A Republican lawmaker in New Hampshire was arrested Friday for allegedly yelling and swearing at a snowplow truck operator who recorded the confrontation and later reported it to police.
The 51-year-old Rep. of Wentworth. Jeffrey Greeson was charged with disorderly conduct, criminal threats and simple assault. According to the police.
He was released on personal recognizance and ordered to return to Plymouth District Court on May 18.
Police said they made the arrest after receiving a report that a member of the Wentworth Highway Department was interrupted by a citizen in his efforts to remove snow and recorded part of the encounter on his cellphone. had done
Greeson did not immediately respond to an email to his Statehouse office seeking comment Friday.
Wentworth road agent Paul Manson said he had been plowing for about six hours on Saturday when he came across Greeson standing in the middle of the road at around 8am.
“He started giving me hell, and I didn’t know what was going on,” He said on Thursday. “When I got out of the truck, he started shouting in my face. So I got back in the truck and got my phone.”
The video, which Manson posted on Facebook, shows Greeson climbing up to his knees in a pile of snow along the road.
The storm dropped nearly a foot of snow before filling in later in the day.
“This is where my driveway ends, right here. Push it off the road!” shouted Greeson, who also used dirty hand gestures and profanity. “Your job is to clear the road. Clear the road! Now, get in your truck and do your thing!”
Greeson, a retired Navy officer and chaplain serving his second term in the House, also did not respond to an email seeking comment Thursday.
“He was upset because I wasn’t pushing the snow very far off the road, and I was putting it all in his driveway, which I’m going to be honest with you, that’s what I do,” Manson said. said “My job is to remove snow from the road. And I feel bad most of the time because I shovel snow back into people’s driveways, and I really can’t help it.
Manson said he realizes it’s no fun getting out after the snow plows go through.
But he said public servants do not deserve to be attacked.
“When I finish my 15-, 16-, 18-hour shifts I get to go home and do the same thing,” Manson said.
