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February 7, 2008

Cranston canvassers consider another 'insanity' case

CRANSTON -- The Cranston Board of Canvassers today took the first step toward deciding whether to purge Anthony Tavares, who was found not guilty of murder by reason of insanity after stabbing his social worker in the head with an 8-inch knife, from the city's voter rolls.

The board, in a similar case, voted in August to drop from the voter rolls William Sarmento and John A. Sarro. Both had been found not guilty of murder by reason of insanity some 20 years earlier.

Mental health advocates have opposed the board's maneuvering in all those cases, arguing essentially that the incidents that happened in those moments years ago say nothing about a person's ability to choose candidates.

The board today voted to notify the attorney for Tavares that it would hold a public hearing on the matter.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer David Scharfenberg

Posted by Mike McKinney  at 6:41 PM | Permalink

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