2016 -- S 2416

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LC004670

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2016

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSES-WEAPONS

     

     Introduced By: Senators Pagliarini, Lombardo, Morgan, Kettle, and Lombardi

     Date Introduced: February 11, 2016

     Referred To: Senate Judiciary

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Section 11-47-9 of the General Laws in Chapter 11-47 entitled "Weapons"

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is hereby amended to read as follows:

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     11-47-9. Persons exempt from restrictions. -- (a) The provisions of § 11-47-8 shall not

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apply to sheriffs; deputy sheriffs; the superintendent and members of the state police; members of

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the Rhode Island airport police department; members of the Rhode Island state marshals; Rhode

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Island state fire marshal; chief deputy state fire marshals; deputy state fire marshals assigned to

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the bomb squad, and those assigned to the investigation unit; Providence fire department arson

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investigators, provided that the investigator receiving the permit is a graduate of a police-training

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academy; correctional officers, within the department of corrections; members of the city or town

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police force; capitol police investigators of the department of attorney general appointed pursuant

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to § 42-9-8.1; the witness protection coordinator for the witness protection review board as set

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forth in chapter 30 of title 12 and subject to the minimum qualifications of § 42-9-8.1; automobile

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theft investigators of the Rhode Island state police pursuant to § 31-50-1; railroad police while

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traveling to and from official assignments or while on assignments; conservation officers; or

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other duly appointed law enforcement officers; nor to members of the Army, Navy, Air Force,

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and Marine Corps of the United States, the National Guard, or organized reserves, when on duty;

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nor to members of organizations by law authorized to purchase or receive firearms from the

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United States or this state, provided these members are at, or going to or from, their places of

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assembly or target practice; nor to officers or employees of the United States authorized by law to

 

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carry a concealed firearm; nor to any civilian guard or criminal investigator carrying sidearms or

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a concealed firearm in the performance of his or her official duties under the authority of the

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commanding officer of the military establishment in the state of Rhode Island where he or she is

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employed by the United States; nor to any civilian guard carrying sidearms or a concealed firearm

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in the performance of his or her official duties under the authority of the adjutant general where

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he or she is employed guarding a national guard facility, provided, that the commanding officer

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of the military establishment shall have on file with the attorney general of this state a list of the

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names and addresses of all civilian guards and criminal investigators so authorized; nor to duly

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authorized military organizations when on duty; nor to members when at, or going to or from,

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their customary places of assembly; nor to any individual employed in the capacity of warden,

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associate warden, major, captain, lieutenant, sergeant, correctional officer or investigator at any

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project owned or operated by a municipal detention facility corporation, including the Donald W.

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Wyatt Detention Facility; nor to the regular and/or ordinary transportation of pistols or revolvers

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as merchandise; nor to any person while transporting a pistol, or revolvers, unloaded from the

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place of purchase to their residence; or place of business, from their residence to their place of

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business or from their place of business to their residence, or to a federal firearms licensee for the

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purpose of sale, to or from a bona fide gunsmith, or firearms repair facility, to any police station

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or other location designated as a site of a bona fide "gun buy-back" program, but only if said

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pistol or revolver is unloaded and any ammunition for said pistol or revolver is not readily or

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directly accessible from the passenger compartment of such vehicle while transporting same and

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further provided, that in the case of a vehicle without a compartment separate from the passenger

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compartment, the firearm or the ammunition shall be stored in a locked container.

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      (b) Persons exempted by the provisions of this section from the provisions of § 11-47-8

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shall have the right to carry concealed firearms everywhere within this state; provided, that this

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shall not be construed as giving the right to carry concealed firearms to a person transporting

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firearms as merchandise or as household or business goods.

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     (c) The state of Rhode Island shall recognize and honor a valid concealed weapons permit

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issued by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the state of Connecticut, or the state of Utah.

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Individuals so permitted shall be exempted from the provisions of §11-47-8, and shall have the

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right to carry a concealed firearm everywhere within this state.

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      SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSES-WEAPONS

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     This act would specifically allow individuals who possess a valid concealed weapon

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permit issued by Massachusetts, Connecticut, or Utah to carry a concealed firearm everywhere

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within Rhode Island.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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