AG's office nixes $40,000 in funding as NAACP president faces campaign-finance charges

PROVIDENCE – Gerard Catala, the newly elected president of the Providence NAACP and a former City Council candidate, faces criminal prosecution for failing to report on the finances of his 2022 political campaign as required by state law, according to Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha.

And because of the charges against Catala, Neronha's office says it will withhold the $40,000 it had planned to give the branch over the course of four years. The funds were part of a large grant from the Department of Justice to the attorney general's office and meant to support "hate-crime prevention and education."

Catala, 44, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

State police arrested Catala and charged him with two counts of failing to file the required campaign-finance paperwork from his unsuccessful run for the Ward 9 City Council seat in November, Neronha said Thursday in a news release. The misdemeanor could result in prison time and/or up to $2,000 in fines.

Catala was arraigned by a justice of the peace on Thursday, and his re-arraignment is scheduled for Tuesday in District Court, Providence.

He is accused of "knowingly and willfully failing to file" two finance reports as required, Neronha said, adding that his office is ready to take action when candidates "blithely and repeatedly ignore … campaign finance laws."

“Those laws exist for many reasons, among them to provide transparency into how candidates are financing their campaigns and whether they are doing so legally," Neronha said. "Failure to file such reports, after repeated directives from the Board of Elections to file them, can lead only to one place: criminal prosecution."

The Rhode Island Board of Elections referred the case to investigators after issuing several reminders to Catala about the requirement, the news release says.

Catala was required to file a campaign finance report on Aug. 16, 28 days before the Sept. 13 primary, and a second report on Sept. 6, seven days before the primary.

As of Thursday, Catala still hadn't filed either of the required reports, Neronha's release said.

Catala said last year that the campaign-finance issues were "just allegations" and "not something I’m entertaining right now." But trouble followed Catala into the presidency of the local NAACP chapter, which he claimed after defeating longtime president Jim Vincent.

Around the New Year, branch members began questioning how Catala had been able to obtain their email addresses and message them while voting was underway in November, asking for their votes, showing the candidates he had voted for and offering to help voters cast their ballots online.

Though Vincent didn't find the content of the emails suspicious, he and others – including the branch's treasurer and assistant treasurer – wondered whether Catala had somehow obtained a membership list, which would be a violation of NAACP policy. Furthermore, multiple members said the election's start time was unexpectedly delayed.

The national NAACP branch has yet to comment on the election or the charges against Catala.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: ex providence city council candidate arrested over campaign finances