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According to New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella, Strafford County Sheriff Mark Brave used taxpayer money to subsidize his love life and lied about it to a grand jury.

“The decision to charge an elected constitutional officer was not made lightly,” Formella said. “However, no person is above the law, and the evidence in this case required action. It is my hope that the public will be reassured that there will be equal justice under the law for every person in this state – including public officials.”

Brave denied any wrongdoing Thursday morning when he turned himself in to state police. He has blamed his downfall on county politics, not his multiple affairs.

“I will go in civilian clothing, no weapons, and bring my $40 for the bail commissioner,” Brave told Foster’s Daily Democrat prior to his arrest. “I expect I will be photographed and fingerprinted. What I want is to get ahead of this situation and to get a trial date.

“I will fight this all the way. If I had done anything wrong, I’d own it. But I, 100 percent, did nothing wrong.”

Brave also blamed racism by county officials for the investigation that resulted in criminal charges. Formella said Thursday saw no evidence that racism played a part.

“That is unsubstantiated,” Formella said.

Brave allegedly stole $19,000 from Strafford County taxpayers through a scheme in which he submitted fake receipts for expenses related to his affairs, according to Formella. He also repeatedly lied about his actions, at one point roping U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas (D-Manchester) into his fabrications.

He is charged with one count of theft by deception, two counts of falsifying physical evidence, and five counts of perjury. If convicted on all counts, Brave would face a 31-to-64-year prison sentence.

According to Formella, Brave tried to hide the fact his spending was connected to his affairs by falsifying one receipt to remove the identity of a female companion, and by submitting numerous false justifications for reimbursement. They included attending conferences and meetings that he did not attend or did not occur, or for organizations that did not exist. 

Formella said that county officials became suspicious about Brave’s spending and alerted the state in April. Once the Attorney General’s Office began to investigate, Brave lied to investigators and a grand jury, Formella said.

The first perjury charge involved a female employee who traveled with Brave to Florida. The woman told investigators she did not stay in the same hotel room as Brave. Instead, she claimed, she stayed with family.

The woman later admitted to the grand jury that she did stay in the same hotel room as Brave. But the sheriff is alleged to have repeated her earlier version of events.

The second perjury charge concerned allegations that Brave stated he attended events for a fictitious law enforcement organization. 

The third perjury charge related to a trip Brave took to Maryland. Brave told the grand jury he was scheduled to meet with Pappas, but that the congressman had to cancel the meeting and gave Brave a flag that flew over the U.S. Capitol as an apology. 

“Records from the congressman’s office indicate that no such meeting was ever scheduled, and no such gift of a flag as an apology ever took place. Rather, based on investigation, Sheriff Brave is alleged to have actually met a paramour who lived in the area,” Formella said.

The fourth and fifth perjury charges concerned a dinner cruise and hotel stay for Brave in Boston. He told the grand jury he purchased the tickets in advance so he and a male deputy could attend a charity fundraiser. But the investigation found Brave bought the tickets on the same day as the cruise for himself and another paramour to attend the event together – which was on the paramour’s birthday.  

Brave is further alleged to have alternatively claimed in his testimony that he did not remember the trip, that no one stayed with him at his hotel, and that he did not recall if his paramour spent the night with him. After hotel surveillance video showed he was lying, Brave then admitted the paramour spent the night with him at the hotel for romantic and sexual purposes, according to Formella.

Brave is still the head of the Strafford County Sheriff’s Department. Formella said his office does not have the legal ability to remove Brave from office.

“There’s a process to remove him, but that will be up to county officials,” Formella said.

County Administrator Ray Bower did not respond to a request for comment. 

Brave, a Democrat, became the state’s first elected Black sheriff in 2020. During his campaign, he aligned himself with the Black Lives Matter movement, promising to get police officers out of schools. However, he contracted with a local school department to have a deputy assigned to schools once elected.

Brave has been considered a rising star in the Democratic Party, and he still has 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.

In July, when news of the investigation broke, Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington continued to list Brave on the endorsements page of her Warmington for Governor website.

After Brave’s arrest, his name was removed from the list of endorsements.

New Hampshire GOP state chair Chris Ager released a statement after Brave’s arrest.

“Sheriff Brave’s corrupt acts are yet another example of Democrats’ brazen lack of consideration for the communities they serve,” said Ager

“While hard-working Granite Staters struggle to make ends meet, Democrat Sheriff Mark Brave thought it was okay to defraud taxpayers for his personal gain, and then lie about it under oath.”

“Contrary to what Brave clearly believes, Democrats are not above the law.”

Gov. Chris Sununu is telling kids to put down their phones and go touch grass.

Sununu issued an executive order Wednesday aimed at getting New Hampshire children off social media and into the outdoors. At the same time, the state is investigating the harm apps like TikTok and Instagram are doing to children.

Sununu’s order comes following extensive meetings with Attorney General John Formella about the dangers posed by sites like TikTok and Instagram.

“New Hampshire’s children are the future of our state and our nation, and we are making every effort to ensure necessary changes are made to prevent harm by these platforms. New Hampshire will look at all necessary options to protect our children – including spending more time off screens and outdoors.”

The state’s ongoing investigation into the numerous harms to children posed by social media platforms started in November 2021. The new executive order is based on some of those findings. Formella said social media is disastrous for youth mental health and is creating a crisis among children and teens.

“Extensive social media use has been tied to profound risks of harm in youth. Indeed, there has been an increased focus on the correlation between the development of serious mental health disorders by minors and time spent on social media. My office is actively considering how it can best protect New Hampshire’s youth from the harm these platforms cause and promote,” Formella said. “Eliminating the harmful effects of social media on New Hampshire’s youth and holding social media platforms accountable for their actions is a top priority for me.”

Sununu also wants to use the classroom to fight harmful social media habits. His order gives the Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services 90 days to develop guidelines for a social media curriculum to be submitted to the State Board of Education. This curriculum for all K-12 health classes will teach the potentially negative impacts of social media use.

Sununu’s order came one day before the House is expected to vote on a Democrat-backed bill to give kids more access to social media in classrooms. Under SB213, schools will use social media accounts for instruction as long as it is connected to a particular study area. The bill also requires that parents provide written permission for that social media use.

Sununu’s office did not respond to NH Journal when asked about SB213.

Under Sununu’s plan, state agencies will also promote a new GoPlayNH Initiative to encourage kids and families to spend more time off their screens and outdoors. The initiative will highlight the various recreation opportunities available across the Granite State.

“Teaching our children how to engage with society in a healthy, fulfilling way is a core component to providing a holistic education that prepares the next generation for success in every way,” said Department of Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut. “I am thankful that Governor Sununu is taking action to address the societal impact of social media and look forward to hearing directly from parents and students so that we may work side by side to support the needs of the community.”

More details on the rollout of the GoPlayNH Initiative are expected in the coming weeks.

This isn’t Sununu’s first foray into the social media fight. Last December, he banned the Chinese-owned Tik Tok app from state-issued electronic devices. TikTok gathers data from users’ phones that is unrelated to using the app, and the company makes that data available upon request to the Chinese Communist Party, according to multiple media accounts.

And Formella joined 46 other state attorneys general in March, asking a Tennessee judge to order the company to open up its internal communications for review.

New Hampshire is getting $5 million in federal funding for critical crime victim services as the needs across the state increase. 

“Without these funds, many of the services available to victims of crime would be reduced dramatically or cease to exist,” said Attorney General John Formella.

The Executive Council approved the funding, which allows the Department of Justice to make sure the victim service programs can continue helping Granite Staters in sometimes dire circumstances. 

“These approvals will allow the Department of Justice to continue to address the need for crime victim services across New Hampshire by sub-granting funds to the amazing organizations that provide these services throughout our state.”

New Hampshire uses the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) grant to fund the needed services, but the VOCA has been losing its regular source of funding—fines paid by those convicted of federal crimes.

Fines are getting reduced at the federal level, and the United States Department of Justice3 is pursuing non-prosecution agreements with some people which has resulted in the money not getting deposited into VOCA.

According to Formella’s office, it is happening at the same time more people are becoming crime victims. Last year in New Hampshire, calls to domestic violence and sexual assault crisis lines increased by approximately 63 percent, and the need for emergency shelters for domestic violence victims increased by approximately 30 percent from 2019.

VOCA funds are used to support services for victims through direct service organizations such as domestic violence shelters, rape crisis centers, and child abuse treatment programs. In New Hampshire, more than 40 victim services organizations receive VOCA funds including the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence (NHCADSV) as well as the state’s 13 Crisis Centers, Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), Granite State Children’s Alliance (OSCA) and New Hampshire Legal Assistance (NHLA). VOCA funding is also used to fund advocates at the state’s County Attorney Offices, several Police Departments, Granite State Child Advocacy Centers, the Granite United Way, and Victims, Inc.

Some of these organizations would not be able to continue without the VOCA funding, the Attorney General’s Office said Wednesday.

The only protestor convicted for protesting COVID-19 lockdowns in front of Gov. Chris Sununu’s home is taking his case to the New Hampshire Supreme Court.

Frank Negus Staples, aka Foot Loose, is appealing his conviction on one count of disorderly conduct for his role in the protests outside the homes of Sununu and Chief Justice Gordon MacDonald. He was among nine people arrested during the protests, and the only one convicted.

“We were all found not guilty of ‘picketing,’” Staples said. “I was found guilty of ‘disorderly conduct.’”

NHJournal reporter Chris Maidment was arrested during the protests and charged with picketing, despite identifying himself to authorities as a journalist on assignment. NHJournal earned a First Amendment award from the New Hampshire Press Association for its work on the story, and the charges were dismissed before the case went to trial.

MacDonald, who was New Hampshire’s Attorney General at the time of the protests, has recused himself from the case according to Staples. MacDonald’s Department of Justice was instrumental in creating the picketing ordinance used to charge the protestors.

“Gordon MacDonald has recused himself from the case due to his direct involvement in the creation of the town ‘picketing’ ordinance and how to enforce it,” Staples said.

The New Hampshire Supreme Court accepted Staples’ appeal as part of the dozens of cases accepted in November. A hearing date has not been set.

After Sununu started conducting government business from his home due to the pandemic, opponents of the governor’s COVID-19 policies started protesting in the street outside. Sununu and his neighbors expressed their unhappiness with the crowds of sign-waving demonstrators in their cul-de-sac, but the protestors were on public property.

In response, the town Board of Selectmen, including Sununu’s brother Michael, drafted an anti-picketing ordinance designed to discourage — if not prevent — the protests. Three members of the Sununu administration, including Department of Safety Commissioner Robert Quinn, testified on behalf of the protest ban at a December 8 select board meeting.

The language for the ordinance came directly from the Attorney General’s Office, according to emails obtained by NHJournal.

Concord attorney Seth Hipple, who represented several of the protesters, including Maidment, told NH Journal last year that the government is holding a losing hand.

“The prosecution’s case was a dumpster fire,” Hipple said.

None of the arresting officers were able to individually identify any of the protesters who were charged, and they were unable to specify what actions the protestors took that violated the law, according to Hipple.

Staples, who told NHJournal people do not like it when he gets loud, was a fixture at anti-COVID lockdown protests throughout the pandemic. He was among several people arrested at an Executive Council Meeting last year who were protesting a federal contract to pay for COVID vaccines.

Staples was also the lead protestor at the September 2021 Executive Council meeting that was shut down because of safety concerns.

Staples made statements to New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services employees that they deemed threatening.The employees were unnerved and subsequently escorted to their cars by New Hampshire State Police Troopers. Staples, who was shouting and acting in an aggressive manner through the meeting denies he meant a threat when he shouted “we know where you live” to the DHHS employees.

Staples and several other protestors at the September 2021 Executive Council meeting were investigated by Attorney General John Formella’s office, but no charges were ever brought.

New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella is joining 37 other state attorneys general in calling on Congress to give states the ability to hold airlines accountable when traveler complaints skyrocket. 

“From oversold flights to operational disruptions, too often we see airlines shifting their problems onto their passengers,” Formella said Wednesday.

Formella is part of a bipartisan group of attorneys general who signed a letter asking for the ability to enforce state and federal consular protection laws against airlines. The letter went to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). 

Currently, the United States Department of Transportation is responsible for handling airline complaints, but according to the letter from the attorneys general, the DOT is failing to protect the average airline customer.

“Airlines should take notice that we expect the U.S. air travel system to provide safe, accessible, affordable, and reliable service to all travelers and the federal government should give attorneys general the authority to vigorously investigate and prosecute violations of the law that impact consumers. Customers should not have to deal with issues like delayed airline refunds, baggage fee charges for luggage that is not delivered at the end of a flight, or extra charges for parents to sit with their young children on a plane,” Formella said.

The letter states problems with airlines have been getting worse since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and Formella as well as his colleagues have been flooded with complaints.

While he is not mentioned, Biden’s secretary of transportation has been under fire for months over what critics say is his poor management of the airline travel crisis. Buttigieg, who ran for president in 2020 and is considered a likely future candidate, oversees the Department of Transportation (DOT). Over the summer, a group of Democrats including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)  called Buttigieg out for allowing airlines to engage in behavior that was “simply unacceptable.”

According to DOT data, complaints about airlines were up 35 percent in June over May. But the complaints recorded in June of this year are about 270 percent higher than the number of complaints in the June before the pandemic started.

“In June 2022, DOT received 5,862 complaints about airline service from consumers, up 34.9 percent from the 4,344 complaints received in May 2022 and up 269.6 percent from the 1,586 complaints received in pre-pandemic June 2019,” the report states. “For the first six months of 2022, the Department received 28,550 complaints, up 27.8 percent from the 22,336 filed during the first six months of 2021 and more than the entire year of 2019.”

In the first six months of 2022, 24 percent of domestic flights were delayed, and about 3.2 percent were canceled altogether. 

At the same time, airline ticket prices soared 34 percent year over year as inflation took its toll, though they have declined in recent weeks.

Formella was joined by the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Alaska, California, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Northern Mariana Islands, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.