Judge Caprio dismisses several traffic summonses and uses private donations to help defendants

Judge Caprio presided over a brief morning docket in the Municipal Court of Providence, dismissing or exonerating several traffic-related summonses and using privately donated funds to pay fines and give cash assistance to defendants who said they faced financial hardship.

The judge told the court he would call four cases he found personally moving. In the first case heard (identified by the court as case No. 4), Yannelle Gueran told the judge she had four overnight parking tickets at the same location and that she was unemployed but scheduled to begin work on Oct. 5. Gueran said her car was not yet registered and she could not obtain a parking permit; she also said she was the sole caregiver for her 10-year-old daughter, Camilla. “So I have a gentleman actually from Eustis, Florida by the name of…