Rhode Island

DOJ and states were back in RI court over federal funding freeze. When is a ruling expected?

Published

10 months ago

February 21, 2025

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DOJ and states were back in RI court over federal funding freeze. When is a ruling expected?

A federal judge heard arguments Friday in Providence on whether to extend an order blocking the federal government from freezing funds allocated to states.
Democrat-led states argued that the freeze on “categorical” funding is unlawful and has caused chaos and uncertainty for important programs.
A Justice Department lawyer argued that the states’ complaint is overly broad and that the president has the authority to pause spending.
The judge said he hopes to issue a ruling in the coming week and has left in place an order to keep federal money flowing to states.

PROVIDENCE – A federal judge heard arguments Friday in the high-stakes battle about whether to extend an order blocking the federal government from freezing money states rely on for services ranging from child care to disaster relief to Medicaid payments.

U.S. District Chief Judge John J. McConnell Jr. weighed a request by close to two dozen Democratic states to block the federal government from withholding billions in aid until agencies ensure that all spending aligns with President Donald Trump’s priorities on “woke” gender ideology, climate goals and foreign aid.

States operate on “carefully orchestrated” payment systems that depend on promised and appropriated federal aid for their budgeting, Rhode Island Assistant Attorney General Sarah Rice told the court Friday.

The “categorical” federal funding freeze enacted shortly after Trump took office, creating chaos and throwing child care services and Head Start programs into disarray and uncertainty, is contrary to the law, Rice said.

“We don’t know how long these pauses might have gone on” without court intervention, Rice said.

Despite McConnell’s previous court orders halting any freeze, “an outage has continued to this day,” she said. The harm, she said, is irreparable, impacting crucial services, programs and payrolls.

“The people who provide the care need to be paid,” Rice said.

Federal response: States’ complaint is ‘abstract’

A U.S. Department of Justice lawyer urged the court to reject the states’ request, faulting it as overly broad, “abstract” and “across-the-board.” If the court grants an injunction, federal agencies will be hamstrung from making spending choices based on their own discretion, he said.

“The president is allowed to tell an agency if you have the discretion to pause if you should pause,” Department of Justice Special Counsel Daniel Schwei said.

Schwei drew parallels between Trump’s funding directive and former President Joe Biden’s decision to halt money for a border wall. Executives have regularly exercised their power to halt spending based on their priorities, he said.

The pause, he said, at most impacted the timing of payments and had been withdrawn within days, a step the government has argued makes the case moot.

‘A political term of art’

McConnell questioned how the government’s order to ensure it aligned with Trump’s priorities shouldn’t be viewed as arbitrary in itself. The judge noted that it referred to a Green New Deal – which in reality doesn’t exist.

“It’s a political term of art,” McConnell said.

Schwei said the order was only directing agencies to use their own discretion to save money.

He hit back, too, against McConnell’s reference to a Trump press secretary’s comments implying that the federal government wasn’t complying with the court’s previous court orders.

McConnell granted the states a temporary restraining order in late January and later a second “emergency” order directing the federal government to comply or face possible contempt.

Schwei said the breadth of those orders make it difficult for the government to comply.

Neronha: ‘He could have gone to Congress’

Rhode Island Attorney General Peter F. Neronha, whose office is leading the states’ lawsuit, said after the proceedings that he thinks the injunction will be granted because the states have a good case.

“Trump’s executive orders and the subsequent memos sent to federal agencies have ‘sidelined’ Congress, and to an extent the courts, and if Trump wanted to reallocate the funds, he could have gone to Congress, which his party controls, to move the funds through the recision process,” Neronha said.

The injunction is necessary because the federal government can’t be trusted to keep its word and to prevent the Trump administration from issuing a similar memo later, he said.

McConnell said he hopes to issue a ruling in the coming week on the state’s bid for an injunction and left in place an order to keep federal money flowing.

Travel of the case

The states’ challenge to Trump’s freeze on spending landed in federal court in Rhode Island last month after authorities directed agencies to ensure spending complied with the administration’s priorities.

McConnell agreed to indefinitely block the freeze on federal spending, calling the president’s claims of executive authority “constitutionally flawed.” Days later, the court directed the federal government to comply with with the order after states complained that money continued to be withheld. McConnell warned that the government could be found in criminal contempt.

The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the government’s bid for a stay of McConnell’s orders, finding that the judge had left room for officials to seek relief, if necessary.

With reports from Wheeler Cowperthwaite

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Rhode Island

The top returning girls wrestlers? Here are 10 to watch this season

Published

7 hours ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

The top returning girls wrestlers? Here are 10 to watch this season

Girls wrestling took off last winter in its second year of state championships.

Exactly 50 participants, across a dozen weight classes, competed in the March extravaganza at the Providence Career and Technical Academy. Each weight class was contested, unlike the first year of the tournaments, and new title winners were crowned.

Pilgrim’s Allison Patten was named Most Outstanding Wrestler for her win at 107. The Patriots’ star also finished runner-up at the New England Championships and is among this year’s returnees. But who else should we be keeping an eye on this winter?

Here are 10 standouts who we think might shine this year.

Enjoy!

Athletes listed in alphabetical order.

Yasmin Bido, Hope

Senior

Bido snagged her first individual crown with a 16-0 decision at 152 pounds. The Blue Wave grappler also finished runner-up at 165 in Year 1 of the tournament.

Irie Byers, North Kingstown

Sophomore

Byers stormed onto the scene with a title in her first year on the mat. She captured the 120-pound championship with an 11-1 win in the finals. The Skipper returnee is one of a few wrestlers who could repeat.

Jolene Cole, Scituate

Sophomore

Cole helped Scituate to the team title in the first year that the award was handed out. Scituate is a bit of a girls wrestling factory, and Cole added to that lineage with her pin at 114 pounds.

Alei Fautua, North Providence

Sophomore

Fautua breezed to the title at 235 pounds with a pin in just 25 seconds. She led the Cougars to a runner-up finish as a team as Scituate edged the Cougars by just seven points. Fautua then finished fourth at the New England championships.

Kamie Hawkins, Exeter-West Greenwich

Junior

This year is all about redemption for Hawkins. She was one of the first state champions and came back last year looking to defend her 120-pound title. It wasn’t meant to be, but make no mistake, Hawkins is one of the state’s best.

Abigail Otte, Exeter-West Greenwich

Junior

Otte was a repeat champion at 138 pounds as she seized the title with a pin in 24 seconds. It’s likely a safe bet that Otte might capture her third crown in three years.

Allison Patten, Pilgrim

Junior

A repeat season isn’t out of the question for Patten. She won the 107 pound title with a pin in 49 seconds. What’s next for the junior? End the season with a New England title, too.

Chloe Ross, Scituate

Sophomore

It was quite the debut for Ross. The state crown was a breeze as the freshman won via pin in 1:16. But then came the New England tournament where the Spartan star snagged second place. Might there be a different ending to her season this year?

Meili Shao, La Salle

Senior

Shao was one of the first wrestling champions when she captured the 132 title two seasons ago. A repeat crown wasn’t in the cards as she finished runner-up in the class. But the Ram has returned and could be out to avenge last year’s finish.

Emily Youboty, Hope

Senior

The Blue Wave wrestler is the returning 100-pound winner after she captured the crown with a 19-3 technical fall victory in last season’s title meet.

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Rhode Island

Thieves steal $470K worth of electrical wire from Rhode Island highways

Published

19 hours ago

December 11, 2025

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Thieves steal 0K worth of electrical wire from Rhode Island highways

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WJAR) — The Rhode Island Department of Transportation is facing a costly and dangerous problem after thieves stole roughly 11 miles of electrical wire from highways across the state, leaving long stretches of road without lighting and drivers at risk.

RIDOT spokesperson Charles St. Martin said there have been at least 16 thefts in recent weeks, mostly in Providence, but also in Cranston, Johnston and Warwick. The agency first realized something was wrong after drivers began calling to report unusually dark sections of highway.

“Right now, about 16 sites or so around the Providence Metro area down into Cranston and Warwick and Johnston that we have different lengths of highway where the lights are out,” St. Martin said in an interview with NBC10.

Cars driving on the highway with no overhead lights. (WJAR)

St. Martin says thieves accessed underground electrical systems through manholes, cutting and removing large quantities of wire.

RIDOT Director Peter Alviti, speaking on WPRO Radio with NBC10’s Gene Valicenti, said the scale of the problem is staggering and growing.

“You would not believe how many locations throughout the state that we are experiencing the theft of our underground electric cables,” Alviti said. “They’re pulling it out and then selling it for scrap to make money.”

The thefts pose serious safety risks. St. Martin said the suspects are cutting into live electrical wires leaving drivers to navigate dark highways and roads.

The cost to taxpayers is also significant. According to RIDOT, the stolen wire alone carries a material cost of about $470,000, not including labor to reinstall it.

“When you just look at the amount of wire that we are talking about that we are missing now, it is about 11 miles worth of wire,” St. Martin said. “Just the material cost about $470,000.”

RIDOT says it will likely take several weeks to fully restore lighting along impacted highways, including I-195, I-295, Route 37, Route 10 and Route 6. The agency plans to install heavier, anti-theft manhole covers in the coming months and is working with state and local police to identify those responsible.

Drivers like Perry Cornell say the outages make already challenging roads even more dangerous.

“Dangerous,” Cornell said when asked how it feels driving through dark stretches of highway. “It’s unsafe.”

Lights off on the highway. (WJAR)

Cornell said the situation raises questions about whether more could have been done to prevent the thefts.

“Why wasn’t this stopped and why wasn’t there a preventative action taken by RIDOT to stop this from continuing to happen?” he asked.

RIDOT is asking the public to remain vigilant. Anyone who sees suspicious activity near highway manholes is urged to contact local police immediately.

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Rhode Island

Former Pawtucket police officer pleads no contest to DUI, disorderly conduct – The Boston Globe

Published

1 day ago

December 11, 2025

Press Room

Former Pawtucket police officer pleads no contest to DUI, disorderly conduct – The Boston Globe

Dolan was also ordered to pay a $100 fine, and has completed community service and a driving while impaired course, the records show. Dolan previously lost his license for three months.

“This plea was the culmination of two years of hard work and negotiations by both sides, resulting in a reasonable, fair, and equitable resolution which allows all concerned to move forward,” Michael J. Colucci, an attorney representing Dolan, said in a statement.

Dolan was arrested and charged in September 2023 in Coventry, where he also allegedly threatened to shoot police officers.

A felony charge of threatening public officials was downgraded to the misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge on Wednesday, according to court records. A third charge of reckless driving and other offenses against public safety was dismissed.

Dolan resigned from the police department in November 2023 while the City of Pawtucket was attempting to fire him. He was acquitted by a jury earlier that year after he shot a teenager in 2021 while off-duty that summer outside a pizza restaurant in West Greenwich.

Dolan, who had an open container of beer in his truck at the time, had argued he pursued the teen and his friends after seeing them speeding on Route 95. The group of teens saw him coming at them in the parking lot of Wicked Good Pizza and tried to drive away, while Dolan claimed he wanted to have a “fatherly chat” and shot at them fearing he was going to be hit by their car.

The teen driver, Dominic Vincent, of West Greenwich, was shot in the upper arm.

In 2022, Dolan was also charged with domestic disorderly conduct and domestic vandalism after he allegedly grabbed his 10-year-old son by the neck and threw him outside, according to an affidavit by Coventry police supporting an arrest warrant.

Then, while the children were in the car with his wife, Dolan was accused of throwing a toy truck at the vehicle and breaking the windshield, according to the affidavit. The domestic case against Dolan was dismissed about a week after it was filed, per court records.

Material from previous Globe stories was used in this report. This story has been updated to include comment from Michael Colucci.

Christopher Gavin can be reached at christopher.gavin@globe.com.

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