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With the state riveted by the tragic and gruesome details coming out in the Harmony Montgomery murder trial, a child who was failed by the Division of Children, Youth & Families (DCYF), a new legislative special committee is getting started.

But the House Special Committee on the Division for Children, Youth and Families, announced Wednesday by Speaker Sherman Packard (R-Londonderry), isn’t looking at how to better protect children like Harmony who’ve fallen through the cracks. Instead, according to an announcement from the speaker’s office, the bipartisan committee “is charged with considering all matters on due process and practices concerning DCYF.”

The news creates a jarring juxtaposition with the news from the Manchester courtroom where Adam Montgomery is on trial for allegedly murdering his 5-year-old daughter, Harmony, and then hiding her body for months before he threw out her remains. It’s a terrible story that might have played out differently, critics say, if DCYF child protective policies had been more assertive.

Adam Montgomery’s uncle, Kevin Montgomery, called DCYF in July 2019 to report Harmony had been assaulted. According to testimony at the trial, Adam Montgomery gave his child a back eye so severe it changed the profile of her face.

“I beat the dog sh*t out of her,” Adam Montgomery allegedly told his uncle.

Former Child Protection staffer Demetrios Tsaros was assigned to investigate the abuse report, and he testified this week he went out to the Manchester home to make contact on July 29. As he was getting to the home, Tsaros said he saw Adam Montgomery and Harmony get into a car and drive away.

Tsaros guessed he was 30 to 40 feet away from Adam Montgomery and Harmony when he saw them for a matter of seconds.

Tsaros was able to get Adam Montgomery on the phone three days later and set up an appointment to see the girl a week out, Tsaros testified. Adam Montgomery claimed the children in the home were sick and could not be seen on Aug. 1.

By the time Tsaros was finally in the same room as Harmony, it was Aug. 7, and she had no black eye. Tsaros testified the girl had a red mark on her face and some redness in one of her eyes. Adam Montgomery claims the eye injury was from a play-related accident with her step-brothers.

Adam Montgomery is accused of beating Harmony to death months later, on Dec. 7, 2019. Tsaros ended up leaving DCYF in 2021 and is now a postal worker.

The new committee chair, Rep. Leah Cushman (R-Weare), has long championed parents who claim their constitutional rights were violated by DCYF. Last year, she solicited stories to help foster that case for the committee.

“Have you or someone you know had your constitutional rights of due process violated by the Department of Children and Family Services?” Cushman wrote on Facebook. “I have received many such anecdotes from the people and would like to help. In order to help, I need your stories.”

Cushman did not respond to calls and a text seeking comment, nor did other members named to the committee, like Rep. Lucy Weber (D-Walpole), Rep. Pat Long (D-Manchester), or Rep. Alicia Gregg (D-Nashua). 

Cushman did provide a written statement in Packard’s press release, in which she does not make any specific allegations that any parents are having their due process rights, or any other rights, violated by DCYF. 

“As representatives, we are here to listen to the issues our constituents face and, when possible, find solutions to mitigate their concerns. In this case, our committee is tasked with the important, non-partisan job of identifying – if any – deficiencies within the DCYF system as it relates to due process,” Cushman stated. “We will make recommendations to correct any deficiencies found, and if there are none, we will clarify that and see what needs to be done to alleviate the concerns raised.”

Packard’s announcement states the committee will hold hearings, gather testimony, and make recommendations for possible legislation.  

Officials at Hillsborough County’s Valley Street Jail say former Democratic state representative and current inmate Stacie Marie Laughton is male.

What they won’t say is whether Laughton — who identifies as a female — is being housed in the male population or whether they are keeping the convicted stalker charged with the sexual exploitation of children in the women’s population.

Laughton, 39, is being held without bail after being arrested last month on charges of distributing child sex images in a case involving Lindsay Groves, a daycare employee and Laughton’s lover. 

According to court records, Groves took explicit photos of children in the daycare and texted them to Laughton. The couple then engaged in graphic conversations about child rape. In one text, Laughton seemingly admitted to raping a child. Groves is accused of inappropriately touching children in a civil lawsuit.

In multiple conversations with NHJournal, Valley Street Jail Superintendent Joseph Costanzo refused to disclose if Laughton is being housed with men or women.

“It’s a security practice,” Costanzo said. “We don’t disclose where any inmate is housed.”

From the Hillsborough County Valley Street jail records regarding the incarceration of former Dem Rep. Stacie-Marie Laughton in July, 2023.

In fact, the location of male and female inmates who don’t claim transgender status is a matter of public information. Costanzo appeared to be making a policy exception for the former representative.

Costanzo was hired by the three members of the Hillsborough County Commission. The fact county officials are trying to keep Laughton’s status secret is a sign the alleged sexual criminal is being kept in the women’s population. If that is the Hillsborough County policy, it is a matter of concern to state Rep. Katherine Prudhomme O’Brien (R-Derry).

“If you are a man who is predatory, what would keep you from saying you’re trans in order to be more predatory in a prison situation,” Prudhomme O’Brien said. “You have to be naive to think that doesn’t happen.”

According to published reports, abuse against female inmates by transgender inmates is happening in prison systems across the country. After Gov. Gavin Newsome (D-Calif.) liberalized the rules to allow more trans-identifying inmates to transfer to women’s prisons in California, female inmates said they had been raped and assaulted. In a class action lawsuit brought by several female inmates, the women said predatory men are taking advantage of the system in order to commit rape.

In one particularly disturbing case, a twice-convicted baby killer is now incarcerated in the same facility as the mother of his children, whom he killed.

Transgender inmates have also been accused of raping female inmates in New York and Illinois, and one transgender inmate in New Jersey recently got two female inmates pregnant.

According to the booking information for Laughton’s latest stay at the county jail, Laughton is listed as a biological male. 

Costanzo said information about Laughton’s incarceration is too sensitive to make public. However, he has yet to cite any specific county, state, or federal policy that requires information about Laughton’s housing to be kept from the public. Disclosing whether or not Laughton is being housed with men or women would not reveal specific cell assignments or work details.

As for housing transgender inmates at Valley Street Jail in general, Costanzo said the Hillsborough Department of Corrections adheres to the Prison Rape Elimination Act, or PREA.

“We follow the PREA guidelines and house all inmates accordingly. We make sure to comply with any standards within that guideline.”

PREA was enacted in 2003, but the United States Department of Justice issued the first set of PREA guidelines for jails and prisons in 2012. Under PREA, corrections facilities will place transgender inmates into housing corresponding to their gender identity after a round of screening.

Last year, the Biden administration enacted rules to make it easier for transgender inmates to transfer to the gender population corresponding to their stated identity. 

Prudhomme O’Brien understands New Hampshire prison and jail officials are in a tough spot when it comes to trying to keep all prisoners safe while following federal guidelines, like PREA.

“I know it’s really hard to eliminate prison rape because prison is full of rapists,” Prudhomme O’Brien said.

Stacie Laughton is a convicted sexual predator who stalked a woman and is now accused of heinous crimes against children. Is the former Democratic state representative now incarcerated with women? One GOP House member who served with Laughton is trying to find out.

The placement of transgender inmates, like former Democratic Rep. Stacie Laughton, in New Hampshire jails is up to individual jail administrators as well as the specific medical status of the inmate.

Laughton is currently being held without bail in Valley Street Jail in Manchester for alleged trafficking in child sex abuse images supplied by Laughton’s lover, Lindsay Groves. According to reports, Groves and Laughton are currently jailed at Valley Street pending their trials. 

Valley Street’s superintendent, Joseph Costanzo, did not respond to a request for comment on Laughton’s placement. 

However, Rep. Katherine Prudhomme O’Brien (R-Derry) told NHJournal she had concerns about the safety of women who might be incarcerated with an alleged sexual predator like Laughton, saying she had reached out to the superintendent.

“The superintendent reiterated to me that he can’t tell me where they both are housed and that it’s a security concern,” O’Brien said. “He only shared that they are following federal guidelines of The Prison Rape Elimination Act regarding intersex, binary and trans inmates.

“I am not happy with this lack of information as I do think this is a safety concern for female inmates,” O’Brien added. “Or maybe I should say ‘guests’ as a corrections officer in the state prison told me that’s the new term.”

New Hampshire’s Department of Corrections does not automatically house transgender women in the female population or transgender men in the male population. Hillsborough County Jail is unaccredited and does not follow published guidelines for housing transgender inmates.

In New Hampshire, decisions on transgender inmate housing are generally made on a case-by-case basis. The placement of those individuals tends to correspond with biological sex unless the individual is far along in treatment for a medical sex change, though there are exemptions to allow transgender-identifying individuals to be housed with the gender of their preference despite a lack of medical transition progression.

A legislative effort to tighten up the exemptions for incarcerated people,  HB 1180, “Relative to State Recognition of Biological Sex,” failed last year. The bill would have allowed the Department of Corrections to keep transgender individuals housed with members of their biological sex. Laughton missed the House vote to table the bill in March of last year.

Laughton, born Barry Laughton, has been identifying as Stacie Laughton since at least 2012 when Laughton became the state’s first elected transgender lawmaker. It was not clear how far Laughton’s medical transition had progressed. Laughton appears to be balding with many masculine features, though the convicted felon wears makeup and clothing traditionally identified with women. 

Laughton was married for many years to Lisa Laughton, the alleged co-conspirator in the 2008 fraud case that resulted in the felony conviction that temporarily derailed Laughton’s political career. Laughton has also conducted a long-term sexual relationship with Groves. Both Groves and Lisa Laughton are biological women. 

Laughton and Groves were both arrested last month in the child sex abuse image case. Groves allegedly used her position at Massachusetts daycare facility, Creative Minds in Tyngsborough, to take explicit photos of young children. Groves would then text the images to Laughton.

Laughton and Groves shared approximately 10,000 text messages, at times engaging in graphic discussions about raping children. At one point, Laughton seemingly admitted to past child rape in one conversation, according to court records.

A civil lawsuit filed in Massachusetts alleges Groves herself molested children at the daycare, as well as taking the photos.

Groves and Laughton are facing federal charges connected to the case. Laughton is facing state charges as well. 

A mother claims Stacie Laughton’s lover sexually abused her young child and that daycare owners did nothing to stop the abuse in a lawsuit filed in the Middlesex Superior Court in Massachusetts.

Former Democratic state Rep. Laughton, 39, is facing state and federal charges for accepting child sex abuse images from Lindsay Groves, 36, the Hudson woman who worked at the Tyngsborough, Mass. daycare, Creative Minds.

Investigators say Groves used her job at the daycare to gain access to young children for the graphic photos she shared with Laughton. Court records released in the case include a text conversation with a seeming admission from Laughton that the pair had abused children in the past and planned to do it again.

“I was asking because I know we’ve had some back-and-forth, and I know we initially said we do nothing with kids ever again, and you said you were afraid that if we had kids if they would go back and tell the parents the same with the kids you work with,” Laughton texted to Groves.

Robert Norton, the lawyer for the mother suing Creative Minds, said investigators are likely looking to add more charges to the case against Laughton and Groves, including potential sex abuse charges. Representatives for the U. S. Attorney’s Office in Boston would not comment on the case other than to say the investigation continues.

“There could be many more charges,” Norton said.

As for the lawsuit, Nortson said the Creative Minds owners failed to act despite being told about Groves taking explicit pictures and, in one case, abusing the children in her care.

“They did nothing about the photos, and the daycare owners were put on notice,” Norton said.

The mother filed the lawsuit as Jane Doe to protect her child’s identity. The attorney for Creative Minds could not be reached. Representatives for the daycare did not respond to a request for comment.

As early as 2018, a parent told Creative Minds staff that Groves was “inappropriately touching children,” the lawsuit states. “Despite being told this information, Creative Minds did nothing to protect the children from Lindsay Groves.” 

Norton said Groves started working at Creative Minds in Tyngsboro in 2017 despite having a criminal history that should have barred her from passing a Massachusetts background check. “She couldn’t pass a CORI check.” 

Groves’ Massachusetts record was not immediately available, but news reports from 2021 indicate she was convicted on a felony theft charge in Nashua.

In 2022, Creative Minds owners were again given disturbing information about Groves, this time that she was taking explicit photos. Again, the daycare owners did nothing, according to the lawsuit. “Creative Minds took no action to remove or prevent Lindsay Groves from having access to the children, and, in fact, continued to allow her to be alone with the children.”

One of the many strange details of the investigation is that the 2022 report that Groves was taking explicit photos of the children at Creative Minds came from Laughton.

Norton said Laughton’s 2022 report was not investigated thoroughly but instead became part of the stalking case that put Laughton in jail for weeks after the 2022 election. At the time, Laughton was barred from contacting Groves.

Tyngsborough Police did not respond to NHJournal’s request for comment. They did confirm to WCVB in Boston the department had been informed about the 2022 allegation but as part of the stalking investigation into Laughton.

“The Tyngsborough Police Department can confirm that it did respond on Aug. 26, 2022, to investigate allegations of a violation of a protective order and stalking based on an order out of Nashua District Court involving parties named in the recent Department of Justice case,” the department said in a statement. “As a result of an investigation, it was determined that no criminal violations involving the stalking/protective order had occurred.”

Groves and Laughton were arrested last month in the child sex abuse image case, a culmination of their highly unusual relationship. The pair have been involved in multiple court cases and no-contact orders in the last few years. One case last year landed Laughton in jail for stalking Groves right after Laughton had won reelection to the legislature. According to the court records in the stalking case, Laughton was publicly calling Groves a pedophile and using social media to amplify that accusation.

As Laughton was receiving the child sex abuse photos from Groves, the disgraced lawmaker was engaging in sexually explicit text conversations with Groves about having sex with children, according to court records.

Laughton started showing other people the photos being sent by Groves last month, and texting the photos to those people, according to the complaint filed in federal court. The people who got the photos were disturbed by the images and reported them to the police, according to the complaint.

Nashua Democrats backed Laughton, the state’s first transgender lawmaker, in three state representative elections. Last year, state party chairman Ray Buckley listed Laughton among the “LGBTQIA+ Democrats who are the backbone of the Granite State.”

On Wednesday, Buckley tweeted his condemnation of his fellow Democrat whose election he repeatedly supported:

“The latest revelation of apparent horrific criminal activity by Stacie Laughton more than underscores
1. She [sic] should be put away for a very long time.
2. Parties should be able to appeal to the BLC or courts to bar egregious individuals from their ticket.”