Bindinglaw

RI · rules

R.I. R. Juv. P. 10

Discovery

activein force · 2024-02-01 – presentact-effective-date

(a) Availability. Every petition submitted by the petitioner

shall have supporting documents attached. The reports or documents shall be

available to the respondent or the respondent's attorney of record for inspection and

copying.

(b) Discovery by the Respondent. Upon written request by a respondent, the

attorney for the petitioner shall permit the respondent to inspect or listen to and copy

or photograph any of the following items within the possession, custody, or control

of the petitioner, the existence of which is known, or by the exercise of due diligence

may become known to the attorney for the petitioner:

(1) All relevant written or recorded statements or confessions, signed or

unsigned, or written summaries of oral statements or confessions made by the

respondent, or copies thereof;

(2) All written or recorded statements or confessions which were by made by a

co-respondent who is to be tried together with the moving respondent and which the

petitioner intends to offer in evidence at the trial, and written summaries of oral

statements or confessions of such a co-respondent in the event the petitioner intends

at the trial to offer evidence of such oral statements or confessions;

(3) All books, papers, documents, photographs, audio recordings, images, and

any other data or data compilations from which discoverable information can be

perceived, or copies thereof, or tangible objects, buildings, or places which are

intended for use by the petitioner as evidence at the trial or were obtained from or

belong to the respondent;

(4) All results or reports in writing, or copies thereof, of physical or mental

examinations, and of scientific tests or experiments made in connection with the

particular case and, subject to an appropriate protective order under subdivision (g),

any tangible objects still in existence that were the subject of such tests or

experiments;

(5) A written summary of testimony that the petitioner intends to use under Rules

702, 703, or 705 of the Rhode Island Rules of Evidence during the petitioner's case-in-chief at trial, which testimony describes the witness' opinions, the bases and

reasons for those opinions, and the witnesses' qualifications;

(6) A written list of the names and addresses of all persons whom the petitioner

expects to call as witnesses at the trial in support of the petitioner's direct case;

(7) As to those persons whom the petitioner expects to call as witnesses at the

trial, all relevant recorded testimony before a grand jury of such persons and all

written or recorded verbatim statements, signed or unsigned, of such persons and, if

no such testimony or statement of a witness is in the possession of the petitioner, a

summary of the testimony such person is expected to give at the trial;

(8) All reports or records of prior convictions of the respondent, or of persons

whom the attorney for the petitioner expects to call as witnesses at the trial, and

within fifteen (15) days after receipt from the respondent of a list produced pursuant

to subdivision (b)(2) of persons whom the respondent expects to call as witnesses,

all reports of records or prior convictions of such persons; and

(9) All warrants which have been executed in connection with the particular case

and the papers accompanying them, including affidavits, transcripts of oral

testimony, returns, and inventories.

(c) Discovery by the Petitioner. A respondent who seeks any discovery under

subdivision (b) of this rule shall permit the petitioner, upon receipt of a written

request, to inspect or listen to and copy or photograph any of the following items

within the possession, custody, or control of the respondent or the respondent's

attorney.

(1) All books, papers, documents, photographs, audio recordings, images, and

any other data or data compilations from which discoverable information can be

perceived, or copies thereof, or tangible objects, buildings, or places which are

intended for use by the respondent as evidence at the trial;

(2) All results or reports in writing, or copies thereof, of physical or mental

examinations, and of scientific tests or experiments made in connection with the

particular case and prepared by a person whom the respondent intends to call as a

witness at the trial and, subject to an appropriate protective order under subdivision

(g), any tangible objects still in existence that were the subject of such tests or

experiments;

(3) A written summary of testimony that the respondent intends to use under

Rules 702, 703, or 705 of the Rhode Island Rules of Evidence as evidence at trial,

which summary describes the witness' opinions, the bases and reasons for those

opinions, and the witness' qualifications;

(4) A written list of the names and addresses of all persons other than the

respondent whom the respondent expects to call as witnesses at the trial in the event

the petitioner presents a prima facie case; and

(5) As to those persons other than the respondent whom the respondent expects

to call as witnesses at the trial, all written or recorded verbatim statements, signed

or unsigned, of such persons and, if no such statement of a witness is in the

possession of the respondent, a summary of the testimony such person is expected

to give at the trial.

(d) Notice of Alibi. In the event a respondent seeks any discovery under

subdivision (b) of this rule, then upon demand by the attorney for the petitioner and

delivery by the attorney for the petitioner to the respondent of a written statement

describing with specificity the date and time when and the place where the offense

charged is alleged to have occurred, the respondent, within twenty-one (21) days

after receipt of such demand and particulars, shall give written notification whether

the respondent intends to rely in any way on the defense of alibi. If the respondent

does so intend, the notice shall state with specificity the place at which the

respondent claims to have been at the time of the alleged offense and the names and

addresses of the witnesses the respondent intends to call at the trial to establish such

alibi. Within twenty-one (21) days after receipt of written notification of intent to

rely on the defense of alibi, together with particulars thereof, the attorney for the

petitioner shall furnish to the respondent written notice of the names and addresses

of the witnesses whom the petitioner intends to call at the trial to establish the

respondent's presence at the place where and the time when the offense is alleged to

have occurred.

(e) Material Not Subject to Discovery. Except as provided in subdivisions (b)

and (c), this rule does not authorize discovery of internal reports, memoranda, or

other documents made by a respondent, or the respondent's attorney or agent, or by

the attorney for the petitioner, or by officers or agents of the petitioner, in connection

with or in preparation for the prosecution or defense of the proceeding.

(f) Failure to Call a Witness. The fact that a person was designated by a party

pursuant to subdivision (b)(6) or subdivision (c)(3) as an intended witness but was

not called to testify shall not be commented upon at the trial by any party.

(g) Protective Orders.

(1) Procedure. Upon motion and a sufficient showing the court may at any time

order that the discovery or inspection sought pursuant to this rule be denied,

restricted, or deferred, or make such other order as is appropriate. In determining the

motion, the court may consider, among other things, the following:

(A) Protection of witnesses and others from physical harm, threats of harm,

bribes, economic reprisals, and other intimidation;

(B) Maintenance of such secrecy regarding informants as is required for effective

investigation of criminal activity;

(C) Protection of confidential relationships and privileges recognized by law; and

(D) The need to safeguard from loss or to preserve the condition of tangible

objects sought to be discovered under subsections (b)(4), (b)(5), (c)(1), and (c)(2).

The court may permit a party to make a showing of good cause, in whole or in

part, in the form of a written statement to be inspected by the court alone. If the court

thereafter enters a protective order, the entire text of the party's statement shall be

sealed and preserved in the records of the court, to be made available only to an

appellate court in the event of an appeal.

(2) Deposition. Upon application of a party who has, pursuant to subdivision

(b)(6) or (c)(3), been requested to designate the names of persons who will be called

as witnesses at the trial, the court may order that the testimony of one (1) or more

persons so designated be perpetuated by oral deposition pursuant to the provisions

in Rule 15 of the Rhode Island Family Court Rules of Criminal Procedure, at a time

and place and before an officer ordered by the court. Examination and cross-examination shall proceed as permitted at the trial. A record of the testimony of such

a witness shall be made and shall be admissible at the trial in accordance with the

Rhode Island Rules of Evidence.

(h) Procedure and Timing.

(1) Respondent's Request. A request by a respondent for discovery and inspection

shall be made within thirty (30) days after arraignment. The attorney for the

petitioner shall respond in writing within thirty (30) days after service of the request

stating with respect to each item or category either that discovery and inspection will

be permitted or stating that the request will not or cannot be complied with and the

reason why. The response shall also specify the place and time respondent may

inspect the items being made available.

(2) Petitioner's Request. Together with the filing of the response to respondent's

request for discovery and inspection pursuant to subdivision (b), the attorney for the

petitioner may serve respondent with a request for discovery and inspection. The

respondent shall respond within fifteen (15) days after service of the request stating

with respect to each item or category either that discovery and inspection will be

permitted or stating that the request will not or cannot be complied with and the

reason why. The response shall also specify the place and time the attorney for the

petitioner may inspect the items being made available.

(3) Discovery or Inspection Withheld. In the event a party refuses to comply with

a request for discovery or inspection, the party who served the request may move for

an order to compel compliance with his request.

(4) Extensions of Time. The court may on motion of a party and for good cause

shown extend the time for serving requests or responses permitted or required under

this rule.

(i) Continuing Duty to Disclose. If, subsequent to compliance with a request for

discovery or with an order issued pursuant to this rule, and prior to or during trial, a

party discovers additional material previously requested which is subject to

discovery or inspection under this rule, the party shall promptly notify the other party

of the existence thereof.

(j) Failure to Comply. If at any time during the course of the proceedings a party

has failed to comply with this rule or with an order issued pursuant to this rule, the

court may order such a party to provide the discovery or inspection, grant a

continuance, prohibit the party from introducing in evidence the material which or

testimony of a witness whose identity or statement was not disclosed, or make such

other order as the court deems appropriate. Upon finding a willful failure to comply,

the court may prohibit the offending party from introducing in evidence the material

or the testimony of a witness whose identity or statement was not disclosed.

Provenance

Source
courts.ri.gov
Retrieved
2026-09-24
Edition
2026-09-24
Content hash
585fee6126aa70514649a93a9e37110136130fe03664155466855441d8c90a2f
View the official source →

The link goes to the issuing authority’s own document — the one we read to produce this record. Where a source publishes whole titles rather than sections, your browser may need a moment to jump to the provision.

Unofficial copy of government-published law, reproduced from official sources with full provenance. Not an official publication; verify against official sources before relying on it in a filing. Records in the 'guidance' corpus, and only that corpus, are sub-regulatory (interpretive guidelines, survey procedures) and are not binding law. Validity bounds follow each jurisdiction's declared temporalBasis.

Coverage · API docs

Bindinglaw

Point-in-time US law with the receipt attached. Source URL, retrieval time, content hash, and validity dates on every answer.

curl api.binding.law/v1/law/coverage

© 2026 binding.law · a Jubal, Inc. productAttorneys and firms never pay. Ever.