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State Representative Robert Forsythe, facing calls to resign after domestic violence accusations against him became widely known, has resigned from New Hampshire House and will not be running again, he said Thursday .
The Boscawen Republican has been charged with one count of felony second degree assault and two counts of misdemeanor domestic violence after allegedly suffocating a pregnant intimate partner and kneeling her behind her back June 28, To watch reported Wednesday. The report prompted a quick call for Forsythe to resign from Gov. Chris Sununu, a Republican and State House Democrats.
A review of court records revealed a long history of domestic assault allegations made by several women against Forsythe. Additionally, records show that the victim of the assault reported in June had already obtained a restraining order against the representative two months previously, and that Forsythe had already violated another restraining order involving another victim.
In a phone call Thursday morning, Forsythe, 38, said he chose to step down after consulting with fellow Representatives and Republican House Leader Dick Hinch.
“The governor obviously asked for my resignation. He made a public statement about it. I have consulted with other officials and the leader of the caucus. Everyone said it would be the more prudent choice, ”he said.
“I was not under pressure,” he added. “They left the decision to me. I agree this is the best option, not just for the district but for the state. “
Hinch confirmed his resignation in his own statement Thursday afternoon.
“I spoke with Representative Forsythe this morning and encouraged him to step down from the House, which he has now done,” Hinch said. “He is facing very serious charges which he will have to answer in court. Domestic violence and assault are unacceptable and reprehensible and have no place in our society.
Forsythe said he would fight the criminal charges against him.
“The felony charges – that won’t hold up in court,” he said. “Most of what was said, especially by the policeman, were lies. Either he misheard something or he is intentionally misleading.
Boscawen police allege Forsythe was intoxicated when he showed up at the victim’s residence on June 28 with a knife in his belt to intimidate him, according to an affidavit filed in County Superior Court by Merrimack. The woman said she was speaking with Forsythe about her pregnancy, noting that the baby could be hers, when she and Forsythe began to “go crazy,” the affidavit states. She said out of nowhere that he “panicked” and tried to strangle her.
In April, the woman applied for a restraining order against Forsythe after he repeatedly harassed her and members of her family, court documents show. She wrote in her petition that Forsythe was angry about breaking up with him and asking to stop all forms of communication.
“I am afraid he will become so upset that he may hurt me, my children or my family,” she told court on April 15.
A judge found that Forsythe had committed harassment and posed a credible threat to the woman’s safety. The woman’s request for a final protection order was granted on May 5. Under the order, Forsythe was prohibited from being within 300 feet of the woman and had to give up all of his firearms. The ordinance would have remained in force until May 2021; however, the woman filed a petition with the court on June 15 to set aside the order, and a judge granted the request the same day, court records show.
Two weeks later, Boscawen police said Forsythe showed up drunk at the woman’s home and committed a felony-level assault. Within 48 hours of the June 28 incident, the woman returned to the Franklin Courthouse to file another request for a protection order against Forsythe.
This time the woman told the court what happened in the early morning hours in Boscawen.
“Robert came to my house with a large knife. He told me he could hurt someone more with his hands and put his hand around my neck, exerting slight pressure, ”she wrote. “He grabbed my arm forcefully and kicked me on the back. He yelled at me, calling me a bitch and a bitch and damaged my house.
She told the court it was not the first time he had threatened her and that she feared for his life.
A judge granted the woman a temporary protection order the same day she filed her application. Once again, Forsythe was ordered to give up all lethal weapons and have no contact with the woman.
A final protection order hearing was scheduled for July 17 in Franklin. Because the woman did not show up for the hearing, the judge dismissed the case. The court sent him notice that day of his right to appeal the decision and the case was closed.
This summer marks the first time Forsythe has faced a felony charge in New Hampshire. However, it has a long history in the state justice system, dating back to 2014.
Court records show that Forsythe has previously been the subject of domestic violence, stalking and assault charges, and has already violated a protection order on several occasions between December 2018 and March 2019. The violations involved another victim who also told the court that she broke up with Forsythe but continued to harass her with phone calls and texts.
In her request for a protective order in December, which was ultimately granted, the woman wrote that Forsythe sent nude photos of herself on social media to a man she met for coffee, and has threatened to send further sexually explicit content if she continued to this day.
“I spoke to him briefly on the phone asking him to stop and he said, ‘I’ll kill any mother (curse) I need to get you back,'” the woman wrote.
A few months after the split, she agreed to a date with a man she met online, but her date turned out to be Forsythe, according to an affidavit prepared by Concord police. Even after canceling the date, texts show that Forsythe didn’t give up and continued to offer her sex.
Forsythe received a suspended prison sentence for violations of the protection order and was ordered to remain of good behavior.
Forsythe, a staunch Second Amendment rights advocate and supporter of open transportation laws, ran unopposed in the Republican primary. He said Thursday he had consulted with the Merrimack County Republican Party but that no replacement Republican candidate had yet been identified.
During the last legislative session, Forsythe introduced a bill to legalize violations of a restraining order if the victim initiated contact. Under the bill, a defendant would be exonerated from criminal liability if it could be proven that the plaintiff requested or initiated the contact. The bill was ultimately voted “inappropriate to legislate”. Lawyers said at the time that the bill would have weakened the power of protection orders and had dangerous implications for victims.
