Rhode Island
Rhode Island Public Recording Laws: Filming Rights in Public Spaces (2026)
Independently fact-checked against primary sources (last audited November 1, 2026). · Reviewed by the RecordingLaw editorial team. · Law checked current as of November 1, 2026. · 6 primary sources cited on this page. How we verify our legal content
In Rhode Island, no state law bans filming or photographing in public places. Audio is different. Under R.I. Gen. Laws 11-35-21 you may record a conversation you are part of without notifying the others, as long as you are not recording it to commit a crime, a tort, or another injurious act. Recording a private conversation you are not part of, without a participant's consent, can be a felony, even outdoors.
No Rhode Island law bans photography or video recording in public spaces. Audio of other people's conversations is different, as explained below. The Open Meetings Act (R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 42-46) requires most meetings of public bodies to be open to the public. The Act itself does not address whether attendees may record, so check the public body's own rules.
You can generally film on streets, sidewalks, and parks and at protests. The First Circuit, which covers Rhode Island, held in Glik v. Cunniffe (2011) that the First Amendment protects filming police and other government officials doing their jobs in public. That right has limits: under Gericke v. Begin (2014) an officer may order you to stop if your filming interferes with police work, and officers can still give reasonable safety orders, such as telling you to move back.
Private property owners can ask you to stop and leave. Audio recording follows one-party consent rules.
That rule protects only a participant or someone acting with a participant's consent. If you are not part of a conversation and no party has agreed, capturing it with a recording device can count as unlawful interception under R.I. Gen. Laws § 11-35-21, which carries up to five years in prison. Federal law sets the same floor: 18 U.S.C. § 2511, whose consent exception for private individuals covers only a party to the conversation or someone with a party's prior consent.
The Rhode Island Secretary of State provides guidance on open government compliance.
More Rhode Island Recording Laws
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is it legal to record video in public places in Rhode Island?
Yes. Rhode Island has no state law prohibiting photography or video recording in public spaces. The First Circuit has also held that the First Amendment protects filming police and other government officials doing their jobs in public (Glik v. Cunniffe, 2011).
Can I record audio while filming in public in Rhode Island?
Yes, but audio recording of conversations follows Rhode Island's one-party consent rule under R.I. Gen. Laws § 11-35-21. You may record a conversation you are part of without telling the other people involved, as long as you are not recording it to commit a crime, a tort, or another injurious act. Recording a conversation you are not part of, without any participant's consent, can be unlawful interception under the same statute and under federal law (18 U.S.C. § 2511).
Can I record a public government meeting in Rhode Island?
The Open Meetings Act (R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 42-46) requires most meetings of public bodies to be open to the public, but the Act itself does not say whether attendees may record. Check the public body's rules before you record.
Can a private property owner stop me from recording?
Yes. Even though a location may be open to the public, such as a store or restaurant, the property owner can ask you to stop recording and to leave.
Does the First Amendment protect recording the police in public in Rhode Island?
Yes, with limits. In Glik v. Cunniffe (2011) the First Circuit, which covers Rhode Island, held that the First Amendment protects filming police officers carrying out their duties in a public place. Under Gericke v. Begin (2014) an officer may order you to stop if your recording interferes, or is about to interfere, with police work, and officers can still give reasonable safety orders, such as telling you to move back, that incidentally limit filming.
Updates
Clarified that recording a conversation you are not part of can be a felony when no participant has consented.
We corrected this page to say that recording a private conversation you are not part of can be a felony in Rhode Island even in public, that the Open Meetings Act does not itself address recording, and that the First Circuit protects filming police and officials in public with limits (Glik, Gericke).
Independently fact-checked against the cited primary sources; governing law re-checked for recent changes
Added that Rhode Island's one-party consent rule covers only participants, and that recording a conversation you are not part of without a participant's consent can be unlawful interception under state and federal law.
Independently fact-checked against the cited primary sources; governing law re-checked for recent changes
Governing law re-checked for recent changes
Reviewed and approved by an editor
The Law Behind This Article
This article rests on the statutory provisions below, held in our own legal record and retrieved from the official source. Tap a section to read the operative text.
Rhode Island General Laws, Title 11: Criminal Offenses, Chapter 11-35: Public Utilities
§ 11-35-21Unauthorized interception, disclosure or use of wire, electronic, or oral communicationIn forcecited in 18 of our articles
(a) Except as otherwise specifically provided in chapter 5.1 of title 12, any person: (1) who willfully intercepts, attempts to intercept, or procures any other person to intercept or attempt to intercept, any wire, electronic, or oral communication; (2) who willfully discloses or attempts to disclose to any person the contents of any wire, electronic, or oral communication, knowing, or having reason to know that the information was obtained through interception of a wire, electronic, or oral communication in violation of this section; or (3) who willfully uses or attempts to use the contents of any wire, electronic, or oral communication, knowing, or having reason to know, that the information was obtained through interception of a wire, electronic, or oral communication in violation of this section; shall be imprisoned for not more than five (5) years. (b) The provisions of subdivisions (a)(2) and (3) of this section shall not apply to the contents of any wire, electronic, or oral communication, or evidence derived from those contents, which has become common knowledge or public information.
Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-09-24 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at webserver.rilegislature.gov
Cited in 5 court opinions in our collectionLatest citing opinion in our collection: 2023
In the courts (editorial summary, independently checked):Walden v. CITY OF PROVIDENCE, RI (2010) held municipalities are not persons who may be sued under sections 11-35-21 and 12-5.1-13. The earlier Walden v. City of Providence (2007) held this section is criminal but that R.I. Gen. Laws 9-1-2 supplies a civil right of action for its violation.
Opinions citing this section in our collection:
- Bartnicki v. Vopper (Supreme Court of the United States 2001, 532 U.S. 514)“…Stat. § 165.540 (1997); 18 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 5703 (2000); R. I. Gen. Laws § 11-35-21 (2000); Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-601 (…”
- Walden v. CITY OF PROVIDENCE, RI (Court of Appeals for the First Circuit 2010, 596 F.3d 38)“…te, 18 U.S.C. § 2511 et seq.; Rhode Island's wiretap laws, R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 11-35-21, 12-5.1-13; and the state'…”
- Boehner, John A. v. McDermott, James A. (Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit 1999, 191 F.3d 463)“…43 (1998); 18 Pa Cons Stat. Ann. §§ 5703, 5725 (West 1999); R.I. Gen. Laws § 11-35-21 (1998); Tenn.Code Ann. §§ 39-13-601 to…”
Identified automatically from the court opinions citing this section — not a ranking of which case controls.
Also relied on in: Rhode Island Enacts AI Recording Consent Laws for Health Care, Rhode Island Smart Glasses Recording Laws 2026, Rhode Island Recording Laws (2026): One-Party Consent Rules
Explore the law
This article also draws on these acts and chapters (opening at their first section): Rhode Island General Laws, Title 42: State Affairs and Government, Chapter 42-46: Open Meetings § 42-46-1 (Public policy)
Related law for further reading — not part of this article’s citations.
Sources and References
- R.I. § 11-35-21(law.justia.com)
- RI Secretary of State(sos.ri.gov).gov
- RI Legislature(rilegislature.gov).gov
- R.I. Gen. Laws § 11-35-21(webserver.rilegislature.gov).gov
- R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 42-46 - Open Meetings Act(webserver.rilegislature.gov).gov
- R.I. Gen. Laws § 11-35-21: Unauthorized interception, disclosure or use of wire, electronic, or oral communication(webserver.rilegislature.gov).gov
- 18 U.S.C. § 2511: Interception and disclosure of wire, oral, or electronic communications prohibited(uscode.house.gov).gov