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While the surge in immigration enforcement that seized the state the past couple of weeks appears to have ended, our newsroom still has a number of questions about what happened.
This includes questions about who has been detained. For one story below, our reporter Kristian Moravec went to the Westbrook home of a pastor and heard about his search for a missing congregant who has no family in the United States, an asylum seeker from Angola named Evaristo Kalonji.
It also includes questions about how federal agents have operated. Our reporters spoke to five people who documented immigration enforcement and then had agents drive to their homes, or film their faces or license plates; one agent told a woman she was now in an internal database and considered a “domestic terrorist.”
If you want to hear more about how our reporters have approached this coverage, you can tune into WERU Community Radio, 89.9 FM, at 4 p.m. this Thursday for a new episode of The Maine Monitor Radio Hour.
And if you have other questions, please let us know.
— Stephanie
P.S. Please join us for a live journalism event in Bangor on Wednesday. Our religion reporter Sean Scott will be speaking to three Maine faith groups about their work providing food and other assistance to people in need, including immigrant families. The event will be at the Bangor Public Library on Wednesday, Feb. 4, from 6 to 7 p.m. We’d love to see you there, or for you to join us on Zoom. You can register here. |
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ICE observers say immigration agents tried to intimidate them. One man is pursuing legal action
The Maine attorney general’s office and the ACLU of Maine both launched ways for people to report misconduct by immigration officers this week, amid reports that agents have followed observers home, fired paintball-like projectiles at cars and labeled one a “domestic terrorist.”
Read this story by Kristian Moravec & Sean Scott |
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A pastor searched for a missing congregant. He found a car with the keys on the floor: Evaristo Kalonji, an asylum seeker from Angola who has no criminal record, vanished from South Portland. He turned up in one detention center, then another. Read this story by Kristian Moravec |
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Maine’s first turtle tunnel is working: An underpass installed beneath a busy stretch of road in Eliot a few years ago has led to “a substantial reduction in turtle mortalities,” according to a state biologist. Read this story by Chris D'Angelo |
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Indigenous organization trained 30 new doulas: Wabanaki Public Health and Wellness is aiming to help fill in gaps as maternity services have shuttered across Maine. Read this story by Rose Lundy |
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From Janet Mills to Ron DeSantis, school cellphone bans are catching on: A bell-to-bell cellphone ban has quickly gone from a fringe issue to one with strong support in the Maine Legislature. Read this story by Daniel O'Connor of The Maine Monitor and Bangor Daily News |
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How Maine Republicans see Donald Trump’s immigration policy after a fatal shooting: A growing list of Republican senators, including Maine’s Susan Collins, are pushing for an investigation into Alex Pretti’s death. Read this story by Daniel O'Connor of The Maine Monitor and BDN |
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Note: Monitor Local publishes stories on Downeast and Western Maine every Saturday. Here are two highlights from this weekend. For more, visit our website. |
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Washington County Commission to send tax bills to municipalities for 2026: Addison, Calais, Eastport and Steuben are among the towns facing the largest tax increases due to rising property valuations. Read this story by Judith Meyer |
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Farmington officials weigh tax deferment for low-income property owners: The Select Board discussed multiple options Tuesday and appeared to be leaning toward the State Property Tax Deferral Program to ease the local tax burden for qualifying owners. Read this story by Ben Hanstein |
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Susan Collins says ICE ended its enforcement surge in Maine: The senator said Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told her that the “enhanced activities” are over. Read this story by Torrie Herrington, NOTUS for The Maine Monitor |
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They watched immigration agents in Maine. Then one fired projectiles at their cars: One observer said ICE agents approached an older woman driving a Volkswagen who had gotten closest to the officers, spoke with her, and then fired projectiles at her. Read this story by Callie Ferguson of the BDN |
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Maine’s ICE surge is over, but arrested immigrants remain scattered across the country: One of the several unknowns is what may happen to the more than 200 people that federal officials say were arrested in the first five days of the operation. Read this story by Callie Ferguson and Sawyer Loftus of the BDN |
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Where reports of ICE activity have come in across Maine: The Maine Immigrant Rights Coalition’s ICE hotline logged nearly 650 sightings in the seven days since the massive operation began. Read this story by Callie Ferguson and Daniel O'Connor of the BDN |
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As Senate Republicans lose confidence in Kristi Noem, Susan Collins dodges question about her leadership: Nine faith leaders were arrested during a pray-in at the senator’s Portland office on Tuesday after asking that Collins push the federal government to end ICE operations in Maine. Read this story by Oriana González of NOTUS |
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Lawyer for immigrant removed from Maine jail accuses ICE of lying in court: Judges freed two immigrants who were held at the Cumberland County jail until Thursday, when they were abruptly removed following Cumberland County Sheriff Kevin Joyce’s criticism of immigration agents. Read this story by Sawyer Loftus of the BDN |
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Maine is using outdated rules to close contaminated compost plant: Maine regulators are using an outdated rule to review the closure of a contaminated compost plant, raising concerns about inadequate cleanup. Read this story by Lori Valigra of the BDN |
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Key takeaways from The Monitor’s listening tour
Listening tour participants told us what they need — and are missing — from local news.
Read this story |
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Have feedback or a correction to send to Stephanie McFeeters? Send it to her directly via email: stephanie@themainemonitor.org.
The Maine Monitor is a publication of the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, an independent and nonpartisan nonprofit news organization that produces investigative journalism. We believe news is a public good and keep our news free to access. We have no paywall and do not charge for our newsletters. If you value the reporting we do for Maine, please consider making a donation! We cannot do this reporting without your support. |
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