Horrifying twist in case of woman found dead after paddle boarding on Maine pond
Sunshine 'Sunny' Stewart, 48, went paddle boarding on the quiet pond in Maine earlier this month. After she disappeared, her body was found on the island after a search by authorities.
Maine State Police announced the arrest Thursday and said that Stewart, 48, died from strangulation and blunt force trauma.
The 17-year-old male was taken into custody Wednesday night in Union without incident and transported to Long Creek Youth Development Center in South Portland, a juvenile detention facility.
Under Maine law, the names of juvenile suspects are not typically released.
Stewart had gone out alone on the evening of July 2 to paddleboard on Crawford Pond, a wooded 600-acre body of water surrounded by private land in the town of Union.
She was last seen leaving a campground on the pond's north shore around 6 pm.
When she failed to return, someone reported her missing. Her body was discovered near an island in the pond just after 1am on July 3.
'I am floored with elation and grief,' her close friend Rachael Blumenberg told WMTW following the arrest.
Blumenberg, who had been staying with Stewart at the time, said she knew something was wrong when she came home that night and found the house dark and Stewart's dog left alone.
Stewart was found dead near an island in Crawford Pond hours after going paddle boarding alone on July 2
'The house was completely dark, and her dog was there, and she's very devoted to her dog,' she said.
Stewart, a boat captain and outdoor enthusiast who lived in Tenants Harbor, had been planning to host family for the Fourth of July weekend, friends said.
Her death shocked the small Midcoast community, where residents said violent crime was rare.
'Like, ever,' Gus Williams told WMTW. 'It definitely feels… just intrusive and, I don't know, terrifying.'
Because of the 'circumstances' surrounding the discovery of Stewart's body, local authorities contacted the Maine State Police Major Crimes Unit, which led the investigation.
Her sister, Kim Ware, described Stewart as a vibrant, strong woman who had once sailed to the Caribbean and loved being outdoors.
'Sunny loved the outdoors, hiking, boating, paddle boarding and yoga,' Ware said. 'To know Sunny is an amazing blessing. My sister and my best friend. The aunt that stepped up to help me raise her nephews.'
Sarah Vokey, another close friend, said Stewart had endured many hardships and never lost her light.
'Her life was not an easy one, but she strode through it with her head held high with that beaming all-encompassing smile on her face,' Vokey told WMTW.
'One of the many reasons I admired, loved, and appreciated her. One of the hardest things I have ever written was the text I sent to my son: 'Sunshine was murdered.'
Police did not reveal any details about how the teen suspect may have been connected to Stewart.
A spokesperson for the Maine State Police declined to comment further and said no additional information would be released at this time.
Friends of Stewart launched a GoFundMe for her funeral services, writing in the description, 'Today is a somber day for our family and friends. We've unexpectedly lost the light in our lives that was Sunny.'
One of Stewart's friends, Stacey Yandell, told the Midcoast Villager, 'She rebuilt her own house including the slate roof and siding. She was her own HGTV. She was a strong, self-made woman.'
'She had such a strong personality. She radiated positivity and love. She was like a magnet. People were attracted to her.'
Friends told the publication that Stewart never married or had children, but was survived by her sister, her brother, her nephews, and many friends.
Kim Ware, Stewart's sister, told WMTW-TV, 'To know Sunny is an amazing blessing! My sister and my best friend.
'The aunt that stepped up to help me raise her nephews. She has so many that call her family. Truly an amazing woman. Now we have to rally and give her justice!'
/
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
a day ago
- The Guardian
Judge criticises solicitor acting on behalf of players with brain injury lawsuits
The judge presiding over the two brain injury lawsuits in rugby league and union has issued an extraordinary criticism of the solicitor acting on behalf of the injured players, saying that he had been under a 'misapprehension' about his responsibilities and that 'he seems to have a problem with the English language'. Senior master Jeremy Cook said that Richard Boardman, whose firm Rylands Garth is representing more than 1,000 players across both codes, had failed to disclose material to the defendants, World Rugby, the Rugby Football Union, the Welsh Rugby Union, and Rugby Football League. Cook decided to not strike out any of the claims being brought by Rylands Garth because he believes the problems can be remedied. But he upheld the defendants' complaints that there had been 'serious and widespread failures to comply' with court orders in the ugby league case in particular. The defendants claimed there were 'significant gaps' in the medical records in 90% of the claims issued in these cases. At the high court in London, Cook ruled that the claimants, who are being backed by a commercial litigation funder, are liable for the costs incurred in the bringing of these complaints. 'These claims mean a lot to the claimants, and the difficulties here have been caused by Mr Boardman's complete misunderstanding of his responsibilities,' Cook said. Boardman, Cook continued, seemed to be under the misapprehension that 'he only had to disclose documents relied on' to the defendants, as opposed to providing them with all relevant material. This has contributed to a delay in the case, which still has yet to come to trial. 'There has been no admission, and no apology,' Cook said, 'and above and before everything else a complete failure on the part of Mr Boardman to recognise that all this was caused by his misreading.' Susan Rodway KC, acting on behalf of Rylands Garth, argued that the defendants had sent the claimants on 'a four-month exercise in following leads down rabbit holes' in search of 'some smoking gun' documents which do not exist, and that the firm lacked the resources to comply with the impossible task of providing full medical records for every one of the players involved. 'There's been enough delay,' Cook said. 'These claimants need their cases resolving and the sooner the better.' It was revealed in the latest rugby case management hearing that of the 383 claimants who joined the action since the cut-off date this year, only 91 have received a medical diagnosis. Despite this, the legal teams on both sides will now select and agree on a group of lead claimants to go forward to trial, with further case management hearings scheduled for spring in 2026. 'Almost five years after legal action began, the claimants lawyers have today conceded in court that many players in the case have not undergone thorough medical testing but instead what the judge called a 'self-serving tick box exercise' in order to sign up to this claim,' a World Rugby spokesperson said. 'They have no substantive medical diagnosis. The conduct of Rylands Garth meant the judge issued an order which could yet see many more players having their case struck out. There must now be serious doubts over whether players' best interests are being served. This is a situation that surely benefits nobody.' 'We will continue fighting for justice for our players and their families – who continue to suffer every day with the life-altering impacts of the negligence of rugby authorities,' said a Rylands Garth spokesperson in response. 'Rugby authorities are fully aware that the testing has been extremely thorough, including brain imaging and neurological assessments. If they're suggesting otherwise, they are again letting down players who have suffered playing the sport.' This article was amended on 24 July 2025. Susan Rodway KC is a barrister instructed by Rylands Garth, not an employee of the firm as an earlier version suggested.
The Guardian
2 days ago
- The Guardian
Judge criticises solicitor acting on behalf of players with brain injury lawsuits
The judge presiding over the two brain injury lawsuits in rugby league and union has issued an extraordinary criticism of the solicitor acting on behalf of the injured players, saying that he had been under a 'misapprehension' about his responsibilities and that 'he seems to have a problem with the English language'. Senior master Jeremy Cook said that Richard Boardman, whose firm Rylands Garth is representing more than 1,000 players across both codes, had failed to disclose material to the defendants, World Rugby, the Rugby Football Union, the Welsh Rugby Union, and Rugby Football League. Cook decided to not strike out any of the claims being brought by Rylands Garth because he believes the problems can be remedied. But he upheld the defendants' complaints that there had been 'serious and widespread failures to comply' with court orders in the ugby league case in particular. The defendants claimed there were 'significant gaps' in the medical records in 90% of the claims issued in these cases. At the high court in London, Cook ruled that the claimants, who are being backed by a commercial litigation funder, are liable for the costs incurred in the bringing of these complaints. 'These claims mean a lot to the claimants, and the difficulties here have been caused by Mr Boardman's complete misunderstanding of his responsibilities,' Cook said. Boardman, Cook continued, seemed to be under the misapprehension that 'he only had to disclose documents relied on' to the defendants, as opposed to providing them with all relevant material. This has contributed to a delay in the case, which still has yet to come to trial. 'There has been no admission, and no apology,' Cook said, 'and above and before everything else a complete failure on the part of Mr Boardman to recognise that all this was caused by his misreading.' Susan Rodway KC, of Rylands Garth, argued that the defendants had sent the claimants on 'a four-month exercise in following leads down rabbit holes' in search of 'some smoking gun' documents which do not exist, and that the firm lacked the resources to comply with the impossible task of providing full medical records for every one of the players involved. 'There's been enough delay,' Cook said. 'These claimants need their cases resolving and the sooner the better.' It was revealed in the latest rugby case management hearing that of the 383 claimants who joined the action since the cut-off date this year, only 91 have received a medical diagnosis. Despite this, the legal teams on both sides will now select and agree on a group of lead claimants to go forward to trial, with further case management hearings scheduled for spring in 2026. 'Almost five years after legal action began, the claimants lawyers have today conceded in court that many players in the case have not undergone thorough medical testing but instead what the judge called a 'self-serving tick box exercise' in order to sign up to this claim,' a World Rugby spokesperson said. 'They have no substantive medical diagnosis. The conduct of Rylands Garth meant the judge issued an order which could yet see many more players having their case struck out. There must now be serious doubts over whether players' best interests are being served. This is a situation that surely benefits nobody.' In response a Rylands Garth spokesperson said: 'We will continue fighting for justice for our players and their families – who continue to suffer every day with the life-altering impacts of the negligence of rugby authorities. 'We will continue fighting for justice for our players and their families – who continue to suffer every day with the life-altering impacts of the negligence of rugby authorities.'
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Daily Mail
Maine boy Deven Young, 17, accused of murdering female paddleboarder, 48, 'was a bully at school'
A teenage boy arrested for brutally murdering a female paddleboarder was known by his classmates to be a 'bully' at school, it has emerged. Deven Young, 17, was taken into custody last Wednesday night and charged with beating and strangling Sunshine Stewart, 48, to death in Union, Maine. Her body was found on July 3. The murder came hours after Stewart set off alone to paddleboard on Crawford Pond, a popular recreation spot near the campground where she was staying. Now, people who grew up with Young have spoken out about what he was really like. One childhood friend said Young had bullied kids since preschool, and two other people who knew him said – in separate interviews – that the accused murderer would regularly get in trouble for fighting, according to Bangor Daily News. Another classmate, however, said he never saw Young bully people himself. Jaxon Mushero, 18, a friend of Young's who knew him since they met in third grade at Leroy H. Smith School in Winterport, said they talked on the phone in June. He said Young seemed 'a little off' during the call – but not to a concerning degree. Speaking about the charges brought against Young, Mushero said: 'Just finding out, seeing that just shocks me. It really does. That was my childhood best friend. I grew up with him.' Young is charged with murder as a juvenile in Knox County. Court documents obtained by Maine's Total Coverage state that Young 'did intentionally or knowingly cause the death of another human being, namely Sunshine Stewart, or did engage in conduct that manifested a depraved indifference to the value of human life and which in fact caused the death of Sunshine Stewart.' Young appeared in a Knox County courtroom on Friday morning via Zoom, where he denied responsibility for Stewart's death. Meanwhile, the Office of the Maine Attorney General has filed a motion for Young, who will turn 18 in September, to be tried as an adult. If Young's case remains in juvenile court and he is convicted, his sentence cannot exceed his 21st birthday. However, if the case goes to adult court and he is convicted, he faces at least 25 years in prison. The teenager spends vacation time in the Crawford Pond area each summer with his family, an official familiar with the investigation told ABC News. Young's home in Frankfort is approximately 38 miles from the pond. Stewart rented a camp site at Mic Mac Family Campground in Crawford Pond for the summer season on May 1. She had only stayed on the camp grounds for two or three nights before she disappeared on July 2, after last being seen leaving her camper to go paddleboarding at around 6pm. Any connection between Stewart and Young are not known. News of the murder left locals in the tight–knit community of Union terrified. Meredith Smith, a childhood friend of Stewart's, told the Daily Mail she was shocked by the news of Young's arrest. 'Part of me is relieved that someone has been arrested, but the other part says this is far from over because I feel like there's still so much more to this story that we don't know,' said Smith. 'Sunshine was strong and feisty; she would've put up a fight... she would've given this person hell.' When Stewart – a marine biologist, lobsterman, bartender, and boat captain – had still not returned by the early hours of July 3, someone raised the alarm. Before dawn broke, a search and rescue drone spotted Stewart's paddleboard drifting alone. Her body was later discovered along the southeast shore of 100 Acre Island, a nature preserve in the middle of the pond. Police have not confirmed any details of how Stewart's body was found, or in what condition, sharing only that the circumstances were 'unusual.' For now, Young was ordered to continue to be detained at Long Creek Youth Correctional Facility in South Portland. The 17-year-old is scheduled to appear in court again on August 22.
