Top stories this week: Body at airport ID'd; lawyer disbarred; highway contractor charged

Here's a look at The Providence Journal's most-read stories for the week of Jan. 15, as well as other top news we've been covering, supported by your subscriptions.

The Pawtuxet River Trail, a beloved woodland hideaway that straddles the Warwick-Cranston line, is at the center of a fierce battle in historic Pawtuxet Village. Access to the trail is partially blocked amid an increasingly bitter standoff between developers who want to build an industrial storage site there and a neighborhood coalition that includes singer Vanessa Carlton. Can the City of Warwick help the two sides find common ground?

"I feel like I’ve been revictimized," says Priscilla Mello, mother of murder victim Kerry Mello, after learning that one of the men who participated in his killing and dismemberment allegedly had sex with his girlfriend at the Licht Judicial Complex while in state custody as a state prosecutor and state trooper stood by. The Mello family now wonders if the desire to keep that alleged encounter under wraps influenced the plea deals the state reached with the defendants.

Food editor Gail Ciampa has some mouth-watering dining recommendations, whether you prefer a tasting tour of Rhode Island's 10 best French restaurants, or you're looking for delicious ways to celebrate Lunar New Year when the Year of the Rabbit begins today, Jan. 22.

Keep up with college and high school sports with scores, game highlights and your picks for the Basketball Player of the Week Award at providencejournal.com/sports.

Here are the most-read stories of the week on providencejournal.com:

Woman found dead outside T.F. Green Airport identified

The Warwick police have released the name of a woman found dead late Tuesday morning at T.F. Green International Airport.

She was identified as Rozann Jarosz, 51, of Pawtucket.

The police say there were no obvious signs of trauma, but the cause of death will be determined by the state medical examiner.

Police: Woman found dead outdoors at T.F. Green Airport identified — what we know

Rhode Island lawyer disbarred over misconduct investigation

A lawyer suspended 13 years ago following a sports-betting conviction has consented to being disbarred after acknowledging he is being investigated for unspecified professional misconduct.

The Rhode Island Supreme Court on Wednesday issued an order disbarring John S. Ciolli from the practice of law.

The court order came in response to an affidavit that Ciolli, who had been licensed since 2002, filed with the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court last month stating that he was aware that he is under investigation for professional misconduct and was voluntarily consenting to disbarment.

Courts: RI lawyer disbarred over misconduct investigation — what to know

Mass. construction company faces criminal charges for using contaminated soil on 6-10 road project

The office of Attorney General Peter F. Neronha on Wednesday charged the Massachusetts company hired by the state to rebuild the 6-10 connector with illegally using nearly 5,000 tons of contaminated soil and stone on the $247-million road project, and lying about it after the fact.

Barletta Heavy Division and Dennis Ferreira, the former superintendent of the project for the Canton, Massachusetts-based company, are each facing two counts of illegal disposal of solid waste, one count of operating a solid waste management facility without a license, and one count of providing a false document to a public official.

While some of the material containing hazardous substances came from the Pawtucket/Central Falls commuter rail station project, the bulk of it was trucked across the state line from Massachusetts.

“In the end, it comes down to this: as alleged in the information, Mr. Ferreira and Barletta Heavy Division used the 6-10 site as an environmental dumping ground,” Neronha said at a news conference Wednesday morning.

Barletta said it violated no criminal laws and described the charges as baseless "both legally and factually."

Environment: Mass. construction company faces criminal charges for using contaminated soil on Route 6-10 road project

Trial of Pawtucket police officer charged with shooting teen begins

The trial of an off-duty Pawtucket police officer charged with shooting and wounding a teenager outside a West Greenwich pizzeria in 2021 without justification began Tuesday in Superior Court, Warwick.

Daniel Dolan, 40, faces three counts of assault with a deadly weapon and a fourth count of discharging a gun − his .40-caliber pistol — while in the commission of a crime.

The shooting occurred on the evening of June 23, 2021, as Dolan, a school resource officer at Pawtucket’s Slater Middle School, followed a speeding car driven by Dominic Vincent off Route 95 and into the parking lot of Wicked Good Pizza.

Courts: Trial of Pawtucket police officer charged with shooting teen starts Tuesday

Five-figure bonuses given to top staff at RI Convention Center Authority venues

For the second year in a row, the private company that manages operations for the heavily taxpayer-subsidized Rhode Island Convention Center Authority has awarded "retention bonuses" of up to $41,497 to top staff.

The $41,497 end-of-year bonus went to General Manager Larry Lepore. His employer, state contractor ASM Global, awarded him the bonus on top of his salary, last pegged by the Rhode Island Convention Center Authority at $191,231 a year. A year earlier, the company gave him a $39,885 bonus and a pay raise.

Five other top-tier ASM Global employees under contract to work for the convention center authority — including the directors of sales, security, ticketing, operations and food and beverage — got bonuses ranging from $8,460 to $11,074.

Government: Five-figure bonuses given to top staff at RI Convention Center Authority venues

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This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Providence Journal top stories: Nature trail fight; plea deal questioned