Charlestown vigilantes?

A new twist on the endless battle over shoreline access

By Will Collette

Signs warning of ticket penalties posted by Nope’s Island Conservation Association. 
Credit: Courtesy of Stephen Cersosimo

The Public’s Radio South County bureau chief Alex Nunes has probably done more in-depth coverage of the on-going battle between beachgoers and shoreline property owners than anyone. 

Even though the right of beach access is written into the RI Constitution and a new state law was passed last year to define those rights, the issue is far from resolved.

Along the way, Alex has written about fences, signage, walls, nose-to-nose conflicts, legislative fights and a conveyor belt of lawsuits filed for and against beach access. We’ve learned about “fake fire districts,” glorified homeowner associations that actually don’t fight fires but serve as a tax dodge and beach bulwark.

In a separate article, we’ll cover a brand-new problem – a federal judge’s rulingthat calls RI’s shoreline access right into question, but for now, let’s look at the issue of privacy and vigilantism.

Charlestown police accused of empowering ‘vigilantes’ to help patrol local beach

Under a new policy, the Charlestown Police Department is using video surveillance captured by private individuals to help enforce a town driving ordinance on a barrier beach.

By Alex Nunes July 12, 2024, The Public's Radio

Shoreline access and civil liberties advocates are crying foul over a new policy in Charlestown welcoming private individuals to collect surveillance evidence for police to use in enforcing a vehicle ordinance on a barrier beach at the center of multiple beach access legal fights.

Under the new policy rolled out by the Charlestown Police Department this summer season, people who believe they see someone violating a seasonal restriction on driving on the beach face at the Quonochontaug Barrier Beach can record video to send to the police department for officers to investigate and possibly act on, according to Charlestown Town Administrator Jeffrey Allen.

“The police department has been accepting time-stamped videos of potential violators, and they research it, and they obtain a written statement from the person who was responsible for taking the video, and they will look into it and potentially write summonses,” Allen said. “We’re basically getting the information from a private property owner.” 

In explaining the policy, he said the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management also accepts evidence from individuals “in these types of situations where there’s not a lot of active enforcement for whatever reason – right, lack of manpower, or situations where this is hard to get to.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: For many years, law enforcement has not only accepted, but often solicited photos and video to help catch criminals. The Boston Marathon bombing is a famous example. Private cellphone video of the police murder of George Floyd was crucial in convicting the officers involved. Few would question the value or legitimacy of those uses. – Will Collette

Charlestown police have already issued two tickets using the new system, Allen said. While it’s not clear what fine the tickets levy, the municipal ordinance they are issued under provides for penalties up to a $500 fine or 30 days imprisonment.

Allen, who previously served as chief of the Charlestown Police Department during a 32-year law enforcement career, said the new policy was “a first for me.” 

“I never really heard of it,” Allen said. “But times are changing, right?”

Steven Brown, executive director of the Rhode Island affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union, had a stronger reaction to the new policy. 

“It sounds very disturbing,” Brown said. “The idea of delegating private citizens to engage in this type of law enforcement activity seems quite inappropriate.”

“That’s something that we might very well look into once we get more information about what’s going on,” he added. “If the town is essentially deputizing private residents to enforce a local ordinance, it’s problematic.” 

Scott Keeley, a shoreline access advocate and Charlestown resident, said the policy has created “vigilantes” gathering information for law enforcement. 

“It doesn’t sound right to me at all,” Keeley said. “I didn’t even know that was possible.” 

EDITOR’S NOTE: Weaponizing video or photo taking as a tool for harassment is, in my opinion, way over the line. Charlestown Citizens Alliance leader Cliff Vanover used to use his camera to provoke opponents or bait them into a fight. He did that to me. He succeeded in provoking then Town Council President Jim Mageau to push away Vanover’s camera. That led to an assault charge by Vanover against Mageau that ended up in a circus trial. But the actual legality of Cliff’s actions has never been judged in court. – Will Collette

The new policy comes as the town continues to navigate a fraught situation on the Charlestown side of the Quonochontaug Barrier Beach, which begins in Westerly and stretches 1.7 miles east before ending at a state breachway. 

The Nope’s Island Conservation Association, which owns the majority of the land on the barrier beach in Charlestown, has been pressuring the town to more strictly enforce a town ordinance that prevents vehicles from traveling on the beach face in Charlestown during the summer months. Nope’s Island members say four-wheel-drive vehicles are damaging the dunes.

Allen said the evidence that led to the two tickets was submitted to the police department by the conservation group.

Shoreline access advocates and fishermen who use the area have accused the conservation association of overstating the threat of vehicles as part of a “ruse” aimed at making the area less accessible to visitors. The Nope’s Island Conservation Association is associated with the Weekapaug Fire District, which is fighting two costly legal battles to prevent public access to the barrier beach shores. The two organizations share the same address, the fire district headquarters, and belong to a membership group that sets policies on the barrier beach.

People pushing for increased police enforcement also contend the Sand Trail path that leads down  the barrier beach and onto the beach sand in Charlestown does not give the public the right to access the state property at the breachway. The path is currently before the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council for consideration as a state designated right-of-way to the shore, and the Weekapaug Fire District has taken the case to court to prevent a public designation.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Weekapaug is one of those fake fire districts that lacks the ability to fight fires, instead serving as a homeowners’ association. = Will Collette

Earlier this year, Charlestown Town Council member Stephen Stokes held a private meeting with Nope’s Island and officials from Charlestown, Westerly, the CRMC, DEM, and Rhode Island Mobile Sportfishermen, which also owns property on the barrier beach in Charlestown, to discuss concerns the conservation group has about vehicles on the barrier beach.

The town council later considered an ordinance change to expand the dates of the beach driving restrictions, but the plan was abandoned following outcry from beach access advocates and skepticism from some town council members.

People interested in the issue had considered it settled for the time being. Then photos surfaced this week of signs posted on Nope’s Island Conservation Association land implying visitors could face enforcement action.

Two signs photographed read:

“Sand Trail Ends…Private Property

No Vehicle Trespassing……Violators Will Be Ticketed By Camera”

Allen, Charlestown’s administrator, said the signs do not belong to the town or state and Nope’s Island Conservation Association President Michael Sands has acknowledged that he placed them on Nope’s Island property.

Allen said the town does not plan to remove the signs. When it was pointed out to him that the signs could be read to suggest enforcement of trespass law, while Nope’s Island is assisting the town with enforcing an ordinance about driving on the beach face, Allen said, “Well, fine, then it’s not legally valid then. So what’s the problem?”

“What do you want me to say?” Allen said regarding the signs. “You want me to go down there and throw them away? I’m not throwing them away. It’s on private property. It’s on Nope’s Island property.”

Allen said he forwarded the information to CRMC in case the signs violate state regulations and CRMC is investigating the situation.

In a statement sent to The Public’s Radio, Sands, the Nope’s Island president, said his organization has “photographic resources and evidence of vehicles illegally trespassing on our property that we share with respective law enforcement officials. Those same photos may contain violations of Charlestown, CRMC and DEM laws at the same time. That is for the respective agencies to determine.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: It’s not illegal for a private group to take photos and videos and then forward them to law enforcement along with their allegations. Does it have a chilling effect on beachgoers? Sure it does.

The CRMC and DEM did not immediately respond when asked by email Friday morning if the agencies had received any video or other image evidence from Nope’s Island and acted on it.

Brown, of the ACLU, called the signs Nope’s Island put up on the barrier beach “completely inappropriate.”

“Private residents have no right to be putting up signs saying that people are going to be ticketed,” he said. 

EDITOR’S NOTE: Rhode Island General Laws 11-14-1 makes it a crime to impersonate a “public officer.” The law’s definition would apply to Charlestown Police, the Town of Charlestown, CRMC or DEM. The Nope’s Island signs that claim that “Violators will be ticketed by camera” looks to me like a fit. But hey, I’m not a lawyer. – Will Collette

Keeley, the shoreline access advocate, said the signs and video surveillance will have the effect of scaring away people who have a right to visit the shore, which he believes is the intent of Nope’s Island. 

“They’re getting a private beach for filming and turning people in,” Keeley said. “I’m surprised that the Charlestown police would support that. Maybe they just don’t understand its intent is to privatize the shore.”