Gov. Ayotte is ‘looking forward’ to replacing Hantz Marconi on Supreme Court

The New Hampshire Supreme Court in Concord. (Photo by Dave Cummings/New Hampshire Bulletin)

Gov. Kelly Ayotte said she is eager to replace New Hampshire Supreme Court Justice Anna Barbara Hantz Marconi, who was convicted last week of criminal solicitation but is being allowed to remain a justice, in February.

“I really think this is something that needs to be addressed to the Department of Justice, to the attorney general,” Ayotte told reporters Wednesday. “But I will tell you that I am looking forward to February when I can replace her.”

Hantz Marconi pleaded “no contest” — which means she isn’t openly admitting guilt but she is accepting conviction — on Oct. 7 in a Concord courtroom to charges related to a conversation with then-Gov. Chris Sununu about an investigation into her husband. Prosecutors accused her of attempting to wield her influence as a Supreme Court justice to convince Sununu to intervene in a criminal investigation into whether Geno Marconi, her husband and the state port authority director, had illegally shared confidential records. As part of a plea deal, Hantz Marconi was fined $1,200 and will not serve time in jail. Notably, she is being allowed to return to her position after a panel of judges convened to discuss the matter concluded she hadn’t committed a “serious crime.”

In February, Hantz Marconi will turn 70 and reach the mandatory retirement age for New Hampshire judges. At that point, Ayotte will have the opportunity to nominate her replacement. The justice was appointed and sworn in by Sununu in 2017. After she heard arguments in cases Wednesday, she became the first convicted criminal to serve on the state’s Supreme Court.