News & Commentary

The American Civil Liberties Union charged today that the FBI and local police are engaging in intimidation based on political association and are improperly investigating law-abiding human rights and advocacy groups, according to documents obtained through a series of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. In response, the Rhode Island ACLU today filed a FOIA request seeking similar documents about activities taking place here.

The ACLU of Rhode Island applauded a ruling issued today by the R.I. Supreme Court, holding that a woman seriously injured during a high speed police chase was entitled to a trial on her claim that police acted recklessly in pursuing the suspect who hit the car in which she was a passenger.

In a 42 page report released today, the ACLU of Rhode Island charged that many police departments are failing to comply with provisions of the strict law against racial profiling passed last year by the General Assembly.

Claiming that the ruling has “significant ramifications for First Amendment rights,” the ACLU has called on the state Board of Elections to reverse its decision barring Cranston Mayor Stephen Laffey from continuing to host a radio talk show on WPRO. That ruling held that Laffey’s “receipt of airtime” from WPRO constituted an illegal “in-kind political contribution” from a corporation.

In response to widespread concerns over the physical appearance of criminal defendant Esteban Carpio at his arraignment, the ACLU and civil rights groups have called on Providence Police Chief Dean Esserman and four other government agencies to immediately gather available evidence  to determine the cause of the injuries.

The ACLU of Rhode Island today announced the favorable settlement of a federal lawsuit it filed last year on behalf of the environmental group Clean Water Action (CWA), challenging a Johnston Town Council directive barring the group from engaging in political door-to-door canvassing between 7 and 9 PM. The lawsuit, filed by ACLU volunteer attorney Carolyn Mannis, successfully argued that the restriction violated the group’s First Amendment rights.

In an important victory for vigorous advocacy by civil rights attorneys, the U.S. Court of Appeals in Boston today reversed District Court Judge Mary Lisi’s sanctions on attorneys in the Cornel Young, Jr. civil rights case for allegedly misrepresenting the judge’s position in court papers. The Rhode Island ACLU had filed a “friend of the court” brief in support of the attorneys. The brief, filed by volunteer attorney Amy R. Tabor, had argued that Judge Lisi’s actions “not only violated the due process and First Amendment rights of both the plaintiff and her attorneys, but will, if not reversed, chill and undermine the independent and vigorous advocacy that is an indispensable component of our system of justice.”

A study released this week by Northeastern University researchers shows that African-American and Hispanic drivers in Rhode Island continue to be subjected to disparate treatment by law enforcement, prompting concern from the ACLU and others in the civil rights community.

Administrators at Central High School in Providence have allowed sophomore Eliazar Velasquez to return to school after the student was suspended last week for posting photographs of the school principal on a personal website. The photographs depicted principal Elaine Almagno smoking a cigarette on school grounds, in direct violation of state law.