Rhode Island State Police - Controversy With The RISP

Controversy With The RISP

• Smoke Shop Raid - July 13, 2003 Governor Carcieri ordered the raid to stop the tribe from selling tobacco without charging state-mandated taxes. It disintegrated into a violent and widely televised scuffle between tribal members and police.

• Asian Massage Parlor Solicitation Controversy - On September 18, 2009, the Providence Journal reported the State Police had been collecting donations from local Asian spas. Asian massage parlors or “spas” in Providence which police and local watch-dog groups maintain are often fronts for brothels, have for years donated to police association charities –– and conspicuously displayed their support by plastering stickers with police logos on their doors and windows. Spa ads also have turned up in The Rhode Island Trooper, the official publication of the non-profit Rhode Island Troopers Association, a membership organization of state troopers “dedicated to the improvement of the law enforcement profession...” The magazine’s spring/summer 2009 edition features articles on topics such as state police promotions, construction of a new state police headquarters and investigating fraud. The back of the magazine contains a directory filled with ads for area businesses. Under “pools & spas” is a thumbprint-sized listing for “Lily’s Spa.” “I’m embarrassed that it’s in there,” said State Police Trooper John M. Allen, president of the R.I. Troopers Association. In the 2007 issue, three ads for Asian spas in Providence showed up in the Trooper magazine.
• "Brawl at the Hall" - A fundraiser for a deceased Providence police officer turned ugly when an off-duty Rhode Island state trooper allegedly punched a Providence police sergeant on September 2009. The trooper, Edward J. Stenovitch, 41, was charged with one count of simple assault and battery, a misdemeanor. He was arraigned before a bail commissioner at Providence police headquarters and released on his own recognizance. “This investigation revealed that this was an unprovoked attack of a Providence police officer,” Kennedy said. “He was not even in a conversation with this guy. He never saw it coming.” Both officers are from police families. Stenovitch’s father, Edward Stenovitch, is a retired state trooper, while Gannon’s father, Bernard E. Gannon, retired as Providence police chief and is now the police chief in Burrillville. Teddy Gannon’s brother, Danny, is a Providence police lieutenant.