City of Cranston Reaches Agreement with Police Captain Stephen Antonucci
Supreme Court Mediation Leads to Resolution of All Pending Legal Actions
June 24, 2015Cranston – Following mandatory appellate court mediation in the Rhode Island Supreme Court on June 16, 2015, the City of Cranston and Police Captain, Stephen Antonucci have entered into an agreement for Captain Antonucci to resign his position and dismiss all pending legal actions against the City of Cranston. In exchange for which, the City has agreed to drop its prosecution of Antonucci under the state Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights. Under the agreement, Antonucci will be permitted to use his accrued leave according to the terms of the collective bargaining agreement. Antonucci will not receive any benefits beyond the city’s contractual obligations. Retired Chief Justice Williams oversaw the mediation and helped to bring the parties together to resolve the protracted litigation.
“After approximately one year of intense litigation and the prospect for considerably more court action, I am pleased to report that this difficult chapter for the Cranston Police Department is coming to a close,” stated Mayor Allan Fung. “This agreement will permit the men and women of the Cranston Police Department to move forward and save the taxpayers thousands of dollars in anticipated legal costs. As always, we worked diligently to find the most cost-effective resolution for the residents of our city. I am very grateful for the support of Chief Winquist in reaching this agreement and the assistance of Chief Justice Williams for helping to resolve this matter through the mediation process.”
Cranston Police Chief, Colonel Michael Winquist stated:
“The settlement agreement that was reached with Captain Antonucci will bring closure to an incident that has hurt the reputation of the Cranston Police Department. This agreement will allow the many hard-working men and women of the Cranston Police Department to continue to do their jobs with integrity and professionalism and without further distraction. I support this agreement fully and look forward to a new day for our department.”
