Public Records of Judges' Residence (H 7758)

The ACLU of Rhode Island is well aware of the threats that judicial officers across the country have increasingly faced in recent years across the country, and that this may warrant proactive measures. In response, Congress enacted legislation a few years ago that protects the home addresses of judges from disclosure. To the extent there is concern that Rhode Island’s Access to Public Records Act doesn’t explicitly provide similar protection, we appreciate and welcome efforts to clarify the law to address that. However, we do not believe that the law should also make secret the municipality in which judges reside, and we urge that the bill be amended to specify that APRA shields from disclosure the home addresses of judges, but without further expanding current exemptions in the law. This bill passed the House, but died in the Senate.