Central Maine News: Dec 10, 2015

These are some of the stories central Maine is talking about today.

(AP) — A bipartisan group of Maine legislators says a $4.8 million legislative package to increase treatment and law enforcement will help curb the state's drug abuse crisis. The legislators unveiled their plan on Wednesday. The package includes $2.4 million for treatment efforts and $1 million for a new 10-bed detoxification facility. The rest of the money strengthens law enforcement, including funding 10 agents from the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency and a statewide coordinator to connect law enforcement with treatment providers. The plan also includes funding to start programs at five police departments modeled after the Operation Hope program in Scarborough Maine or the Law Enforcement Addiction Advocacy Program in Portland.

(KJ) -- Gardiner  Police arrested two people Wednesday at a Brunswick Avenue residence in connection with a lengthy, still ongoing investigation of heroin trafficking. According to the KJ Tyrone Sanders, 27, of Bronx, New York, was charged with four counts of class B trafficking in Schedule W drugs, heroin; one count of class A aggravated trafficking in Schedule W drugs; three counts of violating conditions of release and one count of falsifying physical evidence. Nicole Stump, 29, of Gardiner, was charged with violations of conditions of release after it was determined she had opiates in her system in violation of a bail condition not to use or possess drugs, according to MDEA.

(AP) — A U.S. senator from Maine is calling for more money to build powerful ships designed to cut channels through heavy ice. Sen. Angus King said that the state's economy would benefit if the country had more icebreakers to maintain Arctic shipping lanes. He says warmer temperatures have made shipping easier, and that Maine's ports are the closest to the eastern side of the passage. The Coast Guard controls two fully functional icebreakers, one of which works primarily in the Antarctic Ocean. There are three other privately owned icebreakers in the country. King says each icebreaker costs about $1 billion to build. Funding is difficult to secure since the Coast Guard has a relatively small capital budget and spends a lot of that on replacing cutters.

(AP/KJ) — Colby College President David Greene says a Massachusetts-based consulting company is partnering with the state and college to open a center that'll create up to 200 jobs in Waterville. Collaborative Consulting, an information technology company, plans to hire the first 20 workers in January in new offices in Waterville's Hathaway Creative Center. Gov. Paul LePage said the company will become part of the revitalization of Waterville with "high-paying careers that will benefit families and the community for years to come." The company chose Waterville based on the combination of community, workforce and educational infrastructure "focused on innovation."

(WABI) -- Governor LePage renewed his opposition to President Obama’s plan to accept Syrian refugees in the United States Wednesday. During a press conference for the “Hire A Vet” Campaign, the governor said helping service members find housing and employment should take priority over allowing refugees to settle in the US. He also says the US must strengthen refugee screening practices to keep Americans safe. Last month, LePage joined several other governors who said they would not allow Syrian refugees to settle in their states.

(AP) — Lewiston has a message for squirrels climbing on its Christmas tree: Watch out! Tired of the rodents chewing up holiday lights, the city of Lewiston authorized installation of an electrical zapper to keep squirrels off the 55-foot spruce. The system discourages squirrels from chewing on the $3,500 LED Christmas lights on the tree in Kennedy Park. Squirrels caused city workers to take down the lights just days after the Dec. 3 tree lighting. The system donated by Modern Pest Services gives a harmless zap to squirrels that attempt to climb the tree's trunk. It's high enough off the ground to avoid zapping people.

(AP) — A federal judge in Texas has cleared the way for the last of 21 Syrian refugees to resettle in Houston Thursday. U.S. District Judge David Godbey on Wednesday knocked Texas for offering "largely speculative hearsay" about extremists possibly infiltrating Syrian refugees trying to resettle in the state. The first dozen refugees arrived earlier this week. Texas is the only state that has taken the U.S. government to court in an effort to block resettlements.

(AP) — The man accused of killing three people at a Colorado Planned Parenthood clinic says he's a "warrior for the babies," is guilty and won't go to trial. Robert Lewis Dear stunned people in the courtroom Wednesday when he made the declaration. The 57-year-old was formally charged in a Colorado Springs court with 179 counts of first-degree murder, attempted murder and other crimes.