Also on today’s menu:
Former Franklin Police Chief Killed In Concord
Man Killed In Franklin Standoff
The death of Rosalynn Carter has prompted many people to share their experiences with the former first lady, including this account by a stenographer flying on Air Force One:
On the way back from an overseas trip aboard Air Force One, First Lady Rosalynn Carter vacated her chair and sat at the feet of President Carter so that I would have a chair to sit on in order to stenotype the President’s remarks at a briefing to the press pool of reporters. I wanted to object to her gesture, but realized there was no other option in the small room we were afforded. People Magazine published a photo on their cover page of First Lady Rosalynn Carter on the floor between her husband and me. I do not know what I would have done had she not humbled herself on my behalf. Rest In Peace, Mrs. Carter.
When Katie Couric asked former president Jimmy Carter on NBC’s “Today” show in October 2002 whether winning the Nobel Peace Prize was the most exciting thing that had ever happened to him, he responded, “Well, when Rosalynn said she’d marry me, I think that’s the most exciting thing.”
The marriage lasted more than 77 years, with Rosalynn joining him in hospice care late last week. Jimmy had been in hospice care in Plains, Georgia, since February, and she was now suffering from dementia at age 96. Her stay was brief: She died on November 19, leaving Jimmy, who is now 99, behind. He issued a statement: “Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished. She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me.”
Discussion: The Carters embodied the faith and ethics that we wish everyone occupying the White House would embrace, and they carried those qualities on after returning to civilian life, literally working with Habitat For Humanity and seeking a better world. Those of us living in the Granite State can take pride in knowing that it was the face-to-face campaigning during the New Hampshire Primary that elevated Jimmy Carter from an unknown peanut farmer into national prominence. The Democratic National Convention wants to eliminate New Hampshire’s role in order to promote its own vision of who should be president, and many of today’s evangelical Christians have replaced the Carters’ faith with worship of a man who embodies hate rather than humanity.
Former Franklin Police Chief Killed In Concord
Bradley Haas, 63, of Sanbornton, a security guard at New Hampshire Hospital in Concord and a former Franklin police chief, died from a gunman’s shot on November 17. The shooter opened fire as he approached the metal detectors at the entrance of the secure psychiatric hospital where Haas was stationed. A nearby state police officer then shot and killed the 33-year-old gunman, who has been identified as John Madore, a transient and former patient at the facility.
Haas retired as Franklin police chief in 2008, saying he wanted to spend more time with his family. He had been with the department for 28 years, during which time he tried to solve the 1971 rape and murder of Kathy Lynn Gloddy, a cold case that has baffled the community since then. Haas was 11 when the crime occurred.
Department of Labor Commissioner Ken Merrifield, who was Franklin’s mayor when Haas became police chief in 2006, was just yards away from him when the shooting started around 3:30 p.m. on Friday. “Brad was a wonderful man, very stable, calming, reliable,” Merrifield recalled. “He was chosen for stability. It had the desired effect. It stabilized operations, made people feel good again.”
Madore had previously been arrested twice on charges involving firearms, and apparently attempted suicide in 2016, the year he was hospitalized at the psychiatric hospital. Mike Garrity of the Attorney-General’s Office said authorities are investigating how Madore came to possess firearms.
Discussion: I did not know Brad Haas well while serving as editor and publisher of The Telegram in Franklin, and left before he became police chief, but my encounters with him left the impression that he was a likable, astute police officer. His death raises further questions about how someone with known mental illness was able to access weapons. The question arose last month with the mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine. The New Hampshire Legislature had passed a so-called red-flag bill in 2020, but Governor Chris Sununu vetoed it, and an attempt to override the veto failed. Regardless of how one feels about gun ownership, it should be clear that someone with as fragile a hold on their actions as Madore should not own one.
Man Killed In Franklin Standoff
Just two days after Haas’ killing, Franklin again was in the news for a shooting. A woman at 32 West Bow Street called police at 9:54 p.m. to say her neighbor across the hall had attempted to force his way into her apartment. Officers got her out of the building and attempted to speak with the neighbor, leading to a standoff with gunshots coming from inside the residence.
Police issued a shelter-in-place order for Central and West Bow streets, and called in a special operations team from the State Police.
Authorities say black smoke issued from the eaves and windows of the building at 2:35 a.m. on the 20th, and fire was spotted at 3:01 a.m. An exchange of gunfire followed, and the man was found wounded just outside the apartment building near a first-floor window. He later was pronounced dead.
An autopsy of the victim is scheduled to take place today. His identity has not been released.
Discussion: The red-flag law that the governor rejected also would have applied to domestic violence cases. There are not enough details available to indicate whether the attempt to enter the woman’s apartment was related to a prior relationship, so it is too early to draw a conclusion in this case, but it does highlight another problem with current gun laws. Allowing people in volatile relationships to possess weapons can lead to tragedy; but confiscating weapons from people who have not (yet) used them for violence is problematic. It is a fine line without a clear means of delineation.
National Gratitude Month
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