Protests Continue: Sex Offender Under Police Guard

PROVIDENCE, RI — Protests have continued for a second day in a row after a convicted child rapist moved to the Washington Park neighborhood this week.

Two police officers have been assigned as indefinite guard for sex offender Richard Gardner, 51, formerly of Weymouth, Massachusetts.

"You gotta go! You gotta go," the crowd outside Gardner's new residents chanted in protest Thursday night.

People started putting on their car alarms on purpose, trying to make as much noise and get Gardener's attention, NBC 10 reported. Both sides of the street have been blocked off by over 100 protesters, many holding signs.

Providence Police Maj. David Lapatin announced Wednesday night that the two officers will follow Gardner wherever he goes, 24 hours a day until further notice. Gardner was released earlier this month after serving his Massachusetts sentence for sexually assaulting children in Warwick and Massachusetts in the late '80s.

Providence Police Maj. David Lapatin told reporters that the armed detail is to protect not only Gardner, but the community.

When residents found out Gardner was moving to the neighborhood Wednesday night, an emergency meeting was called at the Washington Park Community Center. The meeting

Upon hearing he moved into their neighborhood, residents Wednesday night held a heated meeting at the Washington Park Community Center. The meeting did not last long, and an angry crowd marched to Gardner's new home.

"We want him out, we want him out!" NBC 10 reported the crowd chanting.

Police were at Gardner's residence trying to keep the crowd under control.

Lapatin told WPRI 12 there are three conditions to Gardner's probation:

• He has to register as a sex offender.
• He has to tell police if he plans to move from his current address.
• He can't move within 300 feet of a school.

Since Gardner's probation stems from an incident in Warwick, he must serve that probation in the state, Lapatin added.

Mugshot via Weymouth Police