Sexual assault allegations against Graham Platner, a rising populist Democrat, could lead to felony charges under Maine law, according to a criminal defense lawyer. The claims, made by Jenny Racicot, 41, detail an incident in 2021 that has already forced Platner to suspend a major Senate campaign.
Racicot, who had been casually dating Platner for about two years, alleged in interviews with Politico and CNN that Platner sexually assaulted her in 2021 at the home where she was staying in the village of Marlboro, located in Maine's Hancock County. She stated that she repeatedly told him to stop, and that Platner was heavily intoxicated and entered her home uninvited. Racicot told Politico she cut off contact after informing him the incident was not consensual.
William T. Bly, a Maine criminal defense lawyer, indicated that these allegations could constitute gross sexual assault, a felony crime in Maine law used to prosecute rape. However, Bly noted that Racicot, who did not report the incident to law enforcement in 2021, would need to decide to report it now for an investigation to proceed.
“If you take a look at the statutes, you can see all the different ways it could be charged, but it is gross sexual assault,” Bly said, adding that much would depend on “victim credibility and what, if any, corroborating evidence can they get.”
Hancock County District Attorney Bob Granger stated in an email to USA TODAY that his office cannot comment on the existence of any criminal investigation, citing Maine law that criminalizes the unlawful dissemination of information from investigative records. Granger clarified that his office would not typically open an investigation unless a victim files a formal sexual assault complaint with law enforcement in the area where the crime occurred.
He acknowledged that victims may be reluctant to pursue criminal charges for “a number of valid reasons,” including “horrendous emotional and psychological pain.” Nonetheless, Granger affirmed his office’s commitment to taking formal complaints seriously: “If a victim exercises the courage to come forward to law enforcement with credible allegations, we owe it to both them and the general public to carefully examine those claims.”
Shannon Moss, a spokesperson for Maine’s Department of Public Safety, confirmed via email to USA TODAY that the Maine State Police have not received or investigated any criminal complaints involving Platner. USA TODAY also left a voice message at the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office seeking information on any complaints.
Platner has previously denied sexually assaulting anyone. In a video posted to Instagram on July 8, he stated, “This is all false. The things that have been claimed did not happen. It’s not real.” While he did not address the specifics of Racicot’s account, Platner suggested her allegations were surfacing in the media in an effort to remove his name from the ballot, noting the July 13 deadline for such action.
“This was the last week to try to get me off of the ballot. And that’s why this is occurring,” he said, adding, “Accusations are supposed to be the beginning of things, not the end.” Ryan Barto, communications director for Platner’s campaign, did not respond to a request for comment.
Racicot, for her part, told Politico that one reason she did not come forward sooner was a “huge moral conflict” between supporting Platner’s politics and not supporting him as a person.
Under Maine law, gross sexual assault, the state’s central felony rape statute, can be prosecuted in various forms. For instance, compelling another person to engage in a sex act could lead to a “Class A” assault felony charge, Maine’s most serious class of gross sexual assault, punishable by up to 30 years in prison.
Other forms, such as obtaining a sex act by threat or criminal negligence regarding consent, result in lower-class felonies, with Class B carrying up to 10 years and Class C up to five years imprisonment.
Maine law allows prosecutors to bring gross sexual assault felony charges anytime within 20 years of the offense, meaning the time elapsed since the 2021 alleged assault would not prohibit charges.
Bly explained that judges consider various factors when determining sentences, including the defendant’s age, the nature of the crime, their criminal history, and character evidence. “It’s not just the classification of the crime, but what are the details that come out,” he said. Bly suggested that Platner’s potential defense would be driven by case details that are currently largely unknown, but one clear line of defense would likely be that the allegations are politically motivated, as Platner himself has suggested.
“I’m sure a defense would be that this was politically motivated, the person had a personal issue and an ax to grind,” Bly noted.
The passage of time could also present challenges for prosecutors, potentially leading to a lack of physical evidence and opening questions from the defense about an accuser’s motive and memory. Bly commented, “The longer in time someone waits to bring allegations, especially when they’re already adults when they occurred, tends to weigh against, I think, the credibility potentially of the alleged victim.”
However, corroborating evidence could strengthen a prosecutor’s case. CNN reported speaking with two individuals who said Racicot previously disclosed the alleged assault by Platner. A then-boyfriend disclosed in 2023 that Racicot identified Platner after his campaign launched, and a close friend in late August 2025, around the time Platner launched his campaign, initially heard Racicot refer to her assailant as an “oysterman” before she later shared it was Platner.
Platner’s campaign website indicates he started working on a friend’s small oyster farm in 2018 and eventually took it over. USA TODAY was unable to reach Racicot for comment.
Defendants convicted of the most serious form of gross sexual assault – Class A felonies – can be imprisoned for up to 30 years. Class B and Class C gross sexual felonies allow judges to sentence a defendant to up to 10 years and five years in prison, respectively.
Maximum penalties often don't reflect the actual penalties defendants receive from a judge. In Maine, judges take various factors into account when determining the appropriate sentence, such as defendants' age, the nature of the underlying crime, their criminal history, and evidence that reflects on their character.
