Maine in Va. court to fight for copy of Declaration

Maine's last chance to win back a 1776 copy of the Declaration of Independence it says belongs to the town of Wiscasset, was argued before the Supreme Court of Virginia this morning.

The print was copied into the town book on Nov. 10, 1776. It was found in the attic of a relative of a former clerk in 1994. Richard L. Adams Jr., a private collector in Fairfax County, purchased from a rare-book dealer in London in 2001.

Last year in a 15-page ruling, a Fairfax County judge held that Adams was a legitimate purchaser and had a superior claim to ownership to Maine's. Maine appealed to the Virginia Supreme Court leading to today's hearing.

The justices are expected to rule in late February.

-- Frank Green