New Hampshire
New Hampshire settles youth center abuse case for $10 million
CONCORD, N.H. — The New Hampshire attorney general’s office has agreed to a $10 million settlement in the case of a man who alleged that he was gang-raped in a stairwell at the state’s youth detention center in the 1990s.
Michael Gilpatrick’s lawsuit against the state would have been the second of more than 1,300 to go to trial, but instead both sides agreed to settle out of court, his lawyers said Saturday.
The payout is four times the maximum amount available to those who submit claims via the state’s settlement fund for abuse victims, though less than half the amount a jury awarded last May in another lawsuit, the first of its kind that went to trial. The $38 million verdict in that case remains in dispute as the state seeks to slash it to $475,000.
Gilpatrick, now 41, was 14 when he was sent to the Youth Development Center for three years in 1997. His lawsuit accused 10 staffers at the Manchester facility of sexual or physical abuse, including repeated rapes and being choked to the point of unconsciousness.
“There was nobody you could go to at YDC to talk to. You were literally stuck in your own thoughts, in your own fear every single day,” he said in a 2021 interview. “That place turned us into what we were. I can’t say what I am now because I’m a better person now. But coming out of that place, I was a monster.”
In one incident, Gilpatrick said, two staffers held him down in a stairwell while another raped him and a fourth man forced him to perform a sex act. Those allegations resulted in criminal charges against four former staffers whom Gilpatrick called a “hit squad;” two of them have faced trial so far.
Brad Asbury, 70, was sentenced to 20 to 40 years in prison after being convicted in November of being an accomplice to aggravated sexual assault. But jurors deadlocked in January on whether Stephen Murphy was guilty of rape, leading to a mistrial. Murphy, who denied assaulting Gilpatrick, faces three other trials related to other former residents.
“The four of them used to roll together, and they would go to different cottages and beat kids,” Gilpatrick testified at the first civil trial. “They would literally come over and just go door to door and beat every single one of us, down the line.”
The settlement spares Gilpatrick from what likely would have been another emotionally difficult court proceeding. He also testified at the two criminal trials, at times lashing out angrily at defense lawyers.
He said he did not tell anyone what happened to him at the time because dorm leaders were involved in the assault, and he then spent decades trying to bury his memories.
“Once I was about to accept the fact that it wasn’t my fault and I was able to stop blaming myself, I knew I had to say something,” he testified on Jan. 16.
Eleven former youth counselors have been arrested since the attorney general’s office began investigating the facility in 2019, though charges against one were dropped, another was found incompetent to stand trial and a third died awaiting trial. Two men have been convicted, and another case that ended in a hung jury is expected to be retried later this year.
The Associated Press generally does not identify those who say they were victims of sexual assault unless they have come forward publicly, as Gilpatrick and others have done.
The youth center, which once housed upward of 100 children but now typically serves fewer than a dozen, is named for former Gov. John H. Sununu. Lawmakers have approved closing the facility, which now only houses those accused or convicted of the most serious violent crimes, and replacing it with a much smaller one in a new location.
SALEM, N.H. — A Lowell High School freshman was identified on Friday as the victim of a fatal shooting in Salem, where authorities say the 15‑year‑old was found dead outside a home during the pre-dawn hours.
New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella’s office said in a press release that police responding to a 911 call discovered the teen, identified as Wichai Saksene, just outside the residence on Orchard Terrace.
An autopsy later determined he died from a single gunshot wound to the chest, and his death has been ruled a homicide.
Authorities said the circumstances remain under active investigation but noted there is no known threat to the public, as all involved parties have been identified.
In a message that began “sad news for your awareness,” Lowell Public Schools Superintendent Liam Skinner told School Committee members that Saksene was a Lowell High freshman and former student of Stoklosa Middle School and Lincoln Elementary School.
He added that central office staff are assisting Lowell High with communications to staff and families and that Student Support Services has activated a critical incident team to be at the high school on Monday.
The Salem Police Department stated in a social media post that they are working with the New Hampshire State Police Major Crimes Unit and Formella’s office to investigate the shooting.
Follow Aaron Curtis on X @aselahcurtis, or on Bluesky @aaronscurtis.bsky.social.
New Hampshire
Transgender former New Hampshire state representative sentenced to 33 years for child sex abuse: report
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A transgender former New Hampshire state representative will spend more than three decades in federal prison after admitting to receiving nude photos of children at a Massachusetts daycare.
Stacie Marie Laughton, 41, of Nashua was sentenced to more than 33 years behind bars after pleading guilty to sexual exploitation of children, according to a report from local outlet WCVB.
Laughton received the explicit images from his former intimate partner, Lindsay Groves, 40, of Hudson, New Hampshire, who was sentenced earlier this month to 22 years in prison, according to the report.
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Former transgender Democrat New Hampshire Rep. Stacie Marie Laughton pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of children, according to the Nashua Police Department. (Nashua Police Department)
Groves, who previously pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual exploitation of children and one count of distribution of child pornography, was employed at the Creative Minds daycare in neighboring Tyngsborough, Massachusetts, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.
Authorities said that between May 2022 and June 2023, Groves took multiple photos of prepubescent children in a private bathroom during routine diaper and pull-up changes prior to nap time.
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Stacie Marie Laughton was sentenced to 33 years in prison. (Citizens Count)
Groves then sent the photos to Laughton via text message, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
A forensic review of Laughton and Groves’ cellphones uncovered more than 10,000 text messages sent between the two over a one-month period in 2023.
Court documents revealed the messages included discussions about and transfers of explicit images of children, including victims as young as 3 to 5 years old.
Lindsay Groves used her position at a daycare to take illegal photos that were later shared with Laughton, authorities said. (Nashua Police Department)
The U.S. Attorney’s Office confirmed all the children in the case were identified, and their families were contacted by law enforcement.
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Hillsborough County jail officials confirmed to NH Journal that Laughton has been housed in the male population.
Creative Minds Early Learning Center and the U.S. Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.
PORTSMOUTH — Serving approximately 500 LGBTQ+ youth across the state, the nonprofit New Hampshire Outright has increased its programming by 25% over the past year.
Portsmouth Pride, the organization’s largest annual event, is set for Saturday, June 20, with roughly 5,000 people expected to attend the parade and events in the city throughout the weekend.
“We are serving more young people and families than ever before. Our impact is just growing day by day, year over year in terms of folks we’re able to serve and advocate for,” said Heidi Carrington Heath, NH Outright’s executive director.
The parade will step off at Pleasant Street around 12:30 p.m. Saturday, then loop through downtown to Strawbery Banke Museum, where the mainstage will host drag performances and musical acts from 1 to 5 p.m.
Heath, LGBTQ+ advocates oppose several bills before NH Gov. Kelly Ayotte
The moment is not without its challenges for the LGBTQ+ community. Heath pointed to three bills in the New Hampshire legislature that have her and other LGBTQ+ advocates around the state concerned.
The first, Senate Bill 552, awaits possible approval from New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte. The New Hampshire House of Representatives and Senate both approved the bill, sponsored by three Senate Republicans, which proposes to separate people by their biological sex in certain places, including bathrooms, locker rooms, involuntary detention facilities and sporting events.
Critics of the latest bathroom bill initiative oppose its implications for transgender youth and adults across the state, if it were to be signed into law by Ayotte. Both Ayotte and prior New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu vetoed restroom-focused bills in the past.
“We really pride ourselves on individuality and individual freedom,” Heath said. “I want us to return to those Granite State values in a variety of arenas. There is a very real cost to our kids to watching the people whose job it should be to protect you to debate your personhood in public.”
Ayotte faces another Republican bill – SB 430 – opposed by LGBTQ+ leaders in the state.
The bill, amended and adopted in both the state House and Senate, would require New Hampshire teachers and school employees to “honestly and completely” answer written requests from parents and legal guardians about their children.
The language of the bill does not directly address the LGBTQ+ community, but opponents worry that teachers may be forced to disclose a student’s gender identity or sexual orientation. If it becomes law, the mandate would take effect in New Hampshire’s schools Jan. 1.
“They just want to be kids,” Heath said of LGBTQ+ youth. “That is the gift of the work we do at New Hampshire Outright. We allow them to do that. They are navigating this in every arena of their life, out in their world, at school, etc. They just want to be kids. I want that for them, too. I really do.”
In addition, Republican Senate Bill 434, a book challenging measure, sits on Ayotte’s desk.
“No later than November 1, 2027, each local school board shall adopt a procedure to be used to address complaints submitted by parents or guardians alleging that material that is harmful to minors, age-inappropriate, or otherwise offensive or inappropriate for use in the child’s school,” the House and Senate-passed bill reads.
Complaints would be filed with the superintendent of a school district or a designee, per the bill.
What events are being held before and after Portsmouth Pride?
Before the Pride parade, from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, attendees will be welcomed at the John Paul Jones House in Portsmouth to make flags and buttons for the event.
New this year, a ticketed New Hampshire Outright Pride after party with appetizers, drinks and dancing will be hosted by The Hawthorn, a Jewell Court events center, from 7 to 10 p.m. Saturday.
The weekend’s closing event — a ticketed drag brunch at the Music Hall Lounge in collaboration with Gather and New Hampshire Outright — will be held Sunday, June 21 at 10 a.m. The drag brunch is for ages 21 and older.
Ahead of Portsmouth Pride, Heath reported New Hampshire Outright has already led or assisted in organizing nine events this year throughout the New Hampshire and Maine Seacoast region.
“We are so excited about this weekend,” Heath said. “Pride is a protest. Pride is a celebration. We are just looking forward to welcoming the community to celebrate with us at Pride and showing up big, particularly for showing young people that their identity is their superpower.”
Want to get married? Ordained minister plans to marry LGBTQ+ couples after Portsmouth Pride
Rollinsford resident Jen Walton is the daughter of a gay woman. Throughout Walton’s upbringing, she experienced taunts and isolation at school as her mother hid parts of her identity from the public eye.
Some of Walton’s earliest memories are of attending Pride parades with her mother. Now an ordained minister, Walton plans to offer 10-minute wedding ceremonies following the Portsmouth Pride parade Saturday afternoon, an idea that took shape in recent days.
“I would love to just marry as many people as I can,” Walton said.
Walton, friend and fellow ordained minister Katie Brochu and friends will station themselves at the Prescott Park fountain Saturday afternoon following the Portsmouth Pride Parade.
Couples need to bring identification, a marriage license and $20 to be approved for an impromptu Pride park wedding, according to Walton.
Three different wedding ceremony styles will be offered to couples looking to tie the knot. Walton and her friends will be on hand from 1 to 5 p.m. as the Portsmouth Pride mainstage performances occur simultaneously nearby.
“We’re really all supposed to be in this together,” Walton said. “You learn from a very young age that people are individuals and not everybody is going to think, feel and believe the same thing. For me, it’s super important that I’m an ally. I’ve said it for years and years and I’ll say it for years and years, because it’s hard.”
The event is not sanctioned by New Hampshire Outright but has Heath’s and the organization’s full backing.
“It never ceases to amaze me and bring me joy the things that people want to do around Pride month,” Heath said.
All proceeds will be split evenly between New Hampshire Outright and the Trevor Project, an LGBTQ+ suicide prevention nonprofit.
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