"Between 2000 and 2017, the Rhode Island General Assembly created more than 170 new crimes and enhanced penalties that expand the number of felonies. This represents a continuation of a retrograde “tough on crime” mentality. The fact is that while Rhode Island brags about leading the way to lowering the prison population, the state uses probation as a mechanism to surveil, stigmatize, and marginalize whole communities."

Providence Journal

August 24, 2018