This has gotten interesting, and despite the fact that rafsob may need to switch to decaff ;), I’m going to continue this partial hijack of the thread since I think it’s pretty important.

The issue is whether the hunter has the responsibility to know if he or she is hunting on private property, even if it is not posted. And for Virginia, I am pretty sure the answer is yes. Hunting on private land without permission, is trespass.

In most cases, to be guilty of trespass, there is a requirement of notice, meaning you cannot be found guilty unless you were first told to get off or not get on the land in question. Posting the boundaries takes care of this. But hunting may be somewhat unique in that even without notice, you can still be guilty of trespass.

Two laws in VA talk about the difference between hunting on non-posted and posted private land.

§ 18.2-132. Trespass by hunters and fishers.

Any person who goes on the lands, waters, ponds, boats or blinds of another to hunt, fish or trap without the consent of the landowner or his agent shall be deemed guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor.

§ 18.2-134. Trespass on posted property.

Any person who goes on the lands, waters, ponds, boats or blinds of another, which have been posted in accordance with the provisions of § 18.2-134.1, to hunt, fish or trap except with the written consent of or in the presence of the owner or his agent shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.

With the first law, notice is not required. Nor does the person have to know that the land is private property. With the second law, the penalty is worse because the hunter was put on notice to stay off.

I have hunted on both WMAs and National forests. In both cases, the public land boundaries are often fairly well marked. Some remote areas are not but that’s my problem, not the private landowner.

Sorry for somewhat hijacking your thread, BarnesAddict, but as I said, this could be important stuff. Now back to your regularly scheduled thread.

Don't leave your buttons exposed. ;)

And another great pearl of wisdom from none other then Muley Hunter. I bet you got beat up a lot in school for sticking your nose in other folks business?!?! I guess I should have known you would stick your nose under this tent!!! :poke:

Cripes! I was being friendly, but that's pretty hard with a cop attitude.

I wasn't butting in. I started the conversation about private property, and it was directed at you. I thought cops were suppose to keep track of the facts?

No, you're wrong again. I didn't get beat up. I did the beating.

If so, my bad friend!!!!! :party0005:

Ahhh cmon. That was too easy. I was ready for a good fight. :D


Ok...:party0005:

It's your responsibility to know where you are and the property boundaries. stupidity and lack of respect for others land is no excuse no matter what your occupation is or was.

:violin: :violin: :violin: :violin: :violin:

Daygone............ I thought this was what the original post was about

I really don't understand that either. Your not aloud to bait in PA but every store is loaded with bait and attractants. I guess they claim its for trail cameras before and after the season.

It was but, you know, ...Deleted by CalHunter... needed to be measured.

You mean Shoot Straight and Pee Straight.... :guiness:

One complaint and a few posts edited. Behave gentlemen.

On a side note, cops are expected to know the law and abide by it. Although states can have similar laws, there are always going to be some differences in laws from state to state. Expecting otherwise is foolish and can become expensive.

In at least some states, trespassing laws are usually different from trespassing while hunting laws. In most states, hunters are expected to know the boundaries of private property when hunting and are required to have permission to hunt said private property. In Ca, a hunter is required to have written permission on their person so DFG can check in the field and not have to try to find a property owner or agent to determine if a hunter is trespassing while hunting. A person not hunting, however, would be investigated as to whether they have some legitimate reason for being on the property (trying to contact owner about damaged fence, etc.) and whether the property was posted or not could also make a difference.

Consider using ignorance about property boundaries as an excuse if you trespass while hunting onto a game preserve, Indian reservation (federal laws kick in), military base or even just inside city limits where hunting is prohibited. I doubt it would fly very well.

As far as the idea of suing a DNR because a store sells deer (or other animal) bait, I'm not sure how that would work or that it would prevail.

If the bait is legal to sell outright (i.e. it's just animal feed), then the store is legal to sell and anybody is legal to buy. If a person legally bought bait and then decided to use it for an illegal purpose, I don't see how any attorney would be able to prevail in an entrapment case against a DNR unless it's a DNR owned store and they somehow encouraged (sought to entrap by) illegal activity.

Now if the bait is illegal to sell, then the store and the buyer are both committing a crime but nobody posted anything to that effect.