The RI chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) today (Jun 2) sued Brown University over two separate disputes since 2022 where the university, authorized to operate its own police agency as the Brown Department of Public Safety (BDPS), refused to provide records of arrests and enforcement actions that all public police agencies are required to release under the RI Access to Public Records Act (APRA).
The ACLU attorney filing the case in RI Superior Court is Fausto C. Anguilla, whose office is in North Kingstown.
The named plaintiffs are Michael Bilow, who reports for Motif Magazine, and Noble Brigham, who at the time reported for the Brown Daily Herald. Acting in their personal capacities and not on behalf of their publications, both separately filed complaints against Brown University with the RI Office of the Attorney General (RIAG) who enforces open meetings and public records law. Brown claimed that, as a private non-governmental entity, BDPS was not subject to APRA. On Jan 10, 2025, RIAG ruled for Brown and against Bilow and Noble on the grounds the law requires BDPS to file copies of all relevant records with the Providence Police, and therefore would be available under APRA that way.
Bilow explained the details of his complaint in Motif (“News Analysis — Secret Police Records, Secret Arrests, Secret Charges: Brown University police make every effort to escape public scrutiny and accountability”, Nov 12, 2024). Among other issues, police arrest records are required by law to be made public within 48 hours, but Bilow did not receive them until five months later because BDPS failed to comply with the law requiring copies be given to the public police.
Contrary to claims by Brown University, the ACLU suit states:
The APRA defines a “public body” or “agency” as: “any executive, legislative, judicial, or administrative body of the State, or any political subdivision thereof… or any other public or private agency, person, partnership, corporation or business entity acting on behalf of and/or in place of any public agency.” R.I. Gen. Laws §38-2-2(1)…
APRA thus expressly provides that a private person or entity acting in place of a public agency shall be subject to its terms.
APRA expressly mandates that arrest reports “shall be made available” under its terms. R.I. Gen Laws §38-2-3.2….In effectuating arrests, BDPS functions precisely as a public law enforcement agency within the State of Rhode Island.
* * *
BDPS exercises a function of government, namely the basic police power of enforcing laws and maintaining peace within its jurisdiction. BDPS police have the power to search for and confiscate property, to detain, search, and arrest people, and to carry deadly weapons.…
By engaging in one of the most fundamental functions of government – the enforcement of criminal laws and exercising the power to search and seize individuals – BDPS is acting on behalf of and/or in place of a government agency or public body.
The lawsuit asks “[t]hat the court issue a declaratory judgment determining that BDPS is a public body or agency within the meaning of APRA and must comply with its terms as to requests for arrest and other law enforcement records, and further declare that BDPS violated APRA when it failed to comply with Plaintiffs’ requests for arrest records.”
In a news release from the ACLU, Anguilla said, “The purpose of this action is simple. Every city and town police department in Rhode Island must provide arrest reports under APRA. Brown’s police should not be an exception.”
Plaintiff Bilow said, “Experience has proven that preventing police abuses depends on full transparency under the law, and it is a civic responsibility of news reporting to keep the public aware and informed about what is done in their name. As a journalist, I am grateful for the help of the ACLU in furthering that mission.”
Plaintiff Brigham added, “Access to police reports is a basic public right. The public should be able to understand why police have arrested someone, and Brown’s stance that its nonprofit status exempts them from the state law every municipal Rhode Island police department follows is troubling.”
Steven Brown, executive director of the ACLU of RI, said, “It is shocking that a police department would claim that it can keep secret all of its records relating to the arrests of individuals. This lawsuit involves fundamental matters of public transparency and accountability.”
Unless a settlement is negotiated, resolving the lawsuit could take months or even years.
(The case is Bilow v. Brown University, PC-2025-02879, filed in Providence/Bristol County Superior Court)
