PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — A Providence police sergeant who pleaded no contest to beating a man in handcuffs five years ago remains suspended without pay, despite a law enforcement panel ruling he could return to work this week.
Mayor Brett Smiley spokesperson Josh Estrella said Sgt. Joseph Hanley’s suspension would remain in place while the city appeals the ruling he could be reinstated. The appeal comes after a three-member panel in July ruled that Hanley could return to work under the state’s Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights.
The panel determined Hanley should serve a 45-day unpaid suspension, which began on June 30 and was set to expire on Sep. 3. Hanley should then be “reinstated and appropriately reintegrated into the Providence Police Department,” according to the ruling…