News & Commentary

The Rhode Island ACLU was one of only two organizations to raise concerns about enactment of the statute passed in June by the General Assembly, and aimed at Central Falls, authorizing the state to appoint a “receiver” to “distressed” municipalities. The law was introduced, heard, voted on and signed into law within the space of less than 72 hours. RI ACLU executive director Steven Brown issued the following statement in response to Judge Silverstein’s ruling today upholding the law’s constitutionality:

As the result of a new law enacted last month by the General Assembly, the Rhode Island ACLU announced it will be seeking to dismiss two election lawsuits it filed last year – one against the City of Central Falls and the other against East Providence – that have been favorably rendered moot by the law.

Following up on its lawsuit filed two weeks ago on behalf of the Moderate Party of Rhode Island (MPRI), the ACLU is asking a federal judge to temporarily halt the state from distributing to the two major political parties funds contained in a so-called “nonpartisan account” consisting of “donations” made by taxpayers on their tax return. The law authorizing the account excludes independent candidates and new political parties, like MPRI, from any of the disbursement.

For the second time in little more than a year, the Rhode Island ACLU has filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of the Moderate Party of Rhode Island, challenging the constitutionality of a state law that discriminates against new political parties. Calling the law “unfair, inequitable and constitutionally infirm,” the lawsuit, filed today by RI ACLU volunteer attorney Mark Freel, seeks to overturn a statute that allows residents to make a donation on their tax return to political parties through a “nonpartisan account,” but excludes new parties from the disbursement.

In response to a lawsuit filed by the Rhode Island ACLU last month, U.S. District Judge William Smith has today struck down a Central Falls charter provision that kept Mayoral candidate Hipolito Fontes off the ballot. The judge agreed that the local Board of Canvassers acted unconstitutionally in disqualifying him from the ballot for allegedly failing to submit sufficient nomination signatures.

The Rhode Island ACLU has today filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of Central Falls Mayoral candidate Hipolito Fontes, arguing that the local Board of Canvassers acted unconstitutionally in disqualifying him from the ballot earlier this month for allegedly failing to submit sufficient nomination signatures.

The Rhode Island ACLU today announced the settlement of a federal lawsuit it filed last October against the Town of West Warwick, challenging on free speech grounds the enforcement of an ordinance that significantly limited the posting of political signs. The suit was filed by ACLU volunteer attorney Richard Sinapi on behalf of local resident Thomas K. Jones, who at the time was both a state legislative candidate and an outspoken critic of plans to develop a water park in the town.

Ruling in a lawsuit filed in February by the Rhode Island ACLU, U.S. District Judge William Smith has today ruled unconstitutional a state law that barred any new political party from collecting in an off-election year the signatures necessary to gain state recognition as a party. The suit had been filed on behalf of the Moderate Party of Rhode Island (MPRI). Under the law, the Party could not begin collecting signatures until January 1, 2010 in order to get on the ballot next year, even though Party members were ready and eager to begin the process of obtaining formal recognition as a political party.

The Rhode Island ACLU submitted a friend of the court brief today supporting plaintiffs who are asking the U.S. Court of Appeals in Boston to order a new election for five Smithfield Town Council seats because of defective ballots that thousands of town voters used in casting their votes.