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The fight to keep Wayne Salisbury from leading RIDOC just turned nasty. Here’s how.

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The fight to keep Wayne Salisbury from leading RIDOC just turned nasty. Here’s how.


PROVIDENCE – The correctional officers’ union is bringing up the 2010 arrest of Wayne Salisbury as they ramp up their fight to keep McKee’s pick to run the state Department of Corrections out of the job.

The charge – obtaining money under false pretenses – was later dismissed.

Richard Ferruccio, president of the Rhode Island Brotherhood of Correctional Officers, said: “Rhode Islanders deserve to have governmental leaders they can trust to do the job they’re appointed to do. It is disheartening that Governor McKee has chosen to appoint a leader to the Department of Corrections who was charged with a felony for stealing from his employer.”

In addition, Ferruccio:

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  • faulted Salisbury as “unqualified” to be the director and questioned whether he could be trusted to fulfill the duties and responsibilities as required.
  • Claimed that the prisons are less safe under his leadership.

The union urged members of the Senate Judiciary Committee to reject McKee’s nomination and called for a national search “for a qualified leader who doesn’t carry the baggage of a felony arrest.” 

McKee stands by Salisbury

McKee remained solid in his support for Salisbury, who has served as the interim director for 16 months.

“As acting director with over three decades of experience in corrections, Wayne Salisbury has repeatedly demonstrated his ability to manage challenges in the field of corrections, from assembling a task force dedicated to recidivism reduction, to renewing the department’s focus on staff development and succession planning,” spokeswoman Olivia DaRocha said in a statement.

“We appreciate the Brotherhood of Correctional Officers’ concerns,” she continued. “DOC leaders have and will continue to work with their membership and the advocacy community to identify and implement best practices in areas such as officer safety and recruitment, as well as inmate discipline and education.”

Salisbury stands by his own record

Salisbury also stood by his record.

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“As it has been previously reported, the 2015 unsubstantiated charge involving Interim Director Salisbury was dismissed,” corrections spokesman J.R. Ventura said in a statement. “Interim Director Salisbury remains focused on leading the Department of Corrections by advocating for its staff and positioning those in its custody for success upon reentry to the community.”

Ventura also noted that a 2012 settlement was reached without a finding of fault in another lawsuit involving the 2008 death of Chinese detainee Hiu Lui “Jason” Ng while in the custody of immigration officials at Wyatt Detention Center.

A federal judge approved a multimillion-dollar settlement on behalf of Ng’s family. Salisbury was one of over two dozen parties named a defendant in that case.

Looking back: Rocky career at Wyatt Detention Center

Salisbury began as a corrections officer at the publicly owned and privately run Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in 1993 and rose to the rank of warden.

He was fired as warden in 2007, but rehired later that year under new management. He was fired again in February 2010.

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In April 2015, the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office dismissed a charge against Salisbury alleging that he had obtained money under false pretenses by falsifying the amount of unused vacation time he was owed at Wyatt and collecting more than $16,456 from the jail.

Prosecutors dismissed the single felony count in “the interest of justice,” a filing noted. Witnesses had provided new information that “may impact the ability of the state to sustain its burden” of proving its case beyond a reasonable doubt. The filing noted that Salisbury had been compliant with his bail terms since his arrest in 2010 and had paid restitution.

The Central Falls Detention Facility Corporation, which operates Wyatt, voted unanimously to “permanently terminate” Salisbury and his wife, Tammy L. Novo, the jail’s top financial administrator.

The correctional officers’ union noted in its statement that Novo was the CFO at the Wyatt when these payments to Salisbury were made.

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Blistering Wyatt report

A 2009 report by Michael V. Fair, a former corrections commissioner in Massachusetts, was highly critical of the jail’s management team and its relationship with its board of directors.

The report detailed that Salisbury reworked the jail’s organizational chart by placing the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the Corporation under him instead of having Novo, his wife, report to the board “as an equal to the warden as it was originally established by the board.” 

“This one act, implemented by the warden without the benefit of discussion or approval from the board, has placed the warden in a position with much more authority and power than the board ever conferred on him,” the report said.

The report stated that the CFO previously “noted that she took a risk by withholding her responses thereby delaying the issuance of the audit report. She was aware that the audit report was to be a `Going Concern’ and that she wanted to avoid such an opinion.” 



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Rhode Island

Malfunctioning steam room sets off alarm, prompts evacuation at Rhode Island YMCA

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Malfunctioning steam room sets off alarm, prompts evacuation at Rhode Island YMCA


MIDDLETOWN, R.I. (AP) — A malfunctioning steam room at a YMCA in Rhode Island pumped out so much steam that it triggered an a sprinkler system alarm on Saturday morning, prompting an evacuation.

In a statement, the Middletown Police Department said officials rushed to the Newport County YMCA in Middletown around 9 a.m. for a possible explosion but later learned an excessive amount of steam had set off the building’s emergency sprinkler system.

A 58-year-old woman was hurt but officials said it was a minor injury. The YMCA would remain closed Saturday, police said.

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North Providence shop owner, 95, still living his life to the fullest

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North Providence shop owner, 95, still living his life to the fullest


NORTH PROVIDENCE, R.I (WPRI) — George Bozigian is 95 years young.

The beloved owner of H.K.B. Market in North Providence has been in business for more than seven decades.

And he has no plans of slowing down anytime soon.

Bozigian and his father built and opened H.K.B. Market in 1951.

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Though it used to be a general store, Bozigian has changed his business model to adapt to the neighborhood over the years.

“I gave up groceries,” Bozigian said. “I’ve got a sign over there that says, ‘no food for sale.’”

Instead, HKB Market focuses solely on selling lottery tickets.

“We still get a few customers,” Bozigian said. “But I’ll tell you, they’re the best people you could meet.”

Bozigian’s answer was simple when asked why he continues to come to work every day.

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“It’s worth my while,” he explained. “I come because they’re the best customers I’ve got. I don’t care if I never get another [customer].”

To Bozigian, his longtime customers are his friends.

“They’re good to me,” Bozigian continued. “There isn’t a thing they wouldn’t do for me and there isn’t a thing I wouldn’t do for them.”

Bozigian told 12 News it’s also boring just sitting at home. He loves socializing with his regulars, most of whom swing by at least once a week to buy their tickets.

“My social life is in this building,” he said, referring to H.K.B. Market. “I don’t go to the Foxy Lady to socialize. At 95, you stay away from there.”

Bozigian’s son said his father taught him everything he knows.

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“My father instilled in me a love of life, a love of family and a solid work ethic,” Kirk Bozigian said.

H.K.B. Market is open seven days a week with Bozigian at the helm. When he’s not behind the counter, Bozigian usually sits outside and “watches the cars go by” on Smithfield Road.

“People wave to me and I wave to them,” he said. “If there was work to do here, I would do it. But at this age … I don’t work much anymore.”

Bozigian doesn’t plan on ever closing down H.K.B. Market.

“I’m going to do this until the man upstairs calls and says, ‘We need you. We’ve got problems up here,’” Bozigian said. “I’ve lived a good, clean life. I never went out messing around.”

“I was with one woman all my life and I’m proud to say it,” he continued. “We were married for 65 years. I raised two kids — they’re great kids — and they married good people.”

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Bozigian’s wife Ann passed away more than a decade ago, which is part of the reason why he had to scale back H.K.B. Market’s offerings.

He spends most of his free time with his family, which includes his two children, six grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Bozigian also has a sixth great-grandchild on the way.



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Rhode Island DEM Closes Fort Wetherill Bulkhead Until Further Notice for Safety Concerns – Newport Buzz

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Rhode Island DEM Closes Fort Wetherill Bulkhead Until Further Notice for Safety Concerns – Newport Buzz


The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) has announced the temporary closure of the bulkhead behind the DEM’s Division of Marine Fisheries at Fort Wetherill State Park. Effective Friday, June 14, this closure applies to both vehicular and pedestrian traffic and will remain in effect until further notice.

The decision to close this popular fishing and viewing spot along Narragansett Bay was made due to concerns over public safety. The bulkhead’s supports have significantly degraded, and potential sinkholes have emerged, a consequence of historic infrastructure combined with damage from recent storm events.

“This closure to protect public safety is another example of challenges that Rhode Island’s coastal communities are increasingly contending with due to the impacts of climate change,” stated DEM Director Terry Gray. “While enhancing outdoor recreational opportunities and ensuring shoreline and fishing access across Rhode Island remain priorities for DEM, public safety concerns necessitated this restriction. We are working to quickly and safely restore access to this great fishing and sightseeing spot.”

Fort Wetherill State Park, located on 100-foot-high granite cliffs across the water from Fort Adams State Park, is a historical site that once served as a coastal defense battery and training camp, with structures dating back to before World War II. The park, which spans 61.5 acres, was acquired by the State of Rhode Island from the United States in 1972. The DEM’s Division of Marine Fisheries has been based at this location since the early 2000s, and the bulkhead currently serves as a berthing site for the Division’s research vessels.

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Despite the closure, parts of the area will remain accessible for authorized vehicles and personnel to continue DEM’s scientific research activities. Public parking will still be available at other locations within the park, including the upper lot near the Division.

 

 

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