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S 2296Violent Crime Penalties

Criminal Offenses - Disorderly Conduct

This bill makes blocking highways a felony with mandatory prison sentences, especially if emergency vehicles are delayed.

Held for study
Population
Affected
15
Email Legislator
Introduced Jan 23, 2026Committee Senate Judiciary

Plain-English Summary

This legislation modifies state law regarding disorderly conduct and establishes a new felony offense called "unlawful interference with traffic." It specifically prohibits standing, sitting, kneeling, or loitering on federal or state highways in a manner that obstructs traffic or distracts drivers. The bill introduces severe penalties, including mandatory minimum prison sentences ranging from sixty days for a first offense to two years for a third offense. Additionally, if the obstruction delays an emergency vehicle and results in a death, the offender faces a mandatory minimum of five years in prison.

For younger readers

This new law makes strict rules about highways, which are the big roads where cars drive very fast. It says that people are not allowed to sit, stand, or kneel on the highway to block traffic or make drivers look away from the road. If someone breaks this rule, they will have to go to jail for a specific amount of time. The punishment is even bigger if an ambulance or fire truck gets stuck in the traffic and someone gets hurt or dies because help didn't arrive in time.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Protesters and ActivistsMotoristsLaw Enforcement OfficersEmergency Medical ServicesCommuters
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

High risk

High Risk. The bill subjects non-violent protest behaviors (kneeling, standing) to mandatory felony prison terms. While the state can regulate traffic safety, the severity of the penalty combined with vague terms like "distraction" may violate the First Amendment by chilling free speech and assembly. Furthermore, the lack of defined intent for "distraction" raises Due Process concerns regarding whether an average citizen can know what specific conduct is prohibited beyond physical obstruction.

Estimated cost
Amount unknown
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Ensures that emergency medical services and fire apparatus are not delayed by road blockages, protecting the health and safety of vulnerable community members in crisis.
  • Prevents physical harm to pedestrians and protesters by discouraging them from entering high-speed roadways where the risk of fatal accidents is extremely high.
  • Clarifies the specific statute regarding highways by removing it from the general "disorderly conduct" section, potentially reducing ambiguity in how different types of public disturbances are categorized.
  • Criminalizes acts of civil disobedience and protest with felony charges and mandatory minimum sentences, which disproportionately affects activists fighting for social justice and systemic reform.
  • Contributes to mass incarceration by mandating prison time for non-violent conduct, removing judicial discretion to use probation or deferred sentences for first-time offenders.
  • The broad language regarding conduct that causes "distraction" could be weaponized by law enforcement to suppress free speech and target specific political groups unfairly.
For Conservatives
  • Enforces strict law and order by imposing harsh penalties on individuals who disrupt society, ensuring that public roads remain open for commerce and travel.
  • Protects the rights of drivers and businesses to operate freely without interference from unlawful assemblies or "mob rule" tactics on state infrastructure.
  • Provides strong support for police and emergency responders by establishing clear, severe consequences for those who impede their movement and duties.
  • Creates a significant fiscal burden on taxpayers by mandating incarceration for non-violent offenders, increasing the costs associated with the state prison system.
  • The vague definition of causing "distraction" to motorists could potentially be abused by government officials to infringe upon the personal freedoms of citizens not involved in protests.
  • Invitation for expensive constitutional litigation regarding First Amendment rights, which could result in lengthy court battles funded by state tax dollars.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 33 additions · 2 deletions

SECTION 1. Section 11-45-1 of the General Laws in Chapter 11-45 entitled "Disorderly Conduct" is hereby amended to read as follows: 11-45-1. Disorderly conduct.

(a) A person commits disorderly conduct if he or she intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly:

(1) Engages in fighting or threatening, or in violent or tumultuous behavior;

(2) In a public place or near a private residence that he or she the person has no right to occupy, disturbs another person by making loud and unreasonable noise which under the circumstances would disturb a person of average sensibilities;

(3) Directs at another person in a public place offensive words which are likely to provoke a violent reaction on the part of the average person so addressed;

(4) Alone or with others, obstructs a highway, street, sidewalk, railway, waterway, building entrance, elevator, aisle, stairway, or hallway to which the public or a substantial group of the public has access or any other place ordinarily used for the passage of persons, vehicles, or conveyances;

(5) Engages in conduct which obstructs or interferes physically with a lawful meeting, procession, or gathering;

(6) Enters upon the property of another and for a lascivious purpose looks into an occupied dwelling or other building on the property through a window or other opening; or

(7) Who without the knowledge or consent of the individual, looks for a lascivious purpose through a window, or any other opening into an area in which another would have a reasonable expectation of privacy, including, but not limited to, a restroom, locker room, shower, changing room, dressing room, bedroom, or any other such private area, notwithstanding any property rights the individual may have in the location in which the private area is located.

(8) [Deleted by P.L. 2008, ch. 183, § 1].

(b) Any person, including a police officer, may be a complainant for the purposes of instituting action for any violation of this section.

(c) Any person found guilty of the crime of disorderly conduct shall be imprisoned for a term of not more than six (6) months, or fined not more than five hundred dollars ($500), or both.

(d) In no event shall subdivisions (a)(2) — (5) of this section be construed to prevent lawful picketing or lawful demonstrations including, but not limited to, those relating to a labor dispute.

SECTION 2. Chapter 11-45 of the General Laws entitled "Disorderly Conduct" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: 11-45-3. Unlawful interference with traffic.

(a) A person commits the crime of unlawful interference with traffic if the person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly:

(1) Stands, sits, kneels, or otherwise loiters on any federal or state highway under circumstances that said conduct could reasonably be construed as interfering with the lawful movement of traffic; or

(2) Stands, sits, kneels, or otherwise loiters on any federal or state highway causing the interruption, obstruction, distraction, or delay of any motorist operating a motor vehicle upon said highway.

(b) Any person, including a police officer, may be a complainant for the purposes of instituting action for any violation of this section.

(c) Any person who violates subsection (a) of this section is guilty of a felony and shall, upon conviction, be sentenced for a first violation of this section, to a term of imprisonment of not less than one year nor more than three (3) years at the adult correctional institution. Not less than the first sixty (60) days of said sentence shall be ineligible for the benefit of suspension, deferral, or probation.

(d) Any person who violates subsection (a) of this section is guilty of a felony and shall, upon conviction, be sentenced for a second violation, to a term of imprisonment of not less than three (3) years nor more than five (5) years at the adult correctional institution. Not less than the first one year of said sentence shall be ineligible for the benefit of suspension, deferral, or probation.

(e) Any person who violates subsection (a) of this section is guilty of a felony and shall, upon conviction, be sentenced for a third violation, to a term of imprisonment of not less the five

(5) years nor more than ten (10) years at the adult correctional institution. Not less than two (2) years of said sentence shall be ineligible for the benefit of suspension, deferral, or probation.

(f) When the death of any person ensues as a proximate result of the interruption, obstruction, distraction, or delay of an emergency vehicle caused by conduct violating the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, the person violating this section shall be guilty of "unlawful interference with traffic, resulting in death" and shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to a term of imprisonment of not less than five (5) years nor more than thirty (30) years at the adult correctional institution. Not less than five (5) years of said sentence shall be ineligible for the benefit of suspension, deferral, or probation.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.