Cicilline: Bad sewer behavior an "aberration"

UPDATE: See the video here.

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Providence Mayor David N. Cicilline maintains that the misbehavior exposed by WPRI-TV's Tim White this week in the city's sewer department is an "aberration."

Cicilline, who made the statement during a taping yesterday of Newsmakers, was asked how he can know this to be the case, if the city didn't previously know about the conduct included in White's two-part series. Offering a somewhat less-than-satisfying answer, the mayor said that competent leaders are in place throughout city government to prevent such bad instances.

[White will be discussing his reports, on Dan Yorke, today, between 3 and 4.]

In related news, Cicilline said the Providence police have begun a criminal investigation into the two workers highlighted in the reports. The men have been suspended without pay, he says.

Cicilline says he has also discussed the famous $75,000 checks written by his since-imprisoned brother, John Cicilline, but he declined to elaborate on the conversation with his brother, beyond indicating that he conveyed his upset.

The mayor says he also phoned his former chief of staff, Chris Bizzacco, over the holidays, to tell Bizzacco that his memory of key details of the check controversy -- which contradicted Cicilline's description -- is incorrect.