Rhode Island Police Records

What are Rhode Island Police Records?

The Rhode Island State Police was founded in 1925 as a result of the state's legislature, and was modeled after the Pennsylvania State Police. Rhode Island State Police obtained 145 acres of land to relocate its headquarters in 1936, where the outbuildings and mansion on site are still used today.

Divisions of Rhode Island Police

There are three main bureaus in the Rhode Island State Police: the Administrative Bureau, Detective Bureau and Patrol Bureau.

The Administrative Bureau includes the Inspectional Services Unit, Uniform Crime Reporting and Professional Standards Unit. The Inspectional Services Unit focuses on evaluating performance and operation of the facilities, vehicles and other equipment utilized by the police. The Uniform Crime Reporting Unit coordinates state crime information with federal agencies to assemble statistics and crime details from across the state's law enforcement agencies. Finally, the Professional Standards Unit investigates all complaints filed regarding the integrity or conduct of personnel in the department.

The Detective Bureau includes the Computer Crimes Unit, Charitable Gaming Unit, Fusion Center and Rhode Island's Most Wanted. Perhaps the most unique of these units, the Fusion Center, is the state source where all threats on a state, tribal, local or federal level are shared with other law enforcement agencies. This is the state's attempt to help thwart threats of terrorism and homeland security issues. This unit also takes anonymous tips from the public regarding any incident that may be of interest to any agency.

The Patrol Unit ensures all barracks are operating according to guidelines of the police, and handle all patrol functions throughout the state. In addition, this unit encompasses the following: Canine Unit, Collision Reconstruction Unit, Commercial Enforcement Unit, Honor Guard Unit, Hostage-Crisis Negotiation Team, Marine Unit/Dive Team Motorcycle Unit, Night Executive Officers, Operations Officer and Tactical Team.

Requesting Rhode Island Police Records

Police records and criminal history checks in Rhode Island are handled through the Attorney General's Bureau of Criminal Investigation office. If you wish to obtain state police records for someone else, you need to have a signed and notarized release from them in order to submit your request. If you wish to request your own state records, you will need to submit and signed and notarized form as well as a copy of a valid form of identification.

Rhode Island Arrest Records by Type of Crime

The popular arrests for 2017 in Rhode Island was for All Other Offenses (except traffic) - 7,679, the same popularity of the arrest type was seen in Alabama, Alaska, and Arizona. The least popularity had Murder & Non-negligent Manslaughter arrests - with only 11 crimes a year.

RI Police Departments by Cities