Police believe Freeport woman was killed in West Newfield

A West Newfield man charged with killing a prominent member of southern Maine’s addiction recovery community appeared briefly in court Monday afternoon, but officials still aren’t sharing details about the case.

Gary Mariner appears in York County Superior Court on Monday via Zoom.

Gary Mariner, 65, did not have to enter a plea as he appeared via Zoom in York County Superior Court, three days after Maine State Police charged him with murder in the death of Danielle Goodwin, 52, of Freeport.

Goodwin’s body was discovered on Sept. 5 near Home Depot in South Portland, police said.

One detail that emerged at Monday’s hearing is that police believe Goodwin was killed in West Newfield, according to the charge read by Justice James Martemucci.

Little else is known publicly about Goodwin’s death. An arrest warrant and accompanying affidavit, which could provide more details about the evidence against Mariner, remained under seal Monday. Police also have refused to release her cause of death.

Mariner is being held at York County Jail in Alfred without bail. He will not be arraigned until a grand jury convenes and issues an indictment.

Goodwin earned her substance counseling degree and played a pivotal role in supporting many Mainers who struggled with addiction, according to those who knew her. Friends described her as fun and bubbly, but also an emotional rock they could trust with their deepest fears and insecurities.

Danielle Goodwin Photo courtesy of Stephanie Doyle

“She was really able to highlight how you were valuable as a person,” longtime friend Nikki Curtis said in September. “She struggled to give herself the stuff she gave to others.”

According to Goodwin’s mother, Patricia, Goodwin had recently started using drugs again. Goodwin used her mother’s house as a “home base” as she tried to get clean, but sometimes disappeared on drug binges. One day in September, she didn’t return home.

Patricia Goodwin said last week that she didn’t know how her daughter died and had never heard of Mariner.

Mariner, the son of a former Cape Elizabeth police chief, has a criminal history dating to 1978. He recently served four years for gross sexual assault after impersonating a police officer and intimidating a sex worker into giving him free sex. Two-thirds of his 12-year sentence were commuted, which allowed him to walk free in 2017.