AG Neronha Refuses to Release CT State Police Investigation Into Previous Philbin Incident

AG Neronha Refuses to Release CT State Police Investigation Into Previous Philbin Incident

Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha has refused to release an investigation conducted by the Connecticut State Police in October of 2019 of the Rhode Island State Police.

The Connecticut State Police investigation was requested by then-Superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police, James Manni.

GoLocal broke the story of the investigation in September of 2019. “At least 20 members of the Rhode Island State Police have been interviewed by members of the Connecticut State Police regarding an incident involving at least two high-ranking members of the RI State Police, GoLocal has learned from top law enforcement officials,” GoLocal reported.

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The request for the investigation was sparked by an incident in which now-retired State Police Captain Gerald McKinney allegedly assaulted a suspect -- and then-Lt. Colonel Joseph Philbin allegedly covered it up.

 

Philbin is at the center of another major controversy in which retired Major Timothy Sanzi told another State Trooper that Philbin had told him "he thinks" he killed a man ten years ago.

GoLocal first reported the allegations on November 13, 2022. LISTEN TO SANZI'S ALLEGATIONS ABOUT PHILBIN HERE.

The Sanzi allegation led to a State Police review of the claim as to whether Philbin was involved with the death of David Heffron, a businessman who was found bleeding from the head outside the Oak Tavern in East Greenwich.

The State Police closed the investigation, but failed to interview Philbin or the East Greenwich detective assigned to review Heffron's death.

 

 

Neronha's Refusal

The Connecticut report was delivered to Manni in October of 2019.

GoLocal filed an Access to Public Records Act with Neronha on November 15, 2022, seeking a copy of the Connecticut State Police report.

“This Office has determined that it maintains a responsive record but that record is not public. The record that is responsive to this request has been designated 'Confidential – Attorneys’ Eyes Only' by Court Order and may not be disclosed. See R.I. Gen. Laws § 38-2-2(4)(S). The requested document is also exempt from public disclosure pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 38-2-2(4)(E) (based on the court order) and § 38-2-2(4)(P). No reasonably segregable portion of this withheld document is releasable,” Adam D. Roach, Special Assistant Attorney General in the Civil Division of Neronha’s office.

The Attorney General's office had ten days to respond to the APRA request and then took a 20-day extension before refusing to make the report public. Neronha's office refused to respond to questions about the need to take an extension and then reject the request.

Neronha's office, which denied the request to release the Connecticut State Police investigation, did offer GoLocal the opportunity to appeal their decision to the same office.

"This decision can be appealed pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 38-2-8(a), which provides that “[a]ny person or entity denied the right to inspect the record of a public body may petition the chief administrative officer of that public body for a review of the determinations made by his or her subordinate.” Any appeal may be submitted to this Office in the same manner you submitted your APRA request. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions," wrote Roach.

GoLocal reached out to Roach and he did not respond.

 

Second Refusal by Neronha to Disclose in Two Weeks

In November, GoLocal first reported and broadcast a recording of Manni, who retired from the State Police in April of this year, in which he admits under oath that Philbin was “Giglioed.”

HEAR MANNI'S DEPOSITION HERE

A Giglio Letter is also known as a Death Letter, and Wake Forest Law School Review describes the seriousness of the designation as “once a district attorney writes a Giglio letter about a particular officer, that officer is functionally unable to make arrests, handle evidence, or interview suspects.”

After Philbin was issued a Giglio letter for being untruthful, he was promoted five times over the next 12 years before he stepped down.

“There is a document that stated he was 'Giglioed’ regarding an affidavit that [Philbin] filed years ago during an investigation," said Manni during the deposition. 

The State Police claims it does not have a copy of the Philbin letter.

A letter to GoLocal from the Rhode Island Attorney General’s office, Michael W. Field, Assistant Attorney General, stated, “…we determined that this Office made a disclosure to defense counsel regarding ret. Lt. Col. Philbin in 2008 that was styled by the prosecutor as being made pursuant to Giglio. The case file does not contain copies of the precise materials disclosed, and a review of the trial record did not reveal any references to this material.”

Field refused to provide a copy asserting that under case law the letter is exempt, "The fact that this document may have previously been determined to be Giglio and therefore disclosed to a defendant’s attorney pursuant to Giglio does not render the record public under the APRA."

The Rhode Island State Police, in its response to GoLocal, said, "Your request is governed by the APRA contained in R.I.G.L. Chapter 38-2.  In response to a request for public records, an agency is required to make available for public disclosure those records that are responsive to a request, are in the possession of the agency and are not otherwise exempt from disclosure.  After a thorough search of RISP files, the RISP is unable to locate a 'Giglo letter' issued to Joseph Philbin.  As such, the RISP does not maintain any records responsive to your request.  To be clear, because no responsive record was located within RISP files, records are not being withheld and no exemption under the APRA has been asserted." 

GoLocal has reported that Philbin was "Giglioed" in his role in the prosecution 15 years ago of attorney John Cicilline, the brother of U.S. Congressman David Cicilline (D-1).