Barrington Woman Who Received Hate Mail Over BLM Signs IDs Alleged Perpetrator, Says FBI Is Involved
Tuesday, January 26, 2021
A Barrington woman who reported receiving hate mail after posting signs supporting Black Lives Matter (BLM) is now releasing the name of the woman she says police told her sent the letter.
Candace Breen tells GoLocal that authorities informed her that her next-door neighbor Laura Larrivee was responsible for the letter -- which had no return address or signature, and a Boston postmark.
That letter called Breen “brain dead” for supporting BLM and demanded that she take down the signs on her own property supporting President Joe Biden and BLM.
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Breen says she has now been granted a restraining order against Larrivee -- and that she has spoken with the FBI about the matter.
Brother Gary Dantzler, the Executive Director of Black Lives Matter Rhode Island, confirmed with GoLocal he too has spoken with the FBI about the incident.
When reached for comment, Kristin Setera with FBI Boston said she could "neither confirm nor deny the existence of an investigation” as is bureau policy.
Breen said she also spoke with the Barrington postmaster.
"I was told this is an 'escalated' case," said Breen, of the U.S. Postal Service looking into the incident.
Breen Cites "Microagressions"
Breen, who said her family moved to Barrington in 2012, said she had “experienced some microaggressions but nothing of this caliber” with Larrivee leading up to the 2020 election.
“We have a six-foot fence and can see their house," Breen said of Larrivee living next door. "They put signs up for Trump, they’re of course entitled to do that. There were ones placed in their windows that only we could see, no one else."
“And outside, they put up a flag with a picture of Trump holding a gun," said Breen. "The image is popular and clearly photoshopped. But my son was frightened. He said, does that mean they want to shoot us?”
“The police approached [Larrivee] and she admitted it," Breen told GoLocal of the investigation into the letter she received last week. “She’s the head of the RI Warriors for Trump group.”
“[Larrivee] came up on my property [on Sunday]. I was in the garage with my husband. The sun was bright and I couldn’t tell who it was right away, but then recognized her and stopped. She said can I talk with you for a minute,” said Breen on Monday. “I was fearful for retaliation.”
“My husband stepped in and said no. She said she was just trying to offer her support. I thought she was fishing for information,” said Breen, who said she then went to the police and got a no-trespassing order against Larrivee.
“I was trembling the rest of the night, wondering if she would blow up social media,” said Breen. “I am done protecting her. I am done being nice. I think people should know. It’s not good. It’s not nice. I think by exposing this, we will have more eyeballs.”
GoLocal reached out to Larrivee -- who has an unlisted number -- on Facebook; Larrivee acknowledged the message but refused to respond to reporter's questions.
Barrington Police did not respond to request for comment on Monday.
MORE BELOW LETTER
Prior to Inauguration Day, Larrivee posted on the Facebook page “RI Warriors for Trump” to say that Black Lives Matter was “after her.”
“So in the latest display of unity and love from the [sic] Demoncrats they have gotten BLM to come after me again. Check out their Back Lives Matter Rhode Island page," Larrivee wrote in her Facebook post. "And also please welcome our friends from over there who said they have infiltrated our group. Everyone say hello to the trolls and if you come across one let me know so we can throw their slimy a—es out.”
This is not Larivee's first public controversy.
A change.org petition was started seven months ago to have Larrivee removed from her position as a state Department of Human Services supervisor for comments she had made on social media, garnering over 3,400 signatures.
The petition started by “Amy D.” stated the following:
"Laura Larrivee is a RI DHS Supervisor, YES, a state employee who was paid $100k last year with our tax dollars and who has knowingly chose to post inappropriate and offensive tik tok videos (@nightdiva2020) that throw disrespectful jabs at planned parenthood, BLM, social inequalities, and police brutality. While everyone has a right to their own political views and freedom of speech, I find it counterproductive, toxic, and unprofessional for government employees to show blatant disregard for the people they serve by using social media," she wrote.
Larrivee appeared on “In the Dugout” with the RI Center for Freedom and Prosperity (prior to the recent incident).
“'Cancel Culture' infects RI DHS, as employee persecuted by leftists & re-assigned by government for harmless non-workplace statements,” wrote the Center.
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