Grand Jury in the Harvest Hill Farms Hayride Crash Has Issued Manslaughter Indictments

An Androscoggin grand jury has issued two manslaughter indictments today (July 8, 2015) relating to the hayride crash in October of 2014 at Harvest Hill Farms that killed Cassidy Charette, a Messalonski student, and seriously injured her boyfriend Connor Garland of Belgrade.

One indictment of manslaughter is against Harvest Hill Farms that ran 'The Gauntlet' hayride in Mechanic Falls where the accident took place. Harvest Hill Farms, the company was also charged with aggravated assault, driving to endanger and reckless conduct.

The other manslaughter indictment handed out today was against the driver of the jeep, David Brown. Brown, 54 at the time of the crash, of Paris, ME has also been charged with aggravated assault, driving to endanger and reckless conduct.

If Brown is convicted he faces more than 40 years in prison and a fine of $25,000.

Not only are Brown and Harvest Hill Farms being charged, Phillip Theberge, the mechanic who worked on the jeep, has been charged with reckless conduct and Theberge faces the possibility of a year minus a day in jail,  plus a $2,000 fine for his involvement if convicted.

Peter Bolduc, the owner of Harvest Hill Farms, was not indicted.

This information is all according to District Attorney Andrew Robinson, who sent a letter at about 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, July 08, 2015.

In a related story, it was recently reported that Harvest Hill Farms declared bankruptcy.

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