Quinn Pro Quo
On January 30, 2023, longtime Wolfeboro resident Gary Brockney went to the Wolfeboro Town Hall and attempted to renew the registration on his side-by-side UTV, a 2017 John Deere Gator. Wolfeboro Town Officials informed Brockney that they could not renew his registrations as there was a “freeze” on it. This puzzled Brockney given that he had owned a John Deere Gator since 2013 (This was his second) and he never had a problem registering the vehicle in the past. Gary and his wife Lucey have lived in Wolfeboro for decades. They own and operate “Gary’s Barber Shop,” which has been a local institution for 25 years. The Gator is used in support of their business and a substantial garden they maintain. Because they occasionally run to the store for supplies, it is equipped and registered for light, over road use.
The clerk at the Town Hall couldn’t say why there was problem, just that there was a “freeze” on the registration, and it couldn’t be renewed. Gary reached out to the DMV and was initially told there was no problem on their end. The issue must be with the Town of Wolfeboro. He returned to the Wolfeboro Town Hall and the same message was told to him: The registration on his John Deere Gator was “frozen.”
An anonymous source then provided Brockney with some insight as to the problem. He was given a copy of a letter written by a Trooper to the DMV. The letter cited an interaction with Brockney and requested his registration be suspended. (See receipts)
Back on July 11, 2022, Gary was driving his Gator when he was stopped in front of his residence by Trooper Andrew Wilensky. Upon being stopped, Trooper Wilensky informed Brockney that he “could not drive this on the road.” When Gary asked why, Trooper Wilensky simply replied, “Because you can’t drive this vehicle on the road.” Brockney then provided his license, registration and even a proof of insurance (although not required by law). Trooper Wilensky returned to his cruiser and ran a record check on the documents. When he came back to the Gator, Brockney asked him if the documents proved to be legitimate and valid. Trooper Wilensky admitted they were. Brockney then asked him what the problem was. Again, Trooper Wilensky simply stated: “You can’t drive this vehicle on the road.” No RSA was cited. No specific law was described as being violated. Nevertheless, Trooper Wilensky’s stance was: “You can’t drive this vehicle on the road.”
Approximately 2 weeks later, Brockney’s wife Lucey was driving the Gator to run errands at the Town Hall and a local store. The total distance wasn’t more than about one-half mile from their residence. Once again, Trooper Wilensky stopped the Gator. This time, he raced up with both his lights and siren on. His approach and opinion was exactly the same: That vehicle was not allowed on the road, despite being lawfully registered, equipped with the appropriate safety equipment (lights, directionals, seatbelts, mirrors, etc) and operated by a licensed driver. Again he stated no specific law that was broken. He simply said, “You can’t drive this.”
After the second stop of the Gator, Brockney reached out to a friend who is an attorney. He asked what he should do. According to Brockney, this attorney asked if he was issued a ticket or written warning with a specific violation on it. Brockney said no. According to Brockney, he was then advised that he should continue driving the Gator unless the Trooper could actually cite a specific violation of the law.
Being a conscientious and responsible kind of guy, Gary then contacted the Wolfeboro Police Chief, Dean Rondeau. According to Gary, Chief Rondeau could not provide clarification as to whether or not he was allowed to operate the Gator on public ways while it had a Special Commercial registration. However, Chief Rondeau wanted to point Gary in the right direction. He provided him with the phone number of New Hampshire State Police Lieutenant Jim Fogarty (now retired), who was the Commander of Troop E. Gary says he then reached out to Lieutenant Fogarty, who said the registration was fine for the limited use of the Gator UTV in and around town. As far as Gary was concerned, the issue was dead. That is, until he attempted to renew the registration in January of 2023, and learned of the letter Trooper Wilensky had written immediately after the initial encounter.
Once Gary realized there was a problem and he could not register the John Deere Gator, he first called the DMV on February 13, 2023. When he got nowhere, he then called Executive Council Member, Joe Kenney. Kenney provided Gary with the phone number of DMV Director John Marasco. On February 22, 2023, Brockney called Marasco and explained the situation: He had owned a John Deere Gator since 2013. (This was his second.) They had always been registered and insured. He even went so far as to outfit them with all the requisite safety equipment for over the road travel. He never had a problem until Trooper Wilensky stopped him, directly in front of his house. Marasco listened and promised to get back to him.
On Thursday, February 23, 2023, Gary received a phone call from Department of Safety Commissioner, Bob Quinn. According to Brockney, Quinn told him: “I am going to approve your registration for that vehicle, but you have to promise to remove all of the political signs from it. Additionally, you must keep them off. If you put the signs back on that vehicle, the registration will be suspended.”
Yes. You read that correctly. According to Gary Brockney, Comissioner Quinn made registering Gary’s vehicle contingent upon him surrendering his First Amendment Rights to freedom of political speech and expression. In fact, Brockney says that Quinn repeated his demands at least three times during this exchange: Remove the political signs and you can register your vehicle. Put the signs back on and we will suspend it. (Didn’t we shoot a whole lot of British soldiers over something like this a while back?)
At the end of this conversation, Gary relented and agreed to Quinn’s demands. He would remove the political signs from the Gator. Being good to his word, Gary did so. On Tuesday, February 28, 2023, Gary returned to the Wolfeboro Town Hall and was able to successfully register his vehicle. The “freeze” had been lifted. (See attached copy of registration in receipts.)
Interestingly, back in March of 2020, Gary received a letter from the DMV saying that he “may” be in violation of the Agricultural/Special Commercial registration. (See Receipts) The letter came from Chris Ialuna, a Supervisor in the Registration Bureau and is cc’d to the Wolfeboro Town Clerk. Ialuna correctly lists the registration number as: 3584 (SCOMM). However, he identifies the vehicle as a 2016 Polaris, instead of a 2017 John Deere. This is a surprising error, given that the DMV was holding all of the documentation on the vehicle.
The letter states that the primary complaint was that the vehicle was “parked at various locations, which is not allowed per law.” Why would the DMV take a sudden interest in parking enforcement in small, rural towns? What was going on in 2020? It was an election year. Where was Gary’s John Deere Gator parked? About a quarter mile from his house, (within the allowable radius for that registration) at the Town Common. What was all over his Gator? Political campaign signs. Republican political campaign signs. Donald Trump political campaign signs. As a result of this letter, Brockney wrote back to the DMV requesting a hearing on the merits of the complaint. To no one’s surprise, the hearing never occurred. Furthermore, Gary was able to successfully renew the registration the following year.
Besides the obvious, blatant infringement on Brockney’s Constitutional Rights, there are some other questions that need to be asked:
How did Commissioner Bob Quinn know that Brockney had political signs on his Gator? Brockney doesn’t know Quinn and has never met him.
Who in Wolfeboro is responsible for the original complaint and attempted violation of Brockney’s rights?
Given that State Police Lieutenant Fogarty supposedly approved Gary’s operation of the John Deere Gator, how was Trooper Wilensky able to submit a Request for Administrative Action against Brockney? Who approved this request?
Why did the DMV never send a notification to Brockney that his registration had essentially been suspended? Protocol requires that notification be sent.
Given that all suspensions of registrations must be approved by the Director of the DMV, on what basis did Director Marasco choose to suspend Brockney’s registration?
Given that Trooper Wilensky was unable to articulate a specific law that was being violated during either traffic stop, and the fact that Commissioner Quinn approved the registration/operation of the vehicle, does that not render Willensky’s two traffic stops of this vehicle unconstitutional?
Most significantly, given the BLATANT violation of Gary Brockney’s First Amendment Rights, is Governor Sununu or the New Hampshire Department of Justice going to do a damn thing, or is Commissioner Bob Quinn getting yet another pass?
In an effort to obtain more answers, RobbiLeaks has filed 91-A requests for:
*Commissioner Quinn’s phone records to/from Brockney
*Director Marasco’s phone records to/from Brockney
*Quinn and Marasco’s emails to/from each other and any official in State/Local government, including the Town of Wolfeboro, that reference Gary Brockney and/or the John Deere Gator bearing Special Commercial Registration #3584.
*Any records, correspondence, complaints, etc filed with the DMV that reference Gary Brockney and/or the John Deere Gator bearing Special Commercial Registration #3584.
*Any records/correspondence/complaints within the Wolfeboro Town Hall referencing Brockney or the John Deere Gator bearing Special Commercial Registration #3584.
RobbiLeaks chose to publish this “Leak” before receiving responses to these 91-A letters. This is due to the fact that the State of New Hampshire is less than forthcoming when it involves these requests. As materials come in (if they come in) RobbiLeaks will publish them as well.
The First Amendment of the Constitution is pretty damn clear and it is absolute. That is, government does not get to allow certain expressions of political speech or endorsements (i.e. Clinton or Biden campaign signs) and not allow others. In fact, if a driver wants to adorn their vehicle with a swastika (as reprehensible as Nazism is) the DMV has no authority to make registering that vehicle contingent upon its removal. Every New Hampshire citizen, regardless of political affiliation, should be outraged that a high-ranking government official would pull this garbage. If Quinn can restrict conservative campaign signs, what is to say the next Commissioner won’t ban Pro-Choice bumper stickers?
There are only two reasons why Commissioner Quinn would allegedly demand a citizen surrender their First Amendment Rights in order to register a vehicle: Either he doesn’t possess even an 8th grade level command of the Constitution, or he is so corrupt and arrogant as to believe he can do as he pleases, regardless of the Constitution. Either way, Quinn needs to be removed from office immediately. At the very least, the Governor should not submit Quinn’s name to the Executive Council for reappointment as Commissioner, as his term is coming to an end. It is time for new, qualified, and competent leadership at the Department of Safety.
Fairness. Professionalism. Integrity.
