WINSLOW — A mother and her daughter face criminal charges after the mother gave the daughter’s information to Winslow police when she was given a summons during a traffic stop last month.
Police said Donna Marie Heath-McGrath, 49, of Aspen Lane, Canaan, provided her daughter’s name and information when she was issued a summons for driving with a suspended registration. Her daughter, Kristin Pelotte, 27, of Winslow, then tried to take the rap for her mother, who had other outstanding warrants for her arrest, according to Winslow police Officer Scott Christiansen.
“Basically, she didn’t want her mother to get into any more trouble,” Christiansen said in an interview Wednesday.
Instead, Heath-McGrath now faces felony charges of aggravated forgery and criminal conspiracy, offenses that could lead to prison time.
According to Christiansen, Heath-McGrath was pulled over April 30 on Clinton Avenue in Winslow and issued a summons for allegedly driving with a suspended motor vehicle registration. Heath-McGrath couldn’t provide a driver’s license when she was pulled over and told officers she had left it at home, Christiansen said. When she was issued a court summons for the violation, Heath-McGrath gave her daughter’s name, date of birth, and places of residence and employment instead of her own, according to Christiansen.
“She was very cooperative, but it was all her daughter’s information,” he said.
The fraud was “primarily motivated by the fact she had a suspended license and got an operating-after-suspension charge from the Waterville Police Department,” Christiansen said.
Pelotte was apparently ready to take responsibility for her mother’s violations. According to Christiansen, Pelotte arrived at the Winslow Police Department on May 6 to be fingerprinted as part of the summons process. Christiansen said he initially didn’t think anything was out of the ordinary, but when he was filing the paperwork, he realized the person he had just fingerprinted was not the same person he had pulled over the week before.
Pelotte readily admitted to helping her mother with the forgery when he confronted her at her Halifax Street residence the next day, Christiansen said. Heath-McGrath also was contacted and agreed to go to the Police Department to be arrested on May 8, he said. “Once they knew it was all said and done, they came in to take responsibility,” he said.
Heath-McGrath was released on bail the same day she was arrested, according to Christiansen, and Pelotte received a court summons on a criminal conspiracy charge for her role in the deception.
In addition to the forgery and conspiracy charges, Heath-McGrath also faces misdemeanor charges of failure to give her correct name, address or date of birth, operating with a suspended license and operating with a suspended registration.
According to Christiansen, Heath-McGrath also faces charges of operating after suspension and negotiating a worthless instrument from Waterville police.
Aggravated forgery is a class B offense that carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine. Criminal conspiracy is a class C offense with a maximum of five years and a $5,000 fine.
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