DOES THAT MAKE IT HARDER FOR YOU AS AN INVESTIGATOR, WHEN BEFORE YOU HAD THE CHART — THE BOSS, THE UNDERBOSS, CONSIGLIERE, THEN THE CAPO REGIME; YOU KNEW WHO THE PLAYERS WERE. NOW IT'S KIND OF AMORPHOUS.
Yes, it's a little disorganized. I wouldn't say it makes it harder or easier. You don't have that layer of insulation that Mob bosses like John Gotti had in New York, or with Raymond L.S. Patriarca here years ago.
WHAT ABOUT OTHER ORGANIZED CRIME IN RHODE ISLAND — LATIN KINGS, CAMBODIAN GANGS, ET CETERA. DO WE HAVE A NEW SPECIES OF ORGANIZED CRIME, OR ARE THEY JUST AS SCATTERED?
It's not quite as organized as traditional organized crime or La Cosa Nostra used to be, because they were able to reach out to legitimate enterprise and legitimate businesses, and for some reason [were] glorified in the movies. . . . You have gangs on the streets. We work with the Providence police. As a matter of fact, I just met recently with Colonel Dean Esserman on gang activity, and they've got a very effective gang squad. We have a detective trooper assigned to that. And there are several gangs throughout the city of Providence. That gang unit does a good job of keeping an eye on it. But they're street gangs. They're not able to reach out to police, the judiciary, legitimate businesses, and never will be, because you're pretty much talking about adolescents. And there are some kids out there that are shooters — they're young kids — it's sad. There's a lot of crime, a lot of violence. The city of Philadelphia has four or five shootings a night. The violent crime, the juvenile violent crime on the East Coast, the Northeast, is just outrageous right now.
HOW DO YOU RATE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE STREETWORKERS PROGRAM THAT WORKS WITH THE PROVIDENCE POLICE? DO YOU SEE THAT AS THE KIND OF THING THAT SHOULD BE EXPANDED IN THIS TIME TO HELP PREVENT CRIME?
That's a great question. Yes, I think they are effective. I know [program director] Teny Gross has done a great job with Dean Esserman on the streets of Providence, trying to reduce juvenile crime and trying to define outlets for these children. By the way, just last night, as a volunteer, I coach at the Boys & Girls Club in Providence. I coach at the Chad Brown branch. And these kids are looking for a place to go, and there are places, like the Boys & Girls Club, that are just outstanding for kids. Teny Gross and that initiative find other ways to help juveniles and young adults in the city of Providence. It's important. These are tough times. Some of the social programs are drying up, and I think it's incumbent upon all of us to do the best we can to help out.
