The Maine Supreme Judicial Court has denied an appeal from an Old Orchard Beach man seeking to reduce the life sentence he received for murdering his grandmother in 2012.
In a ruling issued Jan. 16, the court said Derek Poulin did not file the necessary paperwork in time.
Poulin, 30, was convicted of murdering his grandmother and given a life sentence by Justice John O’Neil in York County Superior Court in 2015.
Poulin was 23 when he murdered his 61-year-old grandmother, Patricia Noel, by beating her with a golf club and stabbing her about 70 times in her Old Orchard Beach home. Poulin then set fire to the home where he, his father and grandmother lived.
During court proceedings in 2015, prosecutors described Poulin as an unemployed young man more interested in playing video games than trying to find a job. Noel had written letters stating that her grandson called her derogatory names and blew smoke in her face, and she wanted him to find a new place to live.
Poulin appealed his conviction, arguing he did not receive a fail trial. That appeal was denied by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court in 2016.
In July 2018, Chris Nielsen, Poulin’s attorney, asked O’Neil to reconsider Poulin’s sentence. Nielsen argued the life sentence was “cruel and unusual punishment” as the court failed to consider Poulin’s young age, state of mental health and lack of prior criminal history.
In court documents dated Aug, 1, 2018, O’Neil denied the request, stating that the life sentence Poulin received was appropriate.
“This was a brutal murder involving multiple weapons and was perpetrated upon someone who loved the defendant and had provided him with a place to live,” O’Neil wrote.
Poulin’s attorney filed a notice of appeal in late August.
The Maine Supreme Judicial Court dismissed the appeal, saying Poulin had failed to submit a memorandum explaining why his attempt to appeal the decision was not frivolous. The memorandum needed to be filed by Dec. 28, the court said.
Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 780-9015 or at:
egotthelf@journaltribune.com.
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