Brown supporter (Haas) gets okey dokey to move trial

[Demosthenes]

Ally wins fight to move trial

By Margot Sanger-Katz
Monitor staff

September 19, 2007

Joe Haas, a Gilmanton man and Ed Brown ally facing charges over an e-mail he sent to a Lebanon city councilor, got a brief reprieve from his trial yesterday when he persuaded a judge to move his case to a different venue.

Haas cited a provision of the New Hampshire Constitution that requires trials be held in the jurisdiction where alleged crimes occurred. Justice Bruce Cardello of the Newport District Court agreed with Haas and ordered the trial be moved back Lebanon District Court.

Haas is accused of threatening Councilor Terri Dudley when he sent her an e-mail instructing her to "WISE UP OR DIE." He sent the e-mail to Dudley after a city council meeting he attended where he failed to persuade councilors to discipline the town's police chief for his involvement in seizing commercial property owned by the Browns in town.

Ed and Elaine Brown were convicted of a number of tax-related crimes and have remained holed up in their Plainfield home for months evading capture. Federal agents seized the building that once housed Elaine Brown's dental practice in June; the Lebanon police helped them.

Haas, who frequents the Legislature, library and courts disputing property taxes and questioning federal jurisdiction over state matters, argued that local authorities should not have supported a federal effort that he believes is illegitimate. In the e-mail, which was sent to all the councilors, but mentioned only Dudley by name, he wrote:

"When you become a public servant you owe fidelity to the truth. Either you do your job, or get out of the way. WISE UP OR DIE. If the latter be your choice, then BE GONE with you NOW!"

Dudley said that she feared for her safety when she read the e-mail. Haas said "wise up or die" was a rhetorical choice, like the state motto "Live Free or Die." He said he added the statement to his message to get the councilor's attention, not to indicate that he'd harm her.

"I want her to wise up; I want her to do the right thing," Haas said yesterday of his intent when he sent the message. "If I was a member of that community, I would vote her out of office, but because I'm not, my only option is she's got to die.

"I'm not going to do that," he added, suggesting she might expire from guilt over failing to perform her public duty.

But Dudley said she was afraid when she received the message, and she contacted the police. Haas has been charged with a misdemeanor count of criminal threatening. If he's convicted, he'll have to pay a $1,200 fine but will not face jail time.

"When the e-mail came through, to tell you the truth, it was a frightening experience," Dudley said.

Dudley said that she and Haas have a history going back many years. Several years ago, she was the clerk for the state House judiciary committee, where Haas frequently testified. According to Dudley, Haas was angry at her for failing to include his comments in her notes on a particular bill and threatened to send her anthrax. She did not press charges then.

In an interview yesterday, Haas said he did make an anthrax-related comment, but, as when he sent his e-mail, he did not mean to suggest that he would send her anthrax himself.

"What I recollect is that was the time the anthrax stuff was going on, so I followed on the coattails of that," Haas said. "I got so mad, I said, 'You all deserve anthrax.' "

Haas's case had been moved from the Lebanon District Court because both judges there recused themselves. But Cardello said Haas has a right to be tried there if he wishes. The trial has not yet been rescheduled, but Haas said he hoped it would happen soon so he can start speeding again without worrying about violating his bail conditions.

Haas has been charged with criminal threatening before, for an e-mail he wrote to Attorney General Kelly Ayotte in 2005, saying her month-old daughter would die if she didn't drop charges against a friend of his. The case was dismissed when the judge found that the law he'd been charged under - improper influence of a public official - was unconstitutional because it was too broad.

Dudley said she would still testify against Haas at the new venue. She said she felt compelled to bring charges this time because she worried authorities were underestimating Haas.

[grixit]

Victory!

Of course he won't be able to cite the judge's attitude as grounds for appeal.