Hours after one of his Republican legislative opponents called on him to do, House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello called Monday for the “release of any and all information pertaining to 38 Studios” from the investigation conducted by State Police and the attorney general’s office.
In a mid-afternoon statement released through campaign spokeswoman Patti Doyle, Mattiello said, “I called upon the State Police and the Attorney General to release any and all information pertaining to 38 Studios. The taxpayers have a right to the complete story.”
Doyle said Mattiello conveyed the request in a conversation with Col. Steven O’Donnell of the State Police, and that a member of the speaker’s staff “reached out to the AG’s chief of staff.”
Investigators announced Friday that a four-year probe of 38 Studios did not produce criminal charges.
Earlier on Monday, Steven Frias, one of two Republicans running for the chance to square off against Mattiello for his Cranston legislative seat in November, called on Mattiello to take action.
That came after Attorney General Peter Kilmartin said Friday that releasing secret grand jury material from the criminal probe into 38 Studios would violate court rules. Kilmartin said that’s because although the criminal case is inactive, the statute of limitations has not run out and the case could be reactivated due to the availability of new information.
In a late morning news release, Frias said the public deserves the information from the probe.
“If the State Police or the Attorney General will not disclose this information, the speaker should ask the House Oversight Committee to begin a full investigation into 38 Studios and use its subpoena powers to obtain documentation collected by State Police and the R.I. Attorney General related to 38 Studios,” Frias said. “When it comes to 38 Studios, there will be no closure for Rhode Islanders until they know all the facts and learn exactly what role their elected officials played in this debacle.”
Responding to Mattiello’s request, Kilmartin said in a statement: “As was stated in last week’s joint 38 Studios report, this remains an open, albeit currently inactive investigation. Release of documents could jeopardize the integrity of the investigation should new information come to light that would warrant it to be reactivated.
“The law and Court rules prohibit the Attorney General and the Rhode Island State Police from releasing grand jury proceedings,” Kilmartin continued. “This request appears to be a political reaction, not a legal reaction.”
Frias and fellow Republican Shawna Lawton are competing against each other in a September primary. The winner of that contest will face Mattiello in November.
This post has been updated.
