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The ACLU of Rhode Island today filed a federal lawsuit to prevent the Smithfield Police Department from continuing to enforce an overly broad state law that makes it a crime to circulate anonymous political literature, including unsigned newspaper editorials. The statute, which carries a potential one-year prison sentence, unconstitutionally bars the distribution of any anonymous political literature that relates to ballot questions or that criticizes a political candidate’s “personal character or political action.”

The ACLU of Rhode Island testified Friday before the R.I. Vehicle Value Commission to urge the Commission to stop using unrealistic vehicle valuation to determine car taxes and adopt a meaningful appeals process for Rhode Island car owners.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island this week urged the Cranston City Council to look more deeply into city police department practices based on police officers' actions in a high-profile criminal case that were once described by a state judge as showing “an overall attitude of gross negligence, if not downright recklessness, in blatant disregard of the requirements of the law.”

In a letter sent to Police Chief Hugh Clements, Jr., the American Civil Liberties of Rhode Island is urging the Providence Police Department to reject immigration detainers issued without judicial oversight now that the state Department of Corrections has ended the practice of detaining individuals based solely on these requests.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island has urged Warwick City Council to amend an ordinance barring certain city employees from running for office after a worker faced losing his job if he ran for a seat in the United States Senate.