Warwick

Rhode Island lawmakers opened the new legislative session on Tuesday, taking their oath of office and formally electing State Rep. Joseph Shekarchi as the new Speaker of the House of Representatives. The 58-year-old Warwick Democrat succeeds former House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello, who was defeated by Republican activist Barbara Ann Fenton-Fung in the November election. “My approach will be different,” Shekarchi…

The Rhode Island chef who held up a plate of fried calamari during Tuesday night’s virtual Democrat National Convention roll call is gaining his own popularity.

Rhode Island is marking the 17th anniversary on Thursday of a nightclub fire that killed 100 people and injured more than 200 others. The Feb. 20, 2003, blaze began when pyrotechnics for the rock band Great White ignited flammable foam that lined the club’s walls as soundproofing. The fire quickly spread through the overcrowded club, and many people became trapped…

A 25-year-old man was reportedly killed following a pedestrian crash involving a police cruiser overnight in Warwick, Rhode Island. WJAR reprots police responded to a call of a pedestrian crash at about 11:30 p.m. Monday in the area of 2783 West Shore Road.

The Rhode Island State Police and Rhode Island Department of Public Safety said Christopher Merchant, 33, of Canterbury, Connecticut was charged with two counts of indecent solicitation of a child, possession of child pornography and three counts of electronically disseminating indecent material to a minor.

Rhode Island says it will launch a second round of aerial mosquito sprays in response to the increased risk of eastern equine encephalitis. The state health and environmental management departments made the announcement Thursday to begin spraying two targeted areas on Sept. 23. The decision comes after state officials confirmed on Tuesday at least three human cases of the mosquito-borne...

Cranston Police say a man faces felony assault charges for allegedly attacking another man with a bat in an apparent road rage incident.

A Rhode Island school district reversed its decision to start serving cold sandwiches instead of hot lunches next week to students whose families owe lunch money. Warwick Public Schools had said it would serve sunflower butter and jelly sandwiches to students whose families are in arrears beginning Monday, sparking a public backlash and upsetting the mayor, who asked the school...

A Rhode Island teacher and coach faced a judge Tuesday for the alleged possession of child pornography. Richard Conti, 69, of Warwick, was arraigned on the charge in Third Division District Court where the judge set bail at $2,500. Conti was also ordered to have no contact with minors and limited internet use.

Police in Rhode Island say a man attacked his friend with a crowbar after a night of drinking then later brought the same crowbar to a hospital where the friend was recovering and struck him again. West Warwick police say 41-year-old Dennis Walsh and 41-year-old Michael Difranco are facing charges.

A Rhode Island-based discount retailer is moving into three spaces formerly occupied by another discount store. Ocean State Job Lot stores will open at former Benny’s locations in Cranston, Warwick and Wakefield.

A man was arrested Saturday for allegedly using the internet to solicit a minor to engage in sexual activity at a Warwick, Rhode Island hotel.

Public school officials in Warwick have sued the city, claiming the district is underfunded. The lawsuit filed Friday in Superior Court by the Warwick School Committee asks for a $4.9 million increase in funding for the 2018-2019 school year. School officials say the budget isn’t enough to meet regulations or support contracts. The current budget is $164.7 million.

Sonic Drive-In opened a new restaurant in Warwick, Rhode Island on Friday. The new location on the northbound side of Route 2 opened at 2 p.m., according to WJAR.

A fast-moving fire has destroyed a Rhode Island church. Acting Warwick fire chief Marcel Fonteneault says the Wednesday night blaze gutted the Woodbury Union Church, and the building has been declared a total loss.

Fire shot from the roof of a church Wednesday evening in Warwick, Rhode Island. NBC affiliate WJAR reports that a 2-alarm fire broke out at Woodbury Union Church on Beach Avenue around 7:45 p.m. on the evening before Thanksgiving.

A fire broke out at a church in Warwick, Rhode Island.

Police say they’ve seized an alligator, a python and tarantulas from a Rhode Island man who was charging people to take pictures with the creatures at a comic book convention in Massachusetts.

Two people were hospitalized Tuesday night after a car crashed into a home in Warwick, Rhode Island.

Rescuers have come to the aid of two hikers stranded on a ledge off of a steep Mount Washington trail.