In the early days of his first term as governor, Republican Chris Sununu denounced the criminal culture across the state line in Lawrence, Mass., blaming drug trade among illegal immigrants for the flow of deadly fentanyl into the Granite State. Then-mayor of Lawrence Daniel Rivera said he was “shocked’ by Sununu’s comments and pushed back on criticism of his city.
On Monday, a very different scene played out in the New Hampshire State House as new Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte stood side-by-side with Lawrence Mayor Brian A. DePeña and the two pledged to work together to fight the fentanyl problem.
Surrounded by officers from federal state and local law enforcement, Ayotte and DePeña both acknowledged Lawrence plays a key role in the region’s drug trade and promised to cooperate in a crackdown to stop it.
“I was very glad to have a productive meeting with Mayor DePeña, who reached out to us, and we’re very grateful to have him here today to talk about stronger collaboration between New Hampshire, City of Lawrence, on joint interdiction,” Ayotte said.
Given the defensive reaction from Lawrence’s political leadership on the drug trade issue in the past, the fact that DePeña was the one who initiated the conversation is noteworthy. Asked by NHJournal about the previous resistance from Lawrence leaders to discuss the drug issue and his different attitude today, DePeña said he “didn’t understand what happened in the past,” but if elected officials on both sides of the state line didn’t step up, “nothing will change.”
“It’s time to move forward, (for) more collaboration, better communication,” DePeña said. “Now it’s my turn to move the agenda in the city of Lawrence. But maybe in the future, maybe the governor from Massachusetts and the governor from New Hampshire may have another event and open the collaboration for the whole state.”
During her campaign for governor, Ayotte regularly criticized the policies of Massachusetts — and the cities of Lawrence and Lowell in particular — for the drug problem.
“Here in New Hampshire, we take our state motto very seriously, ‘Live Free or Die.’ And there’s just a very different perspective with our neighbors,” Ayotte said during the campaign.“Unfortunately, we’ve seen drugs, the fentanyl being trafficked off our southern border from Lowell and Lawrence, Mass. into our cities, and it’s killing our citizens.”
Asked at the press conference if she had heard from Gov. Maura Healey (D-Mass.) on the fentanyl issue, Ayotte said no.
Ayotte also announced that her budget, scheduled to be unveiled on Thursday, will include more funding for the state’s “Granite Shield” program, which provides grants to local law enforcement agencies to target people and organizations involved in narcotics trafficking. According to the state Department of Safety, grants were provided to a total of 11 law enforcement partnerships and more than 80 agencies in fiscal year 2023.
“These resources will also be used to focus on this cross-border collaboration with Lawrence and New Hampshire law enforcement agencies to make sure that we are going after these drug dealers that are poisoning our citizens,” Ayotte said. She confirmed she also plans to fund the Northern Border Alliance in the upcoming budget and provide more money to fight drug crime in the northern part of the state.
DePeña released a statement after the press event praising Ayotte’s involvement.
“This initiative between Lawrence and New Hampshire is a testament to our shared resolve: Only through coordination, resource-sharing, and unwavering commitment can we safeguard our communities and deliver the security and justice our residents deserve.”
