Former State Rep. Jeff Pierce ran for office three times before his criminal past surfaced in his 2018 campaign. Pierce, a two-term state representative from Dresden, lost to challenger Allison Hepler, a Woolwich Democrat, in an election which saw seven other GOP incumbents lose and Democrats win both legislative branches and the Blaine House for the first time in a decade. Pierce believes he could have survived the “Blue Wave,” but his criminal background check released three weeks before Election Day tipped the race. The background check showed a history of possessing and selling scheduled drugs, assault charges and two convictions for operating under the influence. Pierce describes his criminal past as just that, “the past.”
As far as his political future, Pierce sees himself back in the Maine legislature. He will challenge Hepler this fall.
Pierce was 19 in 1983. He remembers being a different person in that era. In the late 70s and early 80s, he recalled drug use as being more “prevalent and widely accepted.” Pierce admits he’s made mistakes, and describes himself as someone who’s learned and moved on to live a productive live. “That’s right, I was a (meat) head,” Pierce said. “I would like anyone who has never done anything wrong to call up the media and tell them all about it.”
Pierce describes his teenage and early adult years as being a product of the times. Pierce graduated from Cony High School in Augusta in 1983. He did well in the vocational school’s graphic arts program. But when he graduated, the Maine economy was struggling. Several longtime employers were closed and prospects for a recent high school graduate were bleak.
Pierce lived at home. He did a few odd jobs and augmented his income by selling marijuana. Pierce’s legal problems began in 1981, as a high school student, with his being charged with hashish possession. It worsened two years later as he was arrested for cocaine possession. Pierce was at an Augusta nightclub and trying to impress a lady. He was approached by a Maine Drug Enforcement Agent about buying cocaine. Pierce only had $150 which was half of what he needed to buy a $300 8-ball. So Pierce and the man agreed to pool their money and split the 8-ball. It turned out the man was an undercover agent. “He got his half and I got to jail,” Pierce said. Pierce was sentenced to 364 days in Kennebec County Jail with all but 30 days suspended. This gave Pierce a lot of time to think about his future. Pierce summed up jail as 30 days of waking up, going to breakfast, watching television, and listening to inmates “bitch” about being innocent. “I didn’t consider myself a (meat) head until I went to jail. It was serving time I realized I was a meat head,” he said.
Prior to his arrest, Pierce had no solid job prospects, his mother was battling cervical cancer and his father started drinking more. “It was tough going home every night and it was definitely a low point in my life,” he said. Three days after he left jail, his mother died.
Once Pierce re-entered society, an Augusta police officer gave him sage advice. Chauncey Lancaster, a friend of Pierce’s father, called him a profane name and told him “If you hang with turkeys, you will never soar with the eagles.” Pierce took the advice to heart and reflected on the lifestyle which resulted in his serving time. “Going to jail may have been the best thing that ever happened to me,” Pierce said.
With help from another family friend, Pierce secured seasonal work in spring 1984. His father, an Augusta Fire Department union president, approached former state Sen. Beverly Bustin (D-Augusta) who found him a job at Popham Beach State Park. Pierce worked for a man who made a profound impact on his future. Delbert Percy was a retired Marblehead, Massachusetts police officer working at the state park. “He liked my work ethic and looked out for me. God bless his soul, he never passed judgement on me,” Pierce said.
Percy knew Pierce had a troubled past and kept him focused on work. “He really helped me focus on the positive values and focusing on what I wanted to do in life,” Pierce said. Another positive role model was John Dolloff. The two helped Pierce develop a reputation as a hard worker. “There were no bars around and no one really had any money so it was the perfect place for me. These guys were a little more conservative than my dad and showed me a different set of values,” Pierce said.
In 1990, Percy offered him a job as a lobster boat sternsman. Pierce didn’t have a lobsterman’s license, but eagerly accepted the steady work. Pierce flourished working in the Phippsburg area. He met Ann Kinch in 1988 and fell in love. He married her and found employment in the construction business. He worked for John Braley, who taught him about the business. “I started out part-time, and God bless him, John kept me working 1990-92,” he said. “I had a great reputation in Phippsburg. I built up a lot of respect, and realized it was better than being a (jerk).”
Eventually, Pierce knew enough about the business to open his own shop. So the Pierce family bought a 1790 Dresden house in severe need of renovation and a nearby abandoned church which became his workshop. “We looked at the map and Dresden was smack dab in the middle of our work area and it had good schools and we’ve been here ever since,” Pierce said.
Now 36, Pierce owned a business, became a Dresden planning board member and joined the Alewives Harvesters of Maine. He became active in politics by joining the Dresden Republican Committee. Pierce grew up in a union household so his decision to join the GOP took nearly two decades. “It really started when I began signing the front of the check instead of the back,” Pierce said. “I also disagreed with a lot of (Gov.) Baldacci’s policies.”
In 2012, Pierce’s reputation had Maine Republican leaders vying for his services. Maine Senate President Michael Thibodeau and House Minority Leader Ken Fredette wanted him to run for the Legislature. Pierce opted to run against three-term incumbent state Sen. Seth Goodall who beat him 13,445 to 7,623. In 2014, Pierce opted to run for the House of Representatives and won the two ensuing elections.
His criminal record never became an issue in his first three legislative races, but late in the 2018 race, it surfaced in a daily newspaper report. “I don’t understand why they didn't do this the first time I ran against a three-term incumbent state senator. I found the circumstances of the release suspicious,” Pierce said about his previous race. As a candidate, Pierce will focus on preventing bad legislation as much as enacting good legislation. He believes ranked choice voting is an example of bad legislation. Pierce’s campaign will focus more on what unites Mainers than divides them. “I believe we all agree 92% of the time. We all want good roads, good education and to be safe, and that’s what a legislator should focus on.”
After revelations of his criminal past, none of the civic organizations asked him to resign. He was also asked to fill an unexpired term of a Dresden School Committee seat.
After Hepler defeated Pierce, he was investigated for illegally possessing a firearm. His political adversaries cited his Facebook hunting photos showing him with a firearm which they believed violated state law. He was charged with illegally obtaining a hunting license. but the case was eventually dismissed. Pierce’s 1980s drug charge was a Class B crime and not a felony. Pierce investigated the law and reported non-violent drug cases hadn’t been a felony since before 1976. Since the judge didn’t prohibit him from owning a gun, he wasn’t in violation of the hunting law. Later, Gov. Paul LePage pardoned Pierce for his past Class B violations.
Former State Rep. Jeff Pierce is seeking a return to the Legislature. BILL PEARSON/Boothbay Register
