AUGUSTA — The state House of Representatives may have to decide if it will expel a Garland lawmaker charged in May with threatening a man with a handgun.
House Speaker Robert Nutting, R-Oakland, said Friday that he hopes to have someone representing House District 24 by the beginning of the second legislative session in January.
The seat is still held by Rep. Frederick Wintle, R-Garland. Wintle was arrested in Waterville in late May after allegedly pointing a handgun at a newspaper photographer following a bizarre confrontation at a Dunkin’ Donuts parking lot.
A Kennebec County Superior Court judge ordered Wintle to undergo a psychiatric evaluation following his arrest and a string of incidents that included his conduct at the State House. He was released last month from Kennebec County Jail, but his bail conditions prohibit him from entering the State House and capitol grounds.
Nutting said Wintle had contemplated resigning his seat; however, the speaker said he was unsure if that will happen. If it doesn’t and the courts don’t soon rule on Wintle’s charges, House lawmakers may have to consider a vote to expel Wintle when the Legislature reconvenes for a special session in September.
“I think he’s (Wintle) weighing the options of whether he wants to resign his seat or not,” Nutting said. “I was hoping we’d get closer to a resolution following his court appearance.”
He added, “Bottom line for me is that I hope somebody is sitting in that seat before we start back up the second session in January. It depends on him, to some extent, and/or what happens in court.”
It’s unclear if a judge will rule on Wintle’s case soon. Lawyers in the case are expected to appear in Kennebec County Superior Court on Tuesday for another hearing.
Nutting said he would move to resolve Wintle’s status as a lawmaker by Labor Day.
There are no recall provisions for state lawmakers. Only the majority of members in the House can expel a colleague.
Nutting said he had not asked Wintle to resign.
“If he is found guilty of something, then I will likely take further steps to have him replaced,” Nutting said. “If he’s not … that’s the what-if.”
Nutting said Wintle’s constituents deserve representation. Wintle has been barred from capitol grounds since late May.
According to lawmakers and Capitol Police, the lawmaker had displayed increasingly erratic behavior prior to his arrest in Waterville.
In early March that behavior led Capitol Police to impose a trespass notice on Wintle after the lawmaker allegedly displayed combative behavior with some state employees.
Republican House staff had also been attending hearings in the Legislature’s Labor Committee, where Wintle serves as a panelist, to monitor the lawmaker’s behavior. Nutting said leadership had received several complaints that Wintle was “abusive in some cases” to people testifying.
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