Edmark Nomination Pulled After New Hampshire DOC Staff Revolt

By DAMIEN FISHER, InDepthNH

Department of Corrections Commissioner William Hart is pulling Warden Michelle Edmark’s controversial nomination to be assistant commissioner after meetings last week with department staff.

“I appreciate the varying opinions and emotions that we at DOC have expressed and felt. They were important; they were heard. And now we have a new challenge,” Hart said in a department-wide email sent Wednesday morning.

Hart and Assistant Commissioner Jessica Kuron heard from DOC staffers and others about Edmark last week during off-site meetings at the offices of Orr & Reno in Concord. Edmark is a favorite of Hart, interim Commissioner John Scippa, and Gov. Kelly Ayotte, but deeply unpopular with those who work under her command.

Even without the brewing staff revolt over Edmark’s nomination, her inability to get support from the Republican-dominated Executive Council sunk her chances at the job created for her earlier this year. Ayotte expressed frustration Wednesday when the nomination was officially pulled from the Council agenda.

“I want the best people in this state with the best experience to come forward and serve the people of New Hampshire,” Ayotte said.

Before last week’s Orr & Reno meetings, DOC brass indicated strong support for Edmark’s promotion, seeing her as an experienced and capable leader. But her record under former Commissioner Helen Hanks, and her involvement in several scandals inside the department, left DOC staff outraged by the nomination. Attorney John Krupski, who represents the Probation and Parole Officers Association and the Probation and Parole Command Association, told Hart in a letter that Edmark was too much a part of the dysfunctional Hanks administration.

"In my opinion, the previous administration created a culture of fear and intimidation that permeated the culture of the department of corrections. This has also created divisiveness between divisions. Those who supported or refused to speak out received the support of the previous administration and those who opposed the administration were targeted and subject to prolonged investigations. We have spoken of some of these examples in the past. Warden Edmark was a high-level member of the previous administration who has demonstrated that loyalty and obedience is the most important attributes of a subordinate,” Krupski wrote.

Among the legal cases in which Edmark had a hand are the state lawsuit brought by former Corrections Officer Claudia Cass, and the federal lawsuit brought by former Corrections Officer Phillip Hill.

Cass’s whistleblower lawsuit is heading to trial in the Merrimack Superior Court. She was fired by Edmark in 2023 after alerting her supervisors about the dangerously low staffing levels inside the Concord prison.

Hill’s lawsuit claims he was punished by Edmark for seeking accommodations for a PTSD diagnosis, and then threatened after he filed a Human Rights complaint about his treatment. That lawsuit ended in a settlement in April with the DOC paying Hill $350,000.

But potentially more damning is the fact Edmark has not been held to account for her role in the legal disputes, or other scandals, according to Krupski.

“There have been federal and state cases filed directly as a result of the actions of Warden Edmark, but there has been no internal review or consideration that has been published,” Krupski wrote. “In addition, during her tenure of the prison there was an audit conducted of the armory in which almost 25,000 rounds of ammunition unaccounted for, weapons not tagged and a lack of documentation. However, for some reason this audit was never finalized nor was there any accountability. It has been said to me personally that Edmark was just trying to make her boss happy. This makes her a follower and not a leader.”

Hanks resigned her position suddenly last year after she lost Council support over a $2 million Taser purchase proposal, among other problems inside her administration. Records show that DOC took possession of $2 million in Tasers and accessories in 2024 without Council approval. The equipment was kept in a warehouse without Council knowledge as Hanks and other DOC leaders tried to get a purchase, and then a lease for the equipment approved.

Hart pushed changes through the legislature this year reorganizing DOC’s administration to create a second assistant commissioner position, the position Edmark was nominated to assume. But, curiously, those changes were tacked on to an education bill as amendments, and not presented to the legislature as a stand alone bill.

Hart told staff in his email he wants to focus on bringing the department together.

“From here we must focus on healing divisions within our organization and working together in support of our shared mission. Our staff, the individuals in our custody, and the people of New Hampshire deserve no less than a Department that is united, and focused on the future,” Hart wrote.

This article first appeared on InDepthNH.org and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.