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Committee considers bill to criminalize knowingly false reports about law-enforcement misconduct
Summary
House Bill 109 would create or revise false-reporting offenses to make knowingly false reports of officer misconduct a misdemeanor; supporters and critics debated investigative and prosecutorial implications.
Representative Dennis Mannion introduced House Bill 109 as a companion measure aimed at false reports to law-enforcement agencies. The bill would make it a misdemeanor to knowingly report to an officer or agency that a police officer engaged in misconduct if the reporter knows the allegation is false, and would increase penalties for knowingly reporting false or baseless allegations of criminal conduct to an agency.
Sponsor's intent: Mannion said the measure targets people who intentionally make false accusations in retaliation against officers or to obstruct investigations, not people who make honest but unproven complaints. "Knowingly" is a high standard, he told the committee; investigations would still proceed and an internal-affairs or detective inquiry would usually occur before any charge would be considered.
Questions from committee members focused on whether the bill would chill legitimate complaints about misconduct. Representative Muse asked specifically whether the bill might deter victims from reporting real misconduct; Mannion replied that the statutory standard is high and that unproven or unfounded reports would not alone trigger a criminal charge. Major Brendan Davey of the New Hampshire State Police testified in support and suggested narrowing the statute to align with existing codified misconduct provisions (he cited RSA 10:519 as a place where conduct is already defined).
Legal context: Representative Scherer asked about overlap with the state's unsworn falsification statute (RSA 641:3), which already criminalizes false statements made without oath. Major Davey said many false allegations in practice are not sworn statements, and the new statute would address some fact patterns not covered by unsworn falsification or other existing criminal provisions.
No formal vote was recorded at the hearing. Supporters said the bill provides a tool to deter retaliatory, intentionally false complaints; critics warned legislators to avoid chilling legitimate reporting of misconduct and urged careful drafting to avoid duplicative statutes.
