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New vote on pot legalization slated in NH House this week
The NH House of Representatives is scheduled to vote Thursday on a measure to legalize sale and possession of marijuana for recreational uses.
This will be the second time for representatives to vote on House Bill 1633.
On Feb. 22, the House voted, 239-141, in favor of the measure.
On April 2, the House Finance Committee voted, 19-6, to recommend House passage of a revised version of the bill. (Bills with financial elements have to go to that committee before returning for a second vote of the full House.)
Rep. Chuck Grassie, D-Rochester, wrote a statement in support of the bill.
“The legalization of cannabis will move production and sales from the underground, sometimes dangerous, illicit market to legal businesses, allowing for appropriate regulations and control,” he said.
In a statement in opposition to the bill, Rep. Kenneth Weyler, R-Kingston, repeated a message Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin made when he vetoed a legalization bill in that state on March 28:
“States following this path have seen adverse effects on children’s and adolescents’ health and safety, increased gang activity and violent crime, significant deterioration in mental health, decreased road safety, and significant costs associated with retail marijuana that far exceed tax revenue.”
Proponents of legalization say such public safety and crime arguments are undocumented and unfounded, and add that state regulation of marijuana would mitigate some of the dangers posed in the illicit market such as mixing cannabis with other substances.
New Hampshire is the only state in New England that hasn’t legalized marijuana for recreational use.
Under HB 1633, there would be 15 stores authorized as state franchises to sell cannabis products to adults. The bill would prohibit use of the drug in public and while driving. Medical marijuana sales were legalized in New Hampshire in 2013.
If the N.H. House again passes the marijuana legalization measure, it would be considered by the Senate, which has rejected House-passed legalization bills in the past.
One difference this year is that Gov. Chris Sununu, who had been an opponent of legalization, now says he would support it under certain conditions such as strong state regulation and a limited number of stores. — Rick Green, Keene Sentinel
Vineesha Sow
McLane Middleton’s Vineesha Sow admitted to New Hampshire State Bar
The law firm of McLane Middleton announced that attorney Vineesha S. Sow has been admitted to the New Hampshire State Bar.
Vineesha focuses her practice on employment and education matters. She has experience advising higher education institutions, public school districts, and independent schools in a full-spectrum of areas, including but not limited to student- and parent-related issues, disciplinary matters, special education and civil rights.
Vineesha also has extensive experience representing education institutions in matters before the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, and the Division of Administrative Law Appeals in MA. In the context of employment, Vineesha advises clients on a range of employment matters such as separation agreements, terminations, discrimination/harassment, and she has significant experience conducting workplace investigations.
Vineesha has represented a range of clients in arbitrations, collective bargaining and before the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination. Vineesha routinely provides training to clients on a range of education and employment issues impacting daily operations to support legal compliance and mitigate risks. She can be reached in the firm’s Boston office at (857) 305-1963 or vineesha.sow@mclane.com.
Added security staff to be implemented at NH Hospital
The New Hampshire Department of Safety recently announced the issuance of a Request for Proposal (RFP) for security guards at New Hampshire Hospital. The RFP is among the first steps to enhance security and address staffing needs to ensure the safety of all staff, patients, and visitors at the hospital.
The RFP, along with other forthcoming efforts to enhance security at NHH, are the result of security plan recommendations identified by DOS following a thorough assessment of existing protocols and systems, which was conducted at the direction of Governor Sununu following an active shooter event at NHH in November 2023.
“The safety of our employees and patients at New Hampshire Hospital is our number one priority,” said Gov. Chris Sununu. “The collaborative work done by New Hampshire Hospital, state agencies, and stakeholders to implement improvements will go far in enhancing security at New Hampshire Hospital.”
DOS has worked closely with NHH and the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, which operates NHH, to conduct a comprehensive assessment of NHH’s safety needs. The safety approach taken in a psychiatric facility such as NHH must be carefully calibrated to account for the needs of a highly vulnerable patient population. The model requires that all clinical interventions must be attempted and fail before any defensive measures may be used. The model commits to best practice informed by NHH clinicians and stakeholders, as well as guidance from national organizations responsible for patient safety.
The RFP, which seeks a vendor to provide security services for NHH in Concord, was formulated in conjunction with DHHS. Per statute, DOS oversees security at the facility.
Following the conclusion of the RFP process, the selected vendor will be tasked with providing contracted security guards, with professional certifications and training, who will patrol NHH 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, 365 days per year.
Contracted security guards will only carry firearms in the facility’s main lobby while screening patients, staff and visitors at the hospital’s entrance, or while patrolling the grounds, unless an emergency requires otherwise. Additionally, contracted unarmed security guards may assist within units, and in all patient and non-patient areas of the hospital, when requested by clinicians.
All contracted security guards will be required to have training in de-escalation techniques, defensive tactics, and proper use of pepper spray and tasers. Contracted security guards may also be tasked with assisting officers from the State Office Complex Police Force, and New Hampshire State Police Troopers, who will continue to respond to all calls for service within NHH and the State Office Complex.
“I’m grateful for the collaborative work that has been done between the Division of State Police, State Office Complex Police Force, NHH and the Department of Health and Human Services relative to these security enhancements, which will help ensure the safety and security of everyone at NHH,” said Safety Commissioner Robert L. Quinn. — Eagle Times staff
Disciplinary state hearings to continue for Diaper Spa owner
The Diaper Spa owner will have to wait for two more public disciplinary hearings before authorities decide if she illegally operated her business without medical certification.
Colleen Ann Murphy, of Atkinson, was scheduled to appear before the New Hampshire Boards of Mental Health Practices and Psychology on Friday, but both were continued until later dates. Murphy was pressed by the Board of Medicine in her first disciplinary hearing on Wednesday.
The Board of Psychologists hearing will take place at 9 a.m., on May 3 at the New Hampshire Office of Professional Licensure and Certification, 7 Eagle Square, Concord.
It is unclear when the Mental Health Board hearing will be rescheduled.
The state boards are questioning Murphy’s certification in psychology, general medicine and mental health practices when she provided services to her clients.
The Diaper Spa, which she ran out of her Atkinson home at 23 Pope Road, catered to adults aged 21 and older, serving “all diaper-wearing individuals who seek acceptance, respite, and care” in a nursery-like atmosphere.
Public concern over the nature of the business arose in late January. The Atkinson Zoning Board of Adjustment denied The Diaper Spa a home business permit on Feb. 14 after its owner admitted operating from November until to Dec. 24, without a town or state business permit.
The upcoming state hearings will focus on if Murphy engaged in the unlawful and unlicensed practices of psychology and mental health.
On her business application which she submitted to Atkinson ZBA, she listed her services as “mental health counseling” with talk and experiential therapies.
She had also indicated on the application and subsequent hearings with the town and state that she saw on average one client per week at her home when The Diaper Spa was in operation.
Wednesday’s hearing centered around Murphy’s potential unauthorized medical practices. Murphy argued the Diaper Spa never offered any medical services, but rather provided a nurturing space for childlike experiences.
But Medicine Board member and family physician Jonathan Ballard questioned Murphy on some mental health and therapy aspects of The Diaper Spa and the community she was serving.
He said one of the state psychiatrists on their boards said paraphilia needs training and certification to treat people with the disorder. He said the community of Adult Baby Diaper Lovers, ABDL, can fall under this category.
“I was just accepting who they were,” Murphy said and added she did not diagnose anyone.
Ballard had also pressed her on putting psychiatry as an experience on one of her applications. Murphy responded she has never practiced psychiatry, but worked in a hospice setting offering emotional and behavioral support to patients and their families.
Murphy also explained she is a surrogate partner therapist.
She stated she has not been an active physician for several years, but pivoted to new ventures to use her expertise. Murphy tagged “MD” throughout her website as self-expression.
Murphy told the Medicine Board she never diagnosed anyone at The Diaper Spa or accessed psychiatric records of clients. She stated most of her business is tele-health remote coaching for people already seeing a therapist.
She said her business was used for people who sought to return to a playful, childlike frame of mind, both physically and emotionally, in order to relax.
Murphy has since put a disclaimer on The Diaper Spa’s website saying none of her services are intended for medical treatment or care. — Angelina Berube, Eagle Tribune
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