Tag: new hampshire

Ex-prison officer charged in death of NH psychiatric patient

A former corrections officer was charged Thursday with second-degree murder in the death of a patient at New Hampshire’s prison psychiatric unit nine months ago.

Matthew Millar, 39, of Boscawen, is accused of kneeling on Jason Rothe’s torso and neck for several minutes on April 29 while Rothe was face-down and handcuffed in the secure psychiatric unit at the state prison in Concord. The unit treats inmates in need of acute psychiatric care, those found not guilty by reason of insanity and those — like Rothe — who haven’t committed crimes but are deemed too dangerous to remain at the state psychiatric hospital.

According to court documents, Rothe, 50, was committed to New Hampshire Hospital in 2019 because of mental illness and transferred to the prison unit in 2022 out of concern he posed a risk to himself or others. Shortly after his death, investigators said Rothe died after a physical altercation with several corrections officers and that an autopsy was inconclusive. On Thursday, the attorney general’s office said Rothe’s cause of death was combined compressional and positional asphyxia.

Millar made an initial appearance Thursday in court, where his attorney said he intends to plead not guilty. He was ordered held without bail pending a hearing Feb. 14.

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New Hampshire House Passes Bill Banning Genital Transgender Surgery On Children

The New Hampshire House of Representatives has passed a bill that prohibits some transgender surgeries on minors, though the measure falls short of the initial intent of the measure that sought to ban all so-called “gender reassignment” procedures for children.

Twelve Democrats joined nearly all Republicans to pass House Bill 619 by a vote of 199-175 on Jan. 5, in a move that came amid a series of other transgender-related bills that the House voted on earlier in the day.

The bill that passed was a watered-down version of the original proposal, which, if passed as introduced, would have banned giving puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones to children and would have prohibited the surgical removal of breasts in girls who identify as boys.

The current version of the bill prohibits the carrying out of “genital gender reassignment surgery” on anyone under 18 while also banning health care workers from referring minors for such producers to out-of-state facilities.

Genital gender reassignment surgeries are defined in the bill as surgical procedures to alter the genitalia of children who have no sex development disorders or whose genitals are not “malignant,” meaning cancerous or otherwise dangerous to their physical health.

Banned procedures include removal of the penis and testicles or surgically creating a penis from other parts of the body, with the exception of reconstructive surgery to restore normal form and function to tissue affected by physical pathologies like malformation or trauma.

Male circumcision is also exempt from the ban.

The bill now heads to the GOP-controlled Senate and, if it passes there, then to the desk of New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, a Republican.

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New Hampshire Republican Unveils Bill To Legalize Psychedelics For Mental Health And Medical Conditions

A Republican lawmaker in New Hampshire has prefiled legislation for the coming session that would legalize three psychedelic substances—psilocybin, LSD and mescaline—for therapeutic use with a healthcare provider’s recommendation.

The bill, HB 1693, from Rep. Kevin Verville, would create a regulated psychedelics system for registered patients, with alternative treatment centers (ATCs) set up to produce and dispense the substances.

The proposal is modeled after the state’s existing medical cannabis law, under which seven licensed marijuana ATCs currently serve patients. Psychedelics patients would be required to obtain state-issued ID cards, while designated caregivers could purchase and provide the substances to patients.

To access psychedelics, patients would need a recommendation from a licensed physician, advanced practice nurse, physician’s assistant, nurse practitioner or mental health provider. Anyone falsely claiming to be using psychedelics legally under the measure would be subject to a civil violation and $500 fine, in addition to other penalties.

Among the qualifying conditions envisioned for the program are anxiety, depression, PTSD, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social anxiety, body dysmorphia, eating disorders, sleep disorders, substance use disorder, chronic pain, attention deficit, migraines and cluster headaches, postpartum mental illnesses and others.

The proposal would also allow providers to recommend psychedelics for “any novel or emergent illness which is not categorized in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders but is diagnosed by a state licensed mental health professional,” though there would need to be published scientific observations, including self-reports, regarding psilocybin as a treatment for the condition.

The new program would be overseen by the state Department of Health and Human Services—though the measure does not contain appropriations to fund the program’s startup or staff, a legislative description says, noting that fees for patients and ATCs would be necessary to cover those costs.

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GOP legal activist, Alexander Talcott, 41, is stabbed to death at his New Hampshire home

A Republican legal activist was stabbed to death inside his home in New Hampshire as cops investigate whether the killer acted in self-defense. 

Alexander Talcott, 41, was found dead inside his house in Durham on Saturday morning with a stab wound to his neck, the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office said.

Police have launched an investigation into his death, which they ruled as homicide, and the attorney general has identified all parties involved in the incident. 

Investigators are now trying to determine whether the person who stabbed Talcott was acting in self-defence, reports NBC 10 Boston. Their name has not been released and police said there was no danger to the public. 

No arrests have yet been made, police said, after naming Talcott as the deceased on Sunday.  

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Trans former NH lawmaker faces federal charges for allegedly using daycare connections to generate child exploitation images

The first openly transgender lawmaker in the US is facing federal charges in connection with sexual exploitation at a Tyngsborough, Massachusetts daycare center. A teacher at the daycare who assisted the lawmaker in obtaining sexual pictures of the children has also been arrested and was charged in June. In a press release, the Justice Department referred to trans-identified male Stacie Laughton as “a New Hampshire woman.”

Stacie Laughton, 39, has been federally charged with one count of sexual exploitation of children and aiding and abetting by the US Attorney’s Office District of Massachusetts. Lindsay Groves, Laughton’s former girlfriend, was the alleged teacher at the center who helped Laughton, a former NH lawmaker, gather the images and has been charged with child exploitation.  

Groves allegedly used bathroom breaks for the children, such as diaper changes, to take pictures of the children in the bathroom and would send the photos to Laughton.  

There were over 2,500 text messages between Laughton and Groves on the phones obtained by the prosecution. These included at least four sexually explicit pictures of children between three and five years of age.  

According to the Boston Herald, in one alleged text from Groves, she said to Laughton, “I want to do this with you with one of my kids.” The text was in conjunction with a picture focused on the genitals of a prepubescent boy.  

Laughton allegedly responded, “I also need to be honest I mean yes that picture was hot of that little boy but you probably have gotten the picture by now that I prefer little girls (sic), but he is cute.” 

Other texts allegedly talked about the couple hooking up with each other as well as with children.  

Groves was employed by the daycare from 2017 up until June of this year, according to the Boston Herald.

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Nation’s First Elected Transgender State Rep. Arrested On Child Porn Charges: Police

A former New Hampshire state representative and the nation’s first transgender-identifying state lawmaker was arrested by police this week and charged for allegedly distributing child pornography. 

Stacie Marie Laughton, a Democrat who previously resigned twice from the New Hampshire state house, is now facing four counts of distributing sexually explicit images of children. Laughton was born Barry Charles Laughton, Jr. 

Nashua Police Department public information officer Sgt. John Cinelli said that police were called to respond to a juvenile incident on Tuesday and were then told that the former lawmaker had been distributing explicit images. On Thursday, police searched Laughton’s house and arrested him. 

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NH Dems Defend Graphic Sex Content, Attack ‘Dangerous’ Parents in House Debate

Parents do not have the right to know their middle school children have access to graphic novels that depict children engaged in sex acts and include links to gay dating apps, nor are they allowed to know teachers are urging kindergartners to draw themselves naked.

That was the case New Hampshire Democrats made as they opposed GOP legislation expanding parents’ rights over their kids’ public school experience.

The battle over the Parents’ Bill of Rights took center stage Tuesday with a packed Representatives Hall for the House Education Committee hearing on SB 272. The Senate passed the bill along party lines last month.

A similar House bill sponsored by House Speaker Sherman Packard, HB 10, died in the closely split legislature this year. Packard said the Senate version needs to pass to give parents the final say over their children’s education.

“Parents are responsible for the upbringing of their own children. We support the parents’ right to know what is happening to their child in school. These are our children, not the state’s or the school district’s,” Packard said.

Emotions ran high during several hours of testimony, as Democrats and left-leaning media outlets have characterized the bill as targeting LGBT students.

The bill is designed to address situations like the one in the Manchester school system in which a mother requested information after hearing rumors her child was identifying as a different gender at school. The Manchester district’s policy is to keep that information secret from parents. The mother was forced to sue, and Hillsborough Superior Court Judge Amy Messer upheld the district’s policy directing teachers and staff not to fully and accurately inform parents about their children’s behavior.

Democrats have responded by arguing parents are simply too dangerous to be given the same information about their children that teachers, students, and school staff have.

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New Hampshire House Passes Bill to Legalize Marijuana With No Taxation or Regulation

Last Thursday, the New Hampshire House passed a bill that would legalize marijuana for adults in the state, despite ongoing federal cannabis prohibition. Unlike most legalization efforts, the bill would not create any tax or regulatory program.

Rep. Kevin Verville (R) and three fellow Republicans introduced House Bill 360 (HB360) on Jan. 9. The legislation would remove marijuana from the state’s list of banned substances and strike provisions in current law that refer to criminal penalties for cannabis-related offenses. The proposed law would not create any kind of tax or regulatory program for marijuana. It would effectively become legal to possess, cultivate, buy, and sell cannabis just like tomatoes.

People under 18 in possession of marijuana would be subject to a substance misuse assessment. People between 18 and 21 would face a violation for simple possession, effectively decriminalizing marijuana for that age group.

The bill includes provisions to allow people with past marijuana convictions to have their records expunged.

On March 16, the House rejected the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee’s “inexpedient to legislate” report by a 210-160 vote, and then passed HB360 on a voice vote.

The House has also passed a bill that would legalize marijuana with a regulatory and tax structure for commercial sales and cultivation.

Verville called his approach “simple” and “short.”

“When bills get complicated and they get long and they get confused, people vote against them,” he told Marijuana Moment. “This is the shortest, easiest way to affect the change that the majority of our constituents want—and that is the legalization of cannabis.”

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New Hampshire Bakery Ordered to Remove Mural Because It Depicts Pastries

On the morning of June 14, 2022, a new mural was unveiled above the entrance to Leavitt’s Country Bakery in the small town of Conway, New Hampshire (pop: 9,822). Inspired by the nearby White Mountains, the mural features a mountain range—of pastries. The whimsical idea and style was a perfect fit for the small-town bakery, and certainly a step up from the drab wooden façade that preceded it.

The mural had been painted by three local high school students as a project for their art class, and the unveiling was attended by many students and community members, including the local press.

“There were a lot of late afternoons,” said Olivia Benish, the art teacher who oversaw the project. “I wanted to give my top students a project, and they really did a great job.”

The project took 80 hours for the students to complete, which they put in over the span of five weeks.

“I’ve never done such a big piece of art before. So it’s pretty exciting,” said ​Morgan Carr, one of the artists.

Leavitt’s’ owner Sean Young was also pleased with the mural, and he was especially proud that he was able to partner with the high school on the project.

“We thought it would be a fun project for the kids and good for the community,” said Young. “Hopefully this will be an annual project, as we have other sides to the building.”

Unfortunately, this isn’t the end of the story. A week later a town official showed up to the bakery and informed Young that the mural violated a local zoning ordinance which places a limit on the allowable size of store signs. According to the town, the Leavitt’s building can’t have a sign more than 22 square feet. The mural, being 91 square feet, far exceeds that. Thus, according to officials, the mural must come down.

It’s worth noting that Conway has many large murals, all of which the town allows. So what’s different about this one? According to officials, this mural counts as a “sign” because it depicts the kinds of things the store sells, namely pastries. In other words, if the mural had depicted real mountains—or anything else for that matter—there would be no problem.

There would also be no problem if this exact same mural were displayed somewhere else. In fact, town officials told Young that if he moved the mural to the farm stand next to the bakery—which is on the same lot—then it could stay up because the farm stand doesn’t sell baked goods.

Despite immense public backlash, the town has put its foot down and is insisting the mural be removed or changed. Near the end of 2022 they threatened Young with enforcement proceedings. If he doesn’t remove or paint over the sign, he could face criminal charges and fines of $275 per day.

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Missing College Student Found Dead After Solo Hike in New Hampshire Mountains

A missing college student was found dead on Wednesday after she set out on a solo hike several days earlier in the White Mountains area of Franconia, N.H.

Emily Sotelo set off on her hike of Franconia Ridge on Sunday morning, said a news release from the New Hampshire Fish and Game (NHFG).

After she did not return later on that same day, a family member notified the NHFG.

“Due to the harsh weather conditions a search commenced Sunday evening and lasted through the night,” NHFG said.

“Searchers were hampered by high winds, cold temperatures, and blowing snow. Searchers spent the next two days looking for Sotelo and Tuesday afternoon tracks and items belonging to Sotelo were located at the headwaters of Lafayette Brook.”

Sotelo’s body was found at 11:00 am on Wednesday, and a state Army National Guard helicopter transferred her body to the Cannon Mountain Ski Area.

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