Democrat lawmaker’s 107 mph traffic stop brings bodycam battle front and center again

A New Hampshire Democratic lawmaker’s 107 mph traffic stop has thrust the debate over police body cameras and dashboard cameras back into the spotlight after Fox News Digital confirmed the sheriff’s office involved in the stop has neither.

The lack of body camera and dashboard camera footage has become a focal point in the legal battle involving state Rep. Ellen Read, who is fighting charges stemming from two Rockingham County traffic stops, including one in which a deputy accused her of driving 107 mph. Read argues both stops violated a provision of the New Hampshire Constitution protecting lawmakers while traveling to and from legislative duties.

Without body camera or dashboard camera footage, there is no official recording of the traffic stop that sparked a constitutional fight over legislative immunity.

Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office Major Christopher Bashaw told Fox News Digital the agency does not use body-worn cameras or dashboard cameras because it lacks funding to purchase them.

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“We don’t have that either,” Bashaw said when asked whether deputies use body cameras or dashboard cameras, adding the sheriff’s office would like to equip deputies with the technology.

New Hampshire lawmakers established a Body-Worn and Dashboard Camera Fund in 2021 to provide matching grants to local law enforcement agencies for purchasing cameras and covering maintenance, replacement and data storage costs. All local law enforcement agencies are eligible to apply.

State law also requires agencies that choose to deploy body cameras to adopt policies governing when officers must record law enforcement encounters, including traffic stops. The law, however, does not require agencies to purchase or use body cameras.

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https://static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/08/body-camera-police-istock.jpg (iStock)

It is unclear whether the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office has applied for funding through the state grant program.

Read told Fox News Digital she has consistently supported legislation governing body-worn cameras, as well as funding to help law enforcement agencies purchase them. She also said she would be willing to work with the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office to help secure funding for body cameras in the next state budget.

Read said she supports funding body cameras even though she questions other forms of law enforcement spending, including military-grade equipment and expensive vehicles.

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She also disputed the sheriff’s office’s assertion that she recorded part of the traffic stop on her cellphone.

A police officer wears a body-worn camera affixed to a uniform. New Hampshire established a matching grant program in 2021 to help law enforcement agencies purchase body-worn and dashboard cameras. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

“They are incorrect, I wish I had,” Read said. “The officers conveniently not wearing/using body cams are the reason that I’m investing in a dash cam.”

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According to Read, the sheriff’s office misunderstood what happened during the stop. She said she did not record the encounter and that a witness listening during a cellphone call later testified in court.

Read has argued the constitutional provision protects lawmakers from being delayed while traveling to legislative duties—not from prosecution.

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“I admitted to the officer and in court that I was going about 85 miles an hour on the highway,” she said, adding that she was willing to accept a speeding ticket but disputed the deputy’s allegation that she was traveling 107 mph and driving recklessly.

The New Hampshire State House, the state capitol building of New Hampshire, is seen on February 16, 2023 in Concord, New Hampshire. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Lawrence Friedman, a professor at New England Law, said the constitutional provision dates back centuries and was intended to prevent lawmakers from being delayed while performing their legislative duties – not to provide blanket immunity from traffic stops or criminal prosecution.

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“I think it’s probably not the case that this provision provides some kind of absolute immunity,” Friedman told Fox News Digital. “It’s unlikely that a court would say, ‘No, you’re absolutely immune from arrest for a moving violation that everyone else would be subject to arrest for just because you happen to be a legislator.'”

Friedman also said the New Hampshire Supreme Court‘s refusal to immediately hear Read’s constitutional challenge should not be interpreted as a ruling on the merits of her argument.

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“My understanding is that it’s not that her appeal is denied,” Friedman said. “The Supreme Court said no because they want to see how it plays out at the trial court.”

Bashaw said the constitutional provision was intended to prevent law enforcement from interfering with legislative business, not to shield lawmakers from accountability for dangerous driving.

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“The claim that you’re immune from all types of arrests … that’d be like saying you could drive at those speeds, commit a vehicular homicide, and that you are not allowed to be held accountable because you’re traveling to and from session,” Bashaw said.

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Read acknowledged the constitutional language could be modernized while preserving its original intent.

“I did not write this constitutional provision … it was written before cars existed,” she said.