A teaching assistant at an elementary school, who is the sister of a former Rhode Island congressman, is accused of leaving a baggie of cocaine in the school nurse’s office bathroom.
Stephanie Cicilline-Given, 58, was taken into custody on March 12 after police connected her to the drugs discovered in Chester W. Barrows Elementary School, where she works, as per a police report obtained by 12 News.
Cicilline-Given is the younger sister of Democratic Rep. David Cicilline, NBC 10 News reported.
The school nurse handed over a plastic bag containing cocaine and a plastic straw, typically used for snorting the substance, to the principal, who then informed the Cranston Police Department, according to the police report.
Investigators focused on Cicilline-Given, the last known adult to have used the bathroom before the morning recess.
Cicilline-Given initially thought the police had found her missing vape.
When an officer told her they had actually found a bag of cocaine, she inquired about needing a lawyer — even before being accused of any wrongdoing, as stated in the report.
She repeatedly asked about her vape while denying knowledge of the cocaine. After police interviewed her colleagues, she returned with a specific question.
“I don’t want all these teachers to go through this. What if I said the cocaine was mine? What would happen next?” she asked, according to the report.
The teaching assistant clarified she wasn’t admitting to misplacing the cocaine but acknowledged being an occasional cocaine user outside of school, according to the report.
She explained that she had changed purses that morning and likely left her vape at home. She expressed a desire to help but was concerned about losing her job.
Cicilline-Given laughed as the officer asked for more details about the baggie.
Investigators theorized the cocaine might have fallen out of her bag while she was applying makeup in the bathroom, the report noted.
Cicilline-Given eventually requested to speak with an attorney. She was taken to the Cranston Police Department and charged with misdemeanor possession of cocaine, as per the arrest log.
She is set to appear in court on April 21.
Cicilline-Given is not the only member of her family to encounter legal issues.
In 2018, Susan Cicilline-Buonanno, Cicilline-Given’s sister and a former Rhode Island councilwoman, was pulled over on the TV show “A&E Live PD” on suspicion of driving under the influence. She was released after it was determined she was “under medication.”
