R.I. Lawmaker Seeks Release of 38 Studios Evidence

A Rhode Island lawmaker is calling for the release of grand jury documents and testimony on the 38 Studios investigation.

Rep. Robert Craven Sr., D-North Kingstown, a former state assistant attorney general, is asking Attorney General Peter Kilmartin to file a declaratory judgment action in Providence Superior Court seeking the court's instruction on the release of the documents.

Kilmartin on July 29 said neither his office nor the state police would prosecute in the case of 38 Studios, the failed video-game company owned by former Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling. He said grand jury documents would remain sealed.

The state in 2010 provided a $75 million loan with a moral obligation guarantee to Schilling to move his company from Massachusetts to downtown Providence.

The company shut down and filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2012, leaving Rhode Island on the hook for the debt.

"Although the attorney general has made his position on the disclosure of 38 Studios materials clear, the Rhode Island Supreme Court stated in a 1998 decision that there is 'no per se rule against disclosure of any and all information which has reached the grand jury,' and in the interest of the public's right to know, our courts should decide the matter," said Craven.

Craven said Kilmartin should seek judicial review of the propriety of releasing the records so that the taxpayers know what happened behind the scenes.

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