By PAULA TRACY, InDepthNH.org
STARK – It is the Commissioner of Safety’s assessment that North Country Fish and Game Conservation Officer Levi D. Frye, 30, died in the line of duty and that his young family should receive a $100,000 death benefit from the state.
Frye committed suicide on Oct. 2, 2024.
The New Hampshire Executive Council will be asked to approve the funding for his wife, Shannon, and their toddler when it meets on Wednesday.
Robert L. Quinn, commissioner of Safety, found that pursuant to law under RSA 21-I:29-a, II, a death benefit is due.
After an investigation he found Fish and Game Conservation Officer Levi Frye’s death constitutes a line-of-duty death.
The statute provides that “[t]he commissioner of safety… shall obtain the available records related to the circumstances, cause, and manner of such death and the decedent’s status as a… police officer… and shall make a determination of whether the death qualifies as a line-of-duty death and who is entitled to the death benefit.”
“After reviewing the records gathered in the course of this investigation, I have determined that Conservation Officer Frye was killed in the line of duty, as defined in the statute:
“Killed in the line of duty” means a death, including suicide, of a police officer…while in the performance of his or her duties as a result of incident, accident, or violence causing death or injuries which are the direct or proximate cause of death. Death by suicide shall be considered a work related cause of death.”
“Based on the preponderance of evidence presented to me, I have concluded that Conservation Officer Frye’s death meets the definition of ‘killed in the line of duty,’ and therefore his family is entitled to the death benefit.”
Pursuant to RSA 21-!:29-a II, in addition to any other benefits provided under this chapter, the State Treasurer shall pay a $100,000 death benefit to the family of a police officer killed in the line of duty.
The death came as a shock to Fish and Game and those who knew him in his service to others and led Fish and Game Col. Kevin Jordan to urge all who are suffering to reach out for help.
His obituary said Levi Frye was a loving husband and a wonderful father of a one-year-old.
“He was a fierce friend and brother. He loved his family more than words can express and ensured that they always had what they needed no matter the sacrifice,” it read.
Levi was a graduate of Fall Mountain Regional High School in the state’s southwest corner.
He went on to pursue a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Wildlife Ecology at the University of Maine. During his time at UMaine, he was a member of the varsity Cross Country, Indoor, and Outdoor Track & Field Teams. He completed a professional hunter internship in Botswana and South Africa.
Frye graduated from the 175th NH Police Academy at the top of his class academically. He swore in as a Conservation Officer in 2018, patrolling in Hillsborough County, then later transferring to Coos County. He was a member of the Advanced Search and Rescue and Honor Guard Teams. He was a Firearms Instructor, a Field Training Officer, and a Physical Agility Test Administrator and a member of the Conservation Officers Relief Association, whose mission supports conservation officers and their families.
“He was regarded as an incredibly patient, knowledgeable, and resourceful asset to these teams. He was involved in dozens of advanced search and rescue missions where his insight and understanding of the process led to favorable outcomes, bringing closure to so many family members of the patients he worked with,” the obituary said.
He was also featured in the television series North Woods Law.
Just prior to his death he was to be awarded an honor for helping a woman whose car went into the river.
“He made every case his mission and persisted in the pursuit of fair conclusions. He worked with tenacity and grit to be sure that he represented his agency as a first-rate officer. He was the epitome of preparedness and organization. Though serious by nature, his empathy and calm demeanor helped to ease the most critical situations a person could find themselves in,” his obituary said.
It said he celebrated occasions with cigars, and many fellow officers recollect a fond memory of sharing one with him after a grueling mission or a job well done.
Most recently, the benefit was extended to the family of Bradley Haas who was killed in the line of duty as a security guard at New Hampshire Hospital.
Frye was set to be awarded the “Above and Beyond the Call of Duty Award” for helping to save a Lancaster woman who crashed her car into a river.
Col. Jordan said he and Frye’s family want people to know there are mental health resources out there for people who are struggling.
“We wanted to take the opportunity with the graciousness of his family to tell people about all the resources available in New Hampshire to prevent this kind of tragedy, and hope that people fighting demons like this seek out those resources so that you can avoid that,” Jordan said.
The national suicide hotline is to pick up the phone and dial 9-8-8. You are not alone.