Minutes 1-20-26

MINUTES OF THE OPEN SESSION

OF THE RHODE ISLAND ETHICS COMMISSION

January 20, 2026

The Rhode Island Ethics Commission held its 1^st meeting of 2026 at 9:00 a.m. at the Rhode Island Ethics Commission conference room, located at 40 Fountain Street, 8th Floor, Providence, Rhode Island, on Tuesday, January 20, 2026, pursuant to the notice published at the Commission offices, the State House Library, and electronically with the Rhode Island Secretary of State.

The following Commissioners were present:

Lauren E. Jones, Chair Scott P. Rabideau

Holly J. Susi, Vice Chair Hugo L. Ricci, Jr.

Christopher P. Callahan Matthew D. Strauss

Emma L. Peterson

The following Commissioners were not present: Dr. Michael Browner, Jr., and Frank J. Cenerini.

Also present were Herbert F. DeSimone, Jr., Commission Legal Counsel; Jason Gramitt, Commission Executive Director; Katherine D’Arezzo, Senior Staff Attorney; Lynne M. Radiches, Staff Attorney/Education Coordinator; Staff Attorneys Teresa Giusti and Teodora Popova Papa; and Commission Investigators Peter J. Mancini, Gary V. Petrarca, and Kevin Santurri.

At 9:03 a.m., the Chair opened the meeting.

The first order of business was:

Approval of minutes of the Open Session held on December 16, 2025.

Upon motion made by Commissioner Rabideau and duly seconded by Commissioner Callahan, it was unanimously

VOTED: To approve the minutes of the Open Session held on December 16, 2025.

The next order of business was:

Director’s Report: Status report and updates.

a.) Complaints and investigations pending

Executive Director Gramitt informed as follows:

(1) A tentative adjudication date of March 17, 2026, has been scheduled in the Thorsen matter. There may be some pre-adjudication motions for consideration at the next meeting.

(2) A probable cause hearing in the Jonathan Pascua matter has been noticed for today in executive session.

(3) A motion for an extension of time will be considered in the James Durkin matter today in executive session.

(4) In re: Jeffrey McCormick is under investigation and will be noticed for a hearing in February or March.

b.) Advisory opinions pending

There are two advisory opinions pending, one of which has been noticed for today’s meeting.

c.) Access to Public Records Act requests since last meeting

There were four APRA requests received since the last meeting, all of which were granted within one business day. The requests related to executive session materials, complaint materials, and the 2026 meeting schedule.

d.) Financial disclosure

Executive Director Gramitt reminded that the filing deadline is April 24, 2026.

e.) General office administration

The next meeting is scheduled for February 10, 2026.

The next order of business was:

Advisory Opinions.

The advisory opinion was based on a draft advisory opinion prepared by Commission Staff for review by the Commission and was scheduled as an item on the Open Session Agenda for this date.

The advisory opinion was that of:

Bert Rodrigues, a civilian clerk with the Bristol Police Department, requests an advisory opinion regarding whether he is prohibited by the Code of Ethics from seeking election to and, if elected, serving as a member of the Warren Town Council while maintaining his municipal employment with the Bristol Police Department.

Staff Attorney Radiches presented the Commission Staff recommendation. The Petitioner was not present but had consented to the Commission proceeding in his absence. In response to Commissioner Callahan, Staff Attorney Radiches stated that the two communities of Bristol and Warren share a common water board and school district. In response to Commissioner Callahan’s inquiry regarding a potential conflict of interest should the town council be tasked with consideration of a matter involving either the water board or the school district, Staff Attorney Radiches reminded the Commission that municipalities are not businesses and, therefore, municipal officials are not business associates. She further informed that, while not required, the Petitioner represented that he would recuse if a matter involving the Bristol School Committee should come before the Warren Town Council. Upon motion made by Commissioner Ricci and duly seconded by Commissioner Susi, it was unanimously

VOTED: To issue an advisory opinion to Bert Rodrigues, a civilian clerk with the Bristol Police Department.

At 9:12 a.m., upon motion made by Commissioner Callahan and duly seconded by Commissioner Rabideau, it was unanimously:

VOTED: To go into Executive Session, to wit:

Motion to approve minutes of Executive Session held on December 16, 2025, pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-46-5(a)(2) & (4).
In re: Jonathan Pascua, Complaint No. 2025-2, pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-46-5(a)(2) & (4).
In re: James Durkin, Complaint No. 2025-4, pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-46-5(a)(2) & (4).
Motion to return to Open Session.

At 10:03 a.m., the Commission reconvened in Open Session.

The next order of business was:

Report on actions taken in Executive Session.

Chair Jones reported that the Commission took the following actions in Executive Session:

Unanimously voted (7-0) to approve the minutes of the Executive Session held on December 16, 2025.
Unanimously voted (7-0) in the matter of In re: Jonathan Pascua, Complaint No. 2025-2, to find that probable cause does not exist to believe that the Respondent, Jonathan Pascua, an elected member of the Coventry Town Council, violated R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-5(a) by his participation in the Coventry Town Council’s discussions and votes relating to access to and ownership of the Flat River Reservoir on April 3, 2024, May 2, 2024, and May 9, 2024, and the Town Council’s discussions and votes relating to litigation with Soscia Holdings, LLC, on various dates from February 7, 2023, to the present.

Unanimously voted (7-0) in the matter of In re: Jonathan Pascua, Complaint No. 2025-2, to find that probable cause does not exist to believe that the Respondent, Jonathan Pascua, an elected member of the Coventry Town Council, violated R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-5(d) by his participation in the Coventry Town Council’s discussions and votes relating to access to and ownership of the Flat River Reservoir on April 3, 2024, May 2, 2024, and May 9, 2024, and the Town Council’s discussions and votes relating to litigation with Soscia Holdings, LLC, on various dates from February 7, 2023, to the present.

Unanimously voted (7-0) in the matter of In re: James Durkin, Complaint No. 2025-4, to find that good cause exists to grant the Prosecution’s Motion to Enlarge Time for Investigation, Second Extension, by 60 days to April 29, 2026.
Unanimously voted (7-0) to return to Open Session.

The next order of business was:

Motion to seal minutes of January 20, 2026, Executive Session.

Upon motion made by Commissioner Susi and duly seconded by Commissioner Callahan, it was unanimously

VOTED: To seal the minutes of Executive Session held on January 20, 2026.

The next order of business was:

New Business proposed for future Commission agendas and

general comments from the Commission.

Chair Jones inquired whether the staff is required to present motions to enlarge time before the Commission when the respondent’s counsel has waived any objections. Executive Director Gramitt explained that the 180-day deadline for investigations is jurisdictional, but the Commission could create a formal procedure to address instances where there has been an agreement between the parties. Legal Counsel DeSimone stated that the Commission’s regulations require that the Commission find good cause to grant an extension. Chair Jones commented that the Commission may wish to consider whether there are more efficient ways to handle these motions.

At 10:12 a.m., upon motion made by Commissioner Rabideau and duly seconded by Commissioner Callahan, it was unanimously

VOTED: To adjourn the meeting.

Respectfully submitted,

___________________________

Emma L. Peterson

Secretary