Tag: new hampshire

NH’s First Black Sheriff Jailed For Blowing Public Money On Travel With Women

A New Hampshire man who was heralded as the first black sheriff in the state’s history was sentenced on Monday to 3 1/2 years in prison for squandering $19,000 of taxpayers’ money on expensive getaways with multiple love interests — and then lying to investigators about what he’d done. Tightly following the script we’ve seen so many times before, the disgraced “barrier-breaker” had previously said fellow Democrats who investigated his crimes were racists, and that his term in office was “rife with inequities.” Despite repeatedly lying to the court and violating his bail conditions, his sentence was a fraction of what prosecutors sought. 

At 35 years old, Democrat Mark Brave was also the youngest-ever sheriff in New Hampshire history when he was elected in November 2020 — following the summer of George Floyd and amid the Black Lives Matter mania that swept the country and helped usher under-qualified blacks into many top roles in and out of law enforcement. “It’s something I feel should have happened a long time ago, but I’m honored that I will be the person to pave the way,” said Brave at the time. (Alas, some barriers proved insurmountable that year, as a self-described transgender Satanist lost the Cheshire County New Hampshire sheriff race.) 

“His repeated lies, misuse of taxpayer funds, and abuse of office were not just criminal — they were a profound betrayal of the public trust and the oath he took to serve with integrity,” said New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella in a statement. That said, the sentence handed down by lily-white Judge Dan St. Hilaire was far lighter than the seven- to 14-year confinement that prosecutors had requested. Brave will technically be eligible for parole in 3 1/2 years, but the reality is that he’ll walk even sooner if he participates in certain prison programs. He must pay $18,969 in restitution to Strafford County. 

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New Hampshire Senators Approve Psilocybin Decriminalization Bill

A New Hampshire Senate panel has advanced a House-passed bill to decriminalize the use and possession of psilocybin by adults.

The measure, sponsored by Rep. Kevin Verville (R), cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee on a 3-2 vote on Tuesday. It previously passed the full House of Representatives in March.

Before approving the legislation, members of the Senate panel attached an amendment that would enact mandatory minimum sentences for certain fentanyl-related offenses and for distribution of drugs that result in a user’s death.

Sen. Tara Reardon (D) asked colleagues if the idea is that “we’re trading” the House-favored move to reduce psilocybin penalties in exchange “for enhanced penalties” on fentanyl that were contained in a separate bill that passed the Senate in January and has since remained pending before the House Judiciary Committee for months.

“One might say that, yes,” replied Chairman Bill Gannon (R).

Under the psychedelic-focused provisions of HB 528, a first psilocybin offense would be a violation, subject to a fine of $100 or less.

Second and third psilocybin offenses, meanwhile, would be class B misdemeanors, carrying fines of up to $500 and $1,000, respectively, but with no risk of jail time. Fourth and subsequent offenses would remain classified as felonies.

Sales and distribution of the substance would still be illegal, as the reform would apply only to “a person 18 years of age or older who obtains, purchases, transports, possesses, or uses psilocybin.”

As originally introduced, the legislation would have completely removed penalties around obtaining, purchasing, transporting, possessing or using psilocybin, effectively legalizing it on a noncommercial basis. However a House committee amended the bill before unanimously advancing it in March.

Verville previously told Marijuana Moment that the House’s passage of his psilocybin bill was “an historic, albeit small first step on our journey to correct 60 years of demonstrably failed policy on psychedelics.”

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New Hampshire Senate Committee Rejects Three Cannabis Bills, Including Legalization And Medical Marijuana Homegrow

A week after hearing testimony on four House-passed cannabis bills, a New Hampshire Senate committee has voted to recommend killing three of measures, including a Republican-led legalization proposal and a plan to let state-registered medical marijuana patients grow plants at home.

Another bill rejected by the Senate Judiciary Committee at a hearing on Tuesday would have allowed existing medical marijuana dispensaries—known in the state as alternative treatment centers (ATCs)—to buy nonintoxicating hemp cannabinoid products from commercial producers and, after lab testing, use them in products for patients.

Lawmakers voted 3–1 to designate each of the three bills as “inexpedient to legislate” (ITL), essentially recommending that they not proceed. All the bills will nevertheless move to the Senate floor, at which point the full body will have the option to approve them despite the committee’s recommendations.

While the legalization bill—HB 75, from Rep. Kevin Verville (R)—was widely seen as unlikely to make it through the Senate, advocates said the committee’s recommended rejection of the two medical marijuana proposals from Rep. Wendy Thomas (D) underscores the body’s critical reception in general of cannabis-related legislation.

“It appears that a few senators just want to kill every bill that deals with cannabis policy, no matter how modest and non-controversial,” Matt Simon, director of public and government relations at the medical marijuana provider GraniteLeaf Cannabis, told Marijuana Moment. “That’s very unfortunate because support for cannabis policy reform has always been bipartisan in this state.”

Simon added that he’s still hopeful the Senate will move forward on at least the hemp cannabinoids bill, HB 51, once it reaches the chamber floor.

(Disclosure: Simon supports Marijuana Moment’s work via a monthly pledge on Patreon.)

The panel did not act at Tuesday’s meeting on the fourth cannabis bill before it, HB 196, which would expand the state’s annulment process of past arrests and convictions around simple marijuana possession.

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New Hampshire Governor Reiterates Opposition To Marijuana Legalization, But May Consider Allowing Medical Homegrow

As bills to legalize marijuana for adults in New Hampshire makes their way through the legislature, Gov. Kelly Ayotte (R) is reiterating her opposition to the reform—but is also signaling that she may be open to separate legislation that would allow medical cannabis patients to grow their own medicine at home.

“I’ve been very clear on this,” Ayotte told reporters last Wednesday, the same day House lawmakers passed HB 198, which would legalize the use and possession of marijuana by adults 21 and older. “I ran on this issue, and the people of New Hampshire know where I stand on it. I don’t support it.”

A former U.S. senator and state attorney general, Ayotte said repeatedly on the campaign trail last year that she would oppose efforts at adult-use legalization.

HB 198 would, if enacted, allow adults 21 and older to possess up to two ounces of marijuana flower, 10 grams of concentrate and up to 2,000 milligrams of THC in other cannabis products. Retail sales of marijuana products, along with home cultivation, would remain illegal. Consuming marijuana on public land would also be prohibited.

The proposal, from Rep. Jared Sullivan (D), cleared the chamber last week in a 208–125 vote.

Ayotte said there were a number of reasons she’s against the change, according to a report from the outlet InDepthNH.

“I don’t think it is the right direction for the state for a lot of reasons,” she told reporters. “I believe, if you think about our quality of life, if you think about some of the concerns that can flow from that. I know…we talked about safety on our roadways. I think that there are a number of issues that states who have legalized cannabis have experienced in those regards that I just don’t think can be addressed at the moment with the existing technology.”

The governor of the Granite State also added that she’s “mindful of the message we send to younger people when we legalize something versus it being illegal.”

Despite Ayotte’s comments flatly opposing legalization, however, she left the door open to more modest cannabis reform. She told reporters she will review every bill that comes to her desk, including a separate House-passed measure that would legalize home cultivation by state-registered medical marijuana patients.

That bill—HB 53, from Rep. Wendy Thomas (D), would allow cultivation of up to three mature plants and three immature plants, as well as 12 seedlings. Patients could also possess up to eight ounces of usable cannabis from those plants.

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Transgender Bathroom Bans Pass in Tennessee, New Hampshire to Protect Women

Legislation to safeguard women by barring transgender people from women’s public bathrooms passed in Tennessee and New Hampshire, with one bill on the way to the governor to be signed into law.

The New Hampshire bill, HB 148, which passed in the state’s House of Representatives on Thursday, will allow schools to ban transgender people from bathrooms, locker rooms, and sports teams. And if it is signed into law, it would “allow the owners of the spaces included in the bill to bar transgender people without facing discrimination charges,” SeaCoastOnline/USA Today Network reported.

It would also allow the state’s jails and juvenile facilities to place those who identify as transgender in facilities based on their birth gender, not their assumed gender.

The bill is now headed to the state Senate.

A similar bill was vetoed in 2024 by then-Gov. Chris Sununu (R-NH) and if passed this year would also roll back some of the “non-discrimination protections” Sununu pushed in 2018, according to the report.

Republican Speaker Pro Tempore Jim Kofalt, a cosponsor of the legislation, said the bill is a “critical step” to safeguarding women’s rights.

“The passage of HB 148 is a critical step toward safeguarding privacy, fairness, safety, and respect for all Granite Staters,” Kofalt said. “HB 148 protects vulnerable populations, ensuring that women in prisons, shelters, and detention centers aren’t forced to share intimate spaces with biological men.”

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New Hampshire Lawmakers Unanimously Approve Psilocybin Decriminalization Bill

A House committee in New Hampshire has advanced a bill that would decriminalize use and possession of psilocybin.

Members of the House Criminal Justice and Public Safety voted unanimously, 16–0, to pass the bill, HB 528, from Rep. Kevin Verville (R).

Prior to moving the bill forward, the committee first adopted an amendment to temper the proposed reform. As originally introduced, it would have completely removed all penalties around obtaining, purchasing, transporting, possessing or using psilocybin, effectively legalizing it on a noncommercial basis.

The amended version of the legislation imposes penalties, but they’re significantly lower than the state’s current felony-level prohibition.

Under the new amendment, a first psilocybin offense would be a violation, subject to a fine of $100 or less. Second and third offenses would be class B misdemeanors, carrying fines of up to $500 and $1,000, respectively, but also with no risk of jail time.

Fourth and subsequent offenses would still be classified as felonies.

Notably, language of the proposal does not include any specific limit to the amount of psilocybin a person could possess.

The committee’s chair, Rep. Terry Roy (R), said that while he opposes full legalization of psilocybin, he believes the drug has medical value and ought not be punished as a felony.

“I’d like to see it done through proper scientific channels, through university studies and the [Department of Veterans Affairs],” Roy explained. “But having said that, I support this bill lowering it from a felony. We don’t need more intoxicated people, but we also don’t need more felons.”

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New Hampshire Lawmakers Move Forward With Plan To Legalize Simple Possession Of Marijuana

Committees in New Hampshire on Wednesday took action on a handful of marijuana bills, advancing a plan that would legalize the simple possession by adults as well as a proposal to double existing possession limits for medical cannabis patients and caregivers. They put a pause, however, on broader legislation to legalize and regulate a commercial recreational marijuana market.

At a hearing, the House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee gave its approval to two different bills. One—HB 198, from Rep. Jared Sullivan (D)—takes a simple, unregulated approach to marijuana legalization.

If approved, the measure would allow adults 21 and older to possess up to two ounces of marijuana flower, 10 grams of concentrate and up to 2,000 milligrams of THC in other cannabis products.

Retail sales of marijuana products, along with home cultivation, would remain illegal under the plan. Consuming marijuana on public land would also be prohibited.

Another bill—HB 190, from Rep. Heath Howard (D)—would increase the possession limit of medical marijuana by patients and caregivers, raising it to four ounces from the current two. Existing 10-day patient purchase limits would also increase from two ounces up to four.

Members of the committee voted 9–7 in favor of HB 198 and 14–0 to advance HB 190.

“We as a body have passed bills legalizing cannabis again and again,” Rep. Alissandra Murray (D), who made the motion to advance HB 198, said before Wednesday’s vote. “The people of New Hampshire have made it clear that they would like us to legalize cannabis.”

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New Hampshire’s ‘first black sheriff’ pleads guilty to a laundry list of felonies…

Here’s another big win for DEI hiring—Mark Brave, New Hampshire’s first black sheriff, just pled guilty to a laundry list of felonies. Shocking? No, not one bit. This is what happens when you focus on checking diversity boxes instead of hiring the best person for the job. Sadly, we see this happening everywhere these days.

Brave’s fall from grace is nothing new. Sadly, it follows a very familiar pattern if you’ve been paying attention to the left’s DEI circus. Back in August 2023, Brave was arrested for stealing nearly $19,000 in county funds. This “stand-up guy” used taxpayer money to fund his extramarital affair and bankroll romantic trips to Boston and Florida.

Mark filed bogus claims for airfare, hotels, and meals—all while conveniently covering up the fact that he wasn’t exactly traveling solo… or with his wife. He actually doctored receipts to hide the identity of his mistress.

But don’t worry—it gets worse…

Sheriff Brave flat-out lied to a grand jury. He spun stories about attending official events, meeting a US congressman, and, of course, denied his mistress was anywhere near those trips. All lies. One Boston getaway, supposedly for a “charity fundraiser,” turned out to be nothing more than a romantic dinner cruise with his side piece.

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New Hampshire Governor Signs Bill Allowing Medical Marijuana For Any Condition A Doctor Thinks It Can Help

New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R) has signed into a law a major medical marijuana expansion bill that will allow doctors to recommend cannabis for any debilitating condition they believe it would improve. Previously, patients needed to be diagnosed with certain specific conditions to qualify for legal marijuana access.

“This is BIG,” Rep. Wendy Thomas (D), sponsor of the newly signed HB 1278, said in an email to Marijuana Moment. “It opens up the therapeutic program to ANY person who has a debilitating or terminal illness.”

Thomas, a cancer survivor and medical marijuana patient herself, told colleagues at a committee hearing earlier this year that cannabis has helped her manage chronic pain, insomnia, eating issues, gastrointestinal issues, PTSD and anxiety. “I found relief from all of these symptoms,” she said, “some of which are not covered in the program.”

The new law adds to the state’s qualifying conditions for medical marijuana “any debilitating or terminal medical condition or symptom for which the potential benefits of using therapeutic cannabis would, in the provider’s clinical opinion, likely outweigh the potential health risks for the patient.”

The provision does not replace New Hampshire’s enumerated list of qualifying conditions, which Thomas has previously described as a useful way for clinicians who are less familiar with cannabis to navigate the system. “The point of this is that they would be allowed to…refer a patient to the program for any condition that they think would fit and benefit the patient,” she told Marijuana Moment earlier this year.

“This bill sets up two paths for health providers,” Thomas said at the time. “For those who are not familiar with cannabis, they can use the legislated symptom and conditions list. For those providers who are cannabis literate, they will be able to recommend the program for a health condition that they think cannabis may be able to help, but that might not be on the list.”

Other examples of symptoms that could be effectively managed with marijuana that are not specifically listed as qualifying conditions, Thomas said, include severe menstrual cramps, symptoms of long COVID and pre-dentist anxiety and post-surgical pain control.

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New Hampshire Lawmakers Vote To Expand Medical Marijuana Program With New Conditions And Higher Possession Limits

The New Hampshire House approved a group of bills expanding the state’s therapeutic cannabis program Thursday—as lawmakers continue to grapple with whether to legalize marijuana for everyone.

The chamber voted to pass House Bill 1278, a bill to add debilitating or terminal conditions to the list of qualifications for using therapeutic cannabis, also known as medical marijuana. In a separate vote, the House approved House Bill 1349, which allows those with generalized anxiety disorder to be part of the therapeutic cannabis program.

Both bills would require the patient to obtain a recommendation from a medical provider that they be prescribed medical cannabis.

The House also approved a bill to increase the amount of cannabis a medical marijuana patient can possess at one time. House Bill 1350 would raise the limit from 2 ounces to 4. Currently, the state’s cannabis decriminalization law allows people to possess up to three-quarters of an ounce.

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