Ex-Portsmouth ER doctor charged in domestic violence assault eyes plea deal

HAMPTON — A prominent local doctor and former police officer is scheduled to plead guilty in a domestic assault case, though the charges are still being negotiated by prosecutors and the defense.

Harry Wallus, a former Portsmouth Regional Hospital physician and Greenland police officer, is facing two felony second-degree assault charges and seven misdemeanors after police say he strangled his girlfriend and broke two of her ribs in 2022. He pleaded not guilty earlier this year, but Thursday, July 20, his attorney Tom Reid told a Rockingham Superior Court judge that a plea deal was in the works.

Reid told Judge Daniel St. Hilaire he and prosecutors were close to a deal a few weeks ago, and that they are confident they will finalize one in time for a capped plea and sentencing. He and prosecutor John Goodlander agreed to put the sentencing on the calendar for Sept. 13.

“We are going to be able to resolve it as discussed,” Reid said. He declined to comment further after the hearing.

Previous story: Woman shares story of assault by Portsmouth ER doctor charged with domestic violence

Rockingham County Attorney Patricia Conway said after the hearing prosecutors and the defense are still negotiating the charges to which Wallus will plead guilty. She declined to comment further on the negotiations.

Wallus was scheduled to go to trial this summer, and Thursday’s hearing was a pre-trial conference. A capped plea and sentencing is when a judge hears arguments from prosecutors and the defense’s attorney to determine a sentence that falls within their proposed minimum and maximum.

Greg's Bistro crash in Hampton: Man pleads guilty to DWI, apologizes to victims

Conviction could impact Wallus’ medical license

Under state law, the New Hampshire Board of Medicine may take disciplinary action against licensed physicians convicted of a felony pending a hearing. Wallus currently has an active medical license with the New Hampshire Office of Professional Licensure and Certification, issued in 2013 and set to expire on June 30, 2025.

The victim in the case, Ashley Gardner, said she hopes Wallus pleads guilty to all of the charges and that the deal does not exclude the two felonies.

“He’s guilty for everything that he is being charged with,” Gardner said.

However, Gardner said a plea deal demonstrates accountability. She also said it rules out the potential for Wallus to appeal his conviction if it went to trial.

“Accepting the plea deal forces him to admit and take responsibility for his actions,” Gardner said. “It also protects me from him trying to appeal so that I am able to fully move on and never look in the rearview mirror.”

More crime: Ex-Massachusetts cop charged with sexual assault in Hampton

Charges allege violent assault at Wallus’ Greenland home

Wallus’s charges, coupled with testimony by Gardner in a police affidavit, allege he strangled her with her sweatshirt by pinning her on the ground and kicking and punching her side to break her ribs. Gardner told police Wallus attacked her because of text messages on her phone the morning of Feb. 6, 2022.

Police say the assault occurred at a Brackett Point Road home in Greenland, where police say Wallus was living at the time. Greenland officers responded at 10:27 a.m. and met Gardner, who was bleeding from her nose and had blood running down to her mouth, according to the police affidavit.

Gardner told police Wallus attacked her because of texts she sent to a friend. She said he grabbed her by the hair, threw her on the floor, held her down, punched her in the left side of the rib cage and slammed her hand on the floor before taking her phone.

She said Wallus then remained on top of her and caused her sweatshirt to pull on her neck to the point of being choked. She said she told him she could not breathe, and he allegedly replied, "Good I hope you die you rotten (expletive)." She said she got one arm free, unzipped the sweatshirt, and got him off her.

Wallus was a decorated physician, police officer

Wallus won awards for his work at Portsmouth Regional Hospital as a physician in their emergency department, including one in 2016 for “excellent patient care and outstanding professional relationships with EMS.”

He has also been a member of the law enforcement community, first as a civilian affiliate of the Seacoast Emergency Response Team as an emergency physician, according to the SERT team’s current commander, Exeter police Deputy Chief Josh McCain. He also briefly served as a part-time police officer at the Greenland Police Department, starting Sept. 16, 2016, according to the department’s records.

Wallus is no longer employed by Greenland police nor Portsmouth Regional Hospital, according to the organizations. Wallus’ employment ended in Greenland Nov. 13, 2018, following an OUI arrest in York, Maine. Ellen Miller, spokesperson for Portsmouth Regional Hospital, confirmed in February he was no longer employed by the hospital.

If you need help

As a community service, the following information is published with stories in which domestic and/or sexual violence is alleged, while making no judgment on the guilt or innocence of the accused:

If you need support Haven has trained confidential advocates available. The 24-hour hotline is (603) 994-SAFE (7233). Its confidential online chat service is available Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at havennh.org.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Ex-Portsmouth ER doctor set to plead guilty in domestic assault case