In the predawn hours of March 11, 2012, a dispute over a paint job escalated into deadly violence outside a home in the small coastal town of Lamoine, Maine, leaving 32-year-old Lawrence "Randy" Sinclair Jr. dead. The White / Caucasian male was one of four men who had gone to the residence of Michael Carter, a distant relative and friend of Sinclair's.
The disagreement began between Carter and two of Sinclair's friends, Joshua McKinney and Torrey Garland, concerning a paint job they had done on Carter's truck.
Unhappy with the work, Carter had engaged in a heated exchange of phone calls and text messages with the men. Sinclair became involved in the communications and, accompanied by McKinney, Garland, and his own brother, Jacob, went to Carter's house around 4:30 a.m. They reportedly went unarmed, anticipating a fistfight to settle the matter. Instead, they were met by Carter, who emerged from his home with a 9 mm pistol.
In the ensuing chaos, gunfire erupted. Lawrence Sinclair was shot in the head and died hours later at Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor. Garland and McKinney were also wounded, as was Carter himself. Jacob Sinclair and a woman at the residence, Tacy Mullins, were unharmed.
Michael Carter was arrested and initially charged with murder. In a plea agreement, he pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter, as well as aggravated assault and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison with all but 16 years suspended, to be followed by four years of probation. During the sentencing, relatives of Sinclair expressed their belief that the 16-year sentence was insufficient for what they described as an execution-style shooting. The tragic incident concluded with a brawl erupting outside the courthouse between the families and friends of Sinclair and Carter following the sentencing.
