By Lauren McCauley | Editor
“My mind was thinking, ‘This is a dream.’” - Marcos Gaspar-Da Silva after being released from seven months in detention.
Bridgton resident Marcos Gaspar-Da Silva (left) reunited with his wife Alessia Gaspar-Da Silva after he was released from detention in Arizona on Aug. 13, 2026. (Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Lee)
IMMIGRATION
By Emma Davis
After nearly seven months of being shuffled through detention facilities across three states, during which he faced health problems in unsanitary conditions, Bridgton resident Marcos Gaspar-Da Silva was granted lawful permanent residency and released from a facility in Arizona.
EDUCATION
By Eesha Pendharkar
Several districts across Maine are struggling to adjust after a grant awarded to support mental health needs was inexplicably cut by the administration of President Donald Trump, which said in an April 2025 letter to the Maine DOE that it was among the “programs that reflect the prior Administration’s priorities and policy preferences and conflict with those of the current Administration.”
ELECTION 2026
By Kaitlyn Budion
When it comes to gun rights in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, the key difference between the nominees is that the National Rifle Association has only endorsed one: Republican Paul LePage.
OTHER TOP STORIES OF THE WEEK
Trump vaccine order takes aim at Maine and other states that limit exemptions | Tim Henderson, Stateline
Trump taken via catering truck to secret flight amid Iran threats, report says | Ashley Murray, States Newsroom
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