INVESTIGATION OVER: State Police Say Game of Skill, Attorney General Says Game of Chance

The Maine State Police investigation of the Center Lovell Inn Essay Contest

and its sponsor Janice Sage ended today. Sergeant Michael Johnston has declared that

“Our investigation determined that that the essay contest was a game of skill that was conducted according to the contests own rules.”

One might think police investigations are conducted to determine whether any laws -rather than rules written by the person being investigated- have been broken. In most states, that would be the case.

Not in Maine.

Good old Maine, where globally advertised contests feign the appearance of legitimacy with false claims of official state approval while the State Police and Attorney General look on, fully aware that real estate essay contests “invite abuse, such as collusion with a preselected winner,” as stated by former Assistant Attorney General Wayne Moss. (Portland Press Herald)

When asked why he hadn’t considered investigating whether or not the advertisements of the contest should be considered deceptive pursuant to Maine’s Deceptive Business Practices Statutes (§901-A), Sgt. Johnson shut down the notion. Though the contest was marketed by Sage to people “who can’t afford to go out and buy an inn or restaurant,” Johnson declared that after a meeting with the Attorney General’s office, it was concluded that

“there were no violations of the state’s consumer protection laws.”

Well, great! As long as the contest experts at the Maine Attorney General’s Office ...Oh, wait... Is this the same Attorney General’s Office that fielded complaints from concerned contestants two weeks ago, saying:

“The Center Lovell Inn essay contest is, in Maine, considered a ‘game of chance.’ We have forwarded your complaint to the Maine State Police for review. Sincerely, Tracy Thompson, Assistant Complaint Examiner”

If the Attorney General’s Office determined the essay contest to be a game of chance and sent the ball flying into the State Police’s court, and the State Police took TWO WEEKS to figure out -with the assistance of that same Attorney General’s Office- that an essay contest is actually a game whose winner is determined by writing skill, then where is this ball going to end up next?

In order for an essay contest to be legitimate and untainted by bias, the judges need to be qualified (relevant experience in formal essay writing/reading) and independent (no relationship to the contest sponsor or other judges). Sergeant Johnston was asked if the judges would finally be identified as it is a violation of federal trade law to not identify the judges of such contests. Sgt. Johnston met the inquiry with frustration. He said that he would not consider identifying the two judges, and that they were “honest, credible people with no reason to lie.” When it was suggested to him that revealing the judge’s qualifications could help ease the concerns of many contestants, Johnston insisted that “no certifications or qualifications are required to judge a contest, not in Maine anyway!”

Johnston went on to shout:

“THE BAR FOR CRIMINAL CHARGES SHOULD BE SET VERY HIGH. BEFORE WE GIVE SOMEBODY A CRIMINAL RECORD FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIFE WE DETERMINE IF WRONGDOING WARRANTED A CRIMINAL CHARGE AND THAT WAS NOT THE CASE HERE.”

That’s some mighty fine police work from the Maine State Police. I was unaware that their officers also serve as judge and jury for the cases they investigate. It’s no wonder it took them two weeks to figure out what an essay contest was (supposed to be).

The failure of the Maine State Police to address the countless violations which occurred throughout the duration of the Center Lovell Inn Essay Contest has only served to further motivate hundreds of contestants to assist the FBI with initiating a thorough investigation.




If you were a contestant of the Center Lovell Inn Essay Contest and would like this contest investigated by federal agencies that have the ability and jurisdiction to do so efficiently, please join the Center Lovell Contest Fair Practices Commission on Facebook here.

If you wish to file a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, click here.

Other articles on this subject:

Violations Pile Up in Maine Essay Contest Investigation

Open Letter from the Founder

Police Investigation of Real Estate Essay Contest Continues

Real-Estate Essay Contest Under Investigation by State Police