by Ed Naile
It had to happen.
Our old pal Rosie McNamara, former tax collector of Ashland, until she was caught “misappropriating” about $2 million dollars and went to jail, was arrested again.
Earlier this month Rosie decided to stop paying a court ordered $25.00 per week to the town and was re-arrested.
What a putz!
When you get a sweetheart deal like Rosie did you should at least pony up the court payments and stay out of trouble until you can get another backward town to hire or elect you.
Here is a list of the goodies that fell Rosie’s way after the $2 million dollars in tax money went missing in Ashland – beside very little press coverage at the time.
Rosie hoofed it with a sizable chunk of change and pleaded guilty to stealing only about $110,000.00.
She was represented back in 2000 by Paul Hodes, an attorney with Shaheen and Gordon. Not bad for an indigent who can only pay the Town $25 per week in restitution. It looks like she spends that amount daily on Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey.
The NH Parole Board left her off with a slap on the wrist sentence in light of $2 million missing. I was at the hearing and it appeared to me the Ashland Selectmen were promised a longer sentence than two years.
The NH Parole Board consisted of three members back then – all appointments of Gov. Jeanne Shaheen – wife of a prominent member of the Shaheen/Gordon Law Firm.
The prosecutor was AG Phil McLaughlin – appointed by Gov. Shaheen.
Had anyone involved recused themselves Rosie might have had to suffer the indignities of a court-appointed lawyer, not a prominent lawyer, soon to be congressman.
The statements given to the Attorney general by the parties in Ashland who oversaw Rosie’s employment and worked with her, some of which described her in glowing terms, seem to have been taken at the Local Government Center in Concord – the insurance provider for Ashland which paid Ashland about $600,000.00.
It looks like everyone involved put an extra amount of elbow grease into poor Rosie’s plight by looking the other way when conflicts of interest appeared.
And now she dumps on them by reneging on a $25 dollar a week payment.
Paul Hodes has some time on his hands now that he is out of office. Maybe he will step up to the plate again for this sad little municipal monster.