R.I. Gen. Laws
Rhode Island General Laws

R.I. Gen. Laws § 31-12-8 (2026)

Warning signals given by emergency vehicles

✓ text as last checked Sept. 2026 (this copy records no edition or section history)
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section RI-LEGwebserver.rilegislature.gov JustiaTitle on Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

The exemptions granted in this chapter to an authorized emergency vehicle shall apply only when the driver of the vehicle while in motion sounds an audible signal by bell, siren, or exhaust whistle as may be reasonably necessary, and when the vehicle is equipped with at least one lighted lamp displaying a red light visible under normal atmospheric conditions from a distance of five hundred feet (500′) to the front of the vehicle, except that an authorized emergency vehicle operated as a police vehicle need not be equipped with or display a red light visible from in front of the vehicle.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 3 cases, 1976–2010 · leading case: Delgado v. Pawtucket Police Dep't, 747 F. Supp. 2d 341 (D.R.I. 2010).
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
Delgado v. Pawtucket Police Dep't, 747 F. Supp. 2d 341 (D.R.I. 2010). · cites it 11× “Laws § 31-12-6 is not available to the defendants because (1) no emergency existed; (2) they were not in compliance with R.I. Gen. Laws § 31-12-8; and (3) they acted with reckless disregard.”
Seide v. State, 875 A.2d 1259 (R.I. 2005). “General Laws 1956 § 31-12-6(a) provides: "The driver of an authorized emergency vehicle, when responding to an emergency call or when in the pursuit of an alleged violator of the law or when responding to but not upon returning from a fire alarm, may exercise the privileges set…”
Roberts v. Kettelle, 356 A.2d 207 (R.I. 1976). “The driver of an authorized emergency vehicle, when responding to an emergency call or when in the pursuit of an actual or suspected violator of the law or when responding to but not upon returning from a fire alarm, may exercise the privileges set forth in §31-12-7, but subject…”
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.