Righini posted comments and a video to X in which he blamed Maine’s abortion laws for his actions.
“A SWAT team showed up and I am now engaged in a shootout,” Righini said in the video. At another point, he said, “Now they’re trying to arrest me simply because I do not believe in gay rights and abortion.”
After Righini’s death, Clark, Russell and Hardy were placed on administrative leave, as is standard procedure. The Maine attorney general investigates officer-involved shootings whenever deadly force is involved.
“Mr. Righini had demonstrated on multiple occasions that day his willingness to use deadly force rather than be arrested,” Frey wrote.
All three officers believed Righini was about to shoot them and believed deadly force was necessary to protect themselves and other officers, he added.
