Grand Jury Indicts Hermon Woman in Topsham Head-On Crash Killing Passenger

A Sagadahoc County grand jury returned an indictment on Feb. 13, 2026, charging 26-year-old Hermon resident Lacey Wiles with manslaughter and multiple felony counts tied to an Oct. 4, 2025, head-on collision on Route 196 at the Merrymeeting Bridge in Topsham that killed her passenger, 23-year-old Marcus Steinman of Topsham.

The indictment lists manslaughter along with aggravated assault, operating under the influence causing death, aggravated driving to endanger, and operating under the influence causing injury; prosecutors presented the charges to the grand jury after a multi-month inquiry by local and state investigators. The grand jury in Sagadahoc County returned the charges that now move the case toward formal arraignment and further court proceedings.

Topsham police and the Maine State Police say the crash occurred on Route 196 at the Merrymeeting Bridge late on Oct. 4, 2025, with the most precise reported time being 10:38 p.m.; investigators have also cited an approximate time of 10:30 p.m. in earlier statements. Authorities report the collision was head-on, with Wiles driving one vehicle, 34-year-old Joseph Lemont of Bowdoin driving the other, and Steinman listed as a passenger in Wiles’ vehicle.

Topsham police Chief Marc Hagan said in a news release that investigators “worked with the Maine State Police and spent months investigating to determine if speed or impairment were factors. The grand jury’s decision to put additional charges to Wiles’ indictment suggests there was evidence of both.” Chief Hagan’s release framed the indictment as the culmination of that cooperative investigation between Topsham PD and the Maine State Police.

Authorities reported casualties and injuries by name and town: Marcus Steinman, 23, of Topsham, was killed in the crash; Joseph Lemont, 34, of Bowdoin, was seriously injured; police news material also indicated Wiles was seriously injured in the collision. Law enforcement took Wiles into custody on Feb. 13; Maine State Police transported her to the Penobscot County Jail in Bangor, where she is being held on $50,000 cash bail.

Court filings, indictments, and toxicology results have not been released publicly and no arraignment date has been announced by the Sagadahoc County court clerk as of Feb. 15, 2026. Local officials have not provided a docket number or the precise legal language of each count in the grand jury packet; those documents will be necessary to track scheduled hearings in the Sagadahoc County Superior Court or District Court calendars.

The indictment charges are legal allegations returned by a grand jury and do not constitute a finding of guilt. Residents concerned about bridge safety, traffic enforcement on Route 196, or the progress of this criminal case can follow updates from the Topsham Police Department and the Sagadahoc County court clerk’s office for public filings and scheduled court events.