Concord Housing and Redevelopment’s executive director is charged with violating a restraining order and stalking his ex-girlfriend in the city, and officials are refusing to say whether he remains on the job.
John Hoyt Jr., 58, of Concord, was under a court order prohibiting him from coming within 100 feet of his ex-girlfriend. He is accused of walking past the woman and her friend, both of whom were seated outside a downtown bagel shop the morning of July 16, according to court documents. Hoyt went into the restaurant, pretending not to see the pair, but upon returning to his car stopped and stared before driving away, police said.
Hoyt, whose office is several blocks away on Green Street, remained in the area, the women told police, driving by them on North Main Street, and again staring.
That’s when Hoyt’s ex-girlfriend called police, who responded to the bagel shop to take statements, and, while doing so, witnessed Hoyt drive by one more time, according to court documents.
Hoyt has pleaded not guilty to violating the temporary protective order, which a family court judge first granted in late February.
Two days after the downtown encounter, Hoyt turned himself in to Concord police on a warrant the department issued for his arrest. He was held at the Merrimack County jail in Boscawen, pending his arraignment a few hours later in Concord’s district court. A judge ordered him released on $5,000 personal recognizance.
While Hoyt’s ex-girlfriend agreed that any chance encounters in the community are not grounds for violation of the order, she described in court documents numerous instances where she felt “stalked and/or harassed” by him. Those instances began in early March but escalated in mid-June, she said.
She details in five typed pages various instances in which she says Hoyt slowly drove by her house, drove by her boyfriend’s house, followed her to the gym and damaged her property.
The woman is asking the court for a hearing on her request for a final protective order. Until that hearing is held, Judge Edward M. Gordon has ruled the temporary order is to remain in full effect.
Hoyt’s attorney, James Rosenberg, said he recently filed an objection on Hoyt’s behalf in the family court case, and noted that Hoyt looks forward to reaching “a speedy and just outcome.”
“With regard to the arrest, he denies that he violated the agreement on the order in any way and looks forward to working with the state to promptly and responsibly address the case,” Rosenberg said.
Rosenberg referred comment to Concord Housing’s board of commissioners when asked if Hoyt was still working for the agency, or if he faced any disciplinary action as a result of his arrest. Commission Chairman Jerry Madden declined to comment on the pending case or on Hoyt’s employment status, saying “it’s a personnel matter.”
Hoyt has served for 14 years as the executive director of Concord Housing and Redevelopment, a publicly funded non-profit. Hoyt earned $83,302 in 2013, according to tax documents filed by the agency.
Paul Maggiotto, who is representing Hoyt’s ex-girlfriend, said he did not know Hoyt’s employment status.
Hoyt could not be reached for comment.
Amanda Grady Sexton, director of public policy for the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence, spoke generally about the difficulties victims face in obtaining a protective order, but declined to discuss Hoyt’s case specifically, as she hadn’t seen the court records.
New Hampshire’s domestic violence law has undergone significant changes since it was first enacted, making it more difficult for a person to successfully get an order without legal assistance, Grady Sexton said. Those changes were a direct result of rulings handed down by the state’s Supreme Court, she noted.
A person needs to prove that a crime was committed and that she or he is in immediate danger to qualify for an ex parte domestic violence temporary order of protection. Further, Sexton said, the person must prove that a crime has been committed and that the defendant is a credible threat to him or her in order to obtain a final protective order.
New Hampshire’s family courts handles approximately 8,000 requests for domestic violence protective orders and stalking cases annually, according to its website.
A trial management conference is scheduled for Sept. 13 in Hoyt’s criminal case.
(Alyssa Dandrea can be reached at 369-3319, adandrea@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @_ADandrea.)