Cop-bashing NH pol posts RI voters' info

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) - The R.I. Board of Elections may reclassify Rhode Island voters' phone numbers and email addresses as confidential information after a New Hampshire politician who's supported killing police officers published them online.

The website, RIvoters.com, allowed visitors to easily look up registered Rhode Island voters' names, dates of birth, phone numbers and addresses. The indexed information, apparently taken from the state's voter registration files, was removed from the site at some point after June 14.

"The webmaster has suspended this site due to privacy considerations," the website says now. "Let this be a lesson to everybody, however: When you register to vote, the information you provide becomes PUBLIC."

• Related: RI voter registration info for sale

Records show the RIvoters.com domain was registered on April 29 by Tom Alciere of Nashua, N.H., a Republican who in 2001 was forced to resign from his seat in the New Hampshire House of Representatives after it emerged he'd expressed support for killing policemen, writing online "nobody will ever be safe until the last cop is dead."

Last month, the New Hampshire Democratic Party called on the state's Republicans to denounce Alciere after he filed to become a delegate to this year's New Hampshire Republican Convention. In a statement, Democratic Party Chairman Raymond Buckley blasted Alciere for "his ignorant, detestable words."

The Board of Elections called an emergency meeting Wednesday to discuss making phone numbers and email addresses confidential in light of Alciere's disclosures, but the board opted to hold off after a number of observers expressed concern.

John Marion, executive director of Common Cause Rhode Island, said it's unclear whether the board has the legal authority to withhold information, citing a federal lawsuit that blocked officials in Virginia from taking similar action. Common Cause doesn't have a position on the underlying policy but is concerned about the process.

"They shouldn't be trying to do this by emergency rulemaking, which they acknowledged today by backing down," Marion said. "That's not a thoughtful reaction to the problem."

Ken Block, founder of the Moderate Party and a 2010 gubernatorial candidate, also criticized the board for trying to invoke its emergency powers to make the change, noting WPRI 12 ran a story months ago that shed light on the fact phone numbers and email addresses are available through the voter registration files.

"With this kind of publicity months in the past, how can the BoE justify an emergency treatment of the issue?" Block asked. He added: "I find myself once again astonished at how Rhode Island's Board of Elections chooses to operate in a non-transparent manner."

Alciere's website describes him as a staunch libertarian and an ardent supporter of Republican Texas Congressman Ron Paul's presidential candidacy. He ran in New Hampshire's GOP U.S. Senate primary in 2010 and came in sixth place with 499 votes. Another website he maintains is called "Underage Drinkers Against Drunk Driving."

Ted Nesi ( tnesi@wpri.com ) covers politics and the economy for WPRI.com and writes the Nesi's Notes blog. Follow him on Twitter: @tednesi