Following the announcement that the Rhode Island Judiciary would build a new Blackstone Valley Courthouse in Smithfield, rather than Lincoln, it was not surprising to see some of the political posturing and self-congratulations taking place among some of the opponents in Lincoln.

The political process and open dialogue are important to the vitality of our democracy, and we welcome it. Unfortunately, open dialogue was short-circuited in Lincoln when the Town Council preordained the outcome of a meeting to which it invited Chief Justice Frank Williams. This offer was disingenuous at best after the Town Council gave notice of plans to ban courthouses and seek withdrawal of state support for the courthouse before it even met with the chief justice or his staff. That is why the chief justice declined to meet with the council. But for the record, let us be clear on the reasons for the switch to Smithfield.

Although opponents used scare tactics and cited many unfounded fears about the courthouse project, Chief Justice Williams said from the outset that concern about traffic near the proposed Community College of Rhode Island site was the single most legitimate issue to be addressed. The chief justice said it to newspaper editors in the Blackstone Valley in the spring of 2007, and he addressed that concern in an open letter to Lincoln residents in July 2007.

Lincoln councilors want to believe that grass-roots opposition and what they characterized as "investigative" work of The Valley Breeze in obtaining the judiciary's traffic study were the major factors in the decision to abandon the Lincoln plan. However, there was certainly nothing secret about the traffic study. Lincoln town officials had copies of this study all along. The newspaper's editor asked me for a copy in late July 2007, and I provided it because it was a public document.

In the end, the traffic study was the project's undoing in Lincoln. Chief Justice Williams met personally with the traffic consultants, at which time he became convinced the traffic patterns created by a new courthouse could not be abated. Had the consultants' report been favorable, we would still be making plans in Lincoln. The chief justice, as Councilman Keith Macksoud pointed out at the April 22, 2008 meeting of the Town Council, kept his promise to the people of Lincoln. The chief justice appreciated Councilman Macksoud's leadership in reaching out to the Judiciary for dialogue in a manner that other councilors cast aside in favor of political grandstanding.

In June 2007, an opposition leader warned that there would be threats of retribution for efforts to block the Lincoln project. That statement was inflammatory, irrational, unfortunate, and just plain wrong. Chief Justice Williams understands the political process and he understands grassroots opposition, but retribution is a strong word and it is certainly not how the Rhode Island Judiciary operates. The Lincoln site is not suitable because of the traffic, and the Judiciary is taking its plan to a better location where it will also be welcomed.

The chief justice appreciates the efforts of Senate President Joseph Montalbano, Rep. Peter Petrarca, Sen. John Tassoni, and Councilman Macksoud to help find an alternative site for this much-needed courthouse. Recognizing the state's dire financial straits, Chief Justice Williams has agreed for the second time to postpone this project for one year. However, the needs to better serve the citizens of northern Rhode Island and to decongest the severely overcrowded Garrahy Judicial Complex in Providence are not going to go away. The longer the delay, the more it will cost and the more it will affect access to justice, especially for our fellow citizens who reside in the 12 cities and towns in northern Rhode Island.

The Judiciary looks forward to a successful project in Smithfield and to working with its residents and town government, as well as serving all Rhode Island citizens.

Craig N. Berke

Director of Communications

Rhode Island Judiciary