Nashua man at center of 2015 ACLU panhandling case found dead in Valley Street Jail cell

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Pendleton
Pendleton

MANCHESTER, NH – A man in custody at Valley Street Jail for possession of pot has been identified as Jeff Pendleton, 26, a homeless man and ACLU of NH client, described as “a defender of constitutional rights” by the organization that won two cases in 2015 on his behalf.

According to a press release issued March 14 by Valley Street Jail Superintendent David Dionne, Pendleton died Sunday in his cell at Valley Street Jail in Manchester.

A statement issued Monday by the ACLU read in part:

Though Jeff was poor and homeless, he took it upon himself to be an ACLU client in two important cases defending the constitutional rights of the indigent.

In the first case, on March 4, 2015, the town of Hudson agreed to pay Jeff $7,640, be subject to a permanent consent order, and conduct further police training to settle his lawsuit alleging that the town of Hudson was engaging in an unconstitutional practice of detaining, harassing, threatening, dispersing, and citing peaceful panhandlers.

In the second case, on March 4, 2015, the city of Nashua agreed to pay Jeff $10,315 to settle his civil rights claim after he spent 33 days in jail simply for walking in a park adjacent to the Nashua Public Library. We will deeply miss Jeff. We trust that a thorough investigation will be conducted on the circumstances of his tragic and untimely death.

Information on the two cases can be found below:

Pendleton was arrested March 8 by Nashua Police at 10 Kinsley St., charged with misdemeanor possession of marijuana. He was sent to Valley Street Jail March 9 in lieu of $100 bail.

Below is the news release issued by Hillsborough County Department of Correction


March 14, 2016

Inmate Death at Hillsborough County Correctional Facility

On 13 March 2016, at approximately 2:45 p.m., inmate Jeffrey Pendleton, 26, of Nashua, NH, an inmate at the Hillsborough County Correctional Facility, was discovered unconscious in his cell.

Correctional officers and on-duty medical personnel began emergency medical treatment, which continued until American Medical Response and Manchester Fire Department personnel arrived.  Emergency personnel pronounced Mr. Pendleton dead at 3:19 p.m.

Superintendent David Dionne said: “There appeared no indication that Mr. Pendleton was in any form of distress.”

Inmate Pendleton was being held at the Hillsborough County Department of Corrections since 9 March 2016 by Nashua District Court on one count of an act prohibited.  His bail had been set at $100 cash.

Manchester police and correctional officials are investigating. An autopsy is scheduled for March 14.

David M. Dionne, CLS

Superintendent


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About this Author

Carol Robidoux

PublisherManchester Ink Link

Longtime NH journalist and publisher of ManchesterInkLink.com. Loves R&B, German beer, and the Queen City!