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March 3, 2011

BREAKING: RI State Police Commissioner Brendan Doherty Resigns

Marc Comtois

WPRO reports that RI State Police Commissioner Brendan Doherty has tendered his resignation to Governor Chafee effective April 1. No surprise, really.

UPDATE: Buddy Cianci and Tim White have both interviewed Doherty since the story broke. Sounds like Doherty will be running for office in the near future (Whitehouse or Cicilline?).

Comments

There was a time when the gold standard for incompetence and criminality belonged to the fine politicians of Louisiana. Thanks to the never give up attitude of Rhode Island's politicians, we have left our southern brethren in the dust.

Why in the world would we want to see illegal aliens who are committing crimes turned over to the federal government? How would our honest citizens be able to know the joys of being victimized by somebody who should not have been here in the first place? The joy of having to fork over the money to pay for the defense of one of these thugs would be gone. No, Mr. Doherty, you had it all wrong - looking out for the people of Rhode Island was not what you were hired for. How dare you think that a member of the Rhode Island State Police should be seeing to the safety of this state's honest citizenry. Have you no clue that the person holding your position was to follow the path of politically correct pandering?

Lincoln Chafee is a nice man. He may well own a dog he pets whenever he enters his home. The only problem is that he lives in a never never land that those who are capable of tying their own shoe laces will never understand. You, Mr. Doherty, like Alice, are intelligent enough to see things are a little odd and have decided to move on. May you have only the best of luck as you leave this house of cards.

Posted by: RIslander at March 3, 2011 4:09 PM

If he runs, please let it be against Sen. Whitehouse. His rant on Republicans being nazis is a nadir only reached in the House by Alan Grayson. Apparently he's not even aware that nazis are a form of socialist....

Posted by: chuckR at March 3, 2011 4:34 PM

Brendan Doherty leaving his beloved RI State Police is a blow to that organization and to the state of Rhode Island.
HOWEVER, Brendan Doherty running for the Senate and taking out Wheldon Shitehouse would be a tremendous benefit not only to the state of Rhode Island but to the United States of America.

Doherty is top shelf. There is no way a man of his stature and integrity runs for the motley playpen known as the U.S. House of Reps. Doherty is either running for the Senate in '12 or he will run for governor in '14.
The timing of his resignation tells me he's running for the Senate.
LOVE IT!!!!

Posted by: Tim at March 3, 2011 5:01 PM

"Lincoln Chafee is a nice man. He may well own a dog he pets whenever he enters his home. The only problem is that he lives in a never never land that those who are capable of tying their own shoe laces will never understand."

That's the great myth. The reality is Lincoln Chafee is vindictive, nasty and thin skinned. Good old Linc has quite a mean streak.

Posted by: Tim at March 3, 2011 5:22 PM

I'm sorry to see a ggreat cop like Brendan Doherty elaving,but it's understandable.
Lincoln Chafee is a pitiful excuse for a man.
I hope Brendan takes on Sheldon Whitehouse and eviscerates him politically.
Sheldon is a piece of dog crap.
I know Brendan for about 26 years and haven't met a more honest or dedicaated police officer.
Well,not to worry-we still have Dean Esserman and Matt Jerzyk on the public payroll.

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 3, 2011 5:23 PM

I agree with the people here you hope he takes on OutHouse. No need to take on Cicilline. He's a one termer for sure after the debacle of Prov budget has come to light. Even with the proJo running cover for him like last time, my dog could beat him.

Posted by: mike at March 3, 2011 5:40 PM

I guess the final blow was when Chaffee said he was going to work with the Indians on the casino. Brendan liked it the old way when the Don would send him and the guys in to slap the Indians around for selling cigarettes.

Posted by: Swazool at March 3, 2011 5:41 PM

Per an interview on channel 10 Brendan Doherty will announce his future plans at the end of May.
He's running for the Senate.

Posted by: Tim at March 3, 2011 6:07 PM

swazool-at the time of the cigarette raid,Brendan Doherty was chief of security for Roger Williams College.
Steven Pare was Superintendent of the RI State Police.
Hey,we all make dumb assertions now and then.Apologize and move on.

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 3, 2011 6:31 PM

Right you are Joe. In fact Pare's handling of the smoke shop raid (went off the clock and could not be found as the raid was literally going down) did permanent damage to his relationship with the rank and file. Rumor has it that soured (ala a no confidence vote) relationship brought about Pare's retirement.
Doherty's troopers love him. That was never the case with Pare.

Posted by: Tim at March 3, 2011 6:38 PM

Chafee will appoint another shabby knownothing crony who will grovel and crawl to apease the politically correct and the illegal community. It obviously has to be someone beneath Chafee's mental capacity - so there we are, in deep deep trouble.

RI, future home of and for the lawless.

Posted by: chet at March 3, 2011 6:49 PM

he will appoint a non-controversial former trooper .
It's hard to find someone below Linc's mental capacity outside a contained classroom.
The new appointee will be a good dog and heed his master.He will not make waves.
Kilmartin has his work cut out for him.

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 3, 2011 7:00 PM

Anyone care to place bets as to whether swazool will apologize?

Posted by: BobN at March 3, 2011 7:32 PM

Good try Joe, but from the projo

" Carcieri said he grew to respect Doherty, who retired as second in command in 2004, and later worked at the Rhode Island Airport Corporation and Roger Williams University. They formed a personal relationship; Doherty was seen accompanying the governor and his family to various social events."

The raid happened July 13th, 2003.

So actually, if Pare was not there then Brendan was in command during the raid.

Posted by: Swazool at March 3, 2011 8:06 PM

I thought he retired earlier,but if you check the court case that resulted,Doherty was not a defendant in the civil action that I recall and the RISP was exonerated by the courts.
I recall the tape of the raid and I believe Steve O'Donnell may have been the ranking officer present.
In any event,Patrick Lynch and Pare had the responsibility for the raid.Carcieri obviously had the final authority ,and though I liked him,it was far from his best moment.
In any event,you're trying to smear a good man before he has even announced.Are you that enamored of the bumbling idiot Chafee?

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 3, 2011 8:28 PM

I was involved in that particular case, although I won't say in what capacity. That entire raid was a colossally stupid idea, and even more stupid was the decision to proceed with it during operation with the media already there waiting for a circus to begin. That having been said, the police conducting the raid acted professionally and the civil case was frivolous nonsense. I was surprised the judge didn't throw it out. It's also a fine example of how stupid juries can be that they originally awarded the guy $300,000 for basically resisting arrest and hurting himself in the process. Thank goodness judge Torres overturned the award. So in conclusion, stupidity from the governor, stupidity from the AG, stupidity from the state police, stupidity from the Indians, and stupidity from the original jury. That sums up Rhode Island pretty nicely.

Posted by: Dan at March 3, 2011 8:45 PM

Doherty is a cops cop with compassion. It must nauseate him just to be in Chafee's presence. I know just as a voter, I feel like blowing lunch every time Chafee opens his mouth.

Posted by: Max Diesel at March 3, 2011 9:07 PM

Breaking News:
Mr Doherty's $110,000+++ a year pension + Cadillac health care benefits ($19,000) could rival former ICE agents Joe Bernstein's...if Joe would divulge his income and benefits ???

Posted by: Sammy at March 3, 2011 9:45 PM

Watch out Sammy has flipped to the other side. All of a sudden he's worried about a state pension.

Posted by: Max Diesel at March 3, 2011 9:49 PM

If Doherty is really planning to run for Senate, I fault Chafee...for keeping him on in the first place.
A misguided attempt by the governor to appease the Cianci crowd. It failed - made Linc look like Neville Chamberlain.
The colonel picking a public fight with another high-ranking law officer is an embarassment. Do we really want our cops carrying on like politicians or Esserman wanna-bes?

Posted by: bella at March 3, 2011 10:40 PM

yes-sammy you puke-a pension of about $58,000;a VA disability benefit of $845/mo. and a whopping 4324/mo in SS benefits(thanks to WEP)-that's it.
And listen a-hole,I never worked for ICE-I retired 7 years before DHS existed at all.
Any more questions?

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 3, 2011 10:57 PM

yes-sammy you puke-a pension of about $58,000;a VA disability benefit of $845/mo. and a whopping 4324/mo in SS benefits(thanks to WEP)-that's it.
And listen a-hole,I never worked for ICE-I retired 7 years before DHS existed at all.
Any more questions?

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 3, 2011 10:58 PM

I forgot "benefits"-Blue Cross Basic-and I have to carry a family plan because it's really for my wife-I don't use it.
I get all my medical care from the VA at no cost because my disability level is high enough.The plan was "pre-paid"if you get my drift.
I think the premium is around $265/mo.It just went up,but I believe that's right.
No dental-you have to be 100% to get VA dental.
I pay all dental out of pocket.
Blue Cross Basic isn't Cadillac-it's more like Yugo.

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 3, 2011 11:04 PM

Oh crap!!My Social security is three hundred twenty four/mo.($324,NOT $4324).
My wife gets SS and a very small pension from the privaate sector-those are none of your f**kin' business.
Bella-you're right(damn I hate to say that)because Chafee should've known Doherty wouldn't compromise his integrity relating to the liaision with ICE.
His criticism of Pare was spot on.The AG is the chief law enforcement officer of the state,not the Governor.As head of the RISP Doherty could not ignore the AG's policy decision.
Pare's policy was dictated by politics,not common sense,and Doherty was pointing that out.Pare's policy(really Taveras')causes increased danger in the city.
esserman was never any kind of actual-he spent no time on the bricks-he was an attorne,an assistant chief,and a chief.He skipped paying dues.

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 3, 2011 11:12 PM

@Bella,

I guess that goes to show how much Chafee is totally out of touch. Any truly real fan of Doherty's is probably not a fan of Cianci. You libtards can't help yourselves. You can't crack the guy's character so you vaguely associate him with some scumbag in this case the felon Cianci.

Posted by: Max Diesel at March 3, 2011 11:35 PM

"So actually, if Pare was not there then Brendan was in command during the raid."

Pare was around. Pare was on the job that day, EXCEPT for the time when the raid was actually being executed. Pare did not agree with the Gov's decision so he was really mature about it and sat in a corner while it was going on. Pare literally checked out during the raid. Tremendous leadership on Pare's part eh??
And the big losers?? Pare and the Indians. Pare lost his gig because of his embarrassing lack of leadership. He was a hack hire to begin with (daddy was BBF with Almond and got him the gig) so he had lots to prove to the troopers yet never did. Rank and file never embraced him and so he left. Chiefy Pooh lost his bid for a casino. And now the winners. Carcieri won re-election despite a national Democratic party tsunami and he hired the guy who should have had the RISP gig instead of Pare to begin with, Brendan Doherty. Carcieri and Doherty initially became very close during the Station Nightclub fire. Carcieri righted a wrong when he named Doherty to replace Pare.
Now Brendan Doherty is a lethal free agent and in position to damage Lincoln Chafee in a number of ways. Sweet!!!!!

Posted by: Tim at March 3, 2011 11:59 PM

Now Brendan Doherty is a lethal free agent and in position to damage Lincoln Chafee in a number of ways. Sweet!!!!!
Posted by Tim at March 3, 2011 11:59 PM


I have not seen someone use so many exclamation points since I received a homemade birthday card from my eight year old niece many years ago.

Posted by: Phil at March 4, 2011 6:53 AM

How long has the top cop been a politician? Is that how he gets the favorable newspaper articles published? Like these that have appeared in the Projo:

RI State Police Supt. on snow patrol Jan. 12 2011. ( I'm not making this up)

RI State Police Supt. learned his values at the gym. Jul 22 2010

Law Order: Coach and Colonel ... Jul 2010

Posted by: Phil at March 4, 2011 7:04 AM

Don't worry Bob and Joe, I don't ask for appoligies.

But we can move on.

Brendan should run, but probably should wait to go against Cicilline. If you are going to spend so much money and time, you should put it in a race that you can win.

Posted by: Swazool at March 4, 2011 7:11 AM

Swaz, would Col. Doherty agree that you and he are friends on a first-name basis? Or are you employing the libtard tactic of trivializing someone by using only his first name in your typical condescending manner?

Posted by: BobN at March 4, 2011 7:31 AM

Before we start touting Doherty as the latest law enofrcement/military figure who's going to step in and exterminate all the liberals, remember the day we all thought Reggie Centracchio was the next political superstar?
Sure, Doherty may have the spit and polish vote locked up. But the political skills that get you the badge #1 aren't necessarily those that get you the plurality of voters on election day.

Posted by: bella at March 4, 2011 8:04 AM

I don't know anyone who thought that way about Centracchio. But it's typical of you Leftists to think of your politicians as Messiahs, so I can understand why you would project like that.

Posted by: BobN at March 4, 2011 8:21 AM

Bella is probably right, Doherty (sorry BobN, I will use his last name to make you comfortable and give you an apology all at the same time, i do find it funny that your so sensitive) will probably go the way of Centracchio. I do expect that he runs against Whitehouse, and we have all seen the polls. He has about the same chance of winning that as the Providence Police do finding a criminal illegal when faxing the papers over every night, it isn't impossible just highly unlikely.

Posted by: Swazool at March 4, 2011 8:58 AM

I would like to hear Doherty's thoughts on the US War on Drugs and marijuana decriminalization specifically.

It's not a particularly pressing issue at this moment (although it is a colossal waste of money), but it's usually a very good litmus test for determining whether a law enforcement figure can think critically and for themselves or not.

I'm troubled whenever a person in authority can't distinguish between the concepts of malum in se and malum prohibitum. This particular logical fallacy is much more common among those who wear a badge, so it would be interesting to see whether this is the case here.

Posted by: Dan at March 4, 2011 9:13 AM

Centracchio and Doherty?
Just the name recognition factor separates them by a mile.
Few people would recognize Centracchio if he bumped into them.
Doherty is not a politician and that's a plus nowadays.
I just don't believe your analogy holds water,swazool.
The Senate as quite a few non prior officeholders.

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 4, 2011 9:14 AM

@ Dan
Doherty will have all the same stances as Carcieri.

Against legalization of marijuana.
Against Abortion.
Against Gay Marriage.

He will fall inline with the Church.

Although I don't share most of his views, It would be good to see him beat Cicilline, and he has a chance at that race if he waits until then and spends his time visiting the old folks homes and tea party gatherings.

As for beating any of the other 3, too much of a long shot. Basically those 3 are lifers.

Posted by: Swazool at March 4, 2011 11:02 AM

I agree Langevin may be a lifer;Reed-possible except for his willingness to atke money from bankers,but still probably a survivable situation;Sheldon-no.
Sheldon is a real piece of sh*t.People may be getting around to figuring that out.
Well,not idiots like Bella.

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 4, 2011 1:17 PM

Whoever beats Whitehouse will have to bring more stiff shoulders and a nice haircut.
Police and military types (my family includes both) come from a top-down world where their authority is unquestioned. In politics, your authority is questioned all the time, and often these ramrod-straight men can't handle it when someone questions them.
I've witnessed what happens when they're questioned outside their world. It's not pretty.
And in this space, witness Joe.

Posted by: bella at March 4, 2011 5:21 PM

bella-you're revealing your hangups here-"family members" in the military and/or police f'rinstance-didn't they take you seriously enuf?You sound like a college student all full of piss and vinegar about "causes" and "womyn's"issues and left wing nonsense.
Fact is,there is no democracy in the military and police.
Many,many people have made the transition easily from that milieu to politics-just take Jack Reed-from Army ranger to liberal politician-so when Reed does it,it's ok,but Doherty?Oh,let's see-blah,blah.
He really oughta take on Cicilline,who seems to be low hanging fruit(ok,ok)due to his Providence machinations being made public.
I welcome being questioned outside the world I lived in.You don't have to like my answers sweets.
swazool-No apology forthcoming from me because although I was wrong on Doherty's retirement date,you were trying to dump the smoke shop debacle on him and it wasn't his responsibility.
Pare probably didn't want to do it and just made himself scarce-he still got sued.He was right-it was a real stupid blunder by Lynch and the Governor.No one should put numerous lives at risk for some untaxed ciggies.

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 4, 2011 8:40 PM

Bye, Bye! You won't be missed Mr. Doherty! A good man was forced out to give this bum the top spot. Bye Bye!

Posted by: No Great Loss at March 4, 2011 8:45 PM

Joe, I didn't ask for an apology even though you were both wrong on the facts, and asked me for an apology.

You are funny, you can't see the irony in the fact that Doherty quit the day after Chaffee met with the Indians? My first comment was just pointing that out, not dumping all the fault on Doherty.

I enjoy your passion, but please get a grip.

Posted by: Swazool at March 4, 2011 9:38 PM

Joe, I was a college student a long time ago. And I have, in large part, won their respect.
And don't forget, Reed didn't hang up his uniform and immediately decide he was ready for the big time - he started as a state senator. He didn't have a blogiverse or radio talk show hosts talking him as God every day, either.
Growing up around authority figures was a great experience - it taught me I could hold my own with anybody and in any situation. And I learned from the mistakes they made, too - they were mortals like me.

Posted by: bella at March 4, 2011 9:40 PM

bella-please understand that maybe I've seen some things you haven't-oh,and I was a college student too- actually I'm not an uptight authoritarian,but I just get really pissed off with your kumbaya vision of what you think of as "immigrants"they aren't all people looking for a better life,I can assure you of that.
I long ago lost any scintilla of idealization of people or the jobs they do.
I had some of that as a kid.I grew up.
I've known Brendan Doherty for about 25 or 26 years through my job.
He's actually a very honest,dedicated and well rounded public servant.
People forget that he cleaned up the Beacon Mutual mess and headed the RISP Financial Crime Unit-not a bad skill set for a cop.
I myself can't do long division.
He'd be a lot better than a miserable lying skunk like Cicilline or an effete snob like Sheldon.
You also use the term "patriots" as an epithet-what the hell is wrong with being patriotic?I'll never understand that attitude.
I welcome anyone in the world who comes here legally and adopts this country as their own.
THE FIRST DAY IN THE BORDER PATROL ACADEMY THEY TOLD US THAT MOST BORDER AGENCIES IN THE WORLD EXISTED TO KEEP THEIR PEOPLE in THE COUNTRY.
That was in 1976 when that was a truism.Maybe not nowadays.People come here because it's great country-they just need to do it the right way.

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 4, 2011 10:08 PM

swazool-I really don't think Chafee meeting with the Narragansetts had any remote connection with Doherty leaving.I believe this was coming from the moment Chafee revoked the Exective Order.If not even earlier.
I think Chafee is addled.That's not said in jest.
BTW I have a few cousins who are Mohawks and I think the Indians have been royally f**ked for generations.
the Mohawks did better than most because of the demand they were in for high steel work.
We also had a LOT of Indians in the INS because many are from border areas,both north and south and know the territory and people.
We also had more Hispanics than any other Federal LE agency.Surprised?

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 4, 2011 10:14 PM

oh,sammy,boy,sammy?Are you there?I had no problem "divulging"my income and benefits.After all,they all come from the Federal government and there's no reason they should be secret.
What's your income?The source?I know you won't answer.You're like most of the leftists here-they never explain what they do or have done with the exception of Phil who sees potential oyster eaters under every screen name.
I love you leftist turds-always "demanding" this or that like you're some superior life form.
In actuality you're probably a parasite.

Posted by: joe bernstein at March 6, 2011 10:04 PM