Lawmakers renew push to bring back New Hampshire’s death penalty

CONCORD — A renewed push to reinstate the death penalty is taking shape in New Hampshire, six years after lawmakers voted to abolish it following sustained advocacy from the late Rep. Renny Cushing.

Four bills — HB 1413, 1730, 1737 and 1749 — take different approaches. HB 1413 would restore the death penalty as it existed before the 2019 repeal, applying only to those convicted of capital murder. HB 1749 goes further, proposing to make first‑ and second‑degree murder eligible for capital punishment. HB 1730 and HB 1737 would expand the statute to include certain sexual offenses committed against children.

Cushing, a Hampton Democrat who died in 2022 after a multi‑year battle with prostate cancer, spent more than two decades pushing to end capital punishment in New Hampshire. Bipartisan majorities in the Legislature voted three times — in 2000, 2018 and 2019 — to abolish the death penalty, only to see governors from both parties veto the legislation.

Cushing prevailed in 2019, when lawmakers overrode a veto from Gov. Chris Sununu by one vote. Cushing’s testimony that year, in which he spoke about the murders of his father and brother‑in‑law, remains one of the most memorable moments of the repeal effort.

To read more, visit seacoastonline.com.

•••

These articles are being shared by partners in the Granite State News Collaborative. For more information, visit collaborativenh.org.