Documents report that Kelly Ayotte endorser threatened murder of police officers, rape of chief’s family

A report published yesterday by InDepthNH details newly released records detailing the end of the law enforcement career of State Rep. Jon Stone — a key political ally and endorser of Republican gubernatorial candidate Kelly Ayotte —  after he threatened to kill his fellow police officers in a shooting spree, murder his police chief, and rape the chief’s wife and children all while carrying on an inappropriate relationship with a 16-year-old girl.

Ayotte has repeatedly held Rep. Stone up as an endorser and recently posted a photo of herself with Stone set in front of dozens of high powered rifles in a gun store Rep. Stone started after being fired from his position as a police officer.

The Ayotte campaign touted Rep. Stone’s endorsement months after reports indicating he was taking proactive steps to keep his potentially damaging internal affairs police records hidden from public view. His name still appears on Ayotte’s website touting endorsements as of Saturday afternoon.

Dr. Nathan R. Shrader, Associate Professor of Politics at New England College, said Ayotte disavowing the endorsement as quickly as possible was a test of political viability that she was on the verge of failing. 

“It is shocking that gubernatorial hopeful Kelly Ayotte continues touting the endorsement of State Representative Jon Stone on her campaign website nearly 20 hours after the explosive revelations about him and his termination from law enforcement were detailed by InDepthNH, all of which he had been fighting to keep hidden from the public.” Dr. Shrader said. “We are at a critical juncture in American politics where we must demand more ethical, civil, and decent behavior from our elected officials.

“The best course of action would be for Ayotte to openly disavow Stone’s endorsement and for Stone to immediately resign from his position in the New Hampshire House of Representatives. ”

RELATED: Ayotte’s lies on immigration prompt fact checks by reporters

In the race for Governor, Ayotte has attempted to cement herself as the “law and order” candidate, drawing a hard line on immigration issues and crime in Massachusetts, but has been criticized for doing so at the expense of losing focus on New Hampshire-specific issues.

Ayotte’s campaign advisor Karoline Leavitt, now working for Donald Trump, recently said Republicans planned to send soldiers to the polls ” to ensure “there are no irregularities and fraud like we saw in the last election cycle,” pushing widely debunked voter fraud talking points.

New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley said the willingness to platform Rep. Stone despite previously known issues brought Ayotte’s judgment into serious question.

“It’s very troubling that she could be so reckless. This is someone who could be asked to make decisions to appoint judges, critical members of boards and commissions on issues of criminal justice. There now is a big question if she has the judgment and skills to be a governor given these early missteps,” Buckley said.

Merrimack County Sheriff David Croft said seeing a member of law enforcement enter politics with this kind of background was deeply disappointing.

“It’s so damn frustrating to see these reps get in the House… We have an outstanding law enforcement community in New Hampshire, but you get a few of these bad actors that ruin the image for everyone else,” Sheriff Croft said.

Statewide groups have begun reacting to the news, saying Ayotte’s connection to Rep. Stone would stain her campaign in a lasting way.

“Kelly Ayotte can’t possibly continue to pretend to be on the side of law and order, on the side of women, or even on the side of decency after she’s welcomed this reprehensible individual into her campaign. It isn’t the first time she was caught with a dangerous extremist and it most likely won’t be the last either. This is who Kelly Ayotte is now,” said Amplify NH Executive Director, Ryan Mahoney.

Republican House Speaker Sherman Packard had not released a statement as of Saturday afternoon on Stone’s position in the House. Packard has been slow in the past to bring accountability to Republican lawmakers under his purview, as in the case of Rep. Laurie Sanborn, who was not removed as chair of a legislative commission charged with studying the impact of new charitable gaming laws despite being the target of a criminal investigation into the alleged illegal use of $844,000 in pandemic assistance toward her and her husband’s casino. Sanborn later resigned from the position on her own.