State v. Haag, 2012 ME 94

Haag, a father figure, was convicted of two counts of kidnapping under 17-A M.R.S. § 301(1)(B)(2) after a jury trial in Washington County.
The State presented evidence that Haag and Amanda hid the two girls from their father for over two years, including moving across states and altering documents.
The children were found in a Maine motel room alone with Haag and Amanda after their father learned of their location.
The jury heard that the defendants committed acts to restrain, remove, and secretly hold the girls in a place not likely to be found.
The court denied Haag’s motions for judgment of acquittal; Haag elected not to testify and did not request lesser-included offenses.
The judgments were affirmed on appeal.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the evidence was sufficient to convict Haag of kidnapping	State contends evidence showed removal and secrecy	Haag asserts insufficient proof of restraint and unlawfulness	Affirmed; evidence sufficient
Whether Haag had lawful authority to restrain the girls	State argues no lawful authority existed without a court order	Haag claims implied authority from Amanda as co-parent	Affirmed; no lawful authority found
Whether the State could rely on secreting as an element	State argues girls not likely to be found at motel	Haag challenges inferencing of secrecy	Affirmed; secreting supported by evidence

State v. Cook, 2 A.3d 333 (Me. 2010) (sufficiency and inference in review of criminal convictions)
State v. Butt, 656 A.2d 1225 (Me. 1995) (parents' equal access to children; criminal restraint by a parent)
State v. Standring, 960 A.2d 1210 (Me. 2008) (sufficiency of evidence; denial of judgment of acquittal)