{{Short description|American lawyer (born 1965)}} {{About||the former Attorney General of Ireland|Patrick Lynch (Irish attorney general)|persons of a similar name|Patrick Lynch (disambiguation)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} {{Infobox officeholder |name = Patrick Lynch |office = 72nd [[List of attorneys general of Rhode Island|Attorney General of Rhode Island]] |governor = [[Donald Carcieri]] |term_start = January 7, 2003 |term_end = January 4, 2011 |predecessor = [[Sheldon Whitehouse]] |successor = [[Peter Kilmartin]] |birth_date = {{birth date and age|1965|2|4}} |birth_place = [[Providence, Rhode Island|Providence]], [[Rhode Island]], U.S. |death_date = |death_place = |party = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] |education = [[Brown University]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])<br />[[Queen's University Belfast|Queen's University, Belfast]]<br />[[Suffolk University]] ([[Juris Doctor|JD]]) }}
'''Patrick C. Lynch''' (born February 4, 1965, [[Providence, Rhode Island]]) is an American lawyer who served as [[Rhode Island]]'s 72nd [[Attorney General]]. He oversaw the investigation and prosecution of the second-deadliest fire in Rhode Island history, the [[The Station nightclub fire|Station Nightclub Fire]], and also sued former [[lead paint]] [[manufacturing|manufacturers]] for [[cleanliness|cleanup]] [[cost]]s associated with their old products. He won reelection in 2006, and attempted unsuccessfully to run for governor of Rhode Island in 2010, where he dropped out before the Democratic Primary.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.abc6.com/lynch-announces-exit-from-ri-governor-race/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211217155717/https://www.abc6.com/lynch-announces-exit-from-ri-governor-race/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=17 December 2021 |title=Lynch Announces Exit from RI Governor Race |author=<!--None listed--> |work=ABC6.com |agency=[[Associated Press]] |date=July 14, 2010 |accessdate=May 29, 2022}}</ref>
He has two children, Kelsey and Graham, with his first wife, and has since remarried.<ref name="pvs">[http://www.vote-smart.org/bio.php?can_id=MRI86768 Project Vote Smart, "Patrick C. Lynch (RI)"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061023095803/http://www.vote-smart.org/bio.php?can_id=MRI86768 |date=2006-10-23 }} (accessed July 19, 2006)</ref>
His brother is William J. Lynch, former Chairman of the Democratic Party of Rhode Island.
==Early career== While attending [[St. Raphael Academy]] in [[Pawtucket, Rhode Island]], Lynch played [[basketball]] and [[baseball]]. He went on to attend [[Brown University]], where he was part of the School's first Ivy League Championship basketball team.
He graduated from [[Brown University]] with a [[Bachelor of Science|B.S.]] in [[Economics]] and [[Political Science]] in 1987 and took graduate courses at [[Queen's University of Belfast]] while playing professional basketball in [[Northern Ireland]] and taking part in a program called Sports Corps, modeled after the [[Peace Corps]].
After returning to the [[United States]], Lynch earned a [[Juris Doctor|J.D.]] from [[Suffolk University Law School]] in 1992. He then worked for two years as a clerk for Presiding [[Superior Court]] Judge Joseph Rodgers Jr., and then joined the R.I. attorney general's office in 1994. Lynch was eventually named lead prosecutor of the state's [[Organized Crime]] Unit. In 1999, Lynch joined Rhode Island [[law firm]] [[Tillinghast Licht Perkins Smith & Cohen]], where he worked until being elected attorney general.<ref name="ndaa">National District Attorneys Association, "In Profile: Patrick C. Lynch", May/June 2005 (accessed July 20, 2006).</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20051030203945/http://www.ndaa-apri.org/ndaa/profile/patrick_c_lynch_may_june_2005.html NDAA-APRI Profile]</ref>
==Political career== Lynch formally announced his candidacy in March 2002 after incumbent [[Sheldon Whitehouse]] announced he would run for governor. Lynch was a well connected member of the Democratic Party - his father was a former Mayor of [[Pawtucket, Rhode Island]] and his brother was serving as Chairman of the R.I. [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]]. Lynch faced J. William Harsch, a former director of the R.I. Department of Environmental Management, who ran as an independent but had the endorsement of the state [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]].<ref name="harsch article">Liz Anderson, [http://www.projo.com/extra/election/content/projo_20020611_ag11.866c5.html "Lawyer to announce he's GOP candidate for attorney general"], ''[[The Providence Journal]]'', June 11, 2002.</ref> Lynch won the election with 62 percent of the vote.<ref name="secstate">Rhode Island Board of Elections, [http://www.elections.ri.gov/2002GE/AttyGen_CT.htm "Results for Attorney General by Community"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060924003513/http://www.elections.ri.gov/2002GE/AttyGen_CT.htm |date=2006-09-24 }} November 5, 2002 (accessed July 21, 2006).</ref>
While in office, Lynch advocated for stricter laws regarding drunken-driving and the use of handguns. He has also proposed measures that would link school attendance rates and teenagers' driving privileges, increase penalties against people who provide alcohol to minors, and require school districts to put in place anti-bullying and school-safety plans. He has also called for community prosecution, and has paired state prosecutors with police personnel in Providence Police Department's neighborhood precincts with the goal of timely prosecution of drug crimes, robbery, and assault.<ref name="agsite">State of Rhode Island Department of the Attorney General, [http://www.riag.state.ri.us/ag/ "Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060821065450/http://www.riag.state.ri.us/ag/ |date=2006-08-21 }} (accessed July 29, 2006).</ref>
===The Station Nightclub Fire=== One of Lynch's first responsibilities as attorney general was to oversee the criminal investigation of the February 20, 2003, [[The Station nightclub fire|Station Nightclub Fire]] in [[West Warwick, Rhode Island|West Warwick]]. With 100 deaths and many more injuries, the fire was the fourth-deadliest nightclub fire in U.S. history and the second-deadliest fire ever in Rhode Island, trailing only the [[USS Bennington (CV-20)#Catapult explosion|USS ''Bennington'' fire]] that claimed 103 lives in the 1950s. The criminal investigation led to the sentencing of Daniel Biechele, the tour manager of the band whose pyrotechnics started the fire, and also resulted in [[Nolo contendere|no-contest pleas]] by the two co-owners of the nightclub.<ref name="fireprojo">Paul Edward Parker, [http://www.projo.com/extra/2003/stationfire/content/projo_20060718_fire18.17e2e04.html "State issues 257 subpoenas for trial of Michael Derderian"], ''The Providence Journal'', July 18, 2006.</ref> In October 2021, the CBS program [[48 Hours (TV program)|48 Hours]] interviewed Lynch about shortcomings in the investigation and his failure to prosecute certain potentially responsible parties.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-station-nightclub-fire-rhode-island-what-happened-and-whos-to-blame/ |title=The Station nightclub fire: What happened and who's to blame for disaster that killed 100? |author=<!--None listed--> |work=[[CBSNews.com]] |date=October 24, 2021 |accessdate=May 29, 2022}}</ref>
===Lead paint lawsuit=== Lynch also pursued a lawsuit against lead paint manufactures that was initiated by Whitehouse, his predecessor. The initial lawsuit ended in a mistrial while Whitehouse was in office. Lynch won the jury trial in a second lawsuit against [[Sherwin-Williams Company|Sherwin Williams Co.]], NL Industries, and Millennium Holdings, LLC., all former lead paint manufacturers. Another company, [[ARCO|Atlantic Richfield Co.]], was acquitted by the jury. The case was closely monitored by other states and municipalities interested in whether former lead paint manufacturers are liable for problems their products caused after they stopped manufacturing it.<ref name="leadglobe">Raja Mishra, [http://archive.boston.com/news/local/rhode_island/articles/2006/02/23/rhode_island_wins_lead_paint_suit/ "Rhode Island wins lead paint suit"], ''[[The Boston Globe]]'', February 23, 2006.</ref> The verdict was ultimately overturned in a 4-0 decision by the [[Rhode Island Supreme Court]] in 2008.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/02/business/02paint.html |title=Rhode Island Court Throws Out Jury Finding in Lead Case |first=Abha |last=Bhattarai |work=[[NYTimes.com]] |date=July 2, 2008 |accessdate=May 29, 2022 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>
[[DuPont|DuPont Co.]] settled out of court in June 2005, agreeing to pay $12 million to the Children's Health Forum. The agency agreed to use the money for lead paint abatement efforts and education campaigns. Lynch has since been criticized for accepting $4,250 in contributions from DuPont lawyers and lobbyists, and his opponent in the 2006 elections filed a complaint with the Rhode Island Ethics Commission. Lynch has denied that the donations were related to the lawsuit, and a lawyer for DuPont who accounted (with his wife) for $2,500 of the donations called the complaint "rubbish."<ref name="leadprojo">Scott Mayerowitz, [http://www.projo.com/extra/election/content/projo_20060630_lynch30.1a3de1f.html "Lynch accepted campaign donations from lead defendant"], ''The Providence Journal'', June 30, 2006.</ref>
Lynch has also been criticized for the arrangement his office made with the law firm Motley Rice, which prosecuted the case. The firm agreed to cover the costs of the case in return for 16{{fraction|2|3}} percent of whatever damages the company won. Critics have charged that this kind of relationship between law firm and government is improper because the law firms stand to benefit from a guilty verdict.<ref name="leadchallengeprojo">Peter B. Lord, [http://www.projo.com/news/content/projo_20060404_lead4.d697fb9.html "State's deal with law firm in paint case challenged"], ''The Providence Journal'', April 4, 2006.</ref>
===2008 Presidential race: Endorsement of Barack Obama=== Lynch was the second of the only two [[superdelegates]] in Rhode Island to publicly endorse [[Barack Obama]] in the [[2008 Democratic presidential primary]] on February 9, 2008. The first being Congressman [[Patrick J. Kennedy]] on January 28, 2008.<ref>{{cite news | first=Steve | last=Peoples | title=Atty. Gen. Patrick Lynch endorses Senator Obama | date=February 10, 2008 | url=http://www.projo.com/news/content/LYNCH_OBAMA_02-10-08_8V8V3JH_v12.355def2.html | work=Providence Journal | accessdate=June 29, 2009}}</ref> Ultimately, Barack Obama lost the [[Rhode Island Democratic primary, 2008|Rhode Island Democratic primary]] on March 4, 2008, to [[Hillary Clinton]].
===Central Falls Corruption Controversy=== In 2010, Lynch became embroiled in a controversial investigation into rampant fraud and corruption by [[Central Falls, Rhode Island|Central Falls]] Mayor Charles D. Moreau, a close friend of Lynch's. Lynch recused himself from the investigation due to his relationship with Moreau and with Moreau's spokeswoman, Cynthia Stern, whom Lynch later married. Moreau was sentenced in [[United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island|Rhode Island federal court]] to 24 months in prison after pleading guilty to soliciting and accepting a bribe while Mayor of Central Falls.<ref>{{cite web |last1=MacKay |first1=Scott |title=Cynthia Stern leaves Central Falls job |url=https://wrnipoliticsblog.wordpress.com/2010/04/29/cynthia-stern-leaves-central-falls-job/ |website=RI NPR |access-date=December 17, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.golocalprov.com/news/new-former-central-falls-mayor-moreau-pleads-guilty-to-bribe/ |title=NEW: Former Central Falls Mayor Moreau Pleads Guilty to Bribe |author=<!--None listed--> |work=GoLocalProv.com |date=February 28, 2014 |accessdate=May 29, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Hummel |title=Hummel Report |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZvvT0FCx2s |website=YouTube |publisher=Hummel Report and Rhode Island Spotlight |access-date=December 17, 2021}}</ref>
===Gubernatorial campaign=== On May 22, 2009, Lynch announced his candidacy for [[Governor of Rhode Island]] in the [[2010 Rhode Island gubernatorial election|2010 gubernatorial election]].<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.projo.com/news/content/Patrick_Lynch_05-23-09_KHEFPH5_v7.3c03044.html | title=Attorney General Patrick Lynch plans to run for governor in 2010 | author=Dujardin, Richard C. | newspaper=[[The Providence Journal]] | date=May 23, 2009}}</ref>
On August 6, 2009, Lynch was warned by the State Board of Elections that he needed to more carefully disclose his campaign spending. At issue was some $9,000 in petty cash transactions that were not properly documented. The State Board of Elections did not fine Lynch whose campaign filed corrected paperwork amidst being confronted with the issue. The complaint was filed by the Rhode Island Republican Party.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www2.turnto10.com/jar/news/local/local_govtpolitics/article/patrick_lynch_warned_about_campaign_fundraising_lapses/21228/ | title=Patrick Lynch warned about campaign fundraising | author=Associated Press | publisher=[[WJAR]] | date=August 6, 2009 | url-status=dead | archiveurl=https://archive.today/20130204210757/http://www2.turnto10.com/jar/news/local/local_govtpolitics/article/patrick_lynch_warned_about_campaign_fundraising_lapses/21228/ | archivedate=February 4, 2013 }}</ref>
On July 15, 2010, Lynch announced his exit from the Governors race, and endorsed fellow Democrat [[Frank T. Caprio|Frank Caprio]]. In his statement, Lynch said: "I did not enter public service to become a footnote in history by injuring my party, resulting in the election of a governor who is not equipped to guide our wonderful State into the future it deserves."<ref>[http://newsblog.projo.com/2010/07/update-lynch-announces-his-exi-1.html Lynch announces his exit from governor's race] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724081144/http://newsblog.projo.com/2010/07/update-lynch-announces-his-exi-1.html |date=2011-07-24 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.golocalprov.com/politics/exit-stage-lynch |title=Exit Stage Lynch |first=John |last=DePetro |work=GoLocalProv.com |date=July 21, 2010 |accessdate=May 29, 2022}}</ref>
===Current Activities=== Since leaving his post as attorney general, he has been accused of lobbying his former office several times on behalf of topics such as online gambling and [[FairSearch|Google Search engine practices]] via his firm the [http://patricklynchgroup.com/ Patrick Lynch Group]. Whilst he has never registered with the state as a lobbyist, he denies that his communications with the office of current Attorney General constitute lobbying.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Associated Press|title=Ex-attorney general lobbied but never registered|url=https://www.turnto10.com/story/27405810/ex-attorney-general-lobbied-but-never-registered|accessdate=11 April 2015|date=17 November 2014}}</ref>
Additionally, he is a member of a law and consulting firm, [http://www.patricklynchlaw.com/ Patrick Lynch Law]<ref>{{cite news|last1=Mulvaney|first1=Katie|title=Ex-Attorney General Patrick Lynch a focus of New York Times story on lobbying|url=http://www.providencejournal.com/news/courts/20141029-ex-attorney-general-patrick-lynch-a-focus-of-new-york-times-story-on-lobbying.ece|accessdate=11 April 2015|date=29 October 2014}}</ref>
===Election history=== '''2006 General Election''' {| class="wikitable" ! colspan="2" | Candidate ! Votes ! % |- | style="color:inherit;background:#0000cd" | | width=150px | Patrick C. Lynch (D) | align="right" width=75px |217,324 | align="right" width=50px |59.51% |- | style="color:inherit;background:#ff0000" | | [[J. William W. Harsch]] (R) | align="right" |147,489 | align="right" |40.49% |- | style="color:inherit;background:#0000cd" | | colspan="3" |Patrick C. Lynch (D) reelected Attorney General. |}
'''2002 General Election''' {| class="wikitable" ! colspan="2" | Candidate ! Votes ! % |- | style="color:inherit;background:#0000cd" | | width=150px | Patrick C. Lynch (D) | align="right" width=75px |191,488 | align="right" width=50px | |- | style="color:inherit;background:#ff0000" | | J. William W. Harsch (R) | align="right" |119,117 | align="right" | |- | style="color:inherit;background:#0000cd" | | colspan="3" |Patrick C. Lynch (D) elected Attorney General. |}
==References== <references/>
==External links== *[https://archive.today/20130415110617/http://www.naag.org/ag/ag_bios.php?id=98 NAAG - Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick Lynch (D)] profile *[http://votesmart.org/bio.php?can_id=47812 Project Vote Smart - Patrick C. Lynch (IL)] profile *Follow the Money - Patrick Lynch **[http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?c=78982 2006] [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?c=76284 2004] [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?c=15650 2002] campaign contributions *{{C-SPAN|1014976}}
{{s-start}} {{s-ppo}} {{s-bef|before=[[Sheldon Whitehouse]]}} {{s-ttl|title={{nowrap|[[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] nominee for [[Attorney General of Rhode Island]]}}|years=2002, 2006}} {{s-aft|after=[[Peter Kilmartin]]}} {{s-legal}} {{s-bef|before=[[Sheldon Whitehouse]]}} {{s-ttl|title=[[Attorney General of Rhode Island]]|years=2003–2011}} {{s-aft|after=[[Peter Kilmartin]]}} {{S-end}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lynch, Patrick C}} [[Category:1965 births]] [[Category:Alumni of Queen's University Belfast]] [[Category:American expatriates in the United Kingdom]] [[Category:American men's basketball players]] [[Category:Brown Bears men's basketball players]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Politicians from Providence, Rhode Island]] [[Category:Rhode Island attorneys general]] [[Category:Rhode Island Democrats]] [[Category:Suffolk University Law School alumni]] [[Category:Candidates in the 2010 United States elections]] [[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]] [[Category:People associated with Tillinghast Licht]]