Rhode Island

RI judge sides with beachfront homeowner in court fight. What does it mean for public beach access?

Published

1 year ago

July 15, 2024

RI judge sides with beachfront homeowner in court fight. What does it mean for public beach access?

A Superior Court judge has issued an initial decision siding with a beachfront homeowner who argued that Rhode Island’s 2023 shoreline access law amounted to an unconstitutional taking of private property.

On Friday, Superior Court Judge Sarah Taft-Carter denied the state’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit filed on behalf of Stilts, LLC, which is owned by David Welch of South Kingstown. A final opinion is expected in the coming weeks, according to the Pacific Legal Foundation, which is representing Welch in court.

More: Rhode Island’s beaches are public. Here’s a quick guide to what you can and can’t do.

What the decision says

In 2023, the Rhode Island General Assembly passed a law establishing that the public has the right to use the shoreline up to 10 feet landward of the recognizable high tide line, also known as the “wrack line.”

Welch sued the state in October, noting that the four parcels of land on Charlestown Beach that belong to Stilts, LLC have varying deeds indicating that he owns out to the “high water mark,” “Atlantic Ocean,” “high water line,” and “mean high water mark.”

The Rhode Island Attorney General’s office filed a motion to dismiss Stilts, LLC’s lawsuit, which was converted into a motion for summary judgment.

After hearing arguments on both sides, Taft-Carter issued a decision on Friday saying that the 2023 law was “clearly” a taking of private property.

Taft-Carter noted that a controversial Rhode Island Supreme Court case, State v. Ibbison, defined the boundary between public and private at the mean high tide line, which is scientifically calculated and invisible to the eye.

The 2023 law “reset” the division between public and private, and “extended the point of public access over the plaintiff’s private property,” she wrote.

Breaking down the ruling

Taft-Carter agreed to dismiss one count of Stilts, LLC’s lawsuit, which argued that the shoreline access law translated to an unreasonable seizure of private property and violated the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution

But she rejected the state’s attempt to dismiss the other two counts, which alleged that the law was an unconstitutional taking that violates the Fifth Amendment, and that it amounted to inverse condemnation.

The decision does not spell out how Stilts, LLC, should be compensated, or what happens next.

“Our clients are gratified that the court agreed with what they have said from the start—the beach access law violates their rights,” Pacific Legal Foundation Senior Attorney J. David Breemer said in a statement. “As the court recognized, the beach access law infringed on our client’s property rights by moving the existing public beach boundary line ten feet landward, effectively confiscating our client’s property, which is an unconstitutional taking.”

The foundation described the decision as “a major victory for those who own coastal property.”

The Attorney General’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Coastal property owners previously filed a lawsuit challenging the shoreline access law in federal court, but that suit was dismissed in September.

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Rhode Island

RI Lottery Powerball, Lucky For Life winning numbers for Jan. 10, 2026

Published

10 hours ago

January 11, 2026

Press Room

The Rhode Island Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Jan. 10, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from Jan. 10 drawing

05-19-21-28-64, Powerball: 14, Power Play: 3

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lucky For Life numbers from Jan. 10 drawing

17-24-36-38-43, Lucky Ball: 17

Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Numbers numbers from Jan. 10 drawing

Midday: 6-3-1-0

Evening: 3-7-1-4

Check Numbers payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Wild Money numbers from Jan. 10 drawing

10-13-27-37-38, Extra: 19

Check Wild Money payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize

Prizes less than $600 can be claimed at any Rhode Island Lottery Retailer. Prizes of $600 and above must be claimed at Lottery Headquarters, 1425 Pontiac Ave., Cranston, Rhode Island 02920.
Mega Millions and Powerball jackpot winners can decide on cash or annuity payment within 60 days after becoming entitled to the prize. The annuitized prize shall be paid in 30 graduated annual installments.
Winners of the Lucky for Life top prize of $1,000 a day for life and second prize of $25,000 a year for life can decide to collect the prize for a minimum of 20 years or take a lump sum cash payment.

When are the Rhode Island Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 10:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 11:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky for Life: 10:30 p.m. ET daily.
Numbers (Midday): 1:30 p.m. ET daily.
Numbers (Evening): 7:29 p.m. ET daily.
Wild Money: 7:29 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Rhode Island editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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Rhode Island

GoLocalProv | News | Gov. McKee’s Schedule for the First 10 Days of the New Year

Published

22 hours ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

GoLocalProv | News | Gov. McKee’s Schedule for the First 10 Days of the New Year

Saturday, January 10, 2026

GoLocalProv News Team

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Governor Dan McKee PHOTO: GoLocal

It’s a new year, filled with new challenges. The General Assembly is back in session. Rhode Island’s economy is flat at best, and according to the University of Rhode Island economist Leonard Lardaro, the state is in a recession. Rhode Island is also in daily legal conflict with the Trump administration.

Add that the state is trying to recover from a mass shooting at Brown University, which killed two students and wounded nine others.

For Governor Dan McKee, it is a critical time.

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He has announced he is running for reelection—the Democratic primary is just nine months away.

McKee’s poll numbers have plummeted to record lows.

A poll released by the University of New Hampshire in November of 2025 found that in the race for the Democratic nomination for Governor of Rhode Island, 29% of likely Democratic primary voters (N=359) say they would currently vote for former CVS executive Helena Foulkes, 13% would vote for Speaker of the RI House of Representatives Joe Shekarchi, 11% would vote for incumbent Governor Dan McKee, 6% would write in someone else, and 42% are undecided.

Is the 74-year-old McKee criss-crossing the state to reassure Rhode Islanders, listening to residents’ ideas, and sharing his vision for the state in his second term?

GoLocal offers a recap of the McKees’ public schedule for the first ten days of the month.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 10 & SUNDAY, JANUARY 11, 2026

No public events.

FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2026

No public events.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2026

2:00 PM

Governor McKee will deliver remarks at the Rhode Island Interfaith Coalition to Reduce Poverty’s 18th Annual Interfaith Poverty Vigil.

LOCATION:

RI State House Rotunda

82 Smith Street

Providence, RI

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2026

No public events.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2026

No public events.

MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2026

9:30 AM

Governor McKee will deliver remarks at a groundbreaking ceremony for a new community learning center at the Cross’ Mills Public Library.

LOCATION:

Cross’ Mills Public Library

4417 Old Post Road

Charlestown, RI

SATURDAY, JANUARY 3 & SUNDAY, JANUARY 4, 2026

No public events.

FRIDAY, JANUARY 2, 2026

11:00 AM

Governor McKee will join members of Rhode Island’s Congressional Delegation and local and state leaders for a rally hosted by Climate Action RI, Climate Jobs RI, and the AFL-CIO in support of Revolution Wind and other offshore wind projects.

LOCATION:

CIC Providence

225 Dyer Street

Providence, RI

THURSDAY, JANUARY 1, 2026

No public events.

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Rhode Island

GoLocalProv | Politics | Providence On Sunday Is One of the Sites for a National Protest Against ICE

Published

1 day ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

GoLocalProv | Politics | Providence On Sunday Is One of the Sites for a National Protest Against ICE

Saturday, January 10, 2026

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Protest in Providence in June against ICE PHOTO: GoLocal

Organizers in Rhode Island and across the country are mobilizing against ICE after a pair of shootings in the past few days.

Organizers locally said, “Rhode Islanders will gather on Sunday to honor the life lost, make visible the human cost of ICE’s actions, and demand that state and federal leaders reject local contracts with ICE, take every action possible to stop ICE from operating in Rhode Island, and hold ICE agents accountable when they break the law.”

The RI event begins at 2 PM at the State House on Sunday.

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Nationally, it was a announced on Friday that, “A broad national coalition, including Indivisible, MoveOn Civic Action, the American Civil Liberties Union, Voto Latino, United We Dream, 50501, the Disappeared in America Campaign of the Not Above the Law coalition, and partner organizations across the country, is calling for a coordinated ICE Out For Good Weekend of Action.

“The mobilization comes in response to the escalation of ICE violence in our communities, the killing of Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old wife and mother of three, and the months-long pattern of unchecked violence and abuse in marginalized communities across America. Across the country, communities will gather in nonviolent, lawful, and community-led actions to honor the life lost, demand accountability, and make visible the human cost of ICE’s actions,” said organizers.

Organizers added, “Good and the Portland victims are part of a broader and deeply alarming pattern of unchecked violence and abuse by federal immigration enforcement agencies. In September, ICE reportedly shot and killed Silverio Villegas González, a father and cook from Mexico living in Chicago. In 2025 alone, more than 30 people have reportedly died in ICE detention.”