Former Maine gubernatorial candidate Eliot Cutler on Tuesday denied violating the terms of his probation stemming from his 2023 conviction for possession of sexually explicit materials involving children.
Cutler served less than one year of a four-year sentence as part of a plea agreement that also included six years of probation. He was convicted of four felony counts for possession of explicit materials involving children under age 12.
But last month, Cutler's probation officer accused him of failing to notify him that he had accessed a website containing sexually explicit materials while allegedly trying to arrange for an escort from a California massage parlor.
The officer alleged Cutler also violated his probation by connecting to the internet using cellphones that had not been subject to monitoring. The probation officer then filed paperwork to revoke Cutler's probation, raising the prospect that the 79-year-old Brooklin resident could be forced to serve the more than three years remaining on his original sentence.
Cutler denied violating the terms of his probation during a brief appearance alongside his attorney, Walt McKee, in an Ellsworth courthouse. He did not speak other than to answer a series of short questions from the judge.
He was ordered to pay $1,000 in bail and to surrender his passport. The court is also requiring Cutler to provide a new inventory of all cellphones, computers and similar electronic devices in his possession — and to comply with the other terms of his probation.
Cutler's probation revocation hearing is now scheduled for January 26.
Cutler was a well-known attorney who ran for governor twice as an independent candidate. He narrowly lost the 2010 race to Republican Paul LePage but finished third behind LePage and Democratic Rep. Mike Michaud four years later. He remained in the public and political sphere for years afterward, advocating for independent candidates for office and by helping to lead an effort to launch a new graduate education center at the University of Southern Maine.
But in January 2022, the Maine State Police received a tip from the CyberTipline operated by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children about a download of sexually explicit materials involving children. After an initial investigation, police executed search warrants at Cutler's houses in Cape Elizabeth and Brooklin. According to documents included in his plea agreement, police found more than 80,000 images and videos involving children on Cutler's devices.
McKee disputed those figures at the time but Cutler accepted full responsibility and expressed his deep shame for his crimes. Prosecutors said at the time that Cutler's sentence — four years in prison with all but nine months suspended — was consistent with similar cases in the state. He ultimately served seven months after being released early in 2024 for good behavior.
