News & Commentary

In a case with important ramifications for the public’s ability to monitor police misbehavior, the ACLU of Rhode Island sued the Pawtucket Police Department today for failing to release certain reports of alleged police officer misconduct generated by its Internal Affairs Division (IAD). The suit argues that this refusal to release the records is in clear violation of the state’s Access to Public Records Act (APRA). 

On the heels of the tragic police shooting and subsequent death of an innocent woman in Minneapolis, the ACLU of RI has sent letters to the police chiefs of both Newport and Providence urging them to revise and strengthen their existing body camera policies so that they promote full transparency in policing.

Below are statements issued by the ACLU of RI today in response to Superior Court Presiding Justice Alice Gibney’s decision rejecting Governor Gina Raimondo’s petition for the release of grand jury records relating to the 38 Studios investigation:

The ACLU of Rhode Island today sent a letter to the Ordinance Committee of the Providence City Council in response to a resolution to establish a working group to ensure proper implementation and enforcement of the Community Safety Act (CSA) ordinance.  The letter raised a few concerns, most notably the resolution's proposal that the working group be permitted to 'enter executive session,' in possible violation of Rhode Island's Open Meetings Act.

As part of a nationwide effort, the ACLU of Rhode Island and five other New England ACLU affiliates today filed a lawsuit demanding government documents about the on-the-ground implementation of President Trump's Muslim bans.

The ACLU of Rhode Island today filed a "friend of the court" brief in R.I. Superior Court in support of Governor Gina Raimondo's petition to have the court release the grand jury records of the 38 Studios investigation.

The ACLU of RI is proud to testify today in support of the Community Safety Act at the Providence City Council's Ordinance Committee public hearing.  The comprehensive ordinance was spearheaded by the STEP Up Coalition to ban racial profiling and other discriminatory practices by Providence law enforcement, and "change the way that police interact with members of our community…"

In honor of Sunshine Week and open government, here's an example of the absurdities that sometimes result when the public is denied their right to know. A redacted version of our plaintiff's police report from a suit we won in 2008 (presumably the missing section contains highly sensitive information):

The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request today with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) local field office in Boston to expose how Trump administration officials are interpreting and executing the president’s immigration ban, and in particular how they appear to be acting in violation of federal courts that ordered a stay on the ban’s implementation. The FOIA request was filed jointly with the ACLU affiliates in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont as part of a coordinated ACLU effort across the country.