PAWTUCKET, R.I. (WPRI) — Pawtucket Police Officer Daniel Dolan has been on paid suspension for months, and taxpayers could continue to pay his more than $71,000 salary for the rest of the year.

The city has been trying to fire Dolan since he went on trial for shooting a teenager while off-duty in June 2021. While he was cleared of all criminal charges, Mayor Don Grebien said in mid-February that he still had concerns about Dolan’s conduct.

Dolan was arrested this past weekend in Coventry. He’s accused of driving drunk and recklessly, as well as threatening to shoot officers in that town.

Following his acquittal in January, Dolan started collecting paychecks again, and he received nearly $124,000 in back pay for the time he spent on unpaid suspension.

Daniel Dolan (Courtesy: Coventry Police Department)

Dolan’s employment status is currently under review. The city can’t outright fire him because he’s protected under the Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights (LEOBOR), which is also why Pawtucket Police Chief Tina Goncalves couldn’t comment specifically on his recent arrest.

“What I can say is obviously, if any officer is arrested, we take that very seriously,” Goncalves told 12 News on Thursday. “There will be an internal investigation that will run parallel with the criminal investigation.”

The LEOBOR process kicks in whenever an officer is accused of a crime. A three-member panel will determine whether or not the city has the grounds to fire Dolan.

Those hearings are already underway, but it’s unclear how long it’ll be before a decision is made.

“We don’t have a timeframe, but it should be completed, I would say by the end of the year,” Goncalves said.

“Like I said, with the criminal component, we are going to run parallel investigations and then when the criminal component’s over, then the internal investigation will be able to be completed,” she added.

In the meantime, Dolan will continue to collect a paycheck.

A city spokesperson said they will take the new charges against Dolan into account in their efforts to fire him.

He’s due in court next week to be arraigned on those charges.