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S2279ACriminal Procedure

Criminal Procedure - Arrest

This bill allows trained security guards at private colleges to temporarily hold suspects on campus until police arrive.

Introduced29 Yea8 Nay1 Not voting
Population
Affected
25
Email Legislator
Introduced Jan 23, 2026Committee Senate Judiciary

Plain-English Summary

This bill allows trained security guards at private colleges and universities in Rhode Island to temporarily detain someone on campus property. To do this, the guard must have probable cause to believe the person committed a felony or certain misdemeanors, like theft or violence. The detention must be necessary to prevent harm, maintain safety, or stop the person from escaping before official police arrive. The bill requires guards to immediately call local or state police. It also sets rules for using physical restraint, requires specific training for handcuffs, and mandates that colleges keep detailed records of these incidents.

For younger readers

This bill lets security guards at private colleges keep a person from leaving the college grounds if they think the person broke a serious rule, like stealing or hurting someone. The guards can only hold the person for a short time and must call the real police right away. If the guards need to use handcuffs, they must have special training first. The college also has to write down what happened every time a guard stops someone and keep those papers for five years.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
College studentsPrivate university security personnelPrivate colleges and universitiesLocal law enforcementCampus visitors
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

Moderate risk

There is a moderate risk concerning the Fourth Amendment (unreasonable searches and seizures) and First Amendment (free speech). By granting quasi-police detention powers to private security, they may be viewed as state actors. Detaining individuals for "disorderly conduct" or "breach of the peace" could be used to suppress student protests or free speech. Furthermore, temporary detentions without a warrant risk violating due process if not strictly limited.

Estimated cost
None
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Mandates strict reporting and transparency by requiring institutions to document every detention within 24 hours and maintain these records for at least five years.
  • Restricts the use of force and restraints, requiring that any physical force used be objectively reasonable and mandating state-approved training before personnel can use handcuffs.
  • Explicitly denies general law enforcement authority or arrest powers to private security, ensuring that official police must be immediately called to handle the situation, limiting the privatization of police powers.
  • Grants private, non-sworn security personnel the power to physically detain individuals, which could lead to abuses of power or racial profiling against marginalized students.
  • Provides civil liability protection for private security officers acting in "good faith," making it harder for victims of wrongful detention or excessive force to seek justice.
  • May chill free speech and student protests on private campuses, as security could use subjective offenses like "disorderly conduct" or "breach of the peace" to physically detain student activists.
For Conservatives
  • Empowers private institutions to protect their own property and maintain order on their campuses without having to wait for state or local police to arrive.
  • Protects private universities and their security staff from civil lawsuits by granting them liability shields when they act in good faith to detain suspects.
  • Enhances law and order by allowing immediate intervention and physical detention of individuals committing crimes like theft, vandalism, or trespassing on private property.
  • Imposes new state regulatory burdens on private colleges, mandating specific state-approved training, written policies, and five-year record-keeping requirements for their private security teams.
  • Restricts the freedom of private institutions by strictly limiting how and when their security personnel can use force or restraints on their own private property.
  • Could be weaponized by left-leaning university administrations to unlawfully detain conservative speakers, students, or demonstrators under the subjective guise of "disorderly conduct."

Votes

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Full Bill Text

2 versions
Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 60 additions

SECTION 1. Chapter 12-7 of the General Laws entitled "Arrest" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: 12-7-1.1. Temporary detention by private college or university public safety personnel.

(a) A private institution of higher education chartered by the state and maintaining a campus within the state may authorize trained public safety officers or security personnel employed by the institution to temporarily detain an individual upon campus property when:

(1) The officer has probable cause to believe that:

(i) The individual has committed a felony; or

(ii) The individual has committed a misdemeanor involving violence, theft, trespass, property destruction, disorderly conduct, or other breach of the peace occurring in the officer's presence; and

(2) The detention is reasonably necessary to:

(i) Prevent imminent harm to persons or property;

(ii) Prevent the individual's escape prior to the arrival of law enforcement; or

(iii) Maintain public safety.

(b) A detention authorized under this section:

(1) Shall be conducted using the least restrictive means reasonably available;

(2) Shall occur only upon property owned, leased, operated, or controlled by the institution;

(3) Shall not constitute an arrest; and

(4) Shall not confer any general law enforcement authority upon the person conducting the detention.

(c) Immediately upon detaining an individual pursuant to this section, the public safety officer or security officer shall request assistance from the state police or local law enforcement agency having jurisdiction.

(d) A person detained pursuant to this section shall be informed as soon as practicable:

(1) That the detention is temporary;

(2) Of the reason for the detention; and

(3) That law enforcement has been summoned.

(e) Physical restraint may be used only when reasonably necessary to:

(1) Protect the officer or another person from physical injury;

(2) Prevent the destruction of evidence;

(3) Prevent escape; or

(4) Prevent imminent damage to property. The degree of force used shall not exceed that which is objectively reasonable under the circumstances.

(f) Handcuffs or other restraint devices may be used only by personnel who have successfully completed training approved by the Rhode Island police officer standards and training academy or another training program approved by the department of public safety.

(g) Every institution exercising authority under this section shall:

(1) Maintain written policies governing detention procedures, use of force, reporting requirements, and training standards;

(2) Require annual training for all personnel authorized to conduct detentions;

(3) Maintain records of all detentions for not less than five (5) years; and

(4) Make such records available to law enforcement upon request.

(h) Within twenty-four (24) hours of any detention conducted pursuant to this section, the institution shall prepare a written incident report documenting:

(1) The reason for the detention;

(2) The duration of the detention;

(3) Any force or restraints utilized;

(4) The law enforcement agency notified; and

(5) The disposition of the incident.

(i) A public safety officer, security officer, or institution acting in good faith and in reasonable reliance upon this section shall not be liable for civil damages arising from a detention authorized by this section, except for conduct constituting gross negligence, reckless conduct, or willful misconduct.

(j) Nothing contained herein shall:

(1) Authorize a search beyond that otherwise permitted by law;

(2) Grant arrest powers to non-sworn personnel;

(3) Confer peace officer status upon any individual; or

(4) Limit any authority otherwise granted to special police officers appointed pursuant to chapter 2.1 of title 12.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.