Ruais leads bipartisan push for bail reform

Jan. 3—CONCORD — Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais and a bipartisan group of city officials and state legislators lobbied for bail reform on Wednesday while Senate President Jeb Bradley, R-Wolfeboro, expressed optimism that 2024 would break a five-year logjam over the issue.

"There is nothing, and I mean nothing, that will have a more transformative impact on crime in the city of Manchester than bail reform," Ruais said during a news conference Wednesday.

Without any debate, the Republican-led state Senate and House of Representatives approved their own proposals for when and in what way violent offenders should be required to see a judge before getting bail.

The House endorsed a four-bill package, the product of months of negotiations led by House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee Chairman Terry Roy, R-Deerfield.

A short time later Wednesday, the state Senate passed its own, broader measure (SB 248).

On his second full day on the job, Ruais said he wasn't taking sides but called the House package a "good important first step" toward a compromise.

"I am not going to prejudge their work. I am going to let the Legislature legislate and share any concerns" with lawmakers privately, Ruais said.

Bradley praised House leaders for dropping their long opposition to changing a 2018 law to require some charged with a serious crime to see a judge before getting bail.

"Nobody gets everything they want around here," Bradley said. "I think we are on the road to fixing what is really an egregious problem."

Rep. David Meuse, D-Portsmouth, said House leaders sought to create a plan that made changes throughout the judicial branch rather than simply set up higher roadblocks for offenders to be released.

"We are pleased to be delivering a comprehensive, bipartisan bail reform package that better protects public safety and preserves civil liberties, while addressing flaws within the system," Meuse said.

The Senate's plan allows police to detain those charged with any of 13 specific crimes for up to 36 hours until they see a judge for bail.

These included the misdemeanor offenses of domestic violence and child pornography.

Differences in House plan

The House measure limited these covered crimes to felonies.

The House plan would actually lower the legal standard needed to detain someone because they posed a "dangerousness" to the community based on their past actions.

The Senate bill requires "clear and convincing evidence," while the House plan as passed (SB 252) would reduce that benchmark to "substantial evidence."

The House package included three other bills:

—Court magistrates (SB 249): This would hire 15 magistrates, at least one in each county, with the goal of ensuring offenders see a court official at least 24 hours after an arrest, even on a weekend.

—Bail commissioner pay (SB 318): For decades, bail commissioners have gotten $40 a case and had to chase offenders to get paid. This raises that fee to $50 and orders court administrators to pay the bail workers up front. The judicial branch has to seek payment from offenders with means who would have up to one year to come up with the fee amount. Training for bail commissioners also would be standardized.

—Commission study (HB 653): This tasks an already existing commission with studying how to make sure all 10 counties have pre-trial services that can save taxpayers money and a witness program that supports victims.

Former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig, a Democratic candidate for governor, praised the House outline for reform.

"I'm grateful for the legislature's efforts to correct the harmful unintended consequences that have allowed violent offenders to be released back into communities as a result of the 2018 bail law," Craig said in a statement.

What's next

Both House and Senate proposals were sent to their respective Finance Committees to review the cost of these proposals.

While the two sides are close at hand, a final deal is months away.

The House Finance Committee already has scheduled hearings on their bills in early April.

Rep. Ross Berry, R-Manchester, said some conservatives would prefer to repeal the 2018 bail law outright.

"I think we are talking today about the middle ground; we are finding that common ground," Berry said.

Senate Democratic Leader Donna Soucy of Manchester said she's confident consensus will emerge.

"There are going to be differences of opinion, but I am confident we can solve those in a meaningful way," Soucy said.

Ruais said it's critical for all stakeholders to stay focused on accomplishing something.

"The windshield is far bigger than the rearview mirror," Ruais said.

Devon Chaffee, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union-New Hampshire, said that after bail reform passed through 2021, violent crime dropped 18% statewide, 15% in Manchester and 22% in Bedford.

"We continue to urge lawmakers invested in strengthening our bail system to adopt proposals that would address concerns raised without violating Granite Staters' civil liberties, like creating a real-time bail tracking system and creating an avenue for magistrate judges to preside over bail hearings," said Chaffee, whose group took no position on these bills.

Ruais said in the past year, 813 criminals were arrested, released and re-arrested for similar crimes.

"There is no question in recent years (since 2021) those numbers have been going up," Ruais said.

klandrigan@unionleader.com