PROVIDENCE — The US Justice Department notified Rhode Island on Wednesday through a letter that it is opening an investigation into whether the state engaged in a pattern of discrimination based on race “or other protected aspects” of the Civil Rights Act.
The letter was first sent to state Attorney General Peter Neronha from Harmeet Dhillon, assistant attorney general of the civil rights division of the Justice Department.
The contents of the letter were first reported by The Public’s Radio.
The letter said the federal investigation is based on information that the state “may be engaged in employment practices regarding its affirmative action program governing state government employment under state law that discriminate based on race, national origin, or other protected characteristics in violation of Title VII.”
The investigation will look to determine “whether Rhode Island is engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination as set forth above,” Dhillon wrote in the letter.
It’s unclear which specific policies, programs, or agencies the DOJ is investigating. A spokesperson with the DOJ could not be reached for comment.
Tim Rondeau, Neronha’s spokesman, said the office is still reviewing the letter, “as the subjects and focus of their investigation are unclear.”
Neronha told The Public’s Radio that he “didn’t pay it a whole lot of mind.”
“They can go investigate and if the investigation turns up anything, then we will address it,” Neronha told the NPR affiliate. “It could be something today, gone tomorrow.”
Governor Dan McKee’s office also could not be immediately reached for comment on Thursday.
In his letter, Dhillon said that Louis Whitsett, a senior trial attorney with DOJ’s employment litigation section, has been assigned to the investigation.
Alexa Gagosz can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her @alexagagosz and on Instagram @AlexaGagosz.
