Rhode Island
Rhode Island earns a D- for its civil forfeiture laws:
Standard of Proof
Low bar to forfeit: Once the government seizes property, the owner must prove by preponderance of the evidence that it is not connected to a crime.
Innocent Owner Burden
Poor protections for the innocent: Third-party owners must prove their own innocence to recover seized property.
Financial Incentive
Large profit incentive: 90% of forfeiture proceeds go to law enforcement.
The letter grade reflects the state’s forfeiture laws as of December 2020. When we become aware of relevant reforms, we are updating the standard of proof, innocent owner burden and financial incentive language above, but we are not updating the letter grade.
Recent Reforms
- None.
Recommendations
- End civil forfeiture
- Direct all forfeiture proceeds to a non-law enforcement fund
- Strengthen protections for innocent third-party owners
- Close the equitable sharing loophole
- Strengthen transparency and accountability requirements
State and Federal Forfeiture Revenues, 2000-2019
Between 2000 and 2018, Rhode Island law enforcement agencies forfeited nearly $31 million under state law. Between 2000 and 2019, they generated an additional $240 million from federal equitable sharing, for a total of at least $271 million in forfeiture revenue. Rhode Island ranks 51st for its participation in the Department of Justice’s equitable sharing program. The state does not prevent state and local agencies from using equitable sharing to circumvent state forfeiture law.
At least $271 million in state and federal forfeiture revenue
2000–2019
| Year | Rhode Island Forfeiture Revenues | Dept. of Justice Equitable Sharing Proceeds | Treasury Equitable Sharing Proceeds | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | $1,303,658 | $673,840 | $8000 | $1,985,498 | |
| 2001 | $2,187,259 | $321,372 | $673,000 | $3,181,631 | |
| 2002 | $2,527,312 | $549,664 | $45,000 | $3,121,976 | |
| 2003 | $2,201,591 | $755,538 | $12,000 | $2,969,129 | |
| 2004 | $1,183,755 | $1,527,027 | -$539,000 | $2,171,782 | |
| 2005 | $2,207,836 | $683,856 | $584,000 | $3,475,692 | |
| 2006 | $1,852,200 | $1,015,913 | $6,000 | $2,874,113 | |
| 2007 | $1,167,460 | $1,935,590 | $6,000 | $3,109,050 | |
| 2008 | $1,582,271 | $1,583,601 | $63,000 | $3,228,872 | |
| 2009 | $1,573,170 | $1,275,925 | $0 | $2,849,095 | |
| 2010 | $970,494 | $1,178,837 | $98,000 | $2,247,331 | |
| 2011 | $1,323,918 | $4,387,537 | $0 | $5,711,455 | |
| 2012 | $2,014,971 | $923,224 | $89,000 | $3,027,195 | |
| 2013 | $1,249,259 | $86,689,838 | $132,000 | $88,071,097 | |
| 2014 | $1,329,324 | $17,026,355 | $27,000 | $18,382,679 | |
| 2015 | $1,709,221 | $9,142,696 | $36,000 | $10,887,917 | |
| 2016 | $979,961 | $29,296,175 | $67,000 | $30,343,136 | |
| 2017 | $1,297,226 | $23,493,801 | $43,000 | $24,834,027 | |
| 2018 | $2,280,313 | $52,242,796 | $39,000 | $54,562,109 | |
| 2019 | Unavailable | $4,813,276 | $58,000 | $4,871,276 | |
| Totals | $30,941,199 | $239,516,861 | $1,447,000 | $271,905,060 |
All revenue figures include both civil and criminal forfeitures. Revenues are not adjusted for inflation.
Rhode Island's Forfeiture Transparency and Accountability Report Card
Tracking Seized Property
D
Accounting for Forfeiture Fund Spending
F
Statewide Forfeiture Reports
B
Accessibility of Forfeiture Records
D
Penalties for Failure to File a Report
F
Financial Audits of Forfeiture Accounts
F
For full transparency and accountability grades, visit www.ij.org/TransparencyReportCards.
Forfeitures Under Rhode Island Law: Key Facts
Median Value
UNKNOWNRhode Island does not report property-level data necessary to calculate median forfeiture value.
Property Types
UNKNOWNRhode Island does not report the types of property forfeited.
Civil vs. Criminal
Rhode Island does not report whether forfeitures are processed under civil or criminal forfeiture law.
Expenditures
Rhode Island does not report how forfeiture funds are spent.
Data Notes and Legal Sources
Data Notes
Agency-level forfeiture data were obtained via public records requests to the Rhode Island Attorney General. The calendar-year figures purport to represent total value of forfeited property. Equitable sharing data are from DOJ’s and Treasury’s annual forfeiture reports. Due to differences in reporting and accounting practices, state figures may not match aggregate numbers produced by the state or cover the same 12-month period as the federal data.
Legal Sources
Standard of proof: The government must show probable cause for the seizure, and the owner must show that the property is not forfeitable by a preponderance of the evidence.
21 R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-5.04.2(p).
Innocent owner burden: Owner.
21 R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-5.04.2(p).
Financial incentive: 90%.
21 R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-5.04(b)(3).
