Rep. Roy offers compromise on minimum mandatory prison for drug crimes

Yahoo

6 days ago

A key House committee endorsed minimum mandatory prison terms for drug sellers who cause death or possess significant amounts of fentanyl, but with an escape hatch that would let a judge issue a different, lesser punishment if an individual offender met several qualifying conditions.
House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee Chairman Terry Roy, R-Deerfield, told his panel he spent weeks fine-tuning his proposal under one package combining the two Senate bills that are top priorities of Gov. Kelly Ayotte:
• Fentanyl possession (SB 14): This would impose at least a 3½- year prison term for anyone having at least 20 grams of fentanyl and a seven-year minimum for someone caught with at least 50 grams and,
• Death resulting (SB 15): Anyone caught selling drugs known to have caused the death of another would face at least 10 years in prison with a term of up to life behind bars.
Roy said he started out knowing full well about the long-held skepticism of the House of Representatives to such bills.
'Many of us on both sides of the aisle are not big fans of minimum mandatory (bills),' Roy began. 'We are all aware of many studies that conclude they are not quite effective in reducing crime.'
But Roy said the devastation of fentanyl that fueled New Hampshire's opioid epidemic made him determined to find some compromise language.
'We do know that fentanyl is destroying so many lives in our state and people bringing in this poison into our state have to be sent a message that we are done playing,' Roy said.
Roy's amendment would allow a judge to hand down a different punishment if that offender:
• Had no recent record: No prior conviction for violent felonies or similar drug offenses within the past seven years;
• Had no guns: The offender is not involved in any potential or threatened use of firearms or other deadly weapons;
• Was not a player: The accused is not to be seen by authorities as a leader of the drug operation;
• Had significant cooperation: To the extent possible, the offender has to show they have provided substantial assistance to law enforcement in related prosecutions and,
• Had no deception: The offender can't be involved in any way in selling drugs with fentanyl hidden inside them.
To receive a lesser punishment, the defendants would have to submit to court-ordered substance use evaluation and complete within nine months drug treatment as long as it's available in the state.
Under Roy's proposal, anyone caught violating their probation would be sentenced to a minimum term, three and a half years for a fentanyl crime, at least five years for causing someone's death.
Critics: Minimum mandatory looks tough but accomplishes little
Completion of a lesser sanction would require at least 250 hours of community service for a fentanyl crime, 300 hours for someone who causes another's death.
Rep, Buzz Scherr, D-Portsmouth, was a leading appellate criminal defense lawyer.
'I have substantial problems with mandatory minimums given the history of the war on drugs. Incarcerations have been shown not to have the kind of impact we intended it to have even though the intent was good,' Scherr said.
Roy's panel broke along party lines on the proposal 9-7, with all Republican members in support and all Democrats in opposition.
House Democrats praised Roy for trying to soften the minimum mandatory provisions.
Rep. David Meuse, D-Portsmouth, said there's no evidence that judges in the state have issued lenient penalties against serious drug dealers.
'What I am not seeing is how this bill makes anything any better,' Meuse said. 'This is an opportunity to perform in politics.'
While campaigning for governor, Ayotte said she learned in the 15 years since she was attorney general New Hampshire had fallen behind with tough criminal penalties for drug crimes compared to surrounding states.
'We're out of step and I'm for restoring New Hampshire's image for having among the toughest penalties on fentanyl in the nation,' Ayotte said during a recent interview.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Bill Gannon, R-Sandown, sponsored both bills and has been pressuring Roy's committee for weeks to take action.
Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais came to the State House in January to testify for both bills.
It's unclear whether the Senate and Ayotte will support Roy's changes.
Roy is right about the House's past on the topic with libertarian Republicans often joining Democrats against these bills.
A year ago, then-Gov. Chris Sununu supported these two ideas that cleared the Senate.
The House last spring voted 340-24 to block the fentanyl bill's passage by placing it on the table and sent the other one off to study.
What's Next: The full House of Representatives early next month will vote on whether to support Roy's compromise.
Prospects: There's still good odds this happens, but this changes the calculus a bit. Assuming Roy can get his bill through if the Senate balks at it, this could face more talks before a conference committee to reach consensus between the House and Senate.
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