Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. FILE - Plaintiff David Meehan, center, leaves the courtroom with his attorney Rus Rilee, right, and victim ...

Judge Andrew Schulman said he agreed to the state's request to cut the award to the state cap of $475,000, stating that the motion is "reluctantly granted."

The judge who oversaw a landmark civil trial over abuse at New Hampshire’s youth detention center has issued a preliminary order slashing the $38 million verdict against the state to $475,000. Rockingham County Superior Court Judge Andrew Schulman previously said reducing the amount awarded to plaintiff David Meehan by nearly 99% would be an “unconscionable miscarriage of justice.