[isthisnickcool]

I did some checking and they were on a public right of way. Sure, they were boneheads but they did not enter private property. Don’t be surprised if the dummies win in court and get paid by the town. It appears to me that the city has allowed the eateries/bars to encroach on public property. If the place they were trying to get in to does not have a deed or explicit rights to the sidewalk all these women were doing was redressing their grievances with public servants.

IMO, bad arrest.

[Alberta's Child]

They can’t have it both ways. If they want to claim that a sidewalk restaurant is a public space, then they’re not guilty of trespassing but they’re certainly on the hook for drunken/disorderly conduct in public.

They’re not going to win the case on those grounds, anyway. Both Newport and the state of Rhode Island have well established laws that cover outdoor seating areas for bars and restaurants. In fact, the office where this AG works (or used to work) probably has a few cases in its files involving this type of operation.