Rhode Island State Senator Joshua Miller was arrested Thursday afternoon for allegedly damaging a vehicle in Garden City Shopping Center.
According to reports, the owner of a pickup truck was in the shopping center when he reportedly saw Miller allegedly standing on the passenger side and quickly walking away while holding a keychain and gripping a single key.
The owner of the truck noticed a scratch mark on the truck that was not there when he had parked the truck.
The owner confronted Miller, 41, about the damage, to which he denied that he was responsible. However, police say Miller was later seen on surveillance footage within the area and admitted to the property damage.
Police say Miller admitted he damaged the pickup truck because the owner had been “yelling at him and “dared him” to do it.”
Miller was arrested and charged with vandalism/malicious injury to property and was arraigned and later released on $1000 personal recognizance.
He is due to appear in Third District Court on July 18. The state senator’s office has not commented on the incident.
Vandalism/malicious injury to property is a felony in the state of Rhode Island and is punishable by up to three years imprisonment.
The incident has stunned residents of Rhode Island, many of whom viewed Miller as an upstanding public official that serves the people.
Miller, a Democrat, was elected to Rhode Island Senate in November 2016, representing District 28, which includes parts of Providence, Cranston, and Johnston.
Miller was previously a supervisor in the Office of Special Ombudsman at the Rhode Island Department of Education. He also serves as a volunteer for the Gubbio Project, a homeless outreach program in San Francisco.
No further information is available at this time.
