Democratic Rep. Arrested for Stalking Woman Twice, Violating Protective Order
Reduxx reported that Rep. Stacie Laughton (D-NH) was arrested on Nov. 12 for reportedly violating a protective order.
Laughton made headlines several years ago for being the first openly transgender public official representing the state of New Hampshire.
Laughton was reelected in the recent November midterms.
Less than a week after the election, Laughton was arrested for violating a domestic violence order by stalking an unidentified woman and initiating prohibited contact via social media.
Hudson Police Department report that Laughton’s Nov. 12 detention was the second time officers arrested the representative in less than three months. Laughton was arrested in September for violating the same court order but was released shortly thereafter, according to The Daily Wire.
The September arrest was not made public during the campaign.
There are mounting calls for Laughton to step down:
Nashua State Rep Sherry Dutzy @sherrydutzy, we the voters of New Hampshire ask you to call for Stacie Laughton to step down. Stalking & violence against women should have zero tolerance. No woman should be fearful, terrified looking over their shoulder every day #NHPolitics
— New Hampshire Porcs and Rec (@SValmont7) November 21, 2022
House Democratic Rep. Timothy Horrigan (D-Durham), however, provided a limited show of support for Laughton on Twitter:
“She’s gotten into a lot of trouble over the years & she keeps getting into trouble, but she’s basically a good person. She’s not violent or abusive, or harmful to anyone other than herself.”
FWIW, Rep.Laughton is a lifelong Granite Stater.
— Timothy Horrigan (@TimothyHorrigan) November 15, 2022
She's gotten into a lot of trouble over the years & she keeps getting into trouble, but she's basically a good person. She's not violent or abusive, or harmful to anyone other than herself.
GOP state Rep. Kim Rice replied to Horrigan’s statement, saying, Laughton “needs some help.”
“I don’t think the person she was stalking would feel the same way,” Rice said. “I am thinking that person would definitely think they were harmed. I’m shocked sitting on the [House] Judiciary Committee you would even say this.”
I’m sorry Tim she needs some help! I don’t think the person she was stalking would feel the same way. I am thinking that person would definitely think they were harmed. I’m shocked sitting on the judiciary committee you would even say this
— kimberly a rice (@kimberlyarice1) November 15, 2022
New Hampshire House Democratic Majority Leader David Cote said Laughton “is entitled to the due process and presumption of innocence afforded to all accused persons,” according to the BizPac Review.
The outlet added that legislatures have “full confidence that New Hampshire’s judicial system will take appropriate and swift actions to protect the rights of the accused and any victims.”
The Daily Wire noted that Laughton’s legal problems span more than a decade and includes a felony conviction for identity and credit card fraud and falsifying physical evidence.
In addition, in 2015 Laughton was charged with making a bomb threat to the Southern New Hampshire Medical Center.
Laughton, who was receiving treatment for bipolar disorder at the time of his arrest, reportedly said: “I wasn’t trying to hurt anyone. It was totally out of character for me.”
Since winning the New Hampshire House seat in 2020, police have charged Laughton with several counts of providing false information to the city’s 911 emergency system. Laughton denied the charges.
The NH Journal reported that in an interview with Paul Smith, clerk of the New Hampshire House of Representatives, he “said the state does not have a provision to remove a member of the legislature who has committed a crime.”
Pete Silva, a Nashua Republican, told Patch that information about Laughton’s September arrest should have been made public before the November election.
“If I lived in the district, I would be extremely disappointed to learn, just days after the election, that my neighborhood was going to be represented by a person that only four years ago was convicted of a felony charge involving conspiracy and fraud and served time in prison.”
