New Hampshire Attorney General declines to prosecute Manchester Police Officer Involved Shooting of Nickenley Turenne
On Wednesday, July 1, members of the New Hampshire Collective Power Coalition met with representatives from the New Hampshire Attorney General's Office and the Department of Justice to review the findings of the investigation into the December 6, 2025 killing of Nickenley Turenne by Manchester Police officers.
During that meeting, coalition members viewed the body-worn camera footage, reviewed the complete 52-page investigative report, and were informed that the Attorney General has determined no criminal charges will be filed against the officers involved.
The Attorney General concluded that the officers' use of deadly force was legally justified under New Hampshire law (RSA 627:4, IIA & RSA627:5, IIA) because they reasonably believed Mr. Turenne posed an imminent threat of deadly force after they perceived what they believed to be a firearm and interpreted his movements as assuming a firing stance.
The investigation later confirmed that the object in Mr. Turenne's hand was a flashlight, not a firearm.
We recognize that this legal standard establishes a high threshold for criminal prosecution of police officers. We also recognize that every person deserves to return home safely, including members of the public and those sworn to protect them. The responsibility of law enforcement is not only to protect themselves, but to preserve human life whenever reasonably possible. That responsibility requires the use of the least amount of force necessary and every reasonable effort to de-escalate situations before resorting to deadly force.
For us, however, the absence of criminal charges is not the same as justice.
After carefully reviewing the investigative findings, the body camera footage, and the Attorney General's report, we remain deeply troubled by several aspects of this case.
First, we are concerned about how perception(s) potentially shaped the outcome before deadly force was used. The report documents that officers were aware of Mr. Turenne's criminal history, including incidents that involved him leading up to December 6, including a department-wide communication identifying him as a suspicious individual believed to be armed with a gun. While those pieces of information became part of the officers' understanding of the situation, they also raise important questions about how preconceived narratives and/or bias can influence decision-making during rapidly evolving encounters.
Research has consistently demonstrated that implicit bias can affect how individuals perceive threat, particularly when Black & Brown men are involved. Black men & Brown men regardless of their countries of origin, have historically been viewed through a lens of heightened suspicion and dangerousness, often resulting in split-second decisions with irreversible consequences. We cannot say with certainty what role implicit bias played in this case, but we believe it is both reasonable and necessary to ask whether the information officers received before arriving on scene influenced how Mr. Turenne was perceived and whether different assumptions would have been made had he not been a Black man.
Second, we remain deeply concerned by the level and speed of deadly force used.
According to the investigative timeline, the entire encounter lasted approximately ten minutes. More alarming, once additional officers arrived on scene, eighteen rounds were fired within seconds of their arrival, striking Nickenley five times leading to his death by multiple gunshot wounds.
The legal determination that officers reasonably believed they faced a deadly threat does not eliminate the public's responsibility to ask difficult questions. Could additional time have been created? Could distance be maintained? Could communication continue? Could additional de-escalation tactics or crisis intervention have changed the outcome? Could eighteen rounds fired in almost as many seconds against a man who was holding a flashlight been avoided?
These are not questions of hindsight alone. They are questions about the expectations we place on law enforcement and whether the preservation of life remains their guiding principle when circumstances allow.
Third, the evidence reinforces what many in our community believed from the beginning: this was a mental health crisis. Mental health emergencies demand responses rooted in patience, communication, de-escalation, and specialized crisis intervention. Yet too often our systems continue to rely primarily on armed law enforcement rather than behavioral health professionals and crisis response teams.
We believe Nickenley’s death was preventable.
Our belief is not based solely on the legal findings but on the broader reality that communities across this country continue to lose lives during mental health emergencies/crisis because our crisis response systems remain inadequate. New Hampshire must continue investing in models that prioritize stabilization, treatment, and the preservation of life over the rapid escalation of deadly force that can lead to fatal outcomes.
Today we mourn another life taken far too soon.
Nickenley Turenne was not simply an investigative report or a police encounter. He was a son, a grandson, and a member of New Hampshire’s Beloved community. His life held value, dignity, and humanity long before the events of December 6 and continues to matter today.
For his family, this announcement does not bring closure. It does not lessen their grief, answer every question, or erase the profound loss they continue to carry.
While many will view today's decision as the conclusion of this case, we reject that notion.
The legal question before the Attorney General was whether the officers' actions met New Hampshire's criminal standard. The question before our communities is different.
Are our laws, standards & training, policies, and our crisis response systems producing the outcomes we expect from modern law enforcement?
Whether criminal charges are filed is only one measure of accountability. The decision not to prosecute does not mean there are no failures to examine, no policies to strengthen, no training to improve, and no systems requiring reform.
Far too often police killings become another headline before public attention shifts elsewhere. We refuse to allow Nickenley Turenne's life to become another statistic or another name remembered only by those left to grieve.
Our work now turns toward changing the systems that continue to produce these outcomes.
The New Hampshire Collective Power Coalition will continue advocating for meaningful reforms, including:
A fully resourced statewide agency, such as the New Hampshire Law Enforcement Accreditation Commission (NHLEAC), with the authority to accredit law enforcement agencies, establish statewide best practices, provide professional development, and ensure meaningful oversight.
Adoption of a universal statewide Use of Force policy that prioritizes de-escalation, proportionality, and preservation of life.
Consistent statewide implementation and funding of Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) programs, co-response models, and behavioral health partnerships to ensure mental health professionals play a central role in crisis response whenever possible.
Guaranteed victim and family advocates for every family impacted by a police-involved shooting to ensure transparency, communication, and meaningful support throughout the investigative process.
Modification of the Manchester Police Department's Five-Day Return to Duty Policy following officer-involved shootings.
Continued review and strengthening of police training related to implicit bias, de-escalation, communication, mental health response, and decision-making under stress.
These reforms are not about being anti-police.
They are about building systems that preserve life whenever possible. They are about equipping officers with better tools, strengthening public trust, improving accountability, and ensuring that everyone; regardless of race, background, or mental health status, is afforded the dignity of every reasonable opportunity to survive an encounter with law enforcement.
We continue to stand beside Nickenley Turenne's family.
We continue to believe every family deserves transparency, compassion, accountability, and dignity when a loved one dies at the hands of law enforcement.
And we continue to recognize the undeniable reality that Black and Brown communities, regardless of country of origin, experience police violence at disproportionately higher rates and too often must fight simply to prove that their loved one's life mattered.
Our commitment does not end with this announcement. It begins again.
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The NH Collective Power Coalition
The New Hampshire Collective Power Coalition brings together organizations and individuals rooted in BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and Disability communities and justice movements. Our coalition exists to deepen solidarity, strengthen community care, and act collectively on intersectional issues of mutual concern and opportunity.
To learn more about the NH Collective Power Coalition and to read our past statements:
