‘High stakes’ in triple homicide

Houlton Pioneer Times Photo/Elna Seabrooks
THE PROSECUTOR — Deputy Attorney General William Stokes takes a call on his cell phone outside Houlton Superior Court after the arraignment of Thayne Ormsby last week. Ormsby pleaded not guilty to three counts of homicide and one count of arson in connection with the stabbing deaths last month of a child and two men in Amity.
By Elna Seabrooks
Staff Writer
    HOULTON — Thayne Ormsby’s mother watched as her 20-year-old son, Thayne Ormsby, leaned toward the microphone at his arraignment on three counts of murder and said “not guilty.” Despite his confession, detailed in a July 2 state police affidavit, Ormsby’s not guilty plea was entered before Justice E. Allen Hunter in Houlton Superior Court last Wednesday provoking a slight gasp of surprise in the courtroom.
    Outside the courthouse, prior to her son’s arraignment, Maria Ormsby, with tears in her eyes, told the Pioneer Times exclusively: “He’s 100 percent not guilty. He shouldn’t be in there.”
    Ormsby is accused in the stabbing deaths of Jesse Ryan, 10, his father Jeffrey Ryan, 55, and Ryan’s friend and neighbor Jason Dehahn, 33. The victims were last known to be alive June 22 in Amity.
    Ormsby is also accused on one count of arson, to which he also pleaded not guilty. A truck, removed from Ryan’s property on U.S. Route 1 in Amity, was later found destroyed by fire in Weston.
    In court, Ormsby was flanked by his defense attorneys, James M. Dunleavy and Sarah LeClaire, both of Presque Isle. Maria Ormsby, accompanied by three women, sat behind her son. Originally, she had entered the row of seats first. Then, she moved back crossing the women to be closer to her son. He seemed to react upon seeing her when she entered the courtroom.
    Throughout the short proceeding Ormsby, shackled and wearing an orange jumpsuit, was heavily guarded by four uniformed sheriff’s deputies. Ormsby, lightly bearded and less blond, appeared to remain calm, occasionally exhibiting the faint trace of a smile as he interacted with the plainclothes transport officer next to him.
    Deputy Attorney General William Stokes, following the arraignment, said the Dehahn and Ryan families had been prepared by victim advocates for the probability of Ormsby’s plea. And, Stokes added that only once in his 33-year career had a defendant entered a guilty plea at an arraignment.
    Stokes said his interaction with the families that day “went well.” The families of the victims had many questions according to Stokes who told the Pioneer Times he had “explained to them as much as he could until it’s over.”
    Robert Dehahn, Jason Dehahn’s father, said being at the arraignment “was tough.” But, he agreed he “will let the courts decide.”
    The defense team requested an extension of time from the typical 60 to 120 days to file any motions. Stokes said he did not object and Judge Hunter granted the request. “The reason is this is obviously a triple murder. The discovery in this case is going to be voluminous. So the stakes are very high for Mr. Ormsby as well as for the families. And, the defense attorneys want to be sure they cover all the bases. So, they wanted some extra time to file those motions,” explained Stokes.
    In Ormsby’s confession to state police, he said he had planned to live with Ryan’s teenage daughter, Mariah whose mother is a longtime friend of Maria Ormsby.
    Before the arraignment, through a prism of grief and loss, Ormsby’s mother tearfully maintained her son’s innocence. Dehahn’s father arrived seeking justice for his murdered son. And, Jesse Ryan’s grandparents, wearing photo badges of the 10-year-old murdered boy, declined any comment. They bore silent witness to a child who had just barely started his life. Families once connected by friendship, are now looking for answers in the aftermath of three brutal murders.
    The prosecution has requested a forensic psychiatric evaluation of Ormsby who is being held without bail.