Last August, my Attorneys filed a federal suit against the City of Nashua, naming eight City leaders, alleging numerous violations of constitutional rights. All this stemmed from trying to access public records in Nashua, which began in 2018.
At the time this began, I had no idea that this would become a decade-long story.
The Court’s inability to apply their own Administrative Orders (2013-08) to Right-to-Know cases has weighed the Scales of Justice in favor of the City and denied citizens the due process for priority hearing entitled under the state statute. In Nashua, there are no checks and balances on the Judicial side of the Court. It appears, there is no oversight. Clear and unambiguous Administrative Orders are interpreted by Judges in a manner to dissuade citizens from accessing the Court. If a citizen believes a Judge has committed a rule violation, the only place to bring the matter is to the Judicial Conduct Committee (JCC). This serves as the end of the line for misconduct complaints. There should be something in between. This creates an inefficiency that, again, weighs to the advantage of the City.
The JCC is an organization wrapped in secrecy that moves along at a snail’s pace providing little feedback on the process. It is a wait and see game that can take years. So, these clear violations of due process in the lower court are not easily fixable. The City wins with delays that the Court is responsible for, running up legal bills and locking down records for years. Is this intentional?
I filed a Professional Conduct Committee (PCC) complaint against an Attorney, Brian Cullen, for what I believed was a targeted action on the part of the City to shut down a reasonably and legally afforded annulment. The Court ruled in my favor on the Annulment. However, the PCC did not act on my complaint against Mr. Cullen. Attorneys protect other attorneys.
Attorney Cullen argued to the PCC and Court that I was trying to gain an advantage in the federal case by requesting the annulment. Of course, the City wants nothing more than to shut down any further Superior Court rulings that would support the constitutional violations alleged in the Federal Case.
It would seem the incorrect argument employed by Attorney Cullen, is now being used by the Court to slow down Right-to-Know cases so rulings and orders will not be issued until after the Spring 2024 Federal trial. The Court’s actions feel I am being forced to settle.
This is not the due process citizens are entitled to. Nashua Citizens ability to seek redress in Court for violations of RSA 91-A is being destroyed. The mess the Court has created has shut down legal representation for citizens. The City can continue to operate outside the law. The Court’s alignment with the City is a victory for the City.
A Lack of Transparency is a Symptom of Dishonesty
