Why RI Can't Put 38 Studios In The Rear View Mirror
So you thought the 38 Studios-Curt Schilling frittata was finally waning. The state was successful in settling lawsuits that clawed back more than $50 million of the ill-fated $75 million deal foisted up Rhode Island taxpayers by then-Gov. Donald Carcieri and General Assembly leaders. Law-enforcement leaders said they didn’t have enough for criminal actions against the perpetrators of this disaster.
Almost seven years have elapsed from the 2010 deal that led to the bankruptcy of the 38 Studios video game company. But the tortuous drip of document dumps and blame-laying isn’t over.
The latest disclosures came in a trove of state police criminal investigation reports on the failed video game firm run by former Red Sox pitcher Schilling. Much of the reports focused the role of Michael Corso, then a 41-year old Providence lawyer and young power broker who was adept at helping business owners win tax-saving incentives.
This path led directly to House Speaker Gordon Fox, who is now serving a federal prison sentence for corruption unrelated to 38 Studios. But the documents and previous reporting makes it clear that Fox worked behind the scenes with Corso to push this deal through the General Assembly by withholding damning information from rank-and-file lawmakers.
Read more: http://ripr.org/post/why-ri-cant-put-38-studios-rear-view-mirror