BATH, Maine — A deputy with the Sagadahoc County Sheriff's Office is defending himself after the Army released the report detailing its internal investigation into the Lewiston shooter and communication breakdowns that led to the tragedy in October.
Sgt. Aaron Skolfield told NEWS CENTER Maine the Army never contacted him about the investigation and said the report, which was released Tuesday, missed critical details.
The Army's report states Sagadahoc County Sheriff's Office deputies did not adequately make contact with gunman Robert Card. It said deputies should have called for backup and entered Card's home to arrest him. The investigator said if they had, the mass shooting "may have been avoided."
Skolfield disagreed.
He argued the yellow flag law did not allow them at that time to enter Card's home without his permission because Card had no criminal charges against him. He said if they had engaged Card and ended up in a gun fight, he could have lost his job.
"I would have been held liable, had I thrown that stick of dynamite into that pool of gas," Skolfield said.
The report also said deputies failed to take action on a letter from Card's fellow U.S. Army Reservist and Ellsworth Police Department Cpl. Kelvin Mote.
Mote sent that letter to Sagadahoc deputies in September, including screenshots of text messages from Card's friend and fellow soldier, Sean Hodgson. In those texts, Hodgson told Mote he worried Card was going to "snap" and "do a mass shooting."
Skolfield said he followed up on that letter and tip, calling Mote and Capt. Jeremy Reamer, one of the leaders of Card's unit.
He said both downplayed the concerns and even questioned Hodgson's credibility. In a phone call between Skolfield and Reamer, Reamer said Hodgson's claims had to be taken with a "grain of salt."
"I spoke with Mote," Skolfield said. "He downplayed it or didn't have the same level of concern. Had he had, that would have been the opportunity to go, 'All right. We've got to press charges.' At the time, he was telling me two different stories, and that's why I asked for another opinion. ... I wanted to go up the chain of command, and that's why I talked to Reamer as well."
"Had they just said, 'Nah, it's the real deal. We're worried.' Or something like that, that absolutely would have changed everything," Skolfield said.
The Army report also stated Card's chain of command failed to attend trainings about what medical information they could get when a soldier is hospitalized for mental health issues.
Army leaders said the lack of communication between hospital staff, the reservists, and law enforcement all led to this breakdown.