PORTLAND, Maine — A fatal shooting in May at a residence in Berwick has been ruled self-defense, state officials have determined.
Berwick police responded to a call at about 9 a.m. Saturday, May 13, to a report about a shooting on School Street. When they arrived, they found two people who appeared to have been suffering gunshot wounds in the bedroom of the home, Maine Department of Public Safety spokesperson Shannon Moss said in a news release.
The homeowner, 25-year-old Christopher Utt, was brought to Portsmouth Medical Center for treatment and surgery. The other person, 41-year-old Edward Badeau of Berwick, was brought to Wentworth-Douglass Hospital in Dover, New Hampshire, where he died.
Over the course of the investigation among the Berwick Police Department and Maine State Police detectives, it was discovered that Badeau arrived at Utt's home that day, reportedly exited his vehicle, and shot a handgun into the air "multiple times" before entering Utt's home by force, Moss said.
The two then reportedly exchanged gunfire in the area of Utt's bedroom.
"The Maine Attorney General's Office has reviewed the matter and has determined that Christopher Utt shot Edward Badeau in self-defense and therefore there will be no prosecution," the release stated.