Newport St. Patrick’s Day Parade Alcohol Arrests

As reported by Tracy Breton in the March 14, 2011 edition of the Providence Journal, nearly one hundred (100) people were arrested in Newport over the weekend.  During the St. Patrick's Day parade and ensuing celebration, Newport Police arrested ninety-five (95) people for various offenses. Fifteen (15) people were charged with criminal misdemeanors, such as  simple assault and disorderly conduct.  The majority were arrested for municipal violations such as open containers, drinking in public and underage drinking.

Pursuant to Rhode Island General Law 11-5-3, simple assault is defined as every person who shall make an assault or battery or both shall be imprisoned not exceeding one year or fined not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both.

Disorderly conduct is broadly defined as 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 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, not withstanding any property rights the individual may have in the location in which the private area is located.

The penalties for disorderly conduct include imprisonment for a term of not more than six (6) months, or fined not more than five hundred dollars ($500), or both.