Top stories this week: Police 'money grab'; Pawtucket taxpayers; best Italian restaurants

Journal Staff
·5 min read

Here's a look at some of The Providence Journal's most-read stories for the week of March 5, supported by your subscriptions.

  • Retired teacher Claire Pollard has been an usher at the Providence Civic Center (now Amica Mutual Pavilion) for 50 years, making her the venue's longest-serving employee. Her side gig has also let her cheer on her beloved Providence College Friars basketball team, even while she undergoes treatment for cancer. Earlier this month, when it looked like chemo was going to sideline her on game day, Claire had other plans. Columnist Mark Patinkin shares her inspiring story.

  • High school students get a realistic taste of courtroom procedure in the state's Mock Trial Tournament, an extracurricular activity that teaches some lifelong skills: thinking on the fly, structuring arguments and speaking in public. Said one alum of the program who's now a Boston attorney: "I got so into it, sometimes I forgot it wasn’t real.”

Here are the week's top reads on providencejournal.com:

'Money grab': Is East Providence profiting from deceptive billing for police details?

An East Providence police detail oversees work along Centre Street and Carrie Avenue in Rumford.
An East Providence police detail oversees work along Centre Street and Carrie Avenue in Rumford.

A three-month investigation by The Hummel Report found that local cities and towns can largely set their own rates for police department special details, tacking on “administrative fees” and other charges that generate millions of dollars in general fund revenue that far exceeds the costs of running the programs.

Now, a retired officer in East Providence is calling out his city for not being transparent with vendors about how the money they're charged is actually being spent. He says the invoices are at best misleading — and at worst deceptive.

“To me, it’s another money grab, along with [speed] cameras,” said Mark Norton, who retired as a sergeant from the police department 14 months ago after a 28-year career.

Municipal government: 'Money grab': Is East Providence profiting from deceptive billing for police details?

Hasbro is not the top taxpayer in Pawtucket, but it's close. See who beats it.

An old factory converted to lofts, apartment buildings, shopping centers and a certain famous toy company top the list of the Pawtucket's biggest taxpayers, according to data provided by the city tax assessor.

Also in the city's Top 30 taxpayers are nursing homes, a fitness center chain, a moving and storage company and a job-lot retailer whose name is synonymous with the state. Check out our list to see who's paying what.

City government: Hasbro is not the top taxpayer in Pawtucket, but it's close. See who beats it

'This wears away our souls': Carjacking victim's sister fights to keep killers behind bars

Murder victim Jason Burgeson with sister Kellie Surdis in a 1999 family photo. Burgeson and his girlfriend, Amy Shute, were killed execution-style on a Johnston golf course after being carjacked in downtown Providence in 2000.
Murder victim Jason Burgeson with sister Kellie Surdis in a 1999 family photo. Burgeson and his girlfriend, Amy Shute, were killed execution-style on a Johnston golf course after being carjacked in downtown Providence in 2000.

It’s been 23 years since five men carjacked, kidnapped and shot 20-year-old Jason Burgeson and his girlfriend, Amy Shute, execution-style as the pair held each other at the Button Hole Golf Course in Johnston.

Their families, however, have not been left in peace to process their anger, rage and overwhelming grief over the last two decades. Instead, they have been called on again and again as the five defendants have petitioned to get their sentences shortened.

Burgeson’s sister, Kellie Surdis, appealed to U.S. Sentencing Commission members late last month to keep grieving families in the forefront as they recommend changes to federal sentencing guidelines under the First Step Act.

“I will tell you, this wears away our souls,” Surdis said.

Courts: 'This wears away our souls': Carjacking victim's sister fights to keep killers behind bars

Want to own a business? Map Center owner looking to ‘give the shop away’ to right person

Andrew Nosal, owner of The Map Center, surrounded by the many varieties of maps in his Pawtucket store.
Andrew Nosal, owner of The Map Center, surrounded by the many varieties of maps in his Pawtucket store.

When you get to a certain age, it’s time to start passing on the things you’ve built up in your life.

Or start putting them in a dumpster.

Andrew Nosal, owner of The Map Center in Pawtucket, is hoping it’s the first one, which is why he recently posted this note on his website:

“Are you the right person to be the next owner?” he wrote. “Act now! I am in the mood to give the shop away for little more than the pleasure of seeing someone adapt this venerable local institution in today’s environment and have as much fun as I did for the last few decades.”

Business: Want to own a business? Map Center owner looking to ‘give the shop away’ to right person

From Federal Hill to South County: The best Italian restaurants across RI

Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese is grated over spaghetti pomodoro at Locanda in Saunderstown.
Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese is grated over spaghetti pomodoro at Locanda in Saunderstown.

Looking for an Italian restaurant in Rhode Island? Do you want red sauce, homestyle, freestyle, inexpensive or fine dining? Should it be a ristorante or a pizzeria? Is Federal Hill the only place to find the best?

Food editor Gail Ciampa gives a curated list of 11 Italian restaurants, from homey to upscale, that offer not just a delicious meal, but a sense of place. Mangia!

Dining: From Federal Hill to South County: The best Italian restaurants across RI

To read the full stories, go to providencejournal.com. Find out how to subscribe here.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Providence Journal top stories: Fees for police details; Italian food