Rhode Island General Laws

R.I. Gen. Laws § 14-1-28 (2026)

Transfer of cases from other courts

✓ current as of July 2026
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If, during the pendency of a criminal or quasi-criminal charge against any person in any other court it shall be ascertained that the person was under the age of eighteen (18) years at the time of committing the alleged offense, it shall be the duty of the court to immediately transfer the case, together with all the papers, documents, and records of testimony connected with the case, to the family court. The court making the transfer shall order the child to be taken immediately to the family court or to the place of detention designated by the family court, or release the child in the custody of some suitable person, to appear before the family court at a time designated by the family court. The family court shall upon the transfer proceed to hear and dispose of the case in the same manner as if it had been instituted in that court in the first instance.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 5 cases, 1974–2008 · leading case: Rubano v. DiCenzo, 759 A.2d 959 (R.I. 2000).
Rubano v. DiCenzo, 759 A.2d 959 (R.I. 2000). · cites it 4× “ter 1 of title 14 and chapter 11 of title 40; adoption of children under eighteen (18) years of age; change of names of children under the age of eighteen (18) years; paternity of children born out of wedlock and provision for the support and disposition of such children or…”
State v. Greenberg, 951 A.2d 481 (R.I. 2008). · cites it 2× “The trial judge appeared to base his decision on § 14-1-28, which requires the immediate transfer to the Family Court of any case in which it is ascertained that the *489 accused was under the age of eighteen at the time of the alleged offense.”
State v. Mastracchio, 546 A.2d 165 (R.I. 1988). · cites it 2× “Section 14-1-28 refers to the transfer from other courts to the Family Court of cases involving persons who were under eighteen at the time the offenses were committed and yet who still qualify as children within the meaning of the statute.”
Concannon v. Concannon, 356 A.2d 487 (R.I. 1976). “rs relating to delinquent, wayward, dependent, neglected or mentally defective or mentally disordered children; adoption of children under eighteen (18) years of age; paternity of children born out of wedlock and provision for the support and disposition of such children or…”
Engelhardt v. Bergeron, 317 A.2d 877 (R.I. 1974). “ers relating to delinquent, wayward, dependent, neglected or mentally defective or mentally disordered children; adoption of children under eighteen (18) years of age; paternity of children bom out of wedlock and provision for the support and disposition of such children or…”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.