Poli-ticks

Rhode Island has its own Phantom of the Opera

Arlene Violet
Posted 6/24/16

Unlike the original masked Phantom of the Opera, Rhode Island’s Phantom wraps a t-shirt across his face. The story line is different also. There’s no Christine with whom the phantom is in …

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Poli-ticks

Rhode Island has its own Phantom of the Opera

Posted

Unlike the original masked Phantom of the Opera, Rhode Island’s Phantom wraps a t-shirt across his face. The story line is different also. There’s no Christine with whom the phantom is in love. In fact, our phantom seems not to like women very much.

In October 2011, he was indicted by a grand jury on charges of first and second degree sexual assault as well as one count of assault with the intent to commit sexual assault. His alleged victim claimed he tried to rape her, resulting in a struggle and that he masturbated in front of her and forced her face up into his genitalia. She also alleged that after he finished he threw a $20 bill down and told her to “take her kid out to eat”. DNA evidence collected from the victim’s pajamas matched a sample provided by Rhode Island’s phantom.(Boston Globe)

Shortly after the indictment this 46 year old mother died of a pulmonary embolism. Attorney General Peter Kilmartin, dropped the charges stating that he could not proceed without the woman’s testimony and it had nothing to do with the fact that the phantom was a Rhode Island state representative.

The Rhode Island phantom’s ex-wife sought restraining orders against him several times with allegations of physical abuse, according to court records from 1998, 1999, and 2004. In the affidavits she asserted that the democrat state representative had choked and punched her, struck her with a cord, pinned her against the wall, slapped her and dragged her by the wrists out of her house in separate incidences. (Boston Globe) This was quite a physical exertion by our phantom since he was out on a tax free disability pension as a former police officer.

Rhode Island’s phantom also outdoes the original version since he is a phantom at his registered address as a legislator. Due to the brilliant work of Tim White of WPRI Channel 12, Mr. White, inter alia, interviewed past tenants at the home the phantom claimed as his own address. Both past tenants claimed he never lived there and that he coached them to say that he did live there rather than at his home in Johnston. His residence in Johnston was also “phantomlike” since he never mentioned that he owned it in his annual ethics filings. For an ex-cop he’s pretty facile at teaching others to lie as well as lying himself on his last 9 filings under penalty of perjury.

As Tim White pointed out, Rhode Island’s phantom, a/k/a Representative John Carnevale, either doesn’t live in his Providence district that he purports to represent or he has failed to file truthful ethics documents. Mr. White’s months-long investigation showed Carnevale’s car at his Johnston address, including at midnight, and never at his purported Providence home.

While questions remain as to just whom he is representing since he apparently doesn’t live in the district, another matter documents that he could give a hoot about anyone other than himself anyway. He sponsored legislation that found its way into the budget (He’s vice Chair of the House Finance Committee) that would mandate R.I. electric rate taxpayers to pay extra in order to help a North Kingstown company, Wind Energy Development, connect to the power grid. Its chief executive officer marshalled campaign contributions of more than $64,000 for Carnevale, Governor Raimondo and other lawmakers.

The phantom has no shame. Drop a chandelier on him.

Arlene Violet is an attorney and former Rhode Island Attorney General.

Arlene Violet, John Carnevale

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