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H8384AViolent Crime Penalties

Motor and Other Vehicles - Motor Vehicle Offenses - Casey's Law

This bill adds extra fines, license suspensions, and prison time for crimes committed as a result of road rage.

Introduced37 Yea1 Nay0 Not voting
Population
Affected
25
Email Legislator
Introduced Apr 1, 2026Committee House Judiciary

Plain-English Summary

This bill creates "Casey's Law," which adds extra penalties for crimes committed while experiencing "road rage." Road rage is defined as intentionally aggressive, threatening, or dangerous behavior by a driver or passenger directed at someone in another vehicle. If a person commits a misdemeanor due to road rage, they face an additional fine up to $1,000 and a one-year license suspension. If they commit a felony due to road rage, they face an extra 2 to 15 years in prison, a mandatory fine of at least $1,000, and a license suspension of up to five years.

For younger readers

This bill makes new rules for people who get very angry while driving, which is called "road rage." If a driver or passenger acts mean, scary, or dangerous to someone in another car and breaks a law because of it, they will get extra punishments. For smaller broken laws, they might have to pay up to $1,000 and lose their driver's license for a year. For very serious broken laws, they could have to stay in jail for up to 15 extra years, pay a big fine, and lose their license for up to five years.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Motor vehicle operatorsMotor vehicle passengersLaw enforcement officersProsecutorsVictims of road rage
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

The bill carries a slight due process and First Amendment risk due to the subjective language used to define road rage, such as "harassing," "threatening," or "intimidating" behavior. Vagueness in these terms could lead to arbitrary enforcement or penalize protected speech (e.g., yelling or gesturing from a car). However, because it requires an underlying criminal conviction and proof "beyond a reasonable doubt" at a hearing, it would likely survive constitutional scrutiny.

Estimated cost
Amount unknown
Estimated revenue
Amount unknown

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Promotes community welfare and public safety by deterring dangerous and aggressive driving behaviors that threaten innocent lives and community well-being.
  • Requires a high standard of proof ("beyond a reasonable doubt") and formal notice before applying the enhancement, ensuring that individuals' due process rights are protected in court.
  • Helps protect vulnerable road users and disadvantaged individuals who may lack the financial resources or healthcare access to recover from severe accidents caused by aggressive drivers.
  • Increases mandatory minimum fines and creates lengthy consecutive prison sentences, which contributes to mass incarceration and disproportionately harms marginalized communities.
  • Fines and license suspensions can create severe economic hardships for low-income individuals, potentially leading to job loss, inability to access public services, and a cycle of poverty.
  • The broad definition of "road rage" leaves room for subjective interpretation by law enforcement and prosecutors, which could lead to biased targeting of minorities or disadvantaged groups.
For Conservatives
  • Strengthens the rule of law by imposing strict, consecutive penalties for individuals who choose to engage in dangerous road rage behavior.
  • Enhances public safety and protects the property and lives of law-abiding citizens from reckless, aggressive, and unpredictable drivers.
  • Promotes personal responsibility by ensuring that those who commit crimes out of anger on the road face significant, unavoidable financial and legal consequences.
  • Expands government power by creating broad new penalty enhancements that give prosecutors excessive leverage to overcharge citizens.
  • The subjective terms used to define road rage, such as "harassing" or "intimidating," could be weaponized by the state to unfairly penalize minor traffic disputes or restrict free expression.
  • Imposes heavy financial burdens on citizens through mandatory fines and long license suspensions, which overly restricts personal freedom, mobility, and the ability to work.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

2 versions
Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 39 additions

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

SECTION 1. Chapter 31-27 of the General Laws entitled "Motor Vehicle Offenses" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: 31-27-26. Enhancement of an offense for road rage -- Casey's law.

(a) For the purposes of this section, "road rage" means the operation or use of a motor vehicle, or behavior on the part of the operator or passenger of a motor vehicle that is intentionally aggressive, harassing, threatening, intimidating, or dangerous and that is directed toward another motor vehicle operator or passenger upon any public highway, public roadway, or reasonable extension of any public highway or roadway, to which the public has access.

(b) Any person convicted of or entering a plea of guilty or nolo contendere for a violation of any provisions of this chapter that constitute a misdemeanor or any other misdemeanor, and who is further found to have committed such violation as a result of road rage may be subject to the following in addition to any other penalty the court may impose for the underlying misdemeanor violation:

(1) A fine of up to one thousand dollars ($1,000); and/or

(2) Suspension of the person's operator's license for up to one year.

(c) Any person convicted of or entering a plea of guilty or nolo contendere for a violation of any provisions of this chapter that constitute a felony or any other felony, and who is further found to have committed such violation as a result of road rage may be subject to the following in addition to any other penalty the court may impose for the underlying felony violation:

(1) An additional term of imprisonment for not less than two (2) years and for not more than fifteen (15) years;

(2) A mandatory fine of no less than one thousand dollars ($1,000); and

(3) Suspension of the person's operator's license for a period of not more than five (5) years or revocation for a period up to two (2) years.

(d) Whenever the attorney general or prosecutor seeks the enhanced sentence in this section, the attorney general or prosecutor shall file a notice with the court and the defendant no later than the first pretrial conference, or shall allege the enhancement in the complaint, information, or indictment, specifying that the defendant, upon conviction, is subject to the imposition of sentencing in accordance with this section.

(e) Upon any plea of guilty or nolo contendere, or verdict or finding of guilty of the defendant, the court shall conduct a sentencing hearing. At the hearing, the court shall permit the attorney general or prosecutor and the defense to present additional evidence to the judge or jury relevant to the determination of whether the defendant committed the underlying offense as a result of road rage as defined in subsection (a) of this section. If the judge or jury at the hearing, or in the case of a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, the court at sentencing, determines beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant's actions were so motivated, the defendant shall be sentenced as provided in this section.

(f) This section does not create a separate offense but provides an additional enhanced sentence for the underlying offense.

(g) The enhanced sentence regarding imprisonment provided in this section shall run consecutively to the sentences provided for the underlying offenses.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.