Lewiston man sentenced to more than two years in prison for racist, threatening audio message

PORTLAND – A Lewiston man will spend more than two years behind bars for threatening a Lewiston woman and her family using racist slurs.

Charles Barnes submitted photo

U.S. District Judge John Woodcock sentenced 47-year-old Charles Allen Barnes on Wednesday to 30 months in prison for transmitting threatening messages in interstate commerce, a crime punishable by up to five years in prison.

The case stems from Barnes' Facebook audio message, which he sent on August 30, 2022, to a friend of the victim, known in court records as KT.

In the hateful message left by Barnes, who is white and directed at the black victim, he repeatedly called her “n…” and “black bitch” and threatened to “disembowel her,” “cut out her tongue” and kill her, her children or her boyfriend, prosecutors said.

Woodcock concluded that the crime was racially motivated, which led to a tougher sentencing guidelines.

In the message, Barnes said he was parked outside the 32-year-old woman's apartment and was “waiting for someone to step out and the first one that does is going to die… I don't care if it's her child, or her, or her boyfriend. I don't care… I'm going to kill myself (racist slur).”

Later that day, Barnes, who lives in the same Lewiston apartment complex as the victim, was sitting in a chair on a grassy verge next to a driveway leading out of the complex and onto the street.

Barnes had a sheath attached to his belt containing a large hunting knife. Lewiston police responded to the apartment complex, found Barnes, disarmed him, handcuffed him, and arrested him for terrorizing.

The victim's girlfriend, identified as DF, testified Wednesday that Barnes frequently used racist epithets and told racist jokes in previous unsolicited messages to her.

She said she once lived in the same apartment building as him and he added her as a friend on her public Facebook page.

DF said she had been friends with the victim for a long time and immediately forwarded Barnes' Facebook message to her friend because she feared for the victim's safety.

Barnes pleaded guilty to the charges in March.

The victim, who released an impact statement through the prosecutor's victim advocate on Wednesday, said the threatening audio recording has changed her life and that of her family and that she fears for her life and the lives of her boyfriend and her young daughter and son.

She urged the judge to sentence Barnes to prison because his behavior was “unacceptable.”

Barnes said he was sorry for “what he did” when he acted that day. He regretted the act and wished he could take it back.

He said what he did to the victim was “inexcusable.”

However, Woodcock noted that Barnes never apologized to the victim.

“Instead, he talked about himself,” Woodcock said.

He referred to statements made by Barnes after his arrest in which he considered himself a victim of his own crime.

“There are too many people who hold racist views about other people,” Woodcock said, “and they are damaging our society.”

Barnes' punishment must also send a message, Woodcock said.

He called the language used by Barnes “disgusting” and his actions “disgraceful.”

The racial slur used by Barnes dates back to the time of slavery, Woodcock said, adding that he could not describe “how morally wrong it is (to use that term) when referring to a fellow citizen.”

Woodcock reminded Barnes that Maine had fought on the side of the Union Army in the Civil War, adding, “I have no idea where this hatred comes from.”

Woodcock listed Barnes' criminal record, citing a dozen convictions, including domestic violence.

He said he hoped that over time, Barnes would learn to change his attitude toward women and people “who don't look like you.”

Woodcock has suspended Barnes' sentence until next month, when he is required to report to federal prison.

After his release from prison, Barnes will be on probation for three years, during which he must undergo mental health counseling, be prohibited from possessing firearms or dangerous weapons (including knives), and have no contact with the victim or his family.

Attorney General Aaron Frey filed a civil lawsuit against Barnes under the Maine Civil Rights Act in April 2023. The lawsuit sought a civil injunction prohibiting him from having any contact with the victim or any member of her family and preventing him from violating the Maine Civil Rights Act.

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