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| 5 | 5 | | 2023 -- S 0350 |
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| 6 | 6 | | ======== |
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| 7 | 7 | | LC000971 |
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| 8 | 8 | | ======== |
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| 9 | 9 | | S TATE OF RHODE IS LAND |
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| 10 | 10 | | IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 11 | 11 | | JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023 |
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| 12 | 12 | | ____________ |
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| 13 | 13 | | |
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| 14 | 14 | | A N A C T |
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| 15 | 15 | | RELATING TO COURTS AND CIVIL PROCEDURE -- PROCEDURE GENERALLY -- |
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| 16 | 16 | | CAUSES OF ACTION |
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| 17 | 17 | | Introduced By: Senators de la Cruz, Rogers, F. Lombardi, Ciccone, Paolino, E Morgan, |
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| 18 | 18 | | Raptakis, and DeLuca |
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| 19 | 19 | | Date Introduced: February 16, 2023 |
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| 20 | 20 | | Referred To: Senate Judiciary |
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| 21 | 21 | | |
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| 22 | 22 | | |
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| 23 | 23 | | It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: |
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| 24 | 24 | | SECTION 1. Chapter 9-1 of the General Laws entitled "Causes of Action" is hereby 1 |
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| 25 | 25 | | amended by adding thereto the following section: 2 |
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| 26 | 26 | | 9-1-55. Civil liability of individual or entity that prohibits the possession of firearms. 3 |
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| 27 | 27 | | (a) Whenever any person who owns a firearm, and is authorized and licensed to carry a 4 |
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| 28 | 28 | | firearm, shall suffer any injury to his or her person or death, suffer physical, emotional and/or 5 |
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| 29 | 29 | | mental distress, incur economic loss or expense, property damage or any other compensable loss 6 |
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| 30 | 30 | | as a result of conduct occurring on real property, except residences, with a written notice prohibiting 7 |
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| 31 | 31 | | the possession of firearms, may recover his or her damages for the injury or death, physical, 8 |
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| 32 | 32 | | emotional and/or mental distress, economic loss or expense, property damage or any other 9 |
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| 33 | 33 | | compensable loss, in a civil action against the individual or entity that owns the real property that 10 |
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| 34 | 34 | | prohibits the possession of firearms. 11 |
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| 35 | 35 | | (b) The cause of action set forth in subsection (a) of this section shall extend to the conduct 12 |
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| 36 | 36 | | of other invitees, trespassers, employees of the person or entity, vicious animals, wild animals, and 13 |
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| 37 | 37 | | defensible man-made and natural hazards. 14 |
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| 38 | 38 | | (c) The statute of limitations for the cause of action set forth in subsection (a) of this section 15 |
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| 39 | 39 | | shall be three (3) years from the date of the occurrence of the conduct which gave rise to any 16 |
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| 40 | 40 | | damages. 17 |
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| 41 | 41 | | (d) To prevail in a cause of action brought under this section, the plaintiff must show by a 18 |
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| 42 | 42 | | |
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| 43 | 43 | | |
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| 44 | 44 | | LC000971 - Page 2 of 3 |
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| 45 | 45 | | preponderance of the evidence that: 1 |
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| 46 | 46 | | (1) The plaintiff owned a firearm, was authorized and licensed to carry a firearm or was 2 |
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| 47 | 47 | | not prohibited from carrying a firearm at the time of the incident giving rise to the action; 3 |
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| 48 | 48 | | (2) The plaintiff did not carry the firearm on the property where the incident occurred 4 |
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| 49 | 49 | | because of the written notice prohibiting the possession of firearms; 5 |
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| 50 | 50 | | (3) The injury, death, physical, emotional and/or mental distress, economic loss or expense, 6 |
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| 51 | 51 | | property damage or other compensable loss was caused as a result of the conduct that occurred on 7 |
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| 52 | 52 | | the real property and could have been avoided if the plaintiff was authorized to carry his or her 8 |
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| 53 | 53 | | firearm onto the real property; and 9 |
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| 54 | 54 | | (4) The person or entity exercising control over the real property was not required by state 10 |
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| 55 | 55 | | or federal law to post the notice prohibiting the possession of firearms, but posted the notice by 11 |
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| 56 | 56 | | choice of that individual or entity. 12 |
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| 57 | 57 | | SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage. 13 |
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| 58 | 58 | | ======== |
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| 59 | 59 | | LC000971 |
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| 60 | 60 | | ======== |
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| 61 | 61 | | |
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| 62 | 62 | | |
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| 63 | 63 | | LC000971 - Page 3 of 3 |
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| 64 | 64 | | EXPLANATION |
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| 65 | 65 | | BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL |
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| 66 | 66 | | OF |
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| 67 | 67 | | A N A C T |
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| 68 | 68 | | RELATING TO COURTS AND CIVIL PROCEDURE -- PROCEDURE GENERALLY -- |
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| 69 | 69 | | CAUSES OF ACTION |
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| 70 | 70 | | *** |
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| 71 | 71 | | This act would provide for a cause of action against an individual or entity that prohibits 1 |
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| 72 | 72 | | the possession of firearms on real property, except residences, by an individual that is authorized 2 |
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| 73 | 73 | | and licensed to carry a firearm. The cause of action would allow the injured individual to recover 3 |
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| 74 | 74 | | for injury to his or her person, death, physical, emotional and/or mental distress, economic loss or 4 |
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| 75 | 75 | | expense, property damage or any other compensable loss as a result of conduct occurring on the 5 |
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| 76 | 76 | | real property that prohibits the possession of firearms. 6 |
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| 77 | 77 | | This act would take effect upon passage. 7 |
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| 78 | 78 | | ======== |
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| 79 | 79 | | LC000971 |
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| 80 | 80 | | ======== |
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