Robert Clark Corrente
Encyclopedia
United States Attorney
United States Attorneys represent the United States federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. There are 93 U.S. Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands...
for the state of Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
.
Early career
Corrente graduated from Dartmouth CollegeDartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
in 1978 with highest distinction and graduated from New York University School of Law
New York University School of Law
The New York University School of Law is the law school of New York University. Established in 1835, the school offers the J.D., LL.M., and J.S.D. degrees in law, and is located in Greenwich Village, in the New York City borough of Manhattan....
in 1981. After graduating from law school, Corrente served as a Managing Partner at Corrente, Brill & Kusinitz. In 1998, he became a partner at Hinckley, Allen & Snyder, LLP, which has offices in Providence
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
, Boston, and New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
. During this time, Corrente also served on the Rhode Island Supreme Court's Ethics Advisory Panel, the Rhode Island Judicial Nominating Commission, and the Editorial Board of Rhode Island Lawyers' Weekly.
U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island
In May 2004, Corrente was nominated by President George W. BushGeorge W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
to fill the United States Attorney position left vacant by Margaret E. Curran
Margaret E. Curran
Margaret E. "Meg" Curran served as United States Attorney for Rhode Island from 1998 to 2003.The most notable case during Curran's tenure was the prosecution of the Operation Plunder Dome, which led to the conviction of Providence Mayor Vincent "Buddy" Cianci on conspiracy charges. Curran, who was...
the year before. He was confirmed by the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
two months later.
A year before Corrente took office, allegation emerged that Rhode Island State Senator John Celona had accepted money and gifts from CVS
CVS Corporation
CVS Pharmacy, or simply CVS, is the second largest pharmacy chain in the United States , with over 7,000 stores in 41 states and Puerto Rico...
, Blue Cross & Blue Shield
Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association
The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association is a federation of 39 separate health insurance organizations and companies in the United States. Combined, they directly or indirectly provide health insurance to over 100 million Americans. The history of Blue Cross dates back to 1929, while the history of...
of Rhode Island, and Roger Williams Hospital
Roger Williams Medical Center
The Roger Williams Medical Center is a teaching hospital in Providence, Rhode Island.-Overview:Founded in 1878, and located in the Smith Hill neighborhood of Providence, RWMC is community owned and governed. It is named after Roger Williams, the founder of Rhode Island. Since 1997, it has been...
. Corrente inherited this investigation, and in June 2005 filed charges against Celona claiming that he defrauded the state's citizens by accepting money and gifts from the aforementioned companies, which had interests in legislation Celona considered as Chairman of the Senate Corporations Committee. Celona agreed to cooperate with investigators. Celona was sentenced to 2 years in prison in the beginning of 2007.
Celona's cooperation with authorities led to a number of investigations into corruption, including within Rhode Island's state government and several corporations based in Rhode Island. In fact, Corrente announced that the office was pursuing 14 active investigations of seven politicians and seven corporations for corruption schemes similar to that of the Celona case. The investigation was dubbed "Operation Dollar Bill", and Corrente described it as a case even more significant than Operation Plunder Dome
Operation Plunder Dome
Operation Plunder Dome was the codename of an undercover investigation by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation into corruption within the government of the City of Providence, Rhode Island....
, an investigation that resulted in the conviction of sitting-Providence Mayor Vincent "Buddy" Cianci
Vincent Cianci
Vincent Albert "Buddy" Cianci, Jr. served as the mayor of Providence, Rhode Island, from 1975 to 1984 and again from 1991 to 2002...
. The Providence Journal
The Providence Journal
The Providence Journal, nicknamed the ProJo, is a daily newspaper serving the metropolitan area of Providence, Rhode Island and is the largest newspaper in Rhode Island. The newspaper, first published in 1829 and the oldest continuously-published daily newspaper in the United States, was purchased...
wrote that the investigation reached as far as the offices of Rhode Island Senate president
Joseph A. Montalbano and Senate Finance chairman Stephen D. Alves, the towns of West Warwick
West Warwick, Rhode Island
West Warwick is a town in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 29,191 at the 2010 census.West Warwick was incorporated in 1913, making it the youngest town in the state. Prior to 1913, the town, situated on the western bank of the Pawtuxet River, was the population and...
and Lincoln
Lincoln, Rhode Island
Lincoln is a town in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 21,105 at the 2010 census. Lincoln is located in northeastern Rhode Island, north of Providence....
, and former Senate President William V. Irons. Former Roger Williams Hospital president Robert A. Urciuoli and vice president Frances P. Driscoll were co-defendants in the case against Celona, and were both convicted on various charges related to the hospital's payments to Celona. Following an appeal and a new trial, Urciuoli was again convicted but Frances Driscoll was acquitted of all charges. CVS executives Carlos Ortiz and John R. Kramer were indicted in January 2007 for allegedly bribing Celona. Both were acquitted, however, in 2008, effectively ending "Operation Dollar Bill".
Before he left office, Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
Senator Lincoln Chafee
Lincoln Chafee
Lincoln Davenport Chafee is an American politician who has been the 74th Governor of Rhode Island since January 2011. Prior to his election as governor, Chafee served in the United States Senate as a Republican from 1999 until losing his Senate re-election bid in 2006 to Democrat Sheldon...
said he recommended Corrente for an open position on the bench of the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island
United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island
The United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Rhode Island. The District Court was created in 1790 when Rhode Island ratified the Constitution...
.