Stand Your Ground expansion clears House
Feb. 25—BEDFORD — Citizens who think they are under attack inside their car or truck would be able to respond with deadly force under legislation that cleared the New Hampshire House of Representatives Thursday.
The proposed expansion (HB 197) of the Stand Your Ground law was an early demonstration of how gun rights advocates will be on the offense, rather than defense, now that Republicans control both branches of the Legislature and Chris Sununu is governor.
The House voted, 206-144, to initially approve the bill.
A House committee took out a reference in the original bill that would have let citizens respond with deadly force against "the commission of a riot against a person." The panel decided that was subjective.
House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Chairman Daryl Abbas, R-Salem, said the measure is a logical extension of the existing law.
"It's only natural that you could protect yourself inside your vehicle as you can protect yourself inside your home," Abbas said.
Rep. Ray Newman, D-Nashua, said this would lead to an increase in violent road-rage incidents with potentially tragic outcomes.
"We have seen too many times in other states where people feel they can be the judge, jury and executioner to decide what they see is a felony crime only to be later charged with murder," Newman said.
New Hampshire's Stand Your Ground law allows anyone to use deadly force outside their home if a person is about to use deadly force against them or someone else, or in their home or surrounding property if someone is using force while committing burglary, kidnapping, a forcible sex act or another felony against someone.
Moms Demand Action, a national gun control group, opposed the bill.
"Loosening our state gun laws will only make our communities less safe and put lives in jeopardy," said Deidre Reynolds, a volunteer with the New Hampshire chapter. "This bill will push the Granite State in the wrong direction and threaten public safety."
The House set aside a second bill (HB 81) that would make it clear someone can use deadly force to protect "another" invited into their home.
Without further action within a month, it will take a two-thirds vote in the House to move that second bill along.
"Both bills were good, but they worked in counter-purposes against each other, the way the language was written. Our supporters decided to move on the first, and see if we all can create an even better final product in the Senate," said J.R. Hoell, secretary of the New Hampshire Firearms Coalition.
Gun advocates win again
Second Amendment supporters won an earlier victory Wednesday, setting aside a bill that would allow a court to issue an order against anyone abusing a "vulnerable adult" (HB 246).
House Democratic Leader Renny Cushing of Hampton authored the legislation, which Sununu has vetoed in each of the past two years.
Gun rights advocates maintained the bill would permit a judge to order guns be confiscated from someone without due process. Gun control supporters denied it went that far.
The House took the unusual move of voting to indefinitely postpone the legislation.
This means the House can't even consider a similar topic in another bill until 2023 at the earliest.
Law enforcement leaders won their own non-deadly-force victory Thursday, with the House killing legislation to ban the use of rubber bullets and tear gas (HB 564).
"This is a good-faith effort to arrive at a good-faith standard regarding the use of non-lethal weapons," said Rep. Casey Conley, D-Dover, of the bill.
Local and state police officers told a House panel these tactics are rarely used but are essential at times to safely convince a dangerous suspect to surrender.
Abbas said state law already prohibits a police officer from firing rubber bullets wantonly into a crowd of protesters.
The vote to kill that bill was 225-126.
Packard asks for less rancor
The second session day at the NH Sportsplex began with House Speaker Sherman Packard, R-Londonderry, making a plea for less partisan rancor the morning after more than 100 House Democrats walked out of the chamber in protest of GOP leadership taking up an anti-abortion bill (HB 233). After the walkout, the House passed that bill.
"Why has it become that when we disagree on an issue we think that other person is an enemy and not just someone who thinks differently? It is my hope we can put yesterday behind us," Packard said.
Lawmakers need to accept the consequences of voters ending Democratic control of the Legislature and turning it over to GOP hands, he said.
"Legislation is going to get passed that the Democratic caucus hates," Packard said. "Last session, legislation was passed that the Republican caucus hated. That's just the way it works."
After his speech, Packard walked up and shook hands with Cushing, who had led the Democratic walkout.
