Maine

Jury Convicts Man, 77, in Fatal Stabbing of Woman Outside Maine Laundromat

Albert Flick was convicted in the July 2018 stabbing death of Kimberly Dobbie in Lewiston

A Maine man who had served decades in prison for fatally stabbing his wife in front of her daughter has been convicted for fatally stabbing another woman while her twin children watched.

A jury convicted 77-year-old Albert Flick on Wednesday in the 2018 death of 48-year-old Kimberly Dobbie.

Police say Flick was infatuated with Dobbie. Surveillance video captured the attack outside a laundromat, along with Flick's purchase two days earlier of two knives he used.

The jury took just 45 minutes to convict Flick, providing swift relief for relatives and acquaintances of Dobbie who had watched the three-day trial.

"I feel wonderful," said Dobbie's friend James Lipps.

During closing statements, prosecutors showed the surveillance footage of Flick heading towards Dobbie just before the stabbing to prove he was at the scene. The same video also showed her twin 11-year-old boys running way from the scene.

Investigators believe Flick, who chose not to testify, wanted a romantic relationship with Dobbie and had been tracking her before becoming enraged that the bond never materialized.

"He was infatuated, he was obsessed, he has, I'm sure, issues that are deeper than we'll figure out," said Assistant Attorney General Bud Ellis. "It was pretty clear what Mr. Flick did."

Flick's defense team never denied he stabbed Dobbie. Initially, they had plead insanity but that changed just before the trial began.

Instead, their argument shifted to a lack of motive and lack of police reports filed where Dobbie accused Flick of harassing her. The defense also questioned the premise that Flick was obsessed with Dobbie.

Flick has a long history of violence against women. He served 25 years in prison for stabbing his wife to death in front of her daughter in 1979.

A judge in 2010 ignored a recommendation for a longer sentence for assaulting another woman, saying Flick's age meant he was no longer a threat. He was released in 2014.

Prosecutors said they plan to ask for a life sentence for Flick when he is sentenced in August.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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