Correction: Her Name Is Jean Haynes, Not Jeanne Haynes

The Maine Mirror | 8/7/26

I need to correct an error that appeared in several of my recent publications concerning Jean Haynes and the Maine Office of Child and Family Services (OCFS).

I previously referred to Jean Haynes as “Jeanne Haynes.”

That was my mistake.

Her correct name is Jean Haynes.

Rather than quietly editing every previous publication, I want to acknowledge the error publicly and make the correction unmistakably clear:

Any reference to “Jeanne Haynes” in my previous publications was intended to refer to Jean Haynes of Maine OCFS.

Mistakes matter.

Not because making one automatically discredits everything surrounding it, but because what we do after discovering a mistake demonstrates how seriously we take accuracy and accountability.

We acknowledge mistakes.

We correct them.

We learn from them.

And we become more careful going forward.

I expect transparency and accountability from Maine DHHS and the Maine Office of Child and Family Services. I should hold myself to the same standard.

So I got the name wrong.

I’m correcting it.

Now, let me properly introduce Jean Haynes.

Who Is Jean Haynes of Maine OCFS?

Jean Haynes has served in senior leadership within the Maine Office of Child and Family Services (OCFS), under OCFS Director Bobbi Johnson.

That makes her role particularly relevant to the broader questions I have been raising about Maine DHHS, OCFS accountability, government transparency, and the treatment of citizens who challenge the agency.

Jean Haynes’ involvement in my story became particularly significant because of what occurred on March 11, 2025.

What Happened on March 11, 2025?

On March 11, 2025, I went to a Maine DHHS facility seeking answers from the Office of Child and Family Services.

I maintain that I was not causing a disturbance.

I further contend that Jean Haynes subsequently provided law enforcement with false or misleading information that contributed to police authority being used to remove me from the building.

That is a serious allegation, which is precisely why the evidence surrounding the incident matters.

I have previously published recordings and other material that I believe contradict the justification provided for my removal, including statements involving people who were present and a separate recording concerning what occurred.

Readers should review that evidence and reach their own conclusions.

This publication is not asking anyone to accept my interpretation simply because I wrote it.

Look at the evidence. Listen to the recordings. Examine what was said. Compare the accounts. Ask questions.

Because the implications extend far beyond what happened to one person on one day.

Questions About Maine OCFS Accountability

Jean Haynes wasn’t simply a random employee working somewhere within Maine government.

She occupied a position of significant authority within the Maine Office of Child and Family Services.

OCFS is an agency entrusted with extraordinary responsibilities involving children, parents, investigations, safety decisions, and Maine families.

That makes the conduct of its senior leadership a matter of legitimate public interest.

If evidence demonstrates that someone operating near the top of an agency provided inaccurate or misleading information to law enforcement—or caused law enforcement to intervene against a citizen following criticism or dissent—then Maine residents deserve to know what happened and why.

And they deserve answers to some larger questions:

Who holds Maine OCFS leadership accountable?

Who independently verifies representations made by OCFS officials to law enforcement?

What safeguards exist to prevent government authority from being used against citizens who criticize an agency?

Are complaints involving senior OCFS officials investigated independently?

Has anything similar happened to other Maine parents, families, advocates, or critics?

And there is one question that I believe deserves particular attention.

If This Happens Near the Top of Maine OCFS, How Far Does the Apple Fall?

This is bigger than Jean Haynes.

It’s bigger than me.

And it’s bigger than a single encounter at a Maine DHHS building.

When questions about government conduct reach senior leadership, we should be willing to examine whether we’re looking at an isolated incident or evidence of a larger institutional problem.

That’s why the position Jean Haynes held matters.

And that’s why March 11, 2025 matters.

If someone operating at that level can be credibly accused of using government authority in retaliation against dissent, the public should not simply ask what happened that afternoon.