Latest news with #KellyAyotte
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Burlington mayor responds to city being named ‘sanctuary jurisdiction'
BURLINGTON, Vt. (ABC22/FOX44) – After the Department of Homeland Security released Friday a list of 'sanctuary jurisdictions' that do not comply with federal immigration law, Burlington mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak, whose city was specifically named along with Winooski, Montpelier, and the state of Vermont as a while, said she disagreed that the city is violating federal law. 'Burlington has had a Fair & Impartial Policing Policy for years – this policy offers important guidance to local law enforcement officers, both to prevent discrimination on the basis of protected classifications, and to provide explicit clarity that our local police agency is not charged with enforcement of civil immigration law. 'This policy is crucial for maintaining trust between the community and the police department, and it ensures that people can call for help without fear of discrimination based on immigration status or other protected class.' Burlington Mayor announces who she intends to hire as fire chief The city's official policy, effective as of October of last year, cites the protections against 'unreasonable search and seizure' offered by the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in saying that Burlington police officers do not have the authority to enforce federal immigration law, and may not detain people on behalf of federal immigration authorities without a warrant. Read Burlington's Fair & Impartial Policing Policy hereDownload The list of 'sanctuary jurisdictions' complies with Executive Order 14287, which cites 'public safety and national security risks' and allows the federal government to cut off funding to states, counties, and municipalities on the list. It calls lack of compliance with immigration authories 'lawless insurrection against the supremacy of Federal law'. New Hampshire bill would target sanctuary cities like Lebanon and Hanover The neighboring state of New Hampshire recently banned sanctuary cities in the state, with governor Kelly Ayotte saying, 'New Hampshire will never be a sanctuary for criminals, and we will keep working every day to remain the safest state in the nation.' Neverthless, Lebanon and Hanover in New Hampshire were specifically named on the list. Mulvaney-Stanak says she has no intention of changing the city's policies to match federal demands. 'Burlington, like other communities identified as sanctuary jurisdictions, has a proud history of welcoming immigrants and refugees to our City, and we will not back down from ensuring the safety of all who live, work and visit our community.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
New poll suggests high concern about NH housing, but mixed appetite for zoning reform
The poll, released Thursday, asked respondents whether they support legislation that would require cities and towns to relax their zoning policies to make it easier to build a home. (Getty Images) Granite Staters continue to overwhelmingly cite the scarcity of affordable housing as the most pressing concern, a new poll from the University of New Hampshire suggests. Faced with a range of options that included taxes, education, jobs, and cost of living, 36% of respondents to the poll said housing is 'the most important problem facing New Hampshire' — far and away the biggest share. The next highest category was taxes; 10% of respondents chose that as the most important issue. But when it comes to the most likely legislative approach to address the housing shortfall this year, residents are more divided. The poll, released Thursday, asked respondents whether they support legislation that would require cities and towns to relax their zoning policies to make it easier to build a home. Thirty-eight percent supported that legislation — 15% strongly — but 40% opposed it. Of those that were against it, 18% were strongly opposed. The response comes as the Republican-led Legislature has passed a pair of bills that would bar municipalities from making certain zoning restrictions; both bills are making their way to Gov. Kelly Ayotte's desk. House Bill 631 would require municipalities to allow multi-family developments in commercial zones, such as shopping areas. And House Bill 577 would allow homeowners to build a detached accessory dwelling unit by right and expand the size limitations to do so. The issue of housing scarcity dominated both Democratic and Republican campaign platforms in 2024, and lawmakers in both parties have found common ground in legislation that would forcibly remove local zoning barriers to housing. Some groups, such as the New Hampshire Municipal Association, are opposed to those bills, arguing that cities and towns should be able to craft their own zoning codes and should react to the housing shortage with approaches supported by their residents. Republican lawmakers have shown less support this year for devoting state resources to encourage more development; the House-passed budget would eliminate the Housing Champion Program, a 2023 effort to give special grants and state support to towns that voluntarily changed their zoning codes to be more friendly to housing. House and Senate lawmakers have also blocked efforts to increase the amount of money going to the state's affordable housing fund, which is currently allocated $5 million of state tax revenues per year. The May 29 UNH poll was released three months after a poll conducted by YouGov on behalf of Housing Action New Hampshire, a housing advocacy group, appeared to show more support for zoning changes. In that poll, conducted March 3 to 10, more than 75% of respondents supported policies to 'allow more homes near business and shopping districts,' allow 'flexibility for paved parking areas,' 'allow homes on slightly smaller lots,' and 'make it easier to build accessory dwelling units.' The Housing Action poll also found that 54% of respondents said building more homes is more important for New Hampshire than protecting the character of neighborhoods from change, compared to 35% who said the opposite and 11% who were not sure. The Housing Action poll worded its questions differently than the UNH poll; the former poll asked about legislation that would 'allow' homeowners to build certain structures, while the latter poll asked about legislation that would 'require' cities and towns to change their zoning codes to achieve that. 'Granite Staters are about evenly divided on this issue,' states the UNH survey report.
The Independent
3 days ago
- General
- The Independent
New Hampshire governor rejects hearing for Pamela Smart, sentenced to life for husband's 1990 death
New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte rejected on Thursday the latest request for a sentence reduction hearing from Pamela Smart, who is serving life in prison for orchestrating the murder of her husband by her teenage student in 1990. Smart, 57, was a 22-year-old high school media coordinator when she began an affair with a 15-year-old boy who later fatally shot her husband, Gregory Smart, in Derry. The shooter was freed in 2015 after serving a 25-year sentence. Though Smart denied knowledge of the plot, she was convicted of being an accomplice to first-degree murder and other crimes and sentenced to life without parole. It took until last year for Smart to take full responsibility for her husband's death. In a video released in June, she said she spent years deflecting blame 'almost as if it was a coping mechanism.' On Wednesday, Smart wrote to Ayotte and the governor's Executive Council asking for a hearing on commuting her sentence. But Ayotte, a Republican elected in November, said she has reviewed the case and decided it is not deserving of a hearing before the five-member panel. ' People who commit violent crimes must be held accountable to the law,' said Ayotte, a former state attorney general. 'I take very seriously the action of granting a pardon hearing and believe this process should only be used in exceptional circumstances.' In her letter, Smart said she has spent the last 35 years 'becoming a person who can and will be a contributing member of society.' Calling herself 'what rehabilitation looks like,' she noted that she has taken responsibility for her husband's death. 'I have apologized to Gregg's family and my own for the life taken and for my life denied to my parents and family for all these long years,' she wrote. Smart's trial was a media circus and one of America's first high-profile cases about a sexual affair between a school staff member and a student. The student, William Flynn, testified that Smart told him she needed her husband killed because she feared she would lose everything if they divorced. Flynn and three other teens cooperated with prosecutors and all have since been released. The case inspired Joyce Maynard's 1992 book 'To Die For' and the 1995 film of the same name, starring Nicole Kidman and Joaquin Phoenix.
Washington Post
3 days ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
New Hampshire governor rejects hearing for Pamela Smart, sentenced to life for husband's 1990 death
CONCORD, N.H. — New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte rejected on Thursday the latest request for a sentence reduction hearing from Pamela Smart , who is serving life in prison for orchestrating the murder of her husband by her teenage student in 1990. Smart, 57, was a 22-year-old high school media coordinator when she began an affair with a 15-year-old boy who later fatally shot her husband, Gregory Smart, in Derry. The shooter was freed in 2015 after serving a 25-year sentence. Though Smart denied knowledge of the plot, she was convicted of being an accomplice to first-degree murder and other crimes and sentenced to life without parole.
Associated Press
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Associated Press
New Hampshire governor rejects hearing for Pamela Smart, sentenced to life for husband's 1990 death
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte rejected on Thursday the latest request for a sentence reduction hearing from Pamela Smart, who is serving life in prison for orchestrating the murder of her husband by her teenage student in 1990. Smart, 57, was a 22-year-old high school media coordinator when she began an affair with a 15-year-old boy who later fatally shot her husband, Gregory Smart, in Derry. The shooter was freed in 2015 after serving a 25-year sentence. Though Smart denied knowledge of the plot, she was convicted of being an accomplice to first-degree murder and other crimes and sentenced to life without parole. It took until last year for Smart to take full responsibility for her husband's death. In a video released in June, she said she spent years deflecting blame 'almost as if it was a coping mechanism.' On Wednesday, Smart wrote to Ayotte and the governor's Executive Council asking for a hearing on commuting her sentence. But Ayotte, a Republican elected in November, said she has reviewed the case and decided it is not deserving of a hearing before the five-member panel. 'People who commit violent crimes must be held accountable to the law,' said Ayotte, a former state attorney general. 'I take very seriously the action of granting a pardon hearing and believe this process should only be used in exceptional circumstances.' In her letter, Smart said she has spent the last 35 years 'becoming a person who can and will be a contributing member of society.' Calling herself 'what rehabilitation looks like,' she noted that she has taken responsibility for her husband's death. 'I have apologized to Gregg's family and my own for the life taken and for my life denied to my parents and family for all these long years,' she wrote. Smart's trial was a media circus and one of America's first high-profile cases about a sexual affair between a school staff member and a student. The student, William Flynn, testified that Smart told him she needed her husband killed because she feared she would lose everything if they divorced. Flynn and three other teens cooperated with prosecutors and all have since been released. The case inspired Joyce Maynard's 1992 book 'To Die For' and the 1995 film of the same name, starring Nicole Kidman and Joaquin Phoenix.
