The Rhode Island attorney general has filed a civil rights complaint against a 49-year-old Johnston man with an extensive criminal record. Vincent B. Smith has apparently repeatedly threatened and hurled racist and homophobic remarks at a gay neighbor and a woman with a bi-racial child.
The complaint, filed Monday, alleges that Smith's behavior drove Jennifer Piscione—a single mother—to move out of her condo in January 2010. The complaint also says that Smith made homophobic remarks to Roger DiTusa, a gay neighbor, on about two dozen occasions over the course of two years. It says Smith was arrested in March for smashing the sliding glass door in DiTusa's condominium. If a judge rules that he violated Piscione and DiTusa's civil rights, Smith faces a $5,000 fine. The attorney general's office is also seeking a restraining order.
Smith's intimidation included vandalizing neighbors homes and repeatedly scrawling "KKK" graffiti, reports the Providence Journal. The misbehavior, according to the suit, has consisted of shouted slurs, writing the initials of the Ku Klux Klan on the woman’s storm door and requests to neighbors that they not rent to black or Hispanic people, among other incidents.
In 1988, Smith was arrested for "threatening to kill his former girlfriend and her family, and the Johnston police said he attempted to commit suicide in his cell at the police station," ProJo adds.
Smith pushes his wife twice during a television interview and his son also tried to grab the reporter's microphone. But everyone else is lying, he claims. Watch ABC 6's report AFTER THE JUMP ...
Is he a bigot because he has mental problems, or is he a bigot also with mental problems. Or do I care? Either way he needs to be locked up
Posted by: dfs | 30 March 2011 at 13:29
Two votes for "locked up"
Posted by: Jim J | 30 March 2011 at 17:13
Clearly the cheese slipped off of his cracker a long time ago. A danger and menace to everyone around him...
Posted by: Don in NYC | 30 March 2011 at 19:22
LOL @ Don-in-NYC: "Clearly the cheese slipped from the cracker long ago" . . . lmao. Couldn't have said it better myself bruh ;o)
Posted by: N.Athon | 30 March 2011 at 20:20
The epitome of a bully: picking on those who are mild-mannered, but scared of those who will give you a fight.
Somebody ought to give him tips on successful suicide techniques for the next time (hopefully) he's sent to jail.
His son will be better off without him...and so will we.
Posted by: Derrick from Philly | 31 March 2011 at 11:31
He even looks like racist prison trash. I hope the authorities lean on him hard to let him know he can't get away with his sh*t.
And am I seeing things or is that outfit of his an odd shade of pink?
Posted by: Donny D. | 01 April 2011 at 09:56