Discounted Fine, Admission Of Guilt End NSC-131 Concord Civil Rights Case

By Damien Fisher, NH Journal

After Merrimack Superior Court Judge John Kissinger ruled against Neo Nazi gang NSC 131 and imposed a maximum default fine of $10,000 against leader Christopher Hood, the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office decided to make a deal for less money.

Hood and his gang, Nationalist Social Club-131, have been engaged in a protracted civil rights case with the state since 2023, when they harassed patrons and staff at a Concord café’s drag queen story hour.

The group’s members shouted white-power and Nazi slogans, performed Nazi salutes and pounded on windows while attempting to stop a drag performer using the name Juicy Garland from reading children’s books at Teatotaller Café, according to court records.

Attorney General John Formella announced the agreement reached this week between the state and Hood during a news conference Thursday. Formella portrayed the resolution as a victory for his office’s Civil Rights Unit, even if it came at a discount.

“I think [this] is a great example of the work that our [Civil Rights Unit] does,” Formella said.

Under the final decree, Hood faces the maximum $10,000 fine, but $7,500 is suspended. That means he must pay $2,500, perform 250 hours of approved community service, and agree not to violate New Hampshire’s Law Against Discrimination again.

Hood, NSC-131, and the other defendants also are prohibited from knowingly coming within 250 feet of any Teatotaller location or contacting any of the business’s owners or employees. The café is now known as Totally Tea and Coffee.

Part of the deal requires Hood to acknowledge that he did, in fact, violate the Civil Rights Act during the Drag Queen Story Hour incident. Sean Locke, the Senior Assistant Attorney General who directs the Civil Rights Bureau, told NHJournal that admission is a significant win for the state. Hood had previously maintained he and his gang did nothing wrong.

Hood could have been responsible for the full $10,000 under a final default judgment. The default ruling resulted largely from NSC-131’s repeated refusal to comply with court orders requiring it to turn over evidence during discovery.

Earlier this year, the group was ordered to pay $16,500 in attorneys’ fees and costs related to the discovery dispute.

Formella said the negotiated agreement is better for everyone.

“They’ve resisted our litigation efforts every step of the way, but we’ve engaged in negotiations with these defendants because, in our view, if we can reach a reasonable resolution that brings accountability, that’s a better outcome than a default judgment,” Formella said.

Hood is the only group member publicly identified in the case and the only named individual covered by the agreement. Hood and his lawyers refused to turn over evidence that could have identified the other NSC-131 members involved in the Concord demonstration.

Senior Assistant Attorney General Sean Locke, who directs the Civil Rights Unit, told Kissinger earlier this month that the lack of discovery was making it impossible for the state to prepare for trial.

“The State is left in limbo in light of Defendants’ nonfulfillment,” Locke wrote. “The State has been unable to fully engage in the discovery process with follow-up discovery requests, having never received Defendants’ responses to the State’s requests for documents.”

“Further, the State is unable to make strategic litigation decisions regarding depositional needs,” Locke added. “In sum, Defendants’ years-long failure to produce discovery responses has derailed this case and unfairly prejudiced the State.”

Locke told NHJournal that Hood’s admission of wrongdoing represents a significant victory for the state. Hood previously maintained that he and his group had done nothing illegal.

Other than the reduced payment, the primary difference between the negotiated agreement and the likely outcome of a final default judgment is the community-service requirement. A final judgment could have imposed the full $10,000 fine and ordered Hood to stop engaging in unlawful discriminatory activity, but it would not have required the community service, Formella said.

“I think the community service is significant,” Formella said. “I think it’s a significant consequence that we couldn’t have imposed under the statute. But I think when you look at these cases, and you look at the full picture of these cases, it’s not just about imposing consequences, right? We are trying to change hearts and minds.”

The prolonged litigation also appears to have damaged Hood’s organization. Formella said Hood’s attorney indicated NSC-131 is no longer active, and Hood reportedly announced that he was stepping away from the organization.

“So we have good reason to believe that this organization, NSC-131, is essentially defunct in New Hampshire,” Formella said.

The Civil Rights Unit receives hundreds of reports annually alleging bias or hate activity in New Hampshire. Formella said reports involving organized groups such as NSC-131 have declined since the state took Hood and his organization to court.

“I am hopeful that our actions against NSC-131 will send a message to this other organization, Blood Tribe, that New Hampshire is not a friendly environment for organized hate groups,” Formella said.

This story was originally published by the NH Journal, an online news publication dedicated to providing fair, unbiased reporting on, and analysis of, political news of interest to New Hampshire. For more stories from the NH Journal, visit NHJournal.com.