RI ACLU Urges Senate to Slow Down Rush to Expel Sen. Kettle

RI ACLU Urges Senate to Slow Down Rush to Expel Sen. Kettle

The Rhode Island ACLU sent a letter to the RI Senate urging them to slow down the rush to hold a vote to seek Senator Nicholas Kettle’s expulsion following the filing of formal criminal charges against him on Monday. 

As GoLocalProv reported, Kettle was formally charged in Superior Court with extorting sex from a former State House page.

He is also charged under the Rhode Island Video Voyeurism statute, specifically of filming a woman he was romantically involved and sharing those photos with a New Hampshire man. She was unaware of the filming.

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See the Court Documents in the Slideshow Below

Kettle has declined to resign his Senate seat while he contests the charges.

Read the Letter HERE

The Letter

The letter states:

“We are alarmed at the apparent haste by which the Senate is considering the possibility of seeking his expulsion from the Senate under Article VI, Section 7 of the state Constitution….As serious as the criminal charges are, so too is the act of expelling a democratically elected legislator from the seat he earned from the voters of his district.

It is our understanding that the Senate has not used Article VI, Section 7 in modern history to expel a member. We, therefore, believe it is essential that there be clear standards and measures in place before engaging in such a historic effort. To vote to expel a sitting Senator without any formal, carefully-considered procedures establishes a dangerous practice.  In the absence of clear due process standards, the Senate’s actions, in this case, will set a precedent that could be used for less principled purposes in the future."

The letter points out that although the State Constitution gives the Senate the power to punish members, that power should be exercised with caution.