Legislation

Under current RI law, DNA can only be collected from individuals convicted of certain felonies; the ACLU testified that collecting from individuals who have merely been arrested undermined the presumption of innocence and was a dangerous step towards the creation of a comprehensive DNA database.

In February, the ACLU testified before the House Corporations committee in opposition to two bills sanctioning the use of automated license plate readers (ALPRs), which are scanners placed on police cruisers and used to scan every license plate on the street.

The ACLU of RI testified before the Senate and House Judiciary committees in support of legislation repealing the state’s voter ID law.

This legislation would have allowed the state of Rhode Island to produce and sell marijuana for recreational consumption, and authorized the state to set specific and enforceable limits on access to marijuana and funneling money from its sale to substance abuse treatment programs.

The House passed a resolution, sponsored by Representative Daniel Gordon, calling upon Congress to repeal sections of the National Defense Authorization Act which sanction the indefinite detention without charge or trial of anyone in the United States.

The General Assembly passed landmark legislation to protect people from employment, housing, and voting discrimination, among others, solely because of their homeless status.

Paradoxically, while Rhode Island continues to deny same-sex couples the right to marry, the state also prevents couples legally married in other states from divorcing.

In a stunning response to the Woonsocket cross controversy, the General Assembly overwhelmingly approved legislation creating a permanent commission to determine whether any memorial in the state of Rhode Island is religious or secular.

As cell phone technology has advanced and smartphones have become ubiquitous, the devices we carry on a daily basis have begun to contain substantial amounts of personal information, including e-mails, photos, and records of where we’ve been traveling.