As the November trial of New Hampshire Supreme Court Justice Anna Barbara Hantz Marconi approaches, her lawyers continue to push for the case to be dismissed, citing an alleged conflict of interest between state Attorney General John Formella and the prosecution’s key witness: former Gov. Chris Sununu.
If the judge doesn’t toss the case, Hantz Marconi’s lawyers then say Formella should be forced to testify.
After a 90-minute hearing Tuesday, it is still unclear how the case may proceed.
Last year, Hantz Marconi was indicted on allegations that she attempted to improperly influence Sununu during a June 2024 meeting in his office on behalf of Geno Marconi, her husband and the state’s longtime ports director. Geno Marconi was under investigation at the time himself. As a result of that meeting with Sununu, Hantz Marconi faces a range of criminal indictments, including two felonies, and is currently suspended from the Supreme Court.
Sununu first discussed the content of the meeting during a phone call with Formella, who served as the governor’s legal counsel before his appointment to lead the state Department of Justice. Formella then conducted an interview with Sununu, during which the governor outlined the conversation, and noted he didn’t believe Hantz Marconi had broken any laws when she discussed her husband’s case with him.
Hantz Marconi’s lawyers contend that Formella’s dual role presents a conflict of interest: He and his department are simultaneously prosecuting the case against her, while he was also legal counsel for the prosecution's key witness.
If the judge won’t toss the case, then they want Formella to have to testify about his conversations with Sununu.
“There's nobody else we could call as a witness,” Richard Guerriero, Hantz Marconi’s attorney, said in court Tuesday. “There's no recording we could use. There's no way to get to the genesis of this case without calling Attorney General Formella at trial.”
Prosecutors on Tuesday told the judge that Sununu’s testimony would be sufficient to prove their allegations against Hantz Marconi, and that Formella should not be forced to testify.
“He does not have unique information that he can offer that is relevant to the task of the jury,” said Joe Fincham, a prosecutor in the Attorney General’s office. He said anything Formella could tell the jury would be inadmissible as hearsay.
Judge Martin Honigberg didn’t immediately rule on the issue, or whether the case should be dismissed or potentially refiled with a different prosecutorial team handling it. In December, Honigberg rejected a similar motion to dismiss the case, but said that if new information came to light, he would reconsider. Hantz Marconi’s lawyers contend they have since been provided with documents – including notes penned by Formella – that raise additional concerns about his alleged conflicts.
In another key issue facing the court, Honigberg must also decide if New Hampshire Supreme Court Chief Justice Gordon MacDonald could also be forced to testify at trial. MacDonald had a conversation with Sununu following the June 2024 meeting in which they discussed Hantz Marconi. Lawyers for the Judicial Branch have sought to block or limit any testimony from MacDonald.
Hantz Marconi remains suspended from the bench. She was appointed by Sununu to her post in 2017.
Geno Marconi is also on administrative leave from the New Hampshire Port Authority, after he was indicted for allegedly sharing confidential motor vehicle records related to a member of the board of the Pease Development Authority — which oversees the state’s ports — in an alleged act of retaliation. Marconi has pleaded not guilty, and is awaiting trial.
