Anthony J. Silva, a former chief of staff for Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee, did not violate any laws, but showed “very poor judgment” when he pushed public officials to support a personal building project in Cumberland, according to a report released Tuesday by the state attorney general.
Silva, 66, had been trying since 2017 to build a house on a lot consisting mostly of wetlands, located on Canning Street in Cumberland. The state Department of Environmental Management rejected a proposal for the site in 2019 and then approved it in 2021.
According to Neronha’s report, Silva — while serving as chief of staff for McKee when McKee was lieutenant governor — frequently contacted DEM and Cumberland officials to try to win DEM approval for a plan to build a house on the site. After McKee became governor Silva remained his chief of staff and advocated for the project with Cumberland Mayor Jeff Mutter.
The report said that Silva, a former Cumberland police chief, “seemingly threw his weight around or tried to,” but that nonetheless, “Rhode Island’s bribery and extortion laws require more. Bribery requires an offer of something of value in exchange for official action. Extortion requires a threat, and an apparent ability to deliver on it.”
Neronha said his office made public the findings of an investigation done with the state police since “we believe that Rhode Islanders are entitled to the full weight of this Office’s opinion about what transpired here.”
Neronha added: “And so we add that from our vantage point, Mr. Silva exercised very poor judgment in involving himself in a personal matter before a state regulatory agency while serving as a high-ranking state official, whether he had official authority over that state agency or not. Indeed, this matter illustrates why public officials should take great care when entangling their public positions with their personal business.”
The attorney general said, “There is no evidence that Governor McKee had any involvement in advocating on behalf of Mr. Silva on this matter at any time.”
Silva did not respond to a request for comment from The Public’s Radio.
Neronha’s investigation followed a request by McKee.
In January, the state Ethics Commission dismissed a GOP ethics complaint against Silva.
Silva resigned from his state job last August and there were indications that his family would donate the lot previously targeted for development to Cumberland.
McKee initially stood by Silva last year. He later accepted Silva’s resignation since, McKee said, the controversy around the proposed development had become a distraction.
Ian Donnis can be reached at idonnis@ripr.org. You can follow him on Twiter at @IanDon
