Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha has filed a motion to vacate or quash the order to appear made by Superior Court Judge Daniel Procaccini to discuss a tweet of Neronha’s that appeared to raise Procaccini’s concern.
The motion contends the order intrudes on the attorney general’s constitutional responsibilities to represent the public interest, intrudes on his First Amendment right as an individual to comment on public affairs, and violates due process under state and U.S. Constitutions.
Neronha’s office unveiled the 15-page motion one day after the attorney general told The Public’s Radio he was unsure if he would appear as ordered by Procaccini for a meeting originally scheduled for Dec. 5 and now set for Dec. 8.
“I don’t know,” Neronha said. “The truth is I am not convinced that he has the authority to summons me there for the purpose that appears to be what he’s articulating.”
Procaccini earlier this month ordered Neronha to appear in his court, seemingly regarding a comment he made on X, formerly known as Twitter.
In a tweet, Neronha criticized how only defendants, and not the prosecution, must agree for a jury-waived trial to take place in Rhode Island. Neronha added on X that it was not a coincidence “when some judges never oversee a jury trial.”
The remarks came in connection with the case of a Barrington dentist convicted in 2021 of simple assault against a neighbor, a charge later dismissed by Procaccini.
During a taping of Political Roundtable at The Public’s Radio, Neronha was asked if he will attend the Dec. 5 meeting ordered by Procaccini.
“We’ll see how this plays out,” Neronha said. “I don’t want to make this about Judge Procaccini and me. For me, it’s a policy point that I think needs to be addressed and will be addressed in the General Assembly, and that does not take away anything about my respect for Judge Procaccini or his integrity.”
Neronha reiterated his view that Rhode Island has a weakness, “and that’s the lack of a necessity that the prosecution agree to a jury-waived trial,” he said. “That’s not a knock on any particular judge, it’s not a comment on any particular case.”
Neronha said his viewpoint is underscored by facts.
“We know from our statistics over the last decade that two judges have done 49% of the jury-waived trials and 25 judges have done the other 51%,” he said.
“Here’s my point,” Neronha continued. “It’s not that those judges are doing anything wrong. It’s not that those judges don’t have integrity. They do, and I’ve known them for a long time. But I believe that for victims and the public, if nothing else, the appearance of a level playing field in terms of consent to a jury-waived trial ought to be that the state consents as well. And that’s true in 31 other states and in the federal system. And so that’s what I was advocating for.”
Neronha, who previously served as Rhode Island’s top federal prosecutor before winning his first term as attorney general in 2018, added, “If the public or Judge Procaccini interpreted my comments differently, then I regret that, but I don’t regret making the point because I think it is a fair one for me to make as the leader of my office.”
The full Political Roundtable interview with Neronha will air at 7:45 and 9:45 a.m. Friday on The Public’s Radio.
This story has been updated.
Political Reporter Ian Donnis can be reached at idonnis@thepublicsradio.org.
