#

The feud between Strafford County Sheriff Mark Brave, who is currently under criminal investigation, and his fellow Democrats on the County Commission took a turn Friday with the three commissioners accusing Brave of leaking confidential information and misleading the public.

Brave is facing allegations of theft and abuse of office which are being investigated by the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Public Integrity Unit. Brave broke news of that investigation, and also revealed he has already been investigated by outside firm Municipal Resources Inc. in a separate matter initiated by the commissioners.

Brave said he is being investigated for taking a female employee on a trip to Florida using county money, and for allegedly paying the woman’s housing expenses also with county money. Brave is denying any wrongdoing.

Additionally, Brave claims the dispute is a case of political bullying. Brave and all three elected commissioners are Democrats.

Now, Commissioners George Maglaras, Robert Watson, and Deanna Rollo are pushing back, issuing a letter accusing Brave of “misleading the public.”

“For whatever reason, Sheriff Brave has made the choice to disclose parts of the MRI report while answering questions about the separate Attorney General criminal investigation. It is unfortunate that Sheriff Brave has chosen to release only portions of the MRI report to the public, portions that when taken out of context are helpful to himself, but misleading to the public,” the letter states.

In January, MRI was hired to look into Brave. The report from MRI is not being released to the public, and County Attorney Tom Verlardi denied NHJournal’s Right to Know request. Velardi stated in his response to NHJournal that the MRI report is considered a personnel record, and therefore exempt from the Right to Know law, 91-A.

Financial records obtained by NHJournal show the county paid more than $2,500 for the investigation and report. In other words, even though Strafford County taxpayers paid for the MRI report, they are not allowed to see it.

The commissioners stated that while they want to release the full report, they are unable to do so under New Hampshire law. They also argued Brave is using the MRI investigation to muddy the waters around the unrelated inquiry by the Attorney General’s Office.

“We are disheartened that Sheriff Brave would choose to go on a publicity tour using parts of the MRI report to defend himself in the totally separate Attorney General criminal investigation. We would very much like to have the contents of the MRI report made public so that confidence is restored in those county officials trying to hold all county employees responsible for their noncriminal actions, even an elected sheriff. Our wish for disclosure of the report, however, does not change our statutory obligation to maintain the confidentiality of the report as a confidential disciplinary record,” their letter stated.

The MRI investigation was initiated weeks after Brave’s wife, Jamie Brave, was arrested for DUI in Portsmouth. NHJournal learned Brave was a passenger in the car at the time of the arrest and that he was too intoxicated to drive, according to police reports. A police officer brought the sheriff to the house of a friend and placed him in the friend’s custody, raising questions about whether Brave received special treatment.

Brave has claimed in the media that he was investigated for allegedly not telling the truth to the commissioners about the arrest. He also accused Maglaras of using a racial slur. Brave told the Rochester Voice that Maglaras called him “the token Black guy and the token’s gonna be up soon.”

Jimenez’s letter to Brave recommends that Brave place himself on the state’s Laurie List, or EES, for police officers with known credibility problems.

Brave’s name is not on the most recent public EES released on July 6 by the New Hampshire Department of Justice. Under state law, police officers placed on the list have the opportunity to keep their identities secret pending appeal.

Embattled Strafford County Sheriff Mark Brave is accusing County Commission Chair George Maglaras of being a racist for allegedly calling the state’s first African American sheriff a “token.”

Brave told the Rochester Voice Maglaras called him “the token Black guy, and the token’s gonna be up soon.”

Brave is under investigation by the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office Public Integrity Unit for allegedly using public money to pay for a Florida trip with a female employee who is not his wife. Brave took the unusual step of revealing news of the investigation to the press, something typically not done unless and until charges are filed.

Brave insists the investigation is a result of political bullying by Maglaras and the other commissioners, Robert Watson and Deanna Rollo. Brave and the three commissioners are all Democrats. Brave insists he is a victim of the commission’s political persecution because he will not give in to their pressure.

Reading the public commission meeting minutes sheds some light on the tension between the commissioners and Brave, and the “political bullying” revolves around money. The commission, led by Maglaras, initially blocked Brave’s attempts to buy a Harley Davidson motorcycle for his department this spring. The reason given: Brave’s poor financial management.

Brave’s department has an annual budget of more than $3 million, and Brave’s spending of taxpayer dollars is already outpacing his approved allocation, according to Maglaras’s comments during the May 4 meeting.

“Chairman Maglaras acknowledged (the motorcycle) was listed in the 2023 budget, but is unsure how to justify the expense when the Sheriff’s Office budget is already over expended again,” the meeting minutes stated.

Though the board initially balked at the expense, the motorcycle purchase was approved last month on the condition Brave gets his financial house in order. If he doesn’t, the commission promised they would. 

“(T)he Commissioners agreed to the purchase and that if the Sheriff’s budget is not brought in line with the approved budget, they would look for other items to make up the difference,” the June 8 meeting minutes stated.

Until recently, Brave had additional income from a lucrative contract between his department and Frisbee Memorial Hospital, where Brave’s wife, Jamie, was Frisbie’s former Chief Nursing Officer at the time.

According to Brave, the commission’s probe into his department started soon after his wife was arrested for DUI in December. NHJournal uncovered the fact Brave was in the car at the time of the arrest and was too intoxicated to drive himself. 

“After her arrest, the commissioners took it upon themselves to hire MRI to do a private probe,” Brave told the Rochester Voice. “They tried to say I used my office to get her off, and I was driving and switched (seats) with her. There were rumors I was PC’d, that I was arrested.”

Brave denied he was driving the night of his wife’s arrest. A police report obtained by NHJournal indicated a police officer drove him to a friend’s house and released him to the friend’s custody, given his level of intoxication.

Maglaras is reportedly a witness to the MRI probe and, presumably, the criminal investigation. Brave is now claiming Maglaras spread a false story that Brave lied about his whereabouts on the night of the arrest. Brave told the Rochester Voice he never claimed to be home with his children while his wife was driving drunk, even though he says that is the story Maglaras told.

Brave also has the advantage of some powerful political allies. He is represented by the influential and well-connected Democratic law firm of Shaheen and Gordon — the “Shaheen” being Billy Shaheen, husband of U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen.

And despite the open investigation, Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington still lists Brave on the endorsements page of her Warmington for Governor website.

Rep. Aidan Ankarberg (R-Rochester) said he and other members of the Strafford County delegation are being kept in the dark about Brave and the investigations, as is the public. Given the fact that three elected members of the county commission are involved in investigating the elected sheriff, people have a right to know what is going on, Ankarberg argued.

“I certainly have many doubts about the integrity of the elected officials in Strafford County and their behavior, and I imagine many other residents feel the same way. We need transparency and fast,” Anakberg said.

Anakberg is also troubled by the allegation that Maglaras called Brave a “token,” and people need to know the truth about what was said or not said.

“The matter involving the alleged use of the phrase ‘token Black guy’ harkens back to Andru Volinsky referring to Ryan Terrell using the same phrase when he dared to enter the public policy arena and join the Board of Education. Same words, why would there be a different outcome?” Anakberg said.

Volinsky was then running in the Democratic primary for governor and saw his support crater following that incident. The state’s NAACP chastised Volinsky for the comments. He soon issued a public apology before going on to lose the primary to Dan Feltes.

Add gubernatorial candidate Cinde Warmington to the list of Granite State political candidates with ‘endorsement trouble’ in the 2024 election cycle.

The Democratic Executive Councilor has posted a list of endorsements from elected officials. Strafford County Sheriff Mark Brave is among them. He is currently the subject of a criminal investigation for allegedly abusing his office. The charge is just the latest scandal to dog the Democrat sheriff.

Cinde Warmington, who hopes to beat outgoing Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig in the Democratic gubernatorial primary, made a splash this month by announcing endorsements from more than 100 Democrats across the state. That included the shout-out she got from Brave.

Warmington did not respond to questions about Brave’s endorsement that appears on her website, and his name was still on the page late Thursday night.

According to a letter from New Hampshire Senior Assistant Attorney General Dan Jimenez, Brave is being investigated for theft, falsification in official matters, and abuse of office. Jimenez’s letter did not provide details about the allegations. 

Brave went public with the investigation this week, telling Foster’s Daily Democrat he was being accused of using public money to take a female employee who is not his wife to Florida. Brave also revealed the attorney general is looking at whether or not public money was used for the woman’s housing expenses.

Brave denied all of the accusations, dismissing them as politically motivated. He blamed Strafford County Commission members for targeting him, even though all three — Deanna Rollo, Bob Watson, and George Maglaras — are fellow Democrats.

None of the commissioners have publicly endorsed Warmington.

Endorsements are generating plenty of drama in New Hamshire politics this cycle. When Gov. Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign listed the names of several Republican legislators who had previously endorsed former President Donald Trump, it set off a series of tit-for-tat reactions, including one state representative claiming she was endorsing both candidates.

On Tuesday, the Trump campaign released a list of town captains that included conspiracy theory proponent and anti-vaccination activist Terese Grinnell Bastarache. A day earlier, Bastarache was awaiting trial on charges of criminally disrupting an Executive Council meeting as part of an anti-Covid-vaccine protest.

The charges were dropped late Monday.

Strafford County Sheriff Mark Brave is under criminal investigation by the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Public Integrity Unit for allegedly misusing public money for trips to Florida with a woman who is not his wife.

The source of that information? Sheriff Brave himself.

Brave, the state’s first elected African American sheriff, took the questionable step of announcing the investigation to Foster’s Daily Democrat reporter Karen Dandurant.

“They are raising all these allegations and rumors, trying to discredit me,” Brave told the reporter. “This is a political attack by people who are supposed to be in my corner.”

The Attorney General’s Office did not comment on the investigation. According to a copy of a letter Senior Assistant Attorney General Dan Jimenez sent to Brave, the sheriff is being investigated for theft, falsification in official matters, and abuse of office. Jimenez’s letter did not provide details about the allegations.

Brave has been at the center of scandal for more than a year as questions have swirled around the $100,000 contract his department received from Frisbie Hospital, where his wife Jamie was the chief nursing officer. The hospital recently terminated the contract early after questions were raised about how Brave secured that revenue.

Hospital representative Ellen Miller said the contract getting canceled had nothing to do with any investigation.

“The contract between Frisbie Memorial Hospital and the Sheriff’s Department states that it can be terminated at any time, and Frisbie Memorial Hospital exercised that right simply because our security department is fully staffed, so we no longer need the services of the Sheriff’s Department,” Miller said.

Jamie Brave served as chief nursing officer until her arrest in December for drunk driving. Sheriff Brave was in the car at the time of his wife’s arrest and was reportedly too intoxicated to drive as well.

A whistleblower told NHJournal that Jamie Brave made the introductions for her husband with key hospital staff leading up to him first getting the contract.

Now the spotlight is on back Mark Brave again.

He told Dandurant the investigation centers on trips he took to Florida with a female employee using county money. He said investigators are implying that he is having an affair with the employee. After raising the issue, he denied the affair and denied misspending public money. His office budget includes $18,000 for travel expenses, he said.

“I misspent nothing. We send deputies out all the time to visit other departments to gain fresh ideas. … That is what this was,” Brave told Dandurant.

Brave also denied using public money to pay for the employee’s housing.

According to Dandurant’s article, County Commissioners Deanna Rollo and Bob Watson, both Democrats, and County Attorney Tom Velardi urged Brave to take a leave of absence after learning of the investigation. Democrat George Maglaras, the county commission’s chair, was not at that meeting and is considered a witness to at least one issue.

Commissioners also tried to have Brave put on the state’s Exculpatory Evidence schedule, or Laurie List, for police officers with known credibility problems, Brave told Dandurant. He said the commissioners voted after it hired an outside firm to investigate Brave.

“The commissioners had no right to launch this investigation against me,” Brave told Dandurant. “They are like sharks circling the water now, looking for anything they can bring up. I am fighting this, and I will continue to do so. It is a blatant attack on my name and what I have done here.”

Jiminez’s letter instructs Brave to essentially place himself on the Laurie List.

“I am also providing you with this notice so that you may notify the appropriate prosecuting agencies covering your jurisdiction with Brady v. Maryland … and State v. Laurie …” Jimenez wrote.