The Lincoln County Democratic Committee (LCDC) will hold its next meeting Thursday, June 22 with a panel on restorative justice featuring local law enforcement leaders and restorative justice practitioners.  

The meeting begins at 7 p.m. and will be held in person at the Newcastle Fire Station, 86 River Road in Newcastle, and on Zoom. 

Speakers include Natasha Irving, District Attorney for Lincoln, Knox, Waldo and Sagadahoc counties; Todd Brackett, sheriff for Lincoln County; and Drew Himmelstein, manager of the Lincoln and Knox County Justice Hub for Restorative Justice Project Maine. The discussion will be moderated by Barbara Cray, an attorney, mediator and volunteer facilitator with the Restorative Justice Project Maine.  

After an initial overview of restorative justice practices, Irving will discuss her efforts to reform the criminal justice system and the use of restorative justice as a tool for that effort, examples of her referral of criminal matters to Restorative Justice Project of Maine and the factors for centering a community response to harm, including victim’s needs, accountability, healing and cycle breaking. 

Brackett will share his experiences with restorative justice in criminal matters in Lincoln County, the success of the referrals and using restorative justice in the community, particularly the juvenile community. 

Himmelstein will discuss the philosophy and practices of Restorative Justice Project Maine and provide examples of the work done and how success is measured. After each speaker share’s their remarks, Cray will facilitate a discussion on restorative justice and moderate a question and answer session with the speakers.

All Lincoln County Democrats and unenrolled progressives are welcome to attend. LCDC voting members will automatically receive the Zoom log on information and reminders by email. Those interested in becoming a voting member must be a registered Democrat in Lincoln County and may make their interest known by indicating such at the in-person meeting, on the meeting registration form, https://lincolncountydemocrats.com/meet, or by emailing info@lincolncountydemocrats.com. 

Information about our speakers:

Natasha Irving is the first woman and the first Democrat to hold the office of District Attorney in Prosecutorial District 6, which includes Lincoln County.  She was born and  raised in Waldoboro.  She studied philosophy and religious studies at Loyola University in New Orleans, and served a year in Americorps before earning her law degree from Maine School of Law.  She is the proud mother of two daughters and two stepdaughters, ranging in age from 2 to 18. Irving has dedicated her work to transforming the criminal justice system, moving towards centering on community response to harm on victims’ needs and healing, harm prevention and fostering of resilient communities and institutions.

Todd Brackett is the sheriff of Lincoln County. He began his career in 1985 at the age of 19 as a corrections officer for the Kennebec County Sheriff’s Office. In 1986 he was promoted to patrol deputy where he served until moving to the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office in 1988. Todd served in the patrol division as a K-9 handler and corporal until 1998 when he was hired as chief of police for the town of Damariscotta. He was elected sheriff of Lincoln County in 2002 and was re-elected for his sixth term as sheriff in 2022.

Drew Himmelstein is manager of the Lincoln and Knox Community Justice Hub for Restorative Justice Project Maine. She became interested in restorative justice after learning about the impact of trauma-informed practices and social-emotional learning through her previous work as an education writer. She has spent the past 18 months learning from and listening to community members in Lincoln and Knox counties about their strengths and needs, teaching about restorative practices and facilitating a community-led process to create community justice hubs as a community justice manager for the Restorative Justice Project Maine. She lives in Rockland with her husband and two sons, who are growing up as fourth-generation Rockland residents.

Pre-registration for the June 22 meeting is required for non-voting members to receive Zoom log on and/or phone-in details. Register at https://lincolncountydemocrats.com/meet before Noon the day of the meeting to ensure access. They will also do their best to accommodate last-minute registrations.

Information about the committee, its meetings and other activities may be found at https://lincolncountydemocrats.com or https://www.facebook.com/lincolncountydems/.