Left: New Hampshire Supreme Court Associate Justice Anna Barbara Hantz Marconi is sworn in by Governor Christopher Sununu on August 8, 2017 (WMUR). Right: Geno Marconi, Port Director, New Hampshire State Port Authority, during a briefing on state infrastructure projects at the New Hampshire Port Authority in Portsmouth, N.H., April 19, 2022 (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky).
A New Hampshire Supreme Court justice who is married to a long-embattled state official has been indicted for interfering with a criminal investigation into her husband.
According to prosecutors, New Hampshire Supreme Court Associate Justice Anna Barbara Hantz Marconi attempted to influence Gov. Chris Sununu to cut short an investigation into Marconi’s husband, State Ports and Harbor Director Geno Marconi. A Merrimack County grand jury indicted the judge Wednesday for one count of attempt to commit improper influence and one count of criminal solicitation of improper influence — both felonies — and five misdemeanors: two counts of criminal solicitation of misuse of position, one count of criminal solicitation of official oppression, one count of official oppression, and one count of obstructing government administration.
Geno Marconi, the longtime Director of the New Hampshire Division of Ports and Harbors, was abruptly put on administrative leave from his position in April. He is currently the subject of a grand jury investigation, but the purpose of that investigation has not yet been made public. According to reports in August, three people with ties to the harbors that Geno Marconi’s office oversaw were subpoenaed to testify before a Rockingham County grand jury about interactions between him and the Port Authority.
Over the course of Geno Marconi’s lengthy career at Ports and Harbors he faced multiple allegations of misconduct. He was disciplined in 2006 after a report issued by the state attorney general at the time concluded that Marconi misused public funds, accepted illegal gifts, and used racist slurs. As a consequence, Geno Marconi’s annual salary was decreased by $5,000, and he was required to submit to monthly behavioral reviews.
Following the incident, he was reappointed to his position amid speculation that he was involved in drive-by shootings of witnesses against him.
Marconi denied wrongdoing and was never charged with any crimes in the matter.
In late July, Hantz Marconi was placed on an unexplained 90-day leave of absence from her position on New Hampshire’s Supreme Court by the court’s four other justices. She remains on leave and is not hearing cases.
The indictment charges that Hantz Marconi told “Gov. Christopher Sununu that an investigation into Geno Marconi was the result of personal, petty, and/or political biases; that there was no merit to the allegations against or subsequent investigation into Geno Marconi; and/or 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.”
Sununu appointed Hantz Marconi to the bench in 2017.
New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella issued a news release Wednesday that the investigation into the interference is complete, that no one other than Hantz Marconi had been the investigation’s target, and that no other individuals were found to have committed any wrongdoing as a result of the investigation.
“No person is above the law, and the evidence in this case required investigation and presentation to the grand jury,” said Formella in the statement. “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. It is my hope that the public will be reassured that all individuals, including public officials, are treated equally under the law.”
If convicted, Hantz Marconi faces up to seven years in state prison and a fine of up to $4,000 for each felony, and up to 12 months in a correctional institution and a fine of up to $2,000 for each misdemeanor.
Geno Marconi has not yet been charged with any crimes, though a grand jury has been convened in Rockingham County to investigate his activities.
In a statement released Wednesday, Hantz Marconi’s lawyers said she did not violate any state rules or laws, and that “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.”
Marconi is scheduled to be arraigned on Nov. 21 in Merrimack County Superior Court.
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