Off the Hook in Rhode Island

As we suspected, the political connections of embattled Assistant U.S. Attorney Gerard B. Sullivan of Rhode Island paid off. Sullivan, a member of the Rove Republican Racket, was busted on Thanksgiving morning for allegedly drunk driving.

Last Monday, the DUI/DWI charges were dropped. Here is the news report from the Providence Journal:

WARWICK, R.I. -- The drunk-driving charge against federal prosecutor Gerard B. Sullivan was dismissed in District Court on Monday morning. In a quick procedure, as the judge called the calendar for the day, Sullivan and his lawyer, Kevin J. Bristow, stood before Judge Frank J. Cenerini as the judge said the state was submitting a request for dismissal.

Cenerini mentioned that after Sullivan was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, Sullivan had admitted in Traffic Tribunal last week that he refused to take a chemical breath test.  "As is the customary disposition in these matters, the DWI -- if there is a refusal submission -- is dismissed," Cenerini said.

In the hallway after the brief proceeding, Sullivan said he was "not at liberty to speak" about the matter. Sullivan, 50, was one of eight people charged by the Warwick police during Thanksgiving weekend with refusing to submit to a chemical breath test for suspected drunken driving. He was the only one of those eight who was not also charged with driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, a misdemeanor. He was later charged with driving under the influence after Warwick Police Chief Stephen M. McCartney and The Journal reviewed the arrest reports for all eight drivers.

Political Favors in Rhode Island?

Gerard B. Sullivan, the embattled Assistant U.S. Attorney from Rhode Island who was pinched for allegedly drunk-driving on Thanksgiving morning is in the news again. From the smell of it, Sullivan, a loyal member of the Rove Republican Racket, is trying to strike a deal with his political friends in the court system.

Those tight political connections are what caused the controversy to begin with when Sullivan tried to cover-up the DUI. A local police chief had to come out a few days after the incident  and charge Sullivan with a DUI in the name of "fundamental fairness."

Now it looks like games are being played in the prosecution of the prosecutor.

The Providence Journal reported on Wednesday:

Federal prosecutor Gerard B. Sullivan on Tuesday sought dismissal in District Court of a criminal charge of driving while under the influence of alcohol. Sullivan, an assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Rhode Island, had admitted a day earlier in state traffic court that he failed to take a chemical breath test when arrested early on Thanksgiving morning by the Warwick police.On Tuesday, Judge Frank J. Cenerini said the pre-trial conference has been continued until Monday at the request of both sides.

Fundamental Fairness in Rhode Island

Gerard Sullivan (pictured), the Assistant U.S. Attorney who was caught allegedly drunk driving on Thanksgiving Day and allegedly refused to take a breath test, was formally charged with a DUI on Friday.

Citing "fundamental fairness," the local police chief filed the DUI charges belatedly after being criticized for playing favorites with a member of the Rove Republican Racket.

Sullivan pled not guilty.

Sullivan allegedly used his credentials as an Assistant U.S. Attorney to intimidate local police officers.

From the Associated Press:

WARWICK, R.I. — A veteran federal prosecutor pleaded not guilty Friday to drunken driving after Warwick police charged him following questions about whether he was initially let off the hook because of his law enforcement connections. Gerard Sullivan, 50, was arraigned on one count of driving under the influence and left the courthouse without commenting on the case. District Court Judge J. Terence Houlihan Jr. released Sullivan after he promised to appear at his next court hearing on Dec. 15. Unlike others arrested over the holiday weekend who refused breath tests, Sullivan was not charged with driving under the influence, a criminal charge. That decision contradicted a police department policy of charging suspected drunken drivers who refuse breath tests with the more serious criminal charge when other evidence supports it. After a legal review, [the local police chief] said Friday in a written statement that Sullivan should have been charged with driving under the influence. He called it a case of "fundamental fairness."

Silence from U.S. Attorney in Rhode Island

Breaking News: On Tuesday, we told you about the allegedly drunk driving Assistant U.S. Attorney in Rhode Island who was pinched on Thanksgving Day. Yesterday, the story  about Gerard B. Sullivan went national, picked up by the Associated Press, CBS News, The Boston Globe, etc.

Now comes word that the Sullivan's boss has gone silent. The Providence Journal just posted this story:

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Rhode Island on Thursday refused to comment on a veteran prosecutor’s arrest early Thanksgiving Day for refusing to take a chemical breath test after a Warwick police officer saw him driving erratically. “The Department of Justice instructed us not to talk about it,” Thomas Connell, spokesman for U.S. Attorney Peter Neronha, said in response to questions about Assistant U.S. Attorney Gerard B. Sullivan. Connell told The Journal earlier this week that the office was aware of the charge and would work with the Department of Justice to address any administrative consequences Sullivan might face.

Drunk Driving Assistant U.S. Attorney in Rhode Island

With the arrogance and above-the-law attitude the Rove Republican Racket established at the U.S. Department of Justice and the 93 U.S. Attorney offices across the nation, it was no surprise to learn that on Thanksgiving morning, an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Rhode Island was caught for allegedly driving under the influence.

The Providence Journal writes:

A veteran federal prosecutor was charged early Thanksgiving morning with refusing to take a chemical breath test after two drivers told the police a man at the wheel of a small BMW appeared "out of it," was "driving all over the road" and had hit curbs on Airport Road. After he was pulled over shortly after 1:15 a.m., Gerard B. Sullivan, 50, of Lincoln, an assistant U.S. attorney for the District of Rhode Island, told the arresting officers more than once that he was a prosecutor, according to the police chief. He said he knew the police chief, according to the police report, and asked the arresting officer if there was "anything he could do."

What is more disappointing is until a few years ago, Sullivan was head of the criminal division. (He ought to know better.) The police report has a damaging description of Sullivan drunken behavior  according to the Providence Journal.

[The police officer] asked [Sullivan] to submit to a series of standardized field sobriety tests. Sullivan had "extreme difficulty keeping his head straight and following the stimulus with only his eyes without moving his head as instructed," was "unable to stand in the heel-to-toe stance," "repeatedly missed heel-to-toe contact," continually raised his arms more than 6 inches from his side for balance, and "placed his foot down continuously" when asked to stand on one leg, according to [the officer's] report.

We can only wonder for all the prosecutorial misconduct and political prosecutions during the Rove-Bush-Cheney years if more Assistant U.S. Attorneys have now resorted to heavy drinking during the era of Obama.