District attorney won’t seek reelection after 40-year career

By Marie Weidmayer, Bangor Daily News Staff

The district attorney for Penobscot and Piscataquis counties won’t seek reelection after holding the position for nearly 40 years.

R. Christopher Almy has served as the district attorney since 1985, except for a four-year gap from 2018 to 2022 when he did not run for the seat. Almy joined the office as an assistant in 1976. 

Chelsea Lynds, the deputy district attorney, is the only person who submitted a petition for the primary. She is registered as a Democrat for the June 9 primary and is running for District 5, which covers Penobscot and Piscataquis counties.

Almy said he is “rooting for Chelsea all the way.”

Lynds became the deputy district attorney in 2024. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Husson University in 2015 and from law school in 2018.  Lynds passed the Maine bar later that year.

The Maine Prosecutors Association gave Lynds the “Making a Difference” award in 2025 for her work prosecuting Djvan Carter for attempted murder and working to help ensure the victim, who was incarcerated for drug charges, was still able to testify at the jury trial. Carter was convicted.

She is an adjunct professor at Eastern Maine Community College’s criminal justice program.

If Lynds wins the primary, she will be on the Nov. 3 general election ballot. 

A candidate can still challenge her as an independent or write-in candidate.