Former Stafford County Sheriff Mark Brave has a date with destiny. His upcoming sentencing hearing will determine whether the lascivious lawman is locked up for his crimes.
Brave pleaded guilty last month to charges he stole $19,000 in taxpayer money to fund his extramarital escapades, maxing out his county-issued credit card to cover the costs of out-of-town travel to meet his illicit paramours.
But the deal Brave struck with prosecutors to end the criminal case leaves open another possible trip on the taxpayer’s dime — up the river.
Brave could be sentenced to prison on perjury charges related to the theft. The hearing on whether or not Brave goes to prison is now set for May 19.
Under the terms of his plea deal, Brave agreed to two suspended terms of three and a half to seven years on the theft and falsifying physical evidence convictions. But he still faces up to 14 years on the perjury charges. That sentence will be argued in court.
Other charges that Brave later lied to the court in Rockingham County are being dismissed as part of the deal. The disgraced lawman agreed to make $18,969 in restitution to Strafford County, surrender all his law enforcement certifications, never seek employment in law enforcement in any jurisdiction, be placed on a national registry of decertified police officers, and not contest his placement on New Hampshire’s Exculpatory Evidence Schedule.
Brave, the Strafford County Democrat who became New Hampshire’s first Black sheriff, faced decades in prison after he got caught. He compounded his troubles by lying to investigators, the grand jury, the press, and the courts, according to court records.
Those lies have cost Brave his career in law enforcement, his marriage, and his political standing as a rising star in the state Democratic Party.
