Trespasser.....what would you do?

[SgtSluggo]

Not really. We have vast areas of Michigan that are state forest and national forest interspersed with private properties. You don't post your land, then it's actually rather reasonable to assume that the piece of unfenced, un-posted land you're hiking on is open for public use.

The thing is, in TN many people live far from those state and national forests but still have a decent amount of property. Unless you live near one of those, it is actually very unreasonable to assume any tract of land is anything but private property. If you border one of those forests then you probably need to at least do a bunch of purple painting.

And even if it is untouched property, that doesn't mean that the owner doesn't have a right for it to remain untouched.

 

[Fixastuff]

I've found stands on my property and called the game Warden, he told me"I guess you have a new tree stand" lol. I did put up a note telling them not to hunt there with my phone number but I've never gotten a call. It's probably people who know me and know they're not supposed to be there and try anyway....

 

[Jstpssng]

The thing is, in TN many people live far from those state and national forests but still have a decent amount of property. Unless you live near one of those, it is actually very unreasonable to assume any tract of land is anything but private property. If you border one of those forests then you probably need to at least do a bunch of purple painting.

And even if it is untouched property, that doesn't mean that the owner doesn't have a right for it to remain untouched.

Most people would allow it to remain untouched... they are who you are excluding. The remaining 10% are the people who don't give a rat's tail if you allow access or not.

 

[Jstpssng]

What always get's me is the number of times I have walked a client's property line which is lined with the abutter's no trespassing signs... inevitably their tree stands are just inside their line, looking out over their neighbors land. It's ok to for me to use somebody else's land but don't use mine. Or they nail their signs to the power company's poles... again, somebody else's property. (Also illegal and a safety hazard for climbers, although most have bucket trucks now.)

 

[Jstpssng]

I sure wish my state did. I am currently paying additional insurance just to protect me from just such an incident.

it is weird though…it’s like having to pay for “uninsured drivers” thing on your auto insurance when it’s illegal to drive without insurance.

Missouri does offer you limited protection;

All states have insurance laws, but they vary by state. Plus, details of insurance policies vary by company. About 25 years ago, at the urging of state fish and wildlife agencies, legislatures enacted laws intended to limit the liability of landowners who allow free public hunting, fishing, and recreation on their private land. Missouri enacted such a law back in 1983. But that protection does not apply if you charge a fee.

The enactment of landowner liability limitation laws persuaded many landowners to open their lands, some with the belief that they are exempt from liability. The truth is their liability may be limited, but they are never exempt.

Reduce your risk: Landowner liability

Most woodland owners believe that any liabilities arising from a lawsuit by someone injured while on their property are covered by their homeowner’s insurance policy. It’s a nice thought, but the truth is a lot of homeowner’s insurance does not cover your woodlands at all.Common misconceptions...

extension.missouri.edu

I don't know exactly how yours works but here if you are sued and the plaintiff loses, he can be held liable for your expenses including but not limited to attorney fees. That seems to weed out the ambulance chasers. Since the law was passed 40 years ago there has never been a successful lawsuit. I guess that we told Joe Bornstein that we mean business.

 

[PILOON]

LOL, practice "3 S" rules!

A poster I liked:

"Be sure you are wearing the clothing you wished to be burryed in"

 

[Doughknob]

Why? I wouldn't go on someone's land without permission. .....

Hahahahah, you are a funny guy!

 

[newbury]

If you sell it or destroy don't say anything about it to anyone.

Backhoes are not just for burying bodies.

 

[MossRoad]

Backhoes are not just for burying bodies.

Yeah, they're for digging them up, too.

 

[MossRoad]

Missouri does offer you limited protection;

Reduce your risk: Landowner liability

Most woodland owners believe that any liabilities arising from a lawsuit by someone injured while on their property are covered by their homeowner’s insurance policy. It’s a nice thought, but the truth is a lot of homeowner’s insurance does not cover your woodlands at all.Common misconceptions...

extension.missouri.edu

I don't know exactly how yours works but here if you are sued and the plaintiff loses, he can be held liable for your expenses including but not limited to attorney fees. That seems to weed out the ambulance chasers. Since the law was passed 40 years ago there has never been a successful lawsuit. I guess that we told Joe Bornstein that we mean business.

I had to google that Joe Bornstein comment.

 

[Jstpssng]

I had to google that Joe Bornstein comment.

I forgot that he isn't a nationwide leech.

 

[Diggin It]

Ya' got a backhoe?

Go out to the trouble area. Dig a nice rectangular hole. Then fill it in. Leave it obvious.

 

[Cycledude]

Around here there are way to many deer so I would get in touch with a few more hunters that would hopefully be willing to pay some money to hunt on your land.

 

[MossRoad]

I forgot that he isn't a nationwide leech.

Are Keller and Keller? That's the local injury lawyer on TV here. And the 'Call the Hammer' billboards for truck accident victims.

 

[Torvy]

I suppose I would have done something devious like spread wolf urine all around the stand and sight lines for hunting. More likely I would have gotten the authorities involved right away before taking away evidence. Part of the problem is that the laws are too soft on trespassing, so people see no risk. Poachers don't fear losing their hunting privileges because they are not hunters, they are poachers.

I am curious about right to roam. What happens if people get hurt while roaming?

I am a big fan of the right of states to do their own thing. Just don't try to force those things on others.

 

[Steppenwolfe]

Backhoes are not just for burying bodies.

I would never bury a body here; all I have to do is drop the body in one of my hollows, or in the middle of my 8 acres of pines, no one would ever see that body again...

 

[Jstpssng]

I am a big fan of the right of states to do their own thing. Just don't try to force those things on others.

I agree. I haven't been out of New England much and hope to spend some time in a few years travelling to some of the states I've never seen before and see some of the things I read about, here and elsewhere. That's one reason I read this type of discussion, to get an idea of how things are elsewhere.

Edited, removed misquote.

 

[MossRoad]

I recall here on TBN about 15+ years ago a discussion about trespassing and right to roam. When I was a kid here in Indiana, if we saw someone walking on our property, we were immediately supposed to run and get our parents because people were trespassing. My mom or dad (mostly mom, because dad was at work) would go out and tell them they were trespassing, and that they would have to leave by walking out the driveway. Most of them would hesitate at that, and just tell mom they were going to just cut across to get around the lake, or go back the way they came, but mom was pretty persistent that they could either walk out the drive to the road or she'd call the police. Heck, one time there was some guy carrying a sword! He refused to go out the drive and insisted upon cutting across the property. She called the cops, said 'guy with a sword' and they showed up pretty quick. Guy tossed the sword in the lake. Cops made him wade out and get it. Then gave him a ride..... down the driveway.

Anyhow, we were raised to suspect everyone that was trespassing was up to no good, even though, in reality, 99% of them were just out for a walk.

It was quite eye opening to then get into discussions with people from right to roam states, who thought it was no big deal to let people walk across your property. I find the concept of right to roam interesting. I wish it could be that easy. I'm seeing the purple paint pop up more and more along the roadways.

 

[Torvy]

I suppose I would have done something devious like spread wolf urine all around the stand and sight lines for hunting. More likely I would have gotten the authorities involved right away before taking away evidence. Part of the problem is that the laws are too soft on trespassing, so people see no risk. Poachers don't fear losing their hunting privileges because they are not hunters, they are poachers.

I am curious about right to roam. What happens if people get hurt while roaming?

I am a big fan of the right of states to do their own thing. Just don't try to force those things on others.
Many states have laws protecting the landowner. The member who first used that term here lives overseas, and I don't believe that they have get-rich-quick lawsuits over there.



I agree. I haven't been out of New England much and hope to spend some time in a few years travelling to some of the states I've never seen before and see some of the things I read about, here and elsewhere. That's one reason I read this type of discussion, to get an idea of how things are elsewhere.

I've been to all of the lower 48. Mostly in the West. My only visit to Maine was near Portsmouth. My travels helped to cement my belief that we try too hard to make rules the same. Think speed limits...55 may make sense along the NE seaboard, but ridiculous out here between the Mississippi and the Rockies.

 

[Jstpssng]

I'm seeing the purple paint pop up more and more along the roadways.

So am I. Today I was talking to a hunter from Vermont who had been coming to hunt in northern Maine every fall. They really like being able to go almost anywhere. Last year his brother had told me the same thing.
Recently they bought an old 150 acre farm in a nearby town... and posted it all.