Associate Justice of the New Hampshire Supreme Court Anna Barbara Hantz Marconi has been indicted on two felonies by a grand jury for allegedly interfering with the criminal investigation of her husband, according to the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office.
Hantz Marconi has been charged with two class B felonies and five misdemeanors for allegedly asking Gov. Chris Sununu to intervene and “wrap up” the Department of Justice’s investigation into her husband, Geno Marconi, the director of the New Hampshire Port Authority.
Geno Marconi, is currently the subject of a grand jury investigation whose purpose has not been made public. He has taken leave from his position at the New Hampshire Port Authority.
In a joint statement, a trio of attorneys for Hantz Marconi, Richard Guerriero, Jonathan Kotlier, and Oliver Bloom, said she was innocent.
“She did not violate any law or rule,” the statement reads. “We will fight the charges to the fullest extent permitted by the law, starting with motions to dismiss the case which we anticipate filing soon. We intend to fight these wrongful accusations in court, where the fight should occur, and not in the media.”
According to one indictment released Wednesday, Hantz Marconi appealed to Sununu to step in on her husband’s case, claiming the investigation “was the result of personal, petty and/or political biases.”
She also told the governor “that there was no merit to allegations against or subsequent investigation into Geno Marconi” and “that the investigation into Geno Marconi needed to wrap up quickly because she was recused from important cases pending or imminently pending before the New Hampshire Supreme Court,” the indictment alleges.
Sununu did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
Asked by WMUR about the investigation in an August interview after Hantz Marconi had taken her leave from the Supreme Court, the governor said: “Our office doesn’t know a whole lot. I mean, we really don’t.”
The indictments allege that Hantz Marconi also reached out to Steve Duprey, the Pease Development Authority chairman and a prominent Republican, “regarding the employment of Geno Marconi and/or an investigation into Geno Marconi,” the indictment states.
She has been charged with attempting to commit improper influence and criminal solicitation — both felonies — as well as additional misdemeanor charges for official oppression, obstructing government administration, and criminal solicitation.
Hantz Marconi is not currently serving on the New Hampshire Supreme Court; she has been on administrative leave since July 26. That 90-day administrative leave decision is set to expire Oct. 24.
Attorneys for Hantz Marconi did not answer a question about whether she would voluntarily resign from the court.
Addressing the charges, Attorney General John Formella said “no person is above the law.”
“The decision to charge a sitting Justice of the New Hampshire Supreme Court was not made lightly, and it comes after careful and thoughtful deliberation,” Formella said in a statement Wednesday. “It is my hope that the public will be reassured that all individuals, including public officials, are treated equally under the law.”
The associate justice is due to face an arraignment on Nov. 21 at 1 p.m. in Merrimack County Superior Court.
This story was originally produced by the New Hampshire Bulletin, an independent local newsroom that allows NH Business Review and other outlets to republish its reporting.
