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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2024

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES -- COMPREHENSIVE COMMUNITY--

POLICE RELATIONSHIP ACT OF 2015

     Introduced By: Representatives Ajello, Craven, Tanzi, Cruz, Batista, Felix, Knight,
McEntee, Bennett, and Biah

     Date Introduced: January 10, 2024

     Referred To: House Judiciary

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Sections 31-21.2-1, 31-21.2-5, 31-21.2-6 and 31-21.2-7 of the General Laws

in Chapter 31-21.2 entitled "Comprehensive Community-Police Relationship Act of 2015" are

hereby amended to read as follows:

     31-21.2-1. Title.

     This chapter may be cited as “Racial Profiling Prevention Act of 2004 The Comprehensive

Community-Police Relationship Act of 2015.”

     31-21.2-5. Law enforcement practices.

     (a) Unless there exists reasonable suspicion or probable cause of criminal activity, no motor

vehicle stopped for a traffic violation shall be detained beyond the time needed to address the

violation. Nothing contained herein shall prohibit the detention of a motor vehicle for a reasonable

period of time for the arrival of a canine unit or subsequent criminal investigation if there is

reasonable suspicion or probable cause of criminal activity.

     (b) No operator or owner-passenger of a motor vehicle shall be requested to consent to a

search by a law enforcement officer of his or her motor vehicle, that is stopped solely for a traffic

violation, unless there exists reasonable suspicion or probable cause of criminal activity. No

pedestrian shall be requested to consent to a search by a law enforcement officer of his or her

person, unless there exists reasonable suspicion or probable cause of criminal activity. No juvenile

shall be requested to consent to a search by a law enforcement officer unless there exists reasonable

suspicion or probable cause of criminal activity. In those instances in which a warrant would be

required, a law enforcement officer must advise the juvenile that he or she may refuse to consent

to, or limit the scope of, any requested search. The determination of age of the individual shall be

based on the perception of the officer making a good faith effort in advance of requesting consent.

Nothing contained in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit a law enforcement officer from

conducting a pat down search for weapons based upon a reasonable belief that the officer’s personal

safety may be jeopardized.

     (c) Each search conducted by a law enforcement officer that does not result in criminal

charges shall be documented in a computer-aided dispatch (CAD) entry or other police-generated

report. Each search conducted by a law enforcement officer that results in criminal charges shall

be documented in a police-generated report. The CAD entry or formal police report shall include

the date, time, and location of the stop/search, along with the “reasonable suspicion” or “probable

cause” leading to the search. The CAD entry or formal police report shall also include the race, age,

and gender of the individual(s) searched and the results of the search. The document, exclusive of

information identifying the law enforcement officer, shall be a public record, subject to the access

to public records act, § 38-2-2(4)(D), law enforcement exemptions. For purposes of this section,

“computer-aided dispatch” (CAD) means an electronic system used by public safety agencies to

facilitate incident response and communications in the field that electronically records information

on call taking, dispatching, location verification, mapping, and other functions for public safety.

     (d) With the exception of operators who are subject to federal motor carrier regulations, no

operator of a motor vehicle shall be requested to provide any documentation or identification other

than a driver’s license, motor vehicle registration, and/or proof of insurance when the motor vehicle

has been stopped solely for a traffic violation, unless there exists reasonable suspicion or probable

cause of criminal activity or the operator has failed to produce a valid driver’s license.

     (e) If a violation of the traffic laws in this title is used to stop a motor vehicle for non-

related investigatory reasons, the law enforcement officer shall document in writing or

electronically the investigatory basis for the stop. The documentation of such stops shall commence

no later than twelve (12) months after passage of this act and shall be assessed every six (6) months

by the respective police department as to whether the suspicion was justified and the data be made

publicly available, subject to the access to public records act, § 38-2-2(4)(D), law enforcement

exemptions.

     (f) Any evidence obtained as a result of a search prohibited by subsection (a) or (b) shall

be inadmissible in any judicial proceeding. Nothing contained herein shall be construed to preclude

any search otherwise based upon any legally sufficient cause.

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     (g) Law enforcement agencies using video and/or audio surveillance cameras in their

vehicles shall adopt written policies and procedures regarding the use of such cameras, which shall

be public records, and which shall include, but not be limited to, the following standards:

     (1) All motor vehicle stops conducted by police vehicles with such equipment shall be

recorded barring exceptions outlined below. In an effort to objectively memorialize relevant

observations, the recording shall begin no later than when an officer first signals the vehicle to stop;

and, barring conditions that could compromise a sensitive investigation, jeopardize the safety of a

vehicle occupant or cooperating victim/witness and/or unforeseen equipment malfunction, the

recording shall continue until the motor vehicle stop is completed and the stopped vehicle departs,

or until the officer’s participation in the motor vehicle stop ends;

     (2) Law enforcement agencies that acquire video and/or audio surveillance cameras for use

in their vehicles shall:

     (i) Notify the office of highway safety of the Rhode Island department of transportation

that such equipment has been acquired and will be in use and the department of transportation shall

post notice of such use on its website;

     (ii) Issue a press release advising the public that such equipment will be in use; and

     (iii) Post notice on its website that such equipment will be in use;

     (3) A chain of custody of the video/audio recordings, hereafter referred to as

“recording(s),” shall be maintained;

     (4)(i) A driver of a motor vehicle who was recorded by a video/audio surveillance camera,

and/or his or her legal counsel, shall have the right to view the in-car recording at the police station,

provided that the viewing does not compromise an active investigation;

     (ii) A passenger of a motor vehicle who was recorded by a video/audio surveillance camera,

and/or his or her legal counsel, shall have the right to view the in-car recording at the police station

if that passenger became the subject of the police interaction recorded, provided that the viewing

does not compromise an active investigation;

     (5) The policy shall address the period of retention for such recordings, and procedures to

be used to ensure that the recording equipment is in proper working order, and shall bar the

destruction of any recording of an incident that is the subject of a pending complaint, misconduct

investigation, or civil or criminal proceeding. Such recordings shall be retained for a minimum of

ten (10) days after the final resolution of such investigation or proceeding, including the time for

any appeal;

     (6) The policy shall explicitly prohibit any violation of these requirements, including any

attempts to disengage or tamper with the video/audio surveillance equipment, deliberately and

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prematurely erase or alter a recording, or to otherwise fail to record stops as specified herein barring

the aforementioned limited exceptions; and

     (7) The video/audio surveillance recordings regulated by this section shall not be deemed

public records under the access to public records act, § 38-2-1 et seq. A court may impose any

appropriate remedy in any civil or criminal proceeding where a knowing and willful violation of

these standards is found to have been committed.

     (h) Law enforcement officers shall advise any motorist who is stopped of the reason for

the stop.

     (i) Law enforcement agencies with mobile display terminals in police vehicles shall adopt

policies and procedures governing their use that shall include the criteria necessary to initiate a

record check on a motor vehicle license or registrant. All law enforcement agencies must comply

with state and federal guidelines related to the use and access of Rhode Island law enforcement

telecommunication system (RILETS) and National Criminal Identification Center (NCIC).

     (j) The policies and procedures established by this section shall be added to, and

prominently placed in, all relevant departmental policy and training manuals. Other appropriate

training about the requirements of this chapter shall also be provided to all officers.

     31-21.2-6. Continued data collection.

     (a) The office of highway safety of the Rhode Island department of transportation or a

designee to be chosen by the department of transportation by January 1, 2017, is authorized to and

shall conduct a an ongoing study of routine traffic stops by the Rhode Island state police and each

municipal police department in order to determine whether racial disparities in traffic stops exist,

and to examine whether searches of vehicles and motorists are being conducted in a disparate

manner.

     (b) The office of highway safety of the Rhode Island department of transportation or its

designee shall, no later than January 1, 2016, develop a form or electronic equivalent to be used by

each police officer when making a traffic stop to record the data required under this chapter, which

form shall include for each motor vehicle stop, the race and ethnicity of the driver based on the

officer’s perception, and the information listed in § 31-21.1-4.

     (c) The office of highway safety of the Rhode Island department of transportation or its

designee shall advise the Rhode Island state police and each municipal police department of the

date that data collection shall commence. Data collection shall begin not later than January 1, 2016,

but may begin prior to that time upon notification to police departments from the office of highway

safety of the Rhode Island department of transportation or its designee ongoing data collection and

reporting requirements of this chapter.

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     (d) A traffic stop data collection card or electronic equivalent shall be completed for each

routine traffic stop by the Rhode Island state police and municipal police department during the

term of this study.

     (e) Upon commencement of data collection, and On a monthly thereafter basis, each

municipal police department and the Rhode Island state police shall transmit to the office of

highway safety of the Rhode Island department of transportation or its designee all forms or

electronic data collected to date of motorists who were stopped, and any other information the

police department or the Rhode Island state police deem appropriate. Data collection shall continue

for forty-eight (48) months following commencement of data collection.

     (f) Appropriate funding may be made available to implement the provision of this chapter

and completion of this study shall be contingent upon such funding.

     (g) The study shall include a multivariate analysis of the collected data in accordance with

general statistical standards and shall be substantially similar to the study prepared pursuant to

chapter 21.1 of this title. The study shall be prepared by an organization, company, person, or other

entity with sufficient expertise in the field of statistics and the study of traffic stop data collection

to assist with the implementation of this chapter, and chosen by the office of highway safety of the

Rhode Island department of transportation or its designee. The study shall be released on an annual

basis, with the first release not later than eighteen (18) months twice yearly after commencement

of data collection under this chapter. The report, findings, and conclusions submitted pursuant to

this subsection shall be a public record and shall be published on the department of transportation

website.

     (h) The office of highway safety of the Rhode Island department of transportation, or its

designee, shall be exempt from the provisions of chapter 2 of title 37 in connection with its

procurement of equipment and services necessary to the implementation of this chapter.

     (i) On a quarterly basis, a summary report of the monthly data provided by each police

department and the state police for that quarterly period shall be issued. The report shall be a public

record and shall be published in a searchable format on the department of transportation website.

The summary report shall include, at a minimum, a monthly breakdown by race, age, gender, and

outcome for operators for each police department of the number of traffic stops made and of

searches conducted. For those police departments collecting data through the use of mobile display

terminals in police vehicles, the report shall also include a breakdown by race and outcome for

operators. The report shall be released not more than ninety (90) days after the end of each quarterly

period. No information revealing the identity of any individual shall be contained in the report.

     (j) Every law enforcement agency collecting data pursuant to this chapter shall ensure that

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supervisory personnel review each officer’s stop and search documentation and data results on a

monthly basis to ensure compliance with all policies, prohibitions, and documentation

requirements.

     (k) The head of every law enforcement agency subject to this chapter, or his or her

designee, shall review the data on a regular basis in an effort to determine whether any racial

disparities in the agency’s traffic stops enforcement exists, and to appropriately respond to any such

disparities. It is understood that disparities may or may not equate to racial profiling.

     (l) An organization chartered for the purpose of combating discrimination, racism, or of

safeguarding civil liberties, or of promoting full, free, or equal employment opportunities, and/or a

governmental or quasi-governmental entity may seek appropriate relief in a civil action against any

police department for failing to collect or transmit the data required in this chapter, or for failing to

comply with other requirements of this chapter and may be awarded its costs, including attorney’s

fees, for bringing such an action. As a condition precedent to the filing of a civil action by an

organization under this section, the organization shall send a notice to the office of highway safety

of the Rhode Island department of transportation or its designee identifying the police department

which is failing to collect or transmit the data and the organization shall then allow fifteen (15)

days to elapse.

     (m) The office of highway safety of the Rhode Island department of transportation or its

designee shall consult with community, police and civil rights representatives in the development

of the form required by subsection (b) and on at least a quarterly basis shall consult on other issues

that arise relating to the implementation and enforcement of this chapter including the information

generated by the issuance of the reports required by subsection (i).

     31-21.2-7. Data collection and use.

     (a) Data acquired under this chapter shall not be used in any civil proceeding to establish

or rebut an inference of discrimination except by court order or when otherwise admissible in

accordance with rules of civil procedure. It is understood that disparities may or may not equate to

racial profiling. All data collected pursuant to this chapter shall be public. For those motor vehicle

stops where a citation was issued or an arrest was made, the forms prepared pursuant to § 31-21.2-

6(b) of this chapter shall include a citation or arrest number for reference. The data collection form

shall not include the name or badge number of the officer completing the form. The report from the

department of transportation or its designee shall not be officer specific.

     (b) Any police officer who in good faith records traffic stop information pursuant to the

requirements of this chapter shall not be held civilly liable for the act of recording the information

unless the officer’s conduct was reckless.

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     (c) All police departments shall submit to the office of highway safety of the department

of transportation, or its designee, on an annual basis beginning on July 15, 2016, and for four (4)

years following the conclusion of data collection, a report indicating what action, if any, has been

taken, to address any racial disparities in traffic stops and/or searches documented in the studies

authorized by §§ 31-21.1-4 and 31-21.2-6, and to otherwise implement any recommendations of

those studies, including, but not limited to, any changes to agency policies; revisions to traffic

enforcement practices; detailed analysis and review of traffic stop data and the results of such

review; or the initiation of any disciplinary action. Any reference to disciplinary action shall not

identify the officer. The office of highway safety of the department of transportation or its designee

shall issue guidelines for police departments to follow in preparing these reports. The reports shall

be public records and shall contain a certification that the department has complied with § 31-21.2-

6(j) and (k)., and the reports shall be published on the department of transportation website.

     (d) Every twelve (12) months, each state and municipal law enforcement agency shall

submit to the office of highway safety of the Rhode Island department of transportation, or its

designee, on a brief form prepared by that office, or its designee, information summarizing what,

if any, actions were taken by the agency in response to any racial disparities documented in the

previous reports issued pursuant to § 31-21.2-6(i). The summary shall include, but not be limited

to: any changes to agency policies; revisions to traffic enforcement practices; detailed analysis and

review of traffic stop data and the results of such review; or the initiation of any disciplinary action.

Any references to disciplinary action shall not identify the officer. The forms shall be public

records, and shall contain a certification that the department has complied with § 31-21.2-6(j) and

(k). Provided, further, the reports shall be published on the department of transportation website.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect on January 30, 2025.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES -- COMPREHENSIVE COMMUNITY--

POLICE RELATIONSHIP ACT OF 2015

***

     This act would make the data collection and reporting requirements of the comprehensive

community-police relationship act of 2015 permanent.

     This act would take effect on January 30, 2025.

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