Two Maine billionaires are sparring in court over charges that one poisoned the other’s trees to get the best ocean views and, in the process, spilled a deadly herbicide onto their small community’s only public beach.
Lisa Gorman, the wife of the late L.L. Bean president Leon Gorman, claims a neighbor sprayed herbicide on her oak trees without her permission in 2021, The Associated Press reported.
Neighbor Amelia Bond, the former CEO of the St. Louis Foundation, has offered to split the costs of removing dying trees in front of her Camden home in 2022, so Bond can enjoy an unobstructed view of Penobscot Bay, a picturesque harbor filled with lobster boats, yachts and schooners, according to legal documents reviewed by The Associated Press.
The destruction wasn’t limited to the Gormans’ property: The herbicide tebuthiuron spread next to the town’s only public ocean beach, sparking a legal investigation. According to the Associated Press, a resident was seen walking his dog just 500 feet from soil containing the herbicide, which is deadly to aquatic plants.
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Lisa Gorman (foreground) and Amelia and Arthur Bond at their home in Camden, Maine, on June 4. The Bonds, wealthy and well-connected Missouri couple, infuriated residents of their seaside community by poisoning their neighbors’ trees to preserve views of Camden Harbor. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
The town’s planning and development director told The Associated Press that Bond and her husband, architect Arthur Bond III, paid a few thousand dollars to the state and $1.5 million to Gorman. Bond’s aunt is former U.S. Sen. Kit Bond.
The couple, who relocated part-time from Missouri, are also responsible for further monitoring and restoration of Leyte Memorial Beach and the park, and Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey has agreed to further investigate the incident.
Many residents of Camden, a city of just 5,000 people, don’t think the fines are enough of a punishment, and some are calling for stiffer fines or even criminal prosecution.
“Anyone stupid enough to poison trees so close to the ocean should be prosecuted in my opinion,” resident Paul Hodgson told The Associated Press.
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This undated photo provided by Vinal Appleby shows Lisa Gorman’s Camden, Maine, home in the foreground, the poisoned oak trees behind her home, and the killer’s house behind the dead trees. (Vinal Appleby via The Associated Press)
The maximum fine the Maine Pesticide Control Board can impose is $4,500, which the Gormans have already paid. Rep. Vicki Doudella suggested there might be a tiered system of fines for wealthier offenders.
“I’m very angry,” Doudela told The Associated Press. “As soon as I heard about this situation I thought, ‘Wow! These people are going to get a light punishment,’ which is just not right.”
A lawyer for the Bonds told the outlet that his clients “continue to work with the City of Camden, the State of Maine and the Gormans” and “continue to take the allegations against them seriously.”
A cruise ship crosses Penobscot Bay, off the coast of Camden, Maine, on June 4. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
The herbicide at the center of this skirmish, tebuthiuron, was also used by Alabama football fans to kill oak trees in revenge for their team’s loss at rival Auburn University in 2010.
The fan, Harvey Updike, pleaded guilty to poisoning the tree and received prison time, according to the Associated Press.
This substance is notoriously difficult to remove and remediate. It doesn’t break down, so once it’s sprayed on one tree, it will continue to kill other plants. Aside from completely removing the affected soil, the only solution is to dilute the tebuthiuron and wait two years for it to become safe for surrounding plants.
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Fog hangs over Camden, Maine on June 4th. (Associated Press)
Camden resident Lynn Harrington questioned whether the Bonds should be visible in the city, despite being members of the Camden Yacht Club, while another resident, Dwight Johnson, called it “unjust” that the Bonds had offered to split the cost of cutting down the tree after they killed him.
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Most acknowledged that very wealthy part-time residents who are “outsiders,” a term Mainers use to refer to people from out of town, have enough money to easily shoulder the fines and get away with what they do.
“They’re just paying the fines because they have a lot of money,” Hodgson said. “That’s the town we live in.”
