PORTLAND: Security camera image puts suspect on national TV
A security camera's picture of Otis Johnson, 45, of Portland didn't just get him arrested on a bank robbery charge, it also got him some national exposure.
Johnson was arrested Tuesday, five hours after he allegedly gave a teller a threatening note at the Key Bank branch at 400 Forest Ave. Police distributed a surveillance photo of the robber, which led officers to Johnson's house.
But the photo didn't match just Johnson.
NBC's "Today" show aired a segment showing how closely the security image resembles the show's anchor Matt Lauer.
In the surveillance photo, the man is wearing a ball cap and sunglasses. The network paired it with a strikingly similar image of Lauer wearing shades.
No word on whether Johnson plans an alternate-suspect defense.
Wolffish species not eligible as endangered, NOAA rules
A deep-water fish that's known as much for its ugly mug as its ability to gobble up whole urchins and crabs in a few swift chomps won't get federal protection after all.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced Friday that the Atlantic wolffish isn't in danger of extinction nor is it likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future.
The wolffish is a true denizen of the deep, living along the rocky ocean bottom in waters off New England. It has large protruding teeth and powerful jaws that can crush lobsters, urchins, clams, scallops and crabs.
Fishermen don't target the fish, which are hauled up as incidental catch in fishermen's nets. The Conservation Law Foundation sought the endangered-species listing last year.
Pingree to vote in favor of health reform bill
U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree said she will vote for health care reform legislation when it hits the House floor this weekend.
The Maine Democrat said the bill would improve health care coverage for those who already have it, give insurance companies competition with a public option, and make health care more affordable for thousands of Maine people who don't have it.
She said that 75,000 Maine residents who now are uninsured would be able to get coverage, and more than 17,000 people who can't because of pre-existing conditions would be eligible for coverage under the bill.
OXFORD: Board gives 5-0 approval of resort and casino plan
Elected officials in Oxford have endorsed a proposal to build a resort and casino in the western Maine town.
The Board of Selectmen voted 5-0 Thursday night to support the plan by Black Bear Entertainment LLC. The company is gathering signatures to put the casino proposal before voters in the November 2010 election.
Black Bear Entertainment's Rupert Grover said the board's vote was a thumbs-up for job creation.
Maine voters rejected a proposal last year for a casino in Oxford County. Proposals for casinos in other areas of the state have also been shot down at the polls.
RUMFORD: Mountain sites too windy for turbines, company says
A wind-power company says a site it has been looking at in western Maine is too windy for turbines.
First Wind's Matthew Kearns said at a public meeting in Rumford on Thursday that its proposed Longfellow wind farm on Black Mountain and North and South Twin mountains may not be viable.
The Sun Journal of Lewiston quoted Kearns as saying First Wind's studies show that gusts atop Black Mountain are too strong for turbine engineering to handle.
Kearns said the Massachusetts-based company will not propose wind towers on North and South Twin mountains even if it finds a turbine that could handle the strong winds on Black Mountain.
A separate wind power project is under construction on...
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