Accused of using taxpayer money to fund his love life, former Strafford County Sheriff Mark Brave needs more time to go through all the evidence compiled against him.
Brave, who’s facing 64 years in prison if convicted, was due in Rockingham Superior Court this week for a dispositional hearing until his attorney, Leif Becker, got a delay. Becker told Judge Daniel St. Hilaire he needs more to go through the evidence in light of a plea agreement offered by the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office.
Becker told Foster’s Daily Democrat this week there’s no decision yet by Brave to accept the plea.
“As part of weighing all the options and preparing for trial, we are doing a considerable review of the discovery provided. Given the volume of material, we requested more time. A plea deal was offered, but we have not reached any decisions,” Becker said.
Brave is now scheduled to appear on March 26 once he and Becker have had time to consider the deal in light of the evidence.
Brave was New Hampshire’s first elected Black sheriff and a rising star in the New Hampshire Democratic Party until his romantic side got caught in a scandal that resulted in felony charges, ended his marriage, and forced him out of the job.
Brave allegedly used his county-issued credit card to fly out of state to meet women, book hotel rooms and restaurants in Boston for trysts, and even take dates to an indoor water park. When the criminal investigation into his credit card use became public, Brave accused fellow Democrat and Strafford County Commissioner George Maglaras of being a racist.
Brave agreed to go on administrative leave this summer after he was indicted, but the trouble did not stop. Brave is accused of lying to the court and violating his bail conditions.
Brave was allegedly less than truthful about how much money he had after his divorce in order to obtain a free public defender. Instead of using his money for a lawyer, Brave reportedly bought a classic 1968 Porsche and paid $50,000 to rent an apartment in Massachusetts.
When Brave moved to his Tewksbury, Mass. apartment, he was under a bail order to live in New Hampshire. Brave allegedly got around that by giving prosecutors and court officials a false address in Dover.
When that house was discovered, prosecutors told the court Brave was essentially stealing money by collecting his sheriff’s salary while living out of state. Prosecutors wanted his bail revoked, but Brave quit his job in December as part of an agreement to stay out of jail.
