Looking at the Lewiston Shooting Through Investigators’ Eyes

Documents released by Maine Law Enforcement give a cops' eye view into the first moments after the Lewiston shooting.

Why Were the Documents Released?

Maine has never seen anything like the horrible events of Wednesday, October 25th and so it's left many people looking for answers. Law enforcement, especially, comes under scrutiny in these situations, for how they responded to the events and where they got their information. So the Office of the Attorney General and the Maine State Police have released a number of documents connected to the investigation.

All of the information is now available online, including affidavits, search warrants, Robert Card's criminal history, and more. The release of the documents was done in the interest of transparency and to help the public understand better the events of that terrible night.

What Can We Learn From Them?

For me, the most interesting/informative document was the first entry under 'Warrants and Affidavits.' This is the affidavit in support of an arrest warrant and initial determination of probable cause. In the document, Maine State Police Detective Victoria Lane details the events, from the initial 911 call, to her arrival at Just-In-Time Recreation, to the discovery of Card's vehicle at the boat landing. There's a lot of information about the initial moments of this investigation that precipitated the manhunt. The affidavit begins at 6:56 Wednesday night and ends at 2:29 Thursday morning.

Where Do I Find the Documents?

There are no specific details about the injuries or the horror of the scene in this initial affidavit. Instead, the description is almost clinical and gives an idea of how the police moved from the first report to the arrest warrant that led to a massive manhunt. It also does not talk about the search or the discovery of Robert Card's body in Lisbon. Find the site with access to all the information on this Google document.