Legislation

Tragedies during traffic stops nationwide prompted legislation last year integrating the responsibilities of a driver during a traffic stop into the current driver’s education curriculum; a number of organizations additionally argued that drivers should be taught their rights during such a stop.

This misnomered legislation from the Attorney General makes it a crime to electronically transmit nude or sexually explicit images without the person’s consent, regardless of the sender’s intent.

"Moral turpitude" is a legally ambiguous term that has caused considerable confusion in Rhode Island. Currently, this antiquated term can be found in several professional licensing statutes as a basis on which to deny or revoke a person's professional license.

Following the filing of criminal charges against Senator Nicholas Kettle, the RI Senate rushed to hold a vote seeking his expulsion. The State Constitution gives the Senate the power to punish its members, but that power should be exercised with an abundance of caution.

Rhode Island remains one of only three states to still have on the books a statute declaring as "civilly dead" any person serving a life sentence. It's a provision so archaic the Harvard Law Review called it "outworn as a mode of punishment" all the way back in 1937.

Legislation introduced would have required that a minor have a parent or guardian present during questioning by law enforcement.

The General Assembly once again introduced several bills to expand the use of background checks in professions that rather than promote public safety, further push ex-offenders outside of a positive community atmosphere.

Between 2000 and 2017, the General Assembly created more than 170 new crimes, and increased prison sentences for dozens of existing offenses.

In the wake of the tragic shooting of students in Parkland, Florida, the General Assembly introduced so-called “Red Flag” legislation aimed at removing firearms via an “extreme risk protection order” (ERPO) from individuals who pose a “significant danger of causing personal injury to self or others.