BANGOR, Maine (AP) A defense lawyer says “doubts will linger” regardless of whether a Maine man is convicted or acquitted in the death of a teenager in 1980.
Jeffrey Silverstein accused prosecutors on Monday of trying to fit a “square peg into a round hole” in its case against 57-year-old Phillip Scott Fournier, who’s charged with killing 16-year-old Joyce McLain in East Millinocket.
The prosecutor said in closing arguments that Fournier confessed several times and knew a key detail that only someone who was present at the crime scene would’ve known.
A judge will issue a verdict later.
McLain’s family has been waiting 37 years for justice.
Assistant Attorney General Leane Zainea told the judge that numerous police interviews and years that have elapsed should not factor into the judge’s decision.
