Garland man pleads not guilty
To murdering girlfriend, her children
By Judy Harrison
BDN Staff
BANGOR — A Garland man accused of killing his girlfriend and her two children pleaded not guilty Friday at the Penobscot Judicial Center to three counts of murder and one count of gross sexual assault.
Judy Harrison
ACCUSED — Keith Coleman, 27, of Garland pleaded not guilty Friday at the Penobscot Judicial Center to murder and rape charges in connection with the slayings last year of his girlfriend and her children. Coleman is to be tried in Apr
Keith Coleman, 28, who lived with Christina Sargent, 36, and her children in a trailer at 12 Paul Road in Garland, where their bodies were found last December, is charged with taking their lives. In August, Coleman also was indicted by the Penobscot County grand jury on one count of gross sexual assault involving one of the children, 8-year-old Destiny Sargent, and was re-indicted on three counts of intentional or knowing murder because of a technical problem with the original indictment.
The judge has set the trial for April 27.
Superior Court Justice Ann Murray also heard oral arguments Friday on a motion concerning how much of a report by a state forensic psychiatrist concerning Coleman’s competency can be released to the prosecution.
Defense attorney Logan Perkins of Bangor declined to comment after the hearing on whether her client had been found competent or not.
“We have an obligation to raise any questions we may have about our client’s competence. We have not done so at this time,” she said.
If the report had concluded that Coleman was not competent, he most likely would have pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.
The judge also considered whether records from the Maine Department of Health and Human Services concerning the father of one of Sargent’s children, and neighbors, may be subpoenaed by the defense. Perkins declined after the hearing to say whether she and co-counsel Martha Harris of Bangor were seeking them to present an alternative-suspect defense.
Murray took the motions under advisement.
The defendant confessed to police that he killed his girlfriend in front of the children and then killed them because they witnessed the crime, according to the probable cause affidavit filed at the Penobscot Judicial Center in Bangor by Detective Greg Mitchell of the Maine State Police’s northern major crimes unit.
Coleman was arrested Dec. 21 in Bucksport and charged in connection with the deaths of Sargent, her son, Duwayne Coke, 10, and her daughter, Destiny Sargent.
The victims’ bodies were found about 9 p.m. Dec. 20 by concerned family members in the trailer at 12 Paul Road in Garland, where Coleman lived with Sargent and her children. All three victims were strangled, according to a previously published report.
Coleman is being held without bail at the Maine State Prison in Warren.
If convicted, Coleman faces between 25 years and life in prison and a fine of up to $50,000. The Maine Supreme Judicial Court has ruled that a defendant convicted on multiple counts of murder may be sentenced to life in prison.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence and would like to talk with an advocate, call 866-834-4357, TRS 800-787-3224. This free, confidential service is available 24/7 and is accessible from anywhere in Maine.