N.H. corrections commissioner resigns, sparking celebration from probation supervisors
Hanks has been the subject of multiple
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Governor Kelly A. Ayotte accepted Hanks' resignation on Monday and placed DOC Assistant Commissioner Paul D. Raymond Jr. on leave, according to a brief statement from Ayotte's office that didn't offer a rationale for the actions taken.
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The statement said Ayotte will nominate John V. Scippa, director of the New Hampshire Police Standards and Training Council, at the next Executive Council meeting to serve as acting DOC commissioner for up to 90 days, as the search for Hanks' successor gets underway.
The high-profile leadership transition comes at a sensitive time for the department, as Hanks had been warning state lawmakers that the next state budget, as currently drafted, would create an
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Efforts to reach Hanks and Raymond for comment on Monday were unsuccessful. A spokesperson for the governor's office did not immediately provide additional information. Scippa did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Ragassa said his members would welcome Scippa 'with open arms.'
Hanks began working for the New Hampshire DOC in 2003 as a social worker and climbed the ranks under Republican and Democratic governors, according to her
Hanks was reappointed by Sununu in October 2021 to a second four-year term and reconfirmed by the five-member Executive Council, so her resignation now enables Ayotte to install a new DOC commissioner about six months earlier than otherwise would have been allowed.
Hanks' resignation marks the highest-profile departure in New Hampshire government since Ayotte's inauguration in January. That said, the governor has announced she
Raymond was nominated by Hanks in 2022 for the assistant commissioner post, appointed by Sununu, and confirmed by the Executive Council. Under
Amanda Gokee can be reached at
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