Toll Violation

Defendant appealed the decision of the trial court sustaining several violations of R.I.G.L. 1956 § 24-12-37 (“penalty for nonpayment of toll”). Defendant argued that there was insufficient evidence to sustain the violations because there was no evidence that Defendant had received notice of the violations and no evidence that he had then failed to pay the required tolls. Police had been investigating a toll avoider who, while driving a motorcycle through the toll at the Newport Bridge, covered his license plate with his hand. Police subsequently identified Defendant as the toll avoider. § 24-12-37 (c) states that “any person who fails or refuses to pay… the required toll amount…within thirty days of issuance of the notice of violation shall be punished by a fine….” In this case, the prosecution failed to produce any evidence that the Defendant had failed to pay the required tolls. Accordingly, the trial court’s decision was reversed.

State of Rhode Island v. John McCarthy, No. T14-0046 (August 18, 2016).pdf