Posted on 09/22/2006 11:03:32 AM PDT by kiriath_jearim
ITALY, Texas - An Ellis County man has been ordered by a judge to keep the noise down on his property during deer season after he was found guilty of a misdemeanor charge of disrupting hunters.
An Ellis County jury found Galen Morris, 38, guilty on Tuesday of violating one count of the state Sportsman's Rights Act. He was found not guilty of a second, similar charge.
The judge in the case ordered Morris to make sure his children don't disturb hunters on a neighboring property by playing loud music or driving four-wheelers before noon or after 4 p.m. during deer season, which starts in November. Morris was also issued a $250 fine and a year of probation.
"I kind of got mixed feelings out of it," Morris said. "Basically what they're saying is, during deer season you got to keep your kids indoors. You could sneeze and scare a deer off."
The Sportsman's Rights Act makes it illegal "to intentionally interfere with another person lawfully engaged in the process of hunting or catching wildlife."
Peggy Carroll, part owner of a ranch neighboring the Morris property, said the court's decision is fair. She said she hopes the noise restrictions and threat of jail time will keep it quiet for the hunters who use her land.
But Morris' lawyer, Waxahachie attorney Mark Griffith, said he's advising his client to appeal.
"This is just unbelievable to me," Griffith said. "This is really about what rights do you have on your own property."
Is it to late to sue the Air Force?
Maybe not in Ellis County Texas.
Trust me,the babies have been up for a loooooooong time,before 10AM. :)
Do you still have the underwear?
Yup, just ask relatives of native americans who lost acreage by the millions.
Funny that you mention it . . . in the United States, chances are that a property owner can sue the Air Force for conducting low-level flights over his or her property. On the other hand, that same property owner cannot build his or her house directly beneath the path to a runway and complain about low-level flights. There's probably five or six hundred years of common law doctrine behind it . . . .
Of course, it doesn't get enforced unless somebody makes a complaint. Stay on good terms with your neighbors so you can settle these issues without the law getting involved.
No, Wolfie, I don't have that underwear. It was several sizes ago.
And as Rude pointed out, I'd have the problem of not being on private property.
My event occurred while I was hunting in a National Forest.
Oh. As Emily Latilla said "Never mind".
In MO deer season (rifle) is only 20 days or thereabouts. We don't go trail riding or hiking because of the danger of stray bullets, mistaken bullets, over anxious amateur hunters, etc. And this is in NOv. also so what is the big deal about keeping your kids inside for 2-3 weeks in pre-winter for safety sake?
Gee... kinda dangerous... a sudden sharp noise can make a hunter flinch and shoot the wrong way...
It is unlawful to hunt deer within 300 yards of a residence without permission of the owner and occupant, except that a landowner may hunt on his own land.
That rule solves most, but not all of the "neighbor issues".
What's a "neighbor"?
If the sound of an ATV is loud enough to disturb deer then the neighboring hunter is too close to the property line.
I'm sure the person who is being cited has had problems with hunters trespassing, probably tracking wounded deer or seeking to drive them off the property and into the sights of fellow hunters.
That is what we go through here on our property, which we do not allow to be hunted. Yet the "sportsmen" stand right under our posters facing into our property.
Why should children, or anyone else for that matter have to stay indoors or otherwise restrict their activities so the hunters can do their thing?
They are the minority, and shrinking at that, while other outdoor activities are expanding.
I used to be a hunter but gave it up, and know plenty of others who did also.
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