UMaine freshman soccer star dies-11/26/07	Article
	Adam Baxter, 19	Alcohol suspected in athlete's death-11/27/07	Article
	November 24, 2007	UMaine Planning Memorial Service For Adam Baxter-11/28/07	Article
	University of Maine	Students indicted for involvement in Baxter's death-1/24/08	Article
		Student sentenced for friend's death-5/16/08	Article
	Article Summaries and Excerpts Below	Does this need to happen to Adam and others?

UMaine freshman soccer star dies

By Meg Haskell
Monday, November 26, 2007 - Bangor Daily News                                Top of  page                   Article

A 19-year-old University of Maine student and promising soccer player died Friday night in Portland, university officials confirmed Sunday.

According to university spokesman Joe Carr, first-year student Adam Baxter was a native of Skegness, England. He lived in Knox Hall on the Orono campus and was studying kinesiology and physical therapy.

Details were unavailable over the weekend. University officials were notified of the student’s death Saturday morning, Carr said, but were not informed of the circumstances. Portland police said Sunday that no information was available because the case is under investigation.

On Nov. 8, Baxter was named to the 2007 America East All-Rookie Team. At the time, Pat Laughlin, head coach of the UM men’s soccer team, said Baxter was "a natural leader" with promise as a team member.

On Sunday, UMaine Athletic Director Blake James called Baxter’s death "a horrible tragedy."

"Adam was a member of our athletic family and will be greatly missed. Our sympathy and prayers go out to Adam’s family," he said.

UMaine President Robert Kennedy predicted the news would be "devastating to UMaine’s close-knit community," and extended sympathy to Baxter’s family and friends.

Carr said students who knew Baxter would be notified individually and in small groups as they returned from the Thanksgiving recess, and would be offered counseling and support services.

Alcohol suspected in athlete's death

By Aimee Dolloff
Tuesday, November 27, 2007 - Bangor Daily News                                       Top of  page                    Article

Portland police believe alcohol was a factor in the weekend death of 19-year-old University of Maine freshman Adam Baxter, Deputy Police Chief William Ridge said Monday.

Baxter, a promising UM soccer player, was at a friend’s home in Portland when an ambulance was called to the residence early Saturday morning for a report of a male having difficulty breathing.

"When they got there, they found Baxter unconscious and unresponsive," Ridge said. "[Baxter] was declared dead at the scene."

The state medical examiner’s office conducted an autopsy Monday, but the official cause of death won’t be available for four or five months while toxicology tests are done at an out-of-state lab.

Portland police don’t believe there was any foul play in Baxter’s death, but alcohol is believed to have played a part.

Baxter, a native of Skegness, England, was a first-year student at UM, according to university spokesman Joe Carr. He lived in Knox Hall on the Orono campus and was studying kinesiology and physical therapy. Earlier this month, the UM men’s soccer team member was named to the 2007 America East All-Rookie Team.

At the time of his death, Baxter was at 1757 Forest Ave., Portland, the family home of former UM soccer teammate Sean Meehan, 19.

The investigation is ongoing, and police are interviewing others who were at the house in an attempt to re-create what might have happened, Ridge said.

Meehan found himself in trouble with the law earlier this month as the result of an alcohol-related incident at St. Joseph’s College in Standish.

A Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office deputy was called to a women’s dormitory on campus after dorm staff reportedly asked two intoxicated males to leave. They refused to do so. The men, in particular Meehan, became combative against the staff, used "vulgar obscenities" and had to be restrained until police arrived, Ridge said.

After assessing the situation, the deputy thought it was in the best interest of all parties to get the men off the campus as soon as possible, Ridge read from the police report. Two sober friends agreed to drive Meehan and the other man involved in the incident, Anthony Lord, 21, of Orono, to Meehan’s parents’ house in Portland.

The Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office investigated the incident and decided to charge the two men. Meehan was summoned for two counts of assault and one count of indecent conduct. Lord was summoned for one count of disorderly conduct.

The two are expected to appear at 8:30 a.m. Jan. 29, at 9th District Court in Bridgton.

UM spokesman Carr confirmed Monday that Meehan was suspended from the university Nov. 9 for violating the student conduct code. Meehan’s suspension continues through the academic year until May 2008, Carr said.

Carr said he couldn’t provide additional details regarding the suspension because of privacy laws, but said Lord is not now a UM student either.

To help UM students and Baxter’s teammates cope with the loss, counselors from the UM Counseling Center were available Sunday when students returned after Thanksgiving break, and services continued Monday.

"That sort of outreach activity is continuing," Carr said.

Aimee Dolloff

can be reached at adolloff@bangordailynews.netor 990-8130.

ORONO (NEWS CENTER) -- The University of Maine will be holding a memorial service Thursday for Adam Baxter. The 19-year-old UMaine student and soccer player died early Saturday morning in Portland.

Police say he had been drinking at a friend's house on Forest Avenue.

The results of Baxter's autopsy will not be available for four to five months. Portland police say they will present the findings of their investigation to the district attorney on Tuesday.

NEWS CENTER

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Students indicted for involvement in Baxter's death

Two men face alcohol-related charges

Nick McCrea           Top of  page                    Article

Issue date: 1/24/08

A grand jury in Portland indicted two University of Maine students on Jan. 11 for their involvement in a party that resulted in the alcohol-related death of 19-year-old UMaine soccer player Adam Baxter.

UMaine student Anthony Lord, 21, has been charged with furnishing alcohol to a minor, resulting in death, as well as three misdemeanor counts of furnishing alcohol to minors.

Baxter's former teammate on the UMaine Black Bear soccer team, Sean Meehan, 19, has been charged with the Class C crime of furnishing a place for minors to consume alcohol and two counts of the same crime on a Class D level.

Authorities and prosecutors believe Lord provided the alcohol for minors at the party in a Portland residence, including the drinks that led to Baxter's death. They also say Meehan hosted the party at his parents' home, which led to the charges against him.

Medical examiners previously stated that Baxter's death was alcohol-related. More toxicology tests have been done out of state.

First responders arrived at the Meehan home early in the morning on Nov. 24 in response to a call that someone was having difficulty breathing. They found Baxter at the residence, unconscious and unresponsive. They pronounced him dead at the scene.

Baxter was originally from Britain but came to UMaine, where he became one of the University soccer team's most promising athletes. He was ranked third on the team as a freshman and garnered 2007 America East All-Rookie Team honors.

Meehan could face up to five years in jail and a $5,000 fine for the Class C charge. The two lesser charges could bring one year in jail and a fine of up to $2,000 for each count.

Student sentenced for friend's death

By Trevor Maxwell Portland Press Herald Staff Writer

May 16, 2008 02:15 PM

Recent Updates

A second college student was sentenced today for his role in the alcohol-related death of a University of Maine soccer player last fall.

Anthony Michael Lord, 21, will serve two months in jail followed by two years of probation, during which he will not be allowed to consume alcohol, and must undergo substance abuse counseling.

Lord pleaded guilty at Cumberland County Superior Court this morning, to four charges of furnishing alcohol to minors. In exchange for the plea, the District Attorney’s Office dropped the sole felony charge.

Adam Baxter, 19, died in the early morning hours of Nov. 24, in the basement of a home on Forest Avenue in Portland. A freshman and native of England, Baxter was on break from school and was drinking with four friends. Lord, the only one in the group over the age of 21, purchased the alcohol.

Baxter apparently lost consciousness and died before emergency responders arrived at the house.

Sean Michael Meehan, 20, already pleaded guilty to furnishing a place for minors to consume alcohol. The party was at his parents’ house. Meehan was sentenced to serve 33 days, followed by three years of probation.

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