PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Attorney General Peter F. Neronha announced that a Providence man was sentenced in Providence County Superior Court to life in prison after pleading to the murder of 37-year-old Jorge Gonzalez, an innocent bystander, during a 2020 shooting in Providence.
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Attorney General Peter F. Neronha announced today that the Office has filed lawsuits against landlords for noncompliance with state lead poisoning prevention laws at rental properties on Garden Street in Pawtucket and Ward Street in Woonsocket where significant lead hazards were found in a lead-poisoned child’s home. The lawsuits are the latest in a series of lead enforcement actions filed by the Attorney General.
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An indictment, information, or complaint is merely an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – On April 28, 2022, the Providence County Grand Jury returned an indictment charging a West Warwick man with two counts of first-degree child molestation and one count of first-degree sexual assault.
As alleged in the indictment, Russel Trafford (age 54) is accused of sexually assaulting a female victim multiple times, beginning when the victim was under the age of 14. The defendant is alleged to have assaulted the victim between August 1, 2000, and January 2, 2004, at locations in the city of Providence.
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Attorney General Peter F. Neronha issued the following statement addressing the Rhode Island Supreme Court’s decision in Benson v. State that upholds the constitutionality of Rhode Island’s Reproductive Privacy Act:
“I applaud today’s decision by the Rhode Island Supreme Court to uphold the constitutionality of our state’s Reproductive Privacy Act at a critical moment as our country contemplates the future of reproductive freedom.
“In 2019, I was proud to play a key role in our state’s codification of the important reproductive health care freedoms established by Roe vs. Wade and its progeny. We have now successfully defended the Reproductive Privacy Act against a meritless legal challenge that our Supreme Court dismissed today.
“The passage of the Reproductive Privacy Act and its continued viability ensures, during an uncertain national climate, that Rhode Island will not return to the days of illegal and unsafe abortions that put the lives of women in danger and created criminal liability for physicians.”
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Attorney General Peter F. Neronha announced that the United States Supreme Court has denied a petition for certiorari in Gaspee Project v. Mederos, letting stand a First Circuit decision affirming the constitutionality of Rhode Island’s election spending disclosure law.
The Office of the Attorney General had previously successfully defended the constitutionality of Rhode Island’s Independent Expenditures and Electioneering Communications Act (Act), a law designed to promote transparency and maintain the integrity of elections, in Federal District Court and later before the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Office of the Attorney General has concluded its review of the Rhode Island State Police (RISP) investigation of Walter “Bud” Craddock and alleged commercial sexual activity at a rental property owned by Mr. Craddock in Cranston.
The Attorney General has issued a detailed summary of the Office’s review in a letter to the RISP. URL: https://www.riag.ri.gov//media/3216/download.
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An indictment, information, or complaint is merely an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Robert Ritacco (age 52)
Westerly, R.I.
W1-2022-0104
On April 25, 2022, the Statewide Grand Jury returned an indictment charging Robert Ritacco with two counts of first-degree sexual assault.
The alleged acts occurred in the town of Westerly on May 29, 2021. The Rhode Island State Police conducted the investigation.
The defendant is scheduled to be arraigned on May 23, 2022, in Washington County Superior Court.
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Attorney General Peter F. Neronha applauded the decision issued today by Rhode Island’s Energy Facility Siting Board (EFSB), which will require Sea 3 Providence, LLC to submit a full application and be subject to robust review for its proposed expansion of its Liquified Propane Gas (LPG) storage and distribution facility in the Port of Providence.
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Attorney General Peter F. Neronha announced that the owner of a Rhode Island-based construction company was arraigned in Providence Superior Court on felony and misdemeanor charges following an investigation by the Office of the Attorney General and the Department of Labor and Training into allegations that he stole over $93,000 in wages from workers during the construction and renovation of RISE Prep Mayoral Academy in Woonsocket in 2018 and 2019.
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An indictment, information, or complaint is merely an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Trequan Baker (age 29)
Providence, R.I.
P1-2022-1236AG
On April 14, 2022, the Providence County Grand Jury returned an indictment charging Trequan Baker with one count of murder, one count of discharging a firearm while in commission of a crime of violence resulting in death, one count of assault with a dangerous weapon resulting in serious bodily injury, one count of discharging a firearm while in commission of a crime of violence resulting in permanent incapacity, one count of carrying a firearm without a license, and one count of conspiracy to carry a firearm without a license.
The alleged acts occurred in the city of Pawtucket sometime on January 24, 2022. The Pawtucket Police Department conducted the investigation.
The defendant is scheduled to be arraigned on April 27, 2022, in Providence County Superior Court.
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