Maine juvenile justice disparities / Bangor public bathrooms / Maine bridge safety

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“I don’t see why neighborhood parks need bathrooms. Ninety percent of the time kids walk or ride their bikes to the park, and if they have to go to the bathroom, they go home.”

— Adele St. Pierre, who lives next to Fairmount Park in Bangor, speaking at a public meeting on a city proposal to install public bathrooms at several neighborhood parks.

TODAY’S TOP MAINE STORIES

For young offenders in Maine, justice varies with geography. An investigation by Bangor Daily News reporter Callie Ferguson working with The New York Times compared the treatment of wayward youth across the state.

Maine Democrats made a bid to pass a “red flag” gun law . The Dems also advanced a suite of other gun-control bills .

Bangor residents spoke up against public bathrooms . A city proposal would add six of them, mostly in neighborhood parks.

Could a ship hit a bridge in Maine? A local repeat of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key bridge catastrophe is unlikely for three reasons.

Plans for a large solar array at Knox County Airport have stalled out . The delay stems from the company hired to do the job and could affect a major federal grant.

MAINE IN PICTURES

NEWS FROM AROUND THE STATE

• Donald Trump backs former NASCAR driver in Republican race to oust Jared Golden
• Lawmakers endorse making Maine the 2nd state with nurse-to-patient staffing ratios
• Maine committee advances plan for soldiers exposed to toxic chemicals at Canadian base
• Janet Mills says Maine towns have ‘nothing to fear’ from affordable housing
• Officials identify man fatally shot by Brewer police chief
• Body found in Shaw’s parking lot in Bangor
• Orono students are turning an unused courtyard into a ‘secret garden’
• Errant wheel on empty boxcar caused minor Aroostook train derailment
• A New York circus is coming to Piscataquis County this summer
• Man dies in St. George fire
• A commercial renovation company in Brunswick is growing to meet demand
• More than 1,000 marijuana plants seized from 3 properties in central Maine
• Police missed another opportunity to stop Lewiston mass shooting
• Popular dairy farm joins growing chorus opposing Gorham Connector
• ‘ Diaper bandit’ strikes North Yarmouth again
• Man convicted of killing girlfriend on Maine beach sentenced to 40 years
• NBA All-Star presents Gatorade National Basketball award to Cooper Flagg

FROM THE SPORTS DESK

Fresh off a loss last weekend against archrival Boston University during the Hockey East tournament semifinals, the University of Maine Black Bears will tonight take on 12th seed Cornell University in the NCAA tournament semifinals . If UMaine wins, it’ll move on to play against either Denver or UMass in the second round on Saturday. The UMaine track and field season kicks off this weekend as well.

FROM THE OPINION PAGES

“A small group of Republicans in the House has been more committed to creating chaos than to actually governing.”

Editorial: Politics again brought us to brink of US government shutdown

LIFE IN MAINE

Honey bees have the reputation . But they may not be the best pollinators .

Get a behind-the-scenes look at how Shakespeare did it, at the Bangor Mall . The Bangor Daily News’ Judy Harrison reviews Ten Bucks Theatre’s production of “The Book of Will.”

Baxter State Park should be on your “bucket list.” At least according to Reader’s Digest .