LEWISTON — A charge of domestic assault against former City Council candidate and community activist Dane Morgan was dismissed this week as part of a plea deal.
Dane Morgan chats with people at the Chalk and Talk event in June 2020 at Edward Little High School in Auburn for Juneteenth. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal file
In 8th District Court on Monday, Morgan, 32, pleaded guilty to driving while intoxicated and violating bail conditions. In exchange, the charge of domestic assault was dropped, along with a charge of criminal speeding.
On the bail violation, Morgan was placed on probation for a year. He will also be required to complete a 48 week Domestic Violence Intervention Program, meeting with a judge once a month to talk about his progress.
He was ordered to pay a $500 fine on the impaired driving charge, dating to October 2019, and his license was suspended for 150 days.
Morgan was arrested on the domestic violence charge in August 2021. At the time he was a candidate for Lewiston City Council. He was accused of slapping his estranged girlfriend in the face and slamming her arm in a car door during a dispute over a child safety seat.
In an interview with the Sun Journal shortly after his arrest, Morgan adamantly denied the charge, admitting that there had been an argument but insisting there was no assault.
The woman Morgan was accused of assaulting said on Thursday that she is happy with the resolution of the case since it requires that Morgan complete the domestic violence course or risk going to jail.
In a Facebook post Monday, Morgan called the charges “phony,” and said he was looking forward to moving on.
“I quietly have taken the time to work on myself,” he said in his post. “Delved back into my music … went back to school … and channeled the pain I have into the art I create.”
A few weeks after he was charged with assault, Morgan was arrested at his home on Webster Street in Lewiston, accused of violating release conditions by contacting his ex-girlfriend. He ultimately pleaded guilty to the charge, though the assault charge was dismissed. As part of the arrangement, Morgan was prohibited from having contact with the woman except in agreed-upon visits.
Morgan has been a popular and vocal activist in the area in recent years. A real estate agent and disc jockey, in 2020 he organized some of the Black Lives Matter rallies in Lewiston and Auburn. He has also been an active participant in talks on police reform and on matters of equity and diversity.
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