Rhode Island § 11-41-32 - Theft, Embezzlement, False Pretenses, and Misappropriation

§ 11-41-32. Theft of historic stone walls.

(a) This section shall be known as the “Leona Kelley Act.”

(b) “Property”, as defined in § 11-41-1, includes an historic stone wall as defined in subsection (c) of this section, and any person convicted of the theft of an historic stone wall, or portions of a wall, shall be subject to the penalties for larceny as provided in § 11-41-5.

(c) For the purposes of this chapter, “historic stone wall” is defined as a vertical structure of aligned natural stone, originally constructed in the 17th, 18th, 19th or 20th centuries, to designate a property boundary between farmsteads or to segregate agricultural activities with a single farmstead or to designate property lines. This definition includes new stone walls which closely approximate the appearance of adjoining stone walls with respect to coursing, stone type, joint width, construction and distribution of stones by size.

(d) Anyone convicted of the larceny of an historic stone wall, or portions of a wall, or convicted of attempt to commit larceny, shall be civilly liable to the property owner for the cost of replacing the stones and any other compensable damages related to the larceny.

(e) Any person who makes any plea to a charge under this section, or any person found guilty or convicted under this section, may be ordered to make restitution as a part of his or her sentence and/or disposition. That restitution shall include, but not be limited to, the value of the historic stone wall or portions of it, the reasonable value of any labor and other materials necessary to repair and/or return the wall to the condition it was in prior to the theft, and any other reasonable expenses that, in the discretion of the sentencing judge, are necessary to do justice in disposing of the case. This section is in addition to any other sanctions a sentencing judge may impose in his or her discretion.