H 8296Criminal Procedure

Criminal Procedure - Railroad, Steamboat, and Bridge Police

This bill mandates confidentiality for police reports and communications involving railroad employees in fatal accidents, establishing penalties for unauthorized disclosure.

Held for study

Population
Affected

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Introduced Mar 13, 2026Committee House State Government & Elections

Plain-English Summary

This bill establishes privacy protections for railroad employees involved in fatal accidents. It mandates that any police report or communication between police and railroad crew members regarding a railroad fatality must remain confidential and cannot be released to the general public. However, these documents must be made available to the railroad companies involved, the specific employees mentioned, law enforcement, the Attorney General, or anyone with a judicial order. Violating this confidentiality requirement is a criminal offense punishable by up to one year in prison, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.

For younger readers

Sometimes, train accidents happen where someone sadly loses their life. This bill helps protect the train workers involved in those accidents by keeping the police reports private. It says that the police cannot share these reports or what the workers said with the public or the news. Only the train companies, the police, and judges are allowed to see this information. This is to protect the privacy of the workers during a hard time. If someone breaks this rule and shares the secrets, they could get in trouble, pay a fine, or go to jail.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups

Railroad EmployeesRailroad CompaniesPolice DepartmentsJournalists/MediaFamilies of Accident Victims

Impacted communities

All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

This bill restricts access to police reports, which are generally considered public records, raising potential First Amendment concerns regarding freedom of the press and the public's right to know. While privacy exemptions are common, criminalizing the sharing of information by anyone in possession of it could be challenged as a restriction on free speech. However, as it specifically targets official police reports and communications, it may be viewed as a valid time, place, and manner restriction for privacy.

Estimated cost

None

Estimated revenue

Amount unknown

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints

For Progressives

Protects the mental health and privacy of workers who have experienced the trauma of a fatal workplace accident, shielding them from immediate public scrutiny.
Prevents the potential harassment and "doxing" of working-class individuals by the media or public before an official investigation is concluded.
Ensures that sensitive communications made during a crisis are not weaponized against individual employees in the court of public opinion without due process.
Reduces transparency regarding potential corporate negligence or safety failures, potentially allowing companies to hide systemic issues behind employee privacy.
Limits the ability of the press and the public to access government records (police reports), which is essential for holding powerful entities accountable.
May hinder independent oversight or advocacy groups from investigating safety trends if primary source documents are withheld from the public domain.

For Conservatives

Protects the privacy of private citizens from intrusive media inquiries and public speculation during sensitive investigations.
Ensures an orderly investigation process by limiting the leak of information that could prejudice legal proceedings.
Safeguards the reputation of employees and businesses from immediate damage caused by incomplete or contextualized information being released to the public.
Imposes criminal penalties, including potential jail time, for the dissemination of information, which some may view as excessive government overreach.
Restricts the free flow of information and limits the ability of citizens to access public records generated by tax-funded police departments.
Creates a special class of privacy protection for a specific industry that is not afforded to citizens involved in other types of fatal vehicular accidents.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 17 additions

SECTION 1. Chapter 12-2 of the General Laws entitled "Railroad, Steamboat, and Bridge Police" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: 12-2-9. Privacy protections for railway employees.

(a) Any police report involving a railroad fatality and all communications between police officers and railroad crew members involved in such fatality, shall not be made public and shall be maintained by the police department that responds to such fatality, in a manner that shall ensure confidentiality; provided, however, that all such reports shall be accessible at all reasonable times, upon written request, to:

(1) The host railroad;

(2) The railroad of employ of any employee mentioned in such reports; and

(3) Any other person authorized by judicial order to obtain such information, if access to such report is necessary in the performance of their duties; and provided, further, that all such reports shall be accessible at all reasonable times, upon written or electronic mail request to law enforcement officers, or the office of attorney general.

(b) Communications between police officers and railroad employees concerning any railroad fatality incident may be shared with any person listed in subsection (a) of this section, if such access is necessary to the performance of their duties.

(c) A violation of this section shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than one year or by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.