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Union Rep Says Oxford County Sheriff Solicited At Least 2 Employees For Sex

Oxford County Sheriff Wayne Gallant has admitted sending a sexually explicit photo of himself to a woman through text message, and is now facing additional allegations of improper sexual conduct by the union representing employees of the sheriff’s office.

The new allegations against Gallant surfaced late Wednesday afternoon in a published report in the Portland Press Herald. Gallant was first confronted about the sexually explicit photo by Portland TV station WGME on Tuesday, and in a statement admitted that it was taken in his office and that he was partially in uniform.

Gallant apologized for the photo and said he would resign as president of the Maine Sheriffs Association. But he also told the Bangor Daily News that what he did was not illegal, but “an adult thing” that occurred two years ago.

Since then Ray Cote, business agent for Teamsters Local 340, told the Portland Press Herald that Gallant solicited sex with a deputy and his girlfriend and sent several sexually explicit photos to the woman. According to the story, when the employee rejected the advances, Gallant threatened his job.

Cote said Gallant also told a second male employee that he wanted to perform oral sex on him.

Calls and emails to Gallant and Oxford County officials have not been returned.

The state Constitution says that only the governor, upon complaint, can remove a sheriff for not “faithfully or efficiently” performing his or her job. Whether Gallant’s actions run afoul of that language is unclear, but he is also required by law to follow the Law Enforcement Code of Ethics, in which officers vow that, “I will keep my private life unsullied as an example to all.”

Journalist Mal Leary spearheads Maine Public's news coverage of politics and government and is based at the State House.