Judge sets trial for man who says he is targeted over recurring parking tickets

Judge Frank Caprio set a Providence parking-ticket matter for trial after an exchange in which the defendant said he has repeatedly received citations and the court said it had been lenient in the past.

Jerome Musco Jr., who identified himself in court as a counselor at Thrive Behavioral Health’s Housing First Door, told the court he had submitted a letter on behalf of “Mr. Holder” and asked for leniency. “I’m uh here on behalf of Mr. Holder. I’m his counselor at uh Thrive Behavioral Health Housing First Door,” Musco said as he handed the letter to a court officer.

The judge examined the record and the defendant’s handicap placard on the bench, noting that a placard may allow parking in a handicap zone or an overtime zone but only where parking is otherwise legal. “This would allow him to park in an overtime parking zone or in a handicap zone. Obviously, this would have to be in a legal spot,” the judge said.

Reading from the submitted correspondence, the judge observed that the letter said tickets had become “part of Mr. Holder’s chronic behavior” and that Mr. Holder believed he was being targeted by police. Mr. Holder told the court, “Every year on Martin Luther King Day, I get a ticket,” and said he felt the citations were unfair.

The judge suggested repeated citations could stem from parking in prohibited locations rather than targeted enforcement. He also noted he had dismissed a prior ticket as an act of leniency but said the court recorded conduct after that prior hearing: “I gave you a break and I dismissed your ticket. And then you walked out of the courtroom and just as you walked out at the back door, you turned around and gave me the finger.” Mr. Holder denied that allegation.

Musco urged the court to be lenient, saying he had recently begun working with Mr. Holder and would continue to assist him. The judge told Mr. Holder he wanted an apology for the alleged conduct as he left the courtroom; Mr. Holder refused to apologize. The judge then set the matter for trial and instructed that the defendant return to court. The transcript does not list a return date.

The session ended with a recorded narration describing the courtroom of Judge Frank Caprio in Providence.

The judge’s scheduling of a trial advances the case beyond a brief disposition; the transcript does not record any formal plea, fine payment, or a specified trial date.