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New Hampshire House Passes Another Cannabis Legalization Bill

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New Hampshire House Passes Another Cannabis Legalization Bill


The New Hampshire House of Representatives last week approved legislation to legalize cannabis, the second time in just over a month the chamber has passed a bill to end the prohibition of marijuana.

Lawmakers in the House approved HB 198, sponsored by Democratic Rep. Jared Sullivan, by a vote of 208-125 on March 26. If passed by the New Hampshire Senate and signed into law, the legislation would allow adults aged 21 and older to possess up to two ounces of cannabis flower. The bill would also legalize possession of up to 10 grams of cannabis concentrates and other marijuana products containing no more than 2,000 milligrams of THC, the primary psychoactive compound found in cannabis.

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“It is 2025. Let’s stop arresting people and ruining their lives for possession of cannabis, something that many states in the country have already legalized,” Sullivan said before Wednesday’s vote, according to a report from Marijuana Moment.

The bill would not legalize commercial cannabis production and sales. The public consumption of cannabis would also remain against the law.

The sponsor of the legislation said that lawmakers seem to agree that cannabis should be legalized. The remaining disagreements center on how cannabis sales should be legalized and regulated.

“Once we get it legal, we can continue to have that debate. That seems to be where the sticking points [are]: Do we want it to be a private, industry-based model? Do we want to be a state-run model?” Sullivan asked his colleagues in the House. “These things are where we’re getting kind of caught up in the weeds, and it seems like most people agree that we should legalize it.”

House Passes Two Weed Legalization Bills This Session

The passage of HB 198 came about five weeks after the New Hampshire House passed HB 75, a different bill to legalize the possession of marijuana without authorizing regulated sales of cannabis.

If passed, the bill from Republican Rep. Kevin Verville would remove criminal penalties for possessing and using cannabis by adults aged 21 and older. Like Sullivan’s bill, the legislation would not create a regulated cannabis industry or legalize sales of recreational marijuana. Public consumption of cannabis would also remain illegal.

Marijuana would still be illegal for those under age 21 under Verville’s bill. Those under age 21 caught using or possessing marijuana would be guilty of a violation. Minors under age 18 found to be possessing or using cannabis would be referred for substance use disorders screening.

New Hampshire Governor Opposed To Legalizing Weed

The same day House lawmakers passed HB 198, New Hampshire Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte, who took office in January, repeated her opposition to legalizing recreational marijuana.

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“I’ve been very clear on this,” Ayotte told reporters on March 26, Marijuana Moment reported on Monday. “I ran on this issue, and the people of New Hampshire know where I stand on it. I don’t support it.”

“I don’t think it is the right direction for the state for a lot of reasons,” she told reporters, according to a report from InDepthNH. “I believe, if you think about our quality of life, if you think about some of the concerns that can flow from that. I know…we talked about safety on our roadways. I think that there are a number of issues that states who have legalized cannabis have experienced in those regards that I just don’t think can be addressed at the moment with the existing technology.”



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New Hampshire

5-year-old injured in New Year’s day Manchester, New Hampshire apartment building fire dies

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5-year-old injured in New Year’s day Manchester, New Hampshire apartment building fire dies



The child who was injured during a New Year’s Day apartment building fire in Manchester, New Hampshire has died, the New Hampshire State Fire Marshal announced on Saturday.

The 5-year-old girl had been found unresponsive in a fourth-floor bedroom by firefighters. She was rushed to a Boston hospital in critical condition and passed on Wednesday. The Massachusetts Office of the Chief Medical Examiner has performed an autopsy to determine her cause of death.

The fire began just 30 minutes after midnight on Union Street. The flames raged on the third and fourth floors before spreading to the roof. One man was killed in the fire. He was identified as 70-year-old Thomas J. Casey, and his cause of death was determined to be smoke inhalation, according to the medical examiner.

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One woman was rushed to a Boston hospital in critical condition. Five other people received serious injuries and were hospitalized. All the victims have since been discharged, according to the fire marshal. 

Residents could be seen waiting in windows and on balconies for firefighters to rescue them. 

“I kicked into high gear. I got my family rallied up. My son, my daughter, my wife. And I tried to find a way to get down safely off of one of the railings by trying to slide down one of the poles. But that didn’t work out,” said resident Jonathan Barrett. 

Fire investigators believe the fire is not suspicious and started in a third-floor bedroom. The building did not have a sprinkler system but did have an operational fire alarm, the fire marshal said. 

Around 10 families were displaced by the fire and are receiving help from the Red Cross. Around 50 people lived in the building.  

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New Hampshire

New Hampshire services respond to 7-car crash

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New Hampshire services respond to 7-car crash


SPRINGFIELD, N.H. (ABC22/FOX44) – After an icy morning on Interstate 89 that saw multiple cars in a crash in Springfield, New Hampshire, responders say that they are thankful that only one person sustained injuries.

According to Springfield Fire Rescue, they originally were called at 7:40 a.m. on Friday for a reported two-car crash between Exits 12A and 13 – but arrived to find 7 vehicles involved, including 6 off the road.

According to authorities, all of the occupants of the cars were able to get themselves out and only one needed to be taken to the hospital. Their injuries were reported to be non-life-threatening.

“Springfield Fire Rescue would like to take this opportunity to remind everyone to slow down and move over when emergency vehicles are in the roadway. The area where this incident occurred was very icy and we witnessed several other vehicles almost lose control when they entered the scene at too great a speed.”

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Responders from New London, Enfield, and Springfield, as well as NH State Police, helped respond to the incident and clear the vehicles from the road, as well as to treat the ice to make the road safe.



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Man killed in NH snowmobile crash

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Man killed in NH snowmobile crash


An Alton man is dead after a snowmobile crash in New Hampshire’s North Country Thursday afternoon.

The New Hampshire Department of Fish and Game says 63-year-old Bradford Jones was attempting to negotiate a left hand turn on Corridor Trail 5 in Colebrook when he lost control of his snowmobile, struck multiple trees off the side of the trail and was thrown from the vehicle shortly before 3:30 p.m.

Jones was riding with another snowmobiler, who was in the lead at the time of the crash, according to the agency. Once the other man realized Jones was no longer behind him, he turned around and traveled back where he found Jones significantly injured, lying off the trail beside his damaged snowmobile.

The man immediately rendered aid to Jones and called 911 for assistance, NH Fish and Game said. The Colebrook Fire Department used their rescue tracked all terrain vehicle and a specialized off road machine to transport first responders across about a mile of trail to the crash scene.

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Once there, a conservation officer and 45th Parallel EMS staff attempted lifesaving measures for approximately an hour, but Jones ultimately died from his injuries at the scene of the crash, officials said.

The crash remains under investigation, but conservation officers are considering speed for the existing trail conditions to have been a primary factor in this deadly incident.



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