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Committee hears emotional arguments for and against narrowing New Hampshire’s trial‑petition time limit
Summary
Proponents of HB1422 told the Senate Judiciary Committee that the three‑year absolute bar to filing a motion for a new trial prevents innocent people from seeking relief when new evidence emerges; prosecutors and the attorney general’s office urged a narrowly tailored exception to avoid frivolous petitions and resource drains.
Representative Tom Mannion introduced House Bill 1422 to create a narrow exception to New Hampshire’s three‑year limit on petitions for a new trial when newly discovered evidence — including new forensic testing or confessions — comes to light.
Mannion called the bill a measure to correct wrongful convictions, explaining the proposal would not change legal standards but would allow petitions based on material new evidence to be considered beyond the current absolute deadline. He said the bill is about "liberty, fairness and due process."
Witnesses who had been wrongfully…
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