Rhode Island
For survivors, Rhode Island clergy abuse report brings vindication and renewed demands
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The sound of the school nurse’s office door opening. Light reflecting off a stained-glass window. Tearful outbursts and fear of getting on the school bus.
For many survivors of clergy abuse, memories like these linger for decades.
A report released this week by the Rhode Island attorney general detailed decades of abuse inside the state’s Catholic Diocese of Providence, identifying 75 clergy members who sexually abused more than 300 children since 1950. The investigation drew on thousands of church records and years of interviews with victims and witnesses. Officials said the true number of victims is likely much higher.
But survivors say the numbers capture only part of the story. Behind each case, they say, are childhood fragments that resurface years later — along with the long struggle to understand what happened.
Many survivors spent decades searching for answers and pressing authorities to investigate. Now some are speaking publicly about what they endured and what they hope will come next: broader support for survivors, help from the church to pay for therapy and counseling, and accountability from Catholic leaders.
From survivor to advocate
“I can still hear the click of the hardware in that metal door opening to this very day,” said Dr. Herbert “Hub” Brennan, an internal medicine doctor who lives and works in his hometown of East Greenwich, Rhode Island, where he grew up in a devoutly Catholic family.
Brennan was sexually abused in elementary school by the Rev. Brendan Smyth, an Irish priest who arrived in the community in the 1960s. Brennan was an altar server at Our Lady of Mercy Parish when the abuse began in the church sacristy.
Dr. Herbert “Hub” Brennan, a clergy abuse survivor, displays a 1995 newspaper showing a headline that reads “Diocese has no complaints about jailed priest” at his internal medicine office in East Greenwich, R.I., Thursday, March 5, 2026. Credit: AP/Leah Willingham
Brennan says a nun would pull him from class and send him to wait in the principal’s office until Smyth arrived and led him into the nurse’s room.
“They say that rape is one of the few crimes where the victim feels the shame,” Brennan said. “But the shame is enormous. And then the secrecy that follows to hide that shame gets in the way of healing.”
Brennan confronted it years later when a newspaper arrived on his doorstep in 1995. The headline about Smyth’s arrest in Ireland read: “Diocese has no complaints against jailed priest.”
Smyth was later convicted of assaulting children at least 100 times over four decades.
Dr. Herbert “Hub” Brennan, a clergy abuse survivor, shows at a 1995 newspaper article about the arrest of the Rev. Brendan Smyth while at his internal medicine office in East Greenwich, R.I., Thursday, March 5, 2026. Credit: AP/Leah Willingham
When Brennan later tried to discuss the abuse with a parish priest, he said he was assured there had been no complaints, only to learn later the priest had been Smyth’s roommate.
The revelation pushed Brennan to seek accountability. He later worked with attorney Mitchell Garabedian and settled in Massachusetts Superior Court.
“I needed to make sure that others knew exactly what was going on in this diocese — if it happened to others, who was responsible and how they were hiding it,” Brennan said.
The report released this week felt like a culmination of that effort, he said: “That allowed me to switch from survivor-victim to advocate.”
Breaking the ‘wall of secrecy’
For Claude Leboeuf, amber light streaming through stained-glass windows still triggers painful memories.
Leboeuf, who was abused by a priest as a child in neighboring Massachusetts and now advocates for victims in Rhode Island, called the report an important step toward dismantling what he calls the church’s “wall of secrecy.”
Leboeuf said his memories resurfaced only a few years ago, prompting him to pursue legal action and speak publicly about what happened to him.
“There’s a need to do something for these people — something real: money, tuition, therapy,” he said. “The effects are real; they last a long, long time.”
In a video statement, Bishop of Providence Bruce Lewandowski said the report describes a “tragic history” of abuse that caused lasting harm to victims and their families. He said he felt “extreme sadness” and “intense shame” while reading it and apologized to survivors for church leaders’ past failures to protect children. Lewandowski said the diocese has since implemented safeguards aimed at responding quickly to allegations and preventing abuse.
Leboeuf rejects that framing.
“It’s not old history. It’s justice denied for more than 60 years for some people,” he said. “These are people who brought their complaints to the diocese as kids in the 1960s, and they were ignored, ridiculed, even punished.”
Fighting to be believed
Ann Hagan Webb remembers the dread she felt before the school bus arrived each morning. Webb was only a kindergartner when her parish priest began sexually abusing her at school in Rhode Island.
The abuse took place between 1957 and 1965, during which Webb — who was abused from the age of 5 to 12 — remembers tearful outbursts before school, sometimes needing to be pulled onto the bus.
It wasn’t until decades later, at 40, that Webb turned to therapy to help process the memories. But when she was ready to report the abuse, Webb was met with hostility.
Initially, she asked only for compensation to cover her therapy bills. Still, she was met with skepticism, with leaders at the Diocese of Providence demanding her medical records and questioning the veracity of her claims.
Webb turned to advocacy, becoming known as a force for survivors of clergy abuse. In 2019, she helped convince the Rhode Island Legislature to enact legislation dubbed “Annie’s Law,” which allows child sexual abusers to be held civilly accountable to victims.
The advocacy has been exhausting, Webb said, and she still faces stigma when speaking publicly. Her abuse is often overlooked, she says, because many assume clergy abuse affected only boys.
“For 32 years, the diocese has called me not credible. I can’t tell you what that feels like,” Webb said.
The release of the attorney general’s investigation has renewed her hope that change and justice are still on the horizon.
“It feels like vindication,” she said.
“I hope the public demands their church be different,” she added.
A long-coming reckoning
The Rhode Island investigation comes at a time when examining possible clergy abuse is no longer unusual.
The shift is a far cry from 2002, when The Boston Globe exposed the Boston Archdiocese’s practice of moving abusive priests between parishes without warning parents or police, prompting investigations around the world.
That reckoning took decades longer in Rhode Island. With one of the highest Catholic populations per capita in the country — nearly 40% — the Diocese of Providence maintained secrecy around clergy abuse even as accusations and lawsuits surfaced over the years.
Attorney Tim Conlon, who has long represented sex abuse victims in Rhode Island, said that when he first filed suits against the Diocese of Providence, many people were unwilling to believe such allegations could be true in their own parishes. At one point in the late 1990s, he said, even his mother questioned whether he was doing the right thing.
State law has also made it difficult for victims to seek justice, Conlon said, citing strict limits on civil suits against institutions like the Catholic Church and narrow statutes of limitations for second-degree sexual assault.
“Clearly there’s a call for reform,” Conlon said. “The magnitude of the need is well documented.”
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WJAR) — Thousands gathered in downtown Providence on Saturday for Rhode Island PrideFest, marking a major milestone celebration for the LGBTQ+ community.
The area between Dyer Street and the Providence River filled with music, vendors and community groups as the 50th annual PrideFest became a day-long celebration of identity and inclusion.
NBC 10’s Martha Konstandinidis reports on Providence’s 50th Annual PrideFest. (WJAR)
Attendees described a lively atmosphere and strong turnout.
“It’s a great turnout and it looks beautiful outside,” said Analisy Huertas of Providence.
Vendors said steady crowds and high energy made for a busy but enjoyable day. Many attendees said the event’s welcoming environment keeps them coming back each year.
“I love seeing everyone expressing themselves and being really happy,” added Adeline Lamoureux-Hathaway.
Eventgoers walking in Providence Saturday, June 20, 2026. (WJAR)
For William and Carrie Hatcher, it was their first time attending PrideFest, saying the experience stood out for its sense of community and acceptance. “There’s so much to see, so much to look at, and we’re meeting so many different people,” Carrie Hatcher said.
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PrideFest continued into the evening, with many planning to stay for the illuminated night parade.
Rhode Island
R.I. Democratic Committee issues no endorsement for governor or lieutenant governor – The Boston Globe
PROVIDENCE – In an unusual move, the Rhode Island Democratic State Committee issued no endorsement for the incumbent governor and lieutenant governor on Saturday.
Incumbent Governor Daniel J. McKee received 82 votes, while his challenger, former CVS executive Helena Buonanno Foulkes, received 73 votes. There were 11 votes for no endorsement, including from the party chair, Liz Beretta-Perik.
To secure an endorsement, a candidate needs 50 percent of the votes cast plus one vote. McKee needed 84 votes to secure the endorsement, so he came up two votes short.
Party officials said they could not recall the last time the committee did not endorse an incumbent Democratic governor. Beretta-Perik later said she voted for no endorsement because she needed to stay neutral.
McKee left the Teamsters Local 251 union hall in East Providence soon after the vote, without talking to reporters. In a statement sent soon after, however, he declared the outcome “a victory for our campaign” and noted he received “the largest margin in today’s endorsement vote.”
“We will win again in September,” he said in the statement. “Rhode Islanders have a clear choice: a governor who has spent every day fighting for working families, or a corporate executive who has spent her career fighting for corporate profits in the boardroom. I know which side I’m on — and today, Rhode Island Democrats made clear they do too.”
Part of the reason McKee came up two votes short of an endorsement is that his former special adviser, Eva-Marie Mancuso, voted for Foulkes.
As she walked into the Teamsters hall, Mancuso said, “I think we need new leadership. I’m ready.”
Mancuso — a former Rhode Island Board of Education chairwoman who left the McKee administration in 2023 to take a job with Bryant University — said a big part of her decision had to do with the decision by McKee, a long-time charter school advocate, to sign a bill that places a three-year moratorium on new charter schools and permanently lowers the cap on the total number.
“That was a big, big deal,” she said. “I mean, that just shows that he’s really lost focus of what the state needs.”
When McKee beat Foulkes in the 2022 Democratic primary, McKee was filmed telling Mancuso to hang up on Foulkes as he was prepared to deliver his victory speech. On Saturday, Mancuso said, “I took her call.”
The Democratic committee also did not endorse a candidate for Lieutenant Governor. Out of 162 votes, incumbent Lieutenant Governor Sabina Matos received just 55 votes, while former Newport mayor Xay Khamsyvoravong received 71. Providence City Council member Sue AnderBois received 15 votes, and former state senator Cynthia Coyne got 13. Eight people voted for no endorsement.
The committee did not endorse anyone in the race to replace term-limited Attorney General Peter F. Neronha.
State Representative Joseph J. Solomon Jr. received 73 votes, former state Cannabis Control Commission chairwoman Kim Ahern received 42 votes, former attorney general policy chief Keith Hoffman received 22 votes, and state Representative Jason Knight received 12 votes, while 10 voted for no endorsement.
A total of 159 committee members voted, so 80 votes were needed to secure the endorsement.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
Edward Fitzpatrick can be reached at edward.fitzpatrick@globe.com. Follow him @FitzProv.
(WJAR) — Rhode Island will begin phasing out the sale of certain rat poisons after Gov. Dan McKee signed new legislation into law Thursday, making the Ocean State the second in the nation to adopt restrictions on the products.
The law targets first- and second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides, commonly used to control rats and mice.
Supporters say the poisons are harming wildlife, while critics argue they are among the most effective tools available to manage rodent populations.
Under the law, the sale of first-generation anticoagulant rodenticides will be prohibited beginning March 1, 2027.
Restrictions on second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides will take effect Jan. 1, 2028. A statewide prohibition on both types is scheduled to take effect Jan. 1, 2029.
Licensed commercial applicators and certain public health, agricultural and municipal uses are exempt from the restrictions.
Supporters said birds of prey such as hawks, owls and eagles are particularly vulnerable because they consume poisoned rodents. (WJAR file photo)
The legislation was backed by the Audubon Society of Rhode Island, which says the poisons can move through the food chain and kill predators that feed on rodents.
“Across the country, and again, with Rhode Island making this move, the second only to California, we’ve seen just too many cases of off-species targets either being sickened or worse with these rodenticides,” said Maxwell McFarland, director of advocacy for the Audubon Society of Rhode Island.
McFarland said birds of prey such as hawks, owls and eagles are particularly vulnerable because they consume poisoned rodents.
“What we’re seeing is these are accumulating in the natural predators meant to manage these rodent populations,” McFarland said. “So primarily our hawks, owls and eagles.”
According to McFarland, wildlife rehabilitators in Rhode Island have documented widespread exposure to the poisons among injured birds brought into their care.
“They’ve had hundreds of raptors admitted into their care over the past couple of years, and every single one has shown signs of anticoagulant rodenticide poisoning,” he said.
Supporters of the law say reducing the use of rodenticides will encourage communities to adopt alternative pest-control methods, including improved sanitation, securing trash and sealing buildings to prevent rodent access.
The law also creates a voluntary municipal Integrated Pest Management pilot program aimed at helping communities transition away from anticoagulant rodenticides.
Not everyone supports the change.
Tony DeJesus, former vice president of Big Blue Bug Solutions, said the restrictions will make it more difficult for homeowners and businesses to control rats and mice. (WJAR)
Tony DeJesus, former vice president of Big Blue Bug Solutions, said the restrictions will make it more difficult for homeowners and businesses to control rats and mice.
“It’s gonna have a major impact on our business. And not only that, but on the homeowners,” DeJesus said.
DeJesus said over-the-counter rodent control products commonly used by homeowners will no longer be available once the law takes effect.
“Homeowners will not be able to go out anymore and buy things like Decon and some of the other over-the-counter baits once this goes into effect,” he said.
He also expressed concern about the impact on restaurants and public health.
“The main thing is that when we start talking about how this is gonna affect it, rats carry disease,” DeJesus said. “Food poisoning is associated with both rats and mice in restaurants and things.”
DeJesus pointed to California, which enacted similar restrictions, as a cautionary example.
“The proof in the pudding is the state of California that did the same thing three years ago,” he said. “And now Los Angeles has been voted the rattiest city in the United States.”
McFarland said the legislation provides communities and pest-control companies with time to adapt before the restrictions fully take effect.
“We believe that it’s a fair timeline where communities, municipalities and pest management companies can learn, unlearn rather, the status quo of how they’re applying these rodenticides,” he said.
The Audubon Society said Rhode Island’s law follows similar action taken in California and comes as other New England states consider comparable legislation.
State officials say the first restrictions under the new law will take effect in March 2027.
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