AUGUSTA — A former Kennebec County Sheriff’s deputy who was arrested in August on domestic violence and sexual assault-related charges has been indicted by a Kennebec County grand jury.
Daniel R. Ross Submitted photo
Daniel R. Ross, 29 of West Gardiner is now facing 15 charges related to allegedly assaulting his wife and threatening her with a firearm, knife and Taser.
Maine State Police initially charged Ross with nine counts, including domestic violence assault, domestic violence criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon and unlawful sexual contact.
A grand jury indicted Ross last week on most of those charges and additional charges, including gross sexual assault — a Class A offense punishable by up to 30 years in prison — and domestic violence terrorizing with a dangerous weapon.
An indictment is not a determination of guilt, but indicates enough evidence exists for a case to move forward to trial.
Ross, who was initially placed on paid administrative leave after the allegations, has since been terminated by the Kennebec County Sheriff’s Office, according to Lt. Chris Read, a spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office.
The charges stemmed from incidents alleged to have occurred over several months this year at a house in West Gardiner.
Maeghan Maloney, district attorney for Kennebec and Somerset counties, said she is handling the case. She also said that while she and Ross have both worked in criminal justice in Kennebec County, she does not recall having met him and only knows him in connection to the pending criminal case.
Maloney said she argued for Ross’ bail being set at $100,000 cash. He remains incarcerated at the Somerset County Jail in Madison, according to jail records.
“I do not think it is possible to argue that former Deputy Ross is being treated too leniently,” Maloney said Wednesday, when asked if prosecuting him presented a conflict of interest for her office. “The grand jury found that the state presented sufficient evidence to bring the charges in the indictment — just like anyone else.
“It is important that everyone who commits a crime be held to the same standard. I am personally making sure that standard is upheld.”
Maloney added that the response from Sheriff Ken Mason and the Maine State Police to the alleged crimes was to arrest Ross within a few hours. He was arrested while on duty Aug. 15, according to Shannon Moss, public information officer for Maine Department of Public Safety.
Three of the alleged incidents took place between Aug. 2 and Aug. 5 and, according to the indictment, involved Ross’ assaulting the victim, having sexual contact with her — to which she had not acquiesced — and engaging in a sexual act with her, to which the alleged victim submitted as result of compulsion.
The alleged victim, Ross’ wife, told police he threatened to stun her in the thigh with his work Taser and threatened her with a knife, according to the indictment, and also threatened her multiple times with a firearm, according to affidavits.
He also allegedly threatened to shoot his sleeping 5-year-old daughter in the head, and then turn the gun on himself so his wife “would know that it was her ‘fault that they both died,’” according to court documents.
The Kennebec Journal’s policy is not to identify alleged victims of sexual assault. However, the newspaper is describing Ross’ relationship to the alleged victim and another family member to clarify that those impacted by his reported behavior were not random members of the public.
Ross’ wife came forward to police in August, according to a state police affidavit written by Sgt. Bethany L. Couturier and filed with the court. The alleged victim detailed times when Ross had assaulted her while he was off duty, which police said he later admitted had included a slap across her face, sexual assaults and threats of violence.
On another occasion, according to Couturier’s affidavit, Ross threatened to shoot police with a shotgun.
“Daniel said he had been really drunk that night and said he was trying to get drunk enough to shoot himself,” the affidavit reads. “Daniel said he was waiting near the window in case law enforcement came. Daniel said he would never have shot anyone, and also stated he would never shoot his daughter.”
Ross could also be heard on audio recordings admitting to the allegations, including the threat of shooting his 5-year-old daughter, and confirmed the allegations later in an interview with police, according to the affidavit.
Ross began working for the Kennebec County Sheriff’s Office on March 16, 2021. During his tenure there, he received a written reprimand for violating the county’s COVID-19 policy, but faced no other disciplinary actions, according to the sheriff.
Ross worked for the Maine Capitol Police from June 2015 to June 2016, and the Gardiner Police Department from June 2016 to February 2021. He was not subject to any disciplinary actions during his employment with those two agencies, according to their responses to records requests sent by the Kennebec Journal.
Kennebec Journal staff writer Jessica Lowell contributed to this report.
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