BY TREVOR MAXWELL

MaineToday Media, Inc.

The wife of Robert LaPointe, the Massachusetts man charged with manslaughter in a Long Lake boat crash that killed two people last summer, says she and her husband have not hidden assets to avoid potential payouts in wrongful death lawsuits filed against him.

In fact, Heather LaPointe contends in a recently filed court document, the couple have gone deep into debt to pay for Robert LaPointe's bail and his criminal defense.

She says they paid a $275,000 retainer to obtain legal counsel. LaPointe's lead defense lawyer is J. Albert Johnson of Boston, who has represented high-profile clients such as Patricia Hearst, Pamela Smart and F. Lee Bailey, who was a friend of Johnson.

Legal experts this week said the amount of the retainer -- although not out of line with an attorney of Johnson's reputation -- ranks among the highest ever paid to defend a suspect in Maine's criminal courts. Neither Johnson nor a second lawyer handling the case, George Hassett, returned calls Monday seeking comment.

Barring a last-minute plea bargain, Robert LaPointe's trial will begin with jury selection on Sept. 8. The finances of the LaPointes, of Medway, Mass., have been under scrutiny for much of the past year, as the surviving family members of Suzanne Groetzinger of Berwick and Terry Raye Trott of Naples seek damages through wrongful-death suits.

Groetzinger and Trott died Aug. 11, 2007, when Trott's 14-foot boat was hit by a 32-foot boat driven by LaPointe. The crash happened around 9 p.m. on Long Lake in Harrison. Prosecutors say LaPointe was drunk and driving too fast -- between 45 and 50 mph -- at night.

Lawyers for the crash victims' families have asked a justice at Cumberland County Superior Court to place liens on properties owned by Robert LaPointe and his father, George LaPointe Jr. of Ashland, Mass. The families also want a court-ordered injunction to stop the LaPointes from selling any property. As of Monday, no orders had been signed.

"What we are trying to accomplish is at the end of the day, that there is something left for family members," said Ben Gideon of the Portland firm Berman & Simmons, who represents the Groetzingers.

After Robert LaPointe was indicted last fall, he and his wife took out a $100,000 equity loan on a summer home in Bridgton and sold 100 acres of land on Whitney Road to LaPointe's father, for $125,000, court records show.

Heather LaPointe said the couple also borrowed $100,000 in cash from a family friend. "Bail was set at $100,000. We contacted criminal counsel who required a $275,000 retainer before working on the case," Heather LaPointe wrote in an affidavit filed at Cumberland County Superior Court. "We did not have cash funds anywhere near these amounts."

Gideon and Portland lawyer C. Alan Beagle, who represents the Trott family, claim that the sale of the Lapointes' Whitney Road property to Robert LaPointe's father was fraudulent. They say that the transaction took place with the intent to shield assets, should Robert LaPointe be found liable in the civil cases.

"You can't transfer or convey assets after you are on notice of a claim, if it's done with the intent to frustrate the other party's ability to recover damages," Gideon said. "In this case there is a question about intent."

Heather LaPointe's affidavit was filed in response to those allegations.

"At no time did we try in any way to deceive or hide funds with regard to the Buswell Road properties, or any other properties or assets," Heather LaPointe said.

Walt McKee of Augusta, past president of the Maine Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, said it is not against the law to sell assets in order to get cash for criminal defense, even if the defendant has been served notice of a potential civil suit.

"It always raises red flags when there are sales of property to family members around the time a lawsuit is filed. The first question is always, where is the money going?" McKee said. "People have the right to raise money for their own defense, if they have the means."

McKee, who has practiced criminal law in Maine for 15 years, also commented on the $275,000 retainer fee noted by Heather LaPointe.

"That is one of the most significant fees I have ever heard of in a criminal case in Maine," McKee said.

Daniel Lilley of Portland said a few lawyers in Maine, himself included, have received total fees of more than $275,000 for murder cases in the past, but he could not recall any manslaughter cases that have reached that level.

"He is a national-type lawyer, and those guys get bigger bucks," Lilley said of J. Albert Johnson. "Once in awhile, you get someone who is willing to pay for every conceivable detail."

A retainer is an advance payment made to a lawyer. It ensures representation and is used to pay expenses along with the lawyer's hourly rate. Portions of retainers are sometimes returned to a client, in a case that is resolved before all the money is spent.

More common, however, is the scenario in which a party spends more on a case than the amount paid for the initial retainer.

The LaPointes' finances probably would not have been under such intense scrutiny if Robert LaPointe had maintained a higher level of insurance on his 32-foot Sunsation Dominator, which according to court documents was named "No Patience."

At the time of the crash, LaPointe was covered by a $300,000 policy, which would be split among all parties in the event of an approved claim. The families of Groetzinger and Trott are seeking $400,000 apiece for the alleged wrongful death and $75,000 in punitive damages.

Attorney Seth Holbrook, who represents Robert LaPointe in the civil matters, recently filed an affidavit arguing that no judge should order an attachment on the LaPointe's assets because there is still an open dispute about who was responsible for the fatal crash.

In his affidavit and in prior court filings, Holbrook raised a question that's also expected to play a key role at the criminal trial: Was Trott operating his boat without lights? "In fact, Mr. Trott could well have been at fault," Holbrook said in the affidavit. "If Trott was in violation of a rule, such as regards to lighting, the plaintiffs would then have to show the violation could not have been the cause of the collision."

Cumberland County District Attorney Stephanie Anderson expects to hear that argument from the defense at trial.

"Our position all along has been that we don't know if they were on or not," Anderson said, referring to the lights. "It doesn't change (LaPointe's) culpability."