The ACLU of RI today announced the favorable settlement of a lawsuit to ensure the State House Rotunda will be open for use by the public, including those engaged in peaceful protest, immediately prior to, and during, the Governor’s annual “State of the State” address. The civil liberties organization called the settlement “an important reaffirmation of First Amendment rights in a space that serves as a quintessential forum for free speech activity.”
The lawsuit was filed in 2025 by ACLU of RI cooperating attorneys Lynette Labinger and Sonja Deyoe on behalf of activists who were denied access to the rotunda for a rally and threatened with arrest prior to that year’s gubernatorial address. That January, a “People’s State of the State” rally to raise awareness about economic disparity in Rhode Island was planned by local groups, including the Rhode Island Homeless Advocacy Project and the now-dissolved R.I. Black Lives Matter PAC led by Harrison Tuttle. The rally was scheduled to take place in the Rotunda, a well-known public space regularly used for protests and demonstrations, an hour before the Governor’s State of the State address to legislators in the House of Representatives chamber.
Upon arriving at the State House, however, Tuttle and others were advised that the Governor’s office had instructed State Police and Capitol Police to prevent them from accessing the Rotunda and the upper floors of the State House. The Rotunda entrance was blocked off by Capitol and State Police with a sign indicating that it had been reserved by the Governor’s office from 4:30 pm to 10 pm. The ACLU of RI lawsuit argued that these actions were undertaken to stifle the protesters’ exercise of their First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and assembly.
Under the settlement agreement filed today, the parties agreed that “the Rotunda of the State House of Rhode Island shall remain open to the public, for purposes including but not limited to peaceful demonstrations … for not less than one hour before, during, and one hour after the holding of the annual State of the State address,” while acknowledging the State had the right to “implement safety and security measures … to ensure safe ingress and egress” to the rotunda and other areas of the State House. In January 2026, while the lawsuit was in progress, an agreement was reached in advance of that month’s “State of the State” address to allow protesters to access most of the State House Rotunda with safety protocols in place, and they are referred to approvingly in the agreement. The settlement also includes a payment of $20,405 in legal fees by the State.
A copy of the settlement, along with other documents in the lawsuit, can be found here.
QUOTES FROM PARTICIPANTS IN THE LAWSUIT
Eric Hirsch, Acting Director of the Rhode Island Homeless Advocacy Project: “Rhode Island’s State House Rotunda is an important site where those who disagree with the actions and statements of the Governor can exercise their First Amendment rights. The Rhode Island Homeless Advocacy Project appreciates the ACLU of Rhode Island’s filing of a successful lawsuit to guarantee those rights, particularly regarding access to the Rotunda immediately before and after the Governor’s State of the State address.”
Harrison Tuttle: “This settlement agreement provides a clear legal framework under which the community and, in particular, individuals experiencing homelessness, may organize and advocate for an end to homelessness during all future annual ‘People’s State of the State’ gatherings held in the Rhode Island State House Rotunda.”
ACLU of RI cooperating attorney Sonja Deyoe: “We are pleased that we were able to bring this action and successfully preserve the rights of Rhode Islanders to protest against the actions of their government.”
ACLU of RI cooperating attorney Lynette Labinger: “We are pleased to announce the resolution of this important law suit with the recognition of State officials of the important free speech and assembly issues raised by this case. After denying public access to the Rotunda in 2025, the State worked with us to ensure that all members of the public, including the plaintiffs here, had access to the Rotunda to engage in peaceful protest during the 2026 State of the State address. And now the State has committed to ensuring that such public access will be preserved for all future State of the State addresses. Important rights have been vindicated and secured and we applaud both sides for achieving this significant result.”
ACLU of RI executive director Steven Brown: “The outcome of this case ensures that the State House truly is open to the people as it is intended to be — during the State of the State address and beyond. This is an important reaffirmation of First Amendment rights in a space that serves as a quintessential forum for free speech activity.”
