In the quiet community of Gardiner, Maine, the life of a young white male, Jordan Scott Johnson, 22, was tragically cut short. On a cold January morning in 2020, what began as an altercation escalated into a fatal encounter. In the early hours of January 25th, an incident unfolded on Lincoln Avenue that would leave one man dead and another seriously injured.
Johnson was shot during the confrontation and rushed to Maine Medical Center in Portland for treatment of his injuries.
Despite the efforts of medical professionals, he succumbed to a gunshot wound to the head three days later, on January 28, 2020. Another man involved in the altercation sustained stab wounds but survived.
The investigation into the violent events of that Saturday morning quickly led to a suspect. Dylan Ketcham, a 21-year-old from Gardiner, was arrested and subsequently charged with murder in connection with Johnson's death. Ketcham was also charged with elevated aggravated assault for the stabbing of the other man involved in the incident.
In the ensuing legal proceedings, Dylan Ketcham was found guilty of murder, attempted murder, and elevated aggravated assault. In May 2023, he was sentenced to 65 years in prison for the killing of Jordan Johnson and the machete attack on the other victim, who had been a close friend of Ketcham's since childhood. The court learned that the deadly encounter stemmed from a verbal conflict between Ketcham and Johnson.
