HB 66 - AS INTRODUCED
2021 SESSION
21-0026
04/06
HOUSE BILL 66
AN ACT relative to the use of deadly force by a law enforcement officer.
SPONSORS: Rep. True, Rock. 4; Rep. Edwards, Rock. 4; Rep. Greene, Hills. 37
COMMITTEE: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
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ANALYSIS
This bill removes the legal authority for a law enforcement officer to use deadly force in effecting
an arrest.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
 HB 66 - AS INTRODUCED
21-0026
04/06
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty One
AN ACT relative to the use of deadly force by a law enforcement officer.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 1 Physical Force in Law Enforcement. Amend RSA 627:5, II to read as follows:
2 II. A law enforcement officer is justified in using deadly force only when [he] the officer
3 reasonably believes such force is necessary:
4 (a) To defend himself or herself or a third person from what [he] the officer reasonably
5 believes is the imminent use of deadly force; or
6 (b) To [effect an arrest or] prevent the escape from custody of a person whom [he] the
7 officer reasonably believes:
8 (1) Has committed or is committing a felony involving the use of force or violence, is
9 using a deadly weapon in attempting to escape, or otherwise indicates that [he] the person is likely
10 to seriously endanger human life or inflict serious bodily injury unless apprehended without delay;
11 and
12 (2) [He] The officer had made reasonable efforts to advise the person that he or she
13 is a law enforcement officer [attempting to effect an arrest] and has reasonable grounds to believe
14 that the person is aware of these facts.
15 (c) Nothing in this paragraph constitutes justification for conduct by a law enforcement
16 officer amounting to an offense against innocent persons whom [he] the officer is not seeking to
17 [arrest or] retain in custody.
18 2 Repeal. RSA 627:5, VIII, relative to the use of deadly force by a law enforcement officer in
19 effecting an arrest, is repealed.
20 3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.


Statutes affected:
Introduced: 627:5
latest version: 627:5