Internal affairs: 2 PVD police officers erred in treatment of John Prince

An internal affairs investigation found two of three Providence police officers guilty of violating department rules and regulations when they took John Prince‘s camera phone from him, according to Police chief Hugh Clements.

In September, 2014, Prince observed three police officers outside his home and used his phone to video the officers. They had detained two women and were asking “intimidating” questions while going through their handbags. The officers objected to being recorded, chased Prince inside his home, took his cellphone, deleted the video and threw the phone into the bushes, an egregious violation of Prince’s constitutionally guaranteed rights.

After San Lucas issued his finding, Colonel Hugh Clements, chief of the Providence Police, concurred and issued appropriate sanctions, he said in this letter. The supervising officer, Sgt. Roger Aspinal, was suspended for one day without pay, and must attend retraining. Officer Louis Gianfrancesco was not suspended but must attend retraining.

Prince and his lawyer, Shannah Kurland, will be holding a press conference Thursday at Providence City Hall to talk about the case. You can hear Prince tell his story in the video below.