Grant Smith – Ellis independent journalist has been doing som digging in Connecticut and it doesn’t look encouraging.
He posted to Linked In yesterday
Earlier this month, the state’s Attorney General was reported to be using a network of undercover informants (tied to the state’s Department of Consumer Protection, and with their positions hidden under the Medical Examiner’s office) to target the unregulated market (while working closely with the wife of one of Connecticut’s few licensed operators to do so).
Now, local community advocates have proposed a bill (with the support of multiple lawmakers) that would break up the existing corporate oligopoly, expand access for patients by way of caregivers (something corporate dispensaries loathe), and reform how the DCP goes about using its enforcement powers.
Of note: a FOIA request related to a man named Louis Rinaldi (who goes by CTMMPData online) and William Tong, the Connecticut Attorney General, was made public on this feed in recent weeks (and indicates that Rinaldi may, indeed, be one such covert “investigator” working for the state to target unregulated operators for the benefit of specific regulated companies).
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Rinaldi, who has been previously accused of serious misconduct, appears to have a direct connection staffers in the AG’s office, issued multiple threats to the Attorney General personally, and attempted to get enforcement actions initiated against a local business who sold THC hemp products.
“We can pursue collective action together, in concert, everyone gets a win. Or we can do it the hard way,” Rinaldi said to Tong in one email (while Rinaldi was attempting to initiate enforcement action against all but a single medical operator in the state).
See documents from that FOIA at this link – https://lnkd.in/eJbnvM3t
See more background on the disturbing allegations previously raised against Rinaldi at this link (it is unclear, at this time, if Rinaldi has some kind of connection to the government in Connecticut that insulated him from legal trouble following said allegations) – https://lnkd.in/e3ZC4w3a
Who is the Connecticut State Attorney General ?
ATTORNEY GENERAL WILLIAM TONG BIOGRAPHY
William Tong is the 25th Attorney General to serve Connecticut since the office was established by the state constitution in 1897. He first took office in 2019 and is currently serving his second term.
Attorney General Tong is a national leader in many of the most consequential lawsuits and investigations in our country today, including bipartisan, multistate efforts to hold the addiction industry accountable for their role in the opioid crisis; to restore fair competition and prices in the generic drug industry; to hold social media giants accountable for the harms they may cause to kids and young people; to stop robocall scammers; and to ensure corporations safeguard our personal information from misuse and respect consumers’ rights regarding the collection and use of their information.
As a father and the son of immigrant small business owners, Attorney General Tong knows first-hand how Connecticut families are squeezed by rising costs that are unaffordable and unsustainable, and he has prioritized efforts to drive down energy costs, expand access to reliable broadband internet, and ensure access to affordable healthcare.
Attorney General Tong works every day to safeguard our civil rights and freedoms, fighting alongside state attorneys general nationwide to protect the rights of women, minority communities, immigrants and the LGBTQ+ community. He has vowed to fight in any court, in any state, anywhere access to reproductive healthcare is under threat. He is aggressively defending Connecticut’s post- Sandy Hook gun laws against challenges by out of state gun lobbies. Under his leadership, Connecticut has sued ExxonMobil to end its ongoing, systematic campaign of lies around fossil fuels and climate change.
Under Attorney General Tong’s leadership, Connecticut resolved two of the most challenging, longest running state lawsuits – committing to historic investments in educational opportunities for Hartford students to end more than 30 years of litigation and court oversight in the Sheff v. O’Neill case, and ending court oversight of the Department of Children and Families following documented, significant improvement on behalf of our state’s most vulnerable children.
Attorney General Tong currently serves as Eastern Region Chair and Finance Chair of the National Association of Attorneys General. He also serves on the Executive Committee of the Democratic Attorneys General Association.
Attorney General Tong previously practiced for 18 years as a litigator in both state and federal courts, first at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP in New York City and then at Finn Dixon & Herling LLP in Stamford. He served for 12 years as a State Representative in the Connecticut General Assembly, where he served as House Chairman of the Judiciary Committee as well as the Banking Committee. In 2006, he became the first Asian American elected to any state office in Connecticut history.
During his service in the legislature, Attorney General Tong was the author and driver of several major Connecticut laws, helping lead the state’s efforts against gun violence and domestic violence, among many other critical laws and initiatives.
A Connecticut native, Attorney General Tong grew up in the Hartford area and attended schools in West Hartford. He graduated from Phillips Academy Andover, Brown University, and the University of Chicago Law School.
Tong is the oldest of five children and grew up working side-by-side with his immigrant parents in their family’s Chinese restaurant. He and his wife, Elizabeth, live in Stamford with their three children and way too many pets. Elizabeth is the Senior Vice President at L’Oreal USA. In quieter moments, General Tong likes to fly fish (and tie flies), try all the great foods and restaurants across Connecticut and is an amateur carpenter and cook.
He is the first Asian American elected to any state office in Connecticut history, and the first Chinese American to be elected Attorney General nationwide.
https://portal.ct.gov/ag/about-the-ag/william-tong-biography-page
Source- Linked In Post
