New Hampshire
New marijuana legalization bill gets New Hampshire hearing – The Boston Globe
CONCORD, N.H — The New Hampshire Legislature is as soon as once more debating leisure use of marijuana however efforts to legalize it nonetheless face vital hurdles.
Within the decade for the reason that state legalized medical marijuana, the Home has handed leisure marijuana payments a number of occasions solely to see them get killed within the Senate. Republican Governor Chris Sununu additionally has been an opponent, and his workplace mentioned Wednesday that he doesn’t anticipate new laws to succeed in his desk this 12 months.
Undeterred, a coalition that features each the American Civil Liberties Union of New Hampshire and the conservative group People for Prosperity is backing a bipartisan invoice to legalize the drug, regulate and tax retail operations, and permit it to be grown at dwelling. Many of the income would go towards decreasing the state’s pension legal responsibility, with some going to substance abuse prevention packages and different teams.
Sponsors embody each Republican Home majority chief Jason Osborne and Home Democratic chief Matt Wilhelm.
“What you’re looking at is a results of numerous months of labor by a whole coalition of teams and advocates, every thing from the enterprise aspect to the patron aspect, the civil rights aspect to the financial liberty aspect, in addition to the restoration neighborhood and other people involved about little one security,” Osborne advised the Home Commerce and Client Affairs Committee. “It’s about time we get one thing completed.”
Wilhelm emphasised the lasting hurt that unequal enforcement of present marijuana legal guidelines has on individuals of shade, the potential benefits of legalization, and polling that exhibits greater than 70 % of residents assist it.
“It’s clear communities, households, retirement safety, and the financial system might be stronger as soon as we legalize hashish in New Hampshire,” he mentioned.
Opponents raised considerations about well being and public security.
Bedford Police Chief John Bryfonski, talking on behalf of an affiliation of 160 chiefs, mentioned marijuana legalization has elevated “tragedy and chaos on our highways.”
“There may be nothing on this invoice that may create a possibility for legislation enforcement to have the ability to shield you and your households from marijuana impaired drivers,” he mentioned.
Bryfonski argued that the US already has already paid an amazing worth after having been tricked by the tobacco and pharmaceutical industries.
“The query now’s, are we going to be bamboozled by the marijuana trade? That’s a call that you’ll have to make,” he mentioned. “But it surely’s the women and men of legislation enforcement that should choose up the items.”
Requested for the governor’s place on the invoice, Sununu spokesperson Ben Vihstadt didn’t reply straight.
“Governor Sununu has completed extra on the problems surrounding marijuana reform than another governor in New Hampshire historical past,” Vihstadt mentioned.
Sununu signed laws decriminalizing small quantities of marijuana, increasing entry to medical marijuana, and making a system for annulling previous convictions for marijuana possession. However a invoice to legalize leisure use has by no means reached his desk.
“With teen drug use and overdoses on the rise, it’s not anticipated that the Legislature will see this as a time to disregard the information and transfer it ahead,” Vihstadt mentioned.
New Hampshire
New Hampshire State Troopers investigating fatal crash on the Interstate 93 ramp
3 people are deceased as New Hampshire State Police investigate a crash on the Interstate 93 ramp in Salem, N.H.
State Troopers, alongside members of the Salem Fire Department and New Hampshire Department of Transportation, were dispatched at 2:02pm for a report of a single-vehicle crash at the Exit 2 offramp from 1-93 Southbound.
Initial investigations believed that the vehicle, a 2012 KIA Sportage, had veered off onto the right side of the offramp, traveling through the grass, and then striking a culvert. The vehicle immediately stopped.
Both the driver and two passengers were pronounced dead at the scene. The driver has been identified as Rodney J. Dore, 71, of Pelham. The passengers were identified as Anne J. Dore, 70, also of Pelham, and Lisana M. Alexander, 45, of Salem.
The offramp was closed for a short period of time while troopers conducted initial investigations before reopening around 6pm.
As the investigation continues, N.H. State Police are urging the public with any information to contact Trooper Mark Lingerman at 603-223-4381 or mark.n.lingerman@dos.nh.gov.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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New Hampshire
One dead in single-car crash in Nashua
One person is dead after a single-vehicle crash in Nashua, New Hampshire early Sunday morning.
Nashua Fire Rescue says they responded to a report of a crash at around 1:08 a.m.
When they arrived, authorities say they found a car had hit the center barrier and ended up against the overpass on Tinker Road.
Hydraulic rescue tools were used to access the person inside the car, according to authorities.
The person in the car was declared dead at the scene.
New Hampshire State Police is investigating the incident.
New Hampshire
90-year-old great-grandmother graduates from New Hampshire college 50 years after finishing degree
MANCHESTER N.H. – Some people may have thought there was a celebrity in the building at Southern New Hampshire University’s graduation on Saturday. Annette Roberge certainly felt like one as she crossed the stage to get her diploma at 90 years old.
“I’m still on cloud nine,” Roberge said. “I can’t even put it into words. It was exhilarating, it was awesome, it was beyond anything I could’ve possibly imagined.”
Degree 50 years in the making
This degree has been decades in the making for the mother of five, grandmother of 12, and great-grandmother of 15. She began taking classes at New Hampshire College, now SNHU, in 1972 one year after her husband of 20 years was killed in Vietnam.
She completed several night and weekend courses before it took a backseat to her five kids and two jobs. Roberge worked as an insurance agent while she finished up as a lunch lady at a nearby school. Roberge retired at age 75, but she was a woman who loved learning, and she knew something was missing from her life.
“If I started something I just have to finish it,” Roberge said.
But it wasn’t until recently that Roberge’s daughter began poking around and learned her mom had earned enough credits for an associate’s degree in business administration. Barring some health challenges, Roberge finally walked across the stage on Saturday to the roaring cheers from her fellow graduates and a standing ovation.
“Never give up on learning because what you learn can never be taken away from you,” Roberge said.
“It matters so much for the example it sets about what we do for ourselves, to keep learning and stretching and growing,” SNHU President Lisa Marsh Ryerson said.
“Don’t ever give up on a dream”
Roberge even had a parting message for all of her new fellow graduates.
“If you’ve got a dream don’t let it just sit there. Do something, make it work, don’t ever give up on a dream.”
If you thought Roberge would be satisfied with her associate’s degree you’d be wrong. She plans to start working towards her bachelor’s degree in January.
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