Free Republic

On January 14, 2023, David J. Nastri, Esq. filed suit against Katie Dykes as Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection. Nastri challenged the constitutionality of Connecticut’s ban on the carrying of handguns in Connecticut state parks for the purpose of self-defense. From the complaint: This is an action for declaratory and injunctive relief that challenges the constitutionality of Connecticut’s state regulation that bans the carrying of handguns in Connecticut state parks for the purpose of self-defense. Connecticut’s ban on handguns in state parks cannot pass constitutional muster under the historical standard that the Supreme Court announced...

MONROE COUNTY, Ga. — New information has been released in connection to the arrest of a woman who officials say tried to kidnap a child at a Georgia state park. Last week, Kara Christopher was arrested and charged with the attempted kidnapping of a child inside High Falls State Park. In an incident report obtained by Channel 2 Action News, on Feb. 19 at 5 p.m., deputies recieved reports of the attempted abduction inside the park. When deputies arrived, they were met by a mother and her friend who said they were on a hike with her young daughter when...

A man was sentenced to two years in federal prison last week for attempting to export at least $150,000 worth of wild succulents that he poached from native habitats in Northern California state parks, the United States Justice Department said, SFGate.com reported. On Oct. 11, 2018, Byungsu Kim, 46, and co-defendants Youngin Back, 47, and Bong Jun Kim, 46, traveled by car from Los Angeles International Airport to Crescent City, Calif., with plans to harvest wild plants and smuggle them to South Korea, the department said in a statement Jan. 20. Throughout October 2018, they pulled plants from the ground...

Nearly a year after the CZU Lightning fire burned through California's oldest state park-the clean-up continues. The fire swept through 97% of Big Basin State Redwood Park's 18,000 acres. With historic structures now gone, the public is being asked to help with the rebuilding process. It's really going to be a labor of love, as this week the state parks unveiled a new website: ReimagingBigBasin.org, where the public can get information and get involved in the planning for its rebuilding. "The canopy is gone. So what you have are big hulking, tall hulking things that is now sprouting out greenery...

It may come as a surprise to some, but southern Arizona is not only about saguaro cacti and desert sunsets. Somewhat unexpectedly, the arid region also features several pretty lakes and wetland areas teeming with migratory birds. Add in majestic mountain ranges and fascinating historic sites, and you have the makings of a wonderful southern Arizona state parks road trip. In all, Arizona has 31 state park units. While much of the tourist attention goes to high-profile spots like Sedona’s Red Rock State Park and the Phoenix-area Lost Dutchman State Park, the parks near the southern Arizona community of Tucson,...

California is trying to prepare for a future when it will need thousands of beds to house people as they come down with the coronavirus and in the eyes of the state Asilomar has proven itself a successful quarantine site already.California is trying to prepare for a future when state emergency teams predict it will need thousands of beds to house people as they come down with the coronavirus. The Governor's Office of Emergency Services is looking for alternative care sites across the state and in its eyes, Asilomar Hotel and Conference Grounds has already proven itself a successful quarantine...

ONTONAGON, MI -- The Michigan Department of Natural Resources hopes you'll think "Porkies" when considering which state park is best in the U.S. The Upper Peninsula's Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park is leading the pack among 19 other state parks across the country vying for the title of "Best State Park" in a new USA Today travel awards poll. The 60,000-acre park near Ontonagon on the shores of Lake Superior is one of the few remaining large wilderness areas in the Midwest, according to the Michigan DNR. The park is popular with hikers drawn to the large tracts of towering...

Each and every state has State Parks. Tell the Feds to SHOVE "Thier" "Parks" and utilize the State ones.

In an announcement posted today in Virginia's Regulatory Town Hall, the Virginia Department of Conservation served notice to the public that the "[r]epeal of § 4VAC5-30-200 [which] prohibits the open carry of firearms in Virginia State Parks" will be published as a final rule on May 7th in Volume 28 Issue 18 of the Virginia Register of regulations. The usual practice of the Virginia Registrar is to make such final rules effective 60 days after publication in the Register. This action by Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell's administration is the final chapter in a decade long regulatory fight to legalize gun...

According to a National Rifle Association (NRA) email alert sent to its Virginia members today, "[o]n January 14, Governor McDonnell issued a directive to the [Virginia] Department of Conservation and Recreation to cease enforcement of § 4VAC5-30-200 which prohibits open carrying of firearms in State Parks and has immediate effect." This action follows though on a legal opinion McDonnell issued as state Attorney General regarding the state regulation banning open carry in state parks in which he declared that "[a] person’s right to carry a firearm openly is considered universal within the Commonwealth." . . .

Could someone please pass the toilet paper, perhaps from another state or something? California’s epic budget battle has really taken a toll, maybe even greater than first thought. California State Parks are going to have to go without toilet paper. So that means that you will have to go without toilet paper if you’re visiting one of the more rural state parks in the golden state. California’s budget battle has been going on for nearly 3 months with neither side willing to give an inch. Forget about all the IOU’s and not being able to pay vendors for services rendered...

Crime is on the rise in California's state parks, up nearly threefold in the past decade, according to Department of Parks and Recreation data analyzed by The Sacramento Bee Marijuana cultivation in the parks also is increasing. In 2009, 35 incidents were reported, up from 30 the previous year and only four in 1999. Visitors to state parks seem to have noticed the growth in crime. A 2007 survey by the state Parks Department found people citing gang activity, alcohol and drug use, and concerns about personal safety as reasons to stay away. At Millerton Lake State Recreation Area near...

(09-25) 16:05 PDT SACRAMENTO -- Under fire from park supporters and the state's own attorneys, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said today that no state parks will be completely closed to help solve the state's budget woes. Instead, the governor's new plan, which some say is little more than a shell game to save face, would slash $14.2 million from the park budget this year by closing campgrounds and facilities on weekdays, reducing seasonal and administrative staff and cutting back on things like bathroom cleaning. The idea is to allow all 279 state parks to remain open this fiscal year. More options...

Logic gives you what you need. Passion gives you what you crave. In the end, it's passion that feeds your dreams or part of you dies. When it comes to logic, it makes financial sense to keep all state parks open. Last year, state parks had 79.6 user visits that generated $2.6 billion in spending during those trips. For every dollar the state put into parks, it generated $2.35 in tax revenue. Yet in his last-minute line-item budget cuts, Gov. Schwarzenegger slashed general fund money to state parks. ...., yet could close 100 parks starting in September. When it comes...

PETA sent a letter to California State Parks Director Ruth Coleman on Wednesday offering to pay to keep Pescadero State Beach open, but only if it is renamed Sea Kitten State Beach. Pescadero State Beach is among the 219 state parks slated for closure under Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's plan to close a $26.3 billion deficit. Pescadero means 'the place to fish,'

Three cougars that appeared to be stalking people were shot in Princeton, B.C., during the last two weeks, and a veteran conservation officer says he's never seen anything like it. The first cougar was spotted lurking near a campground in the southern Interior town on July 3... B.C. conservation officer Al Lay shot the big cat out of concern it may have been stalking people. "It was close to residences and campsites on the other side, and it was just one of those situations where it is better safe then sorry.… We just can't take the chance of someone being...

A valiant (but rather silly-sounding) effort to save one of San Mateo's coastal beauties has fallen flat. The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals last week told the the head of state parks that they would pay to save Pescadero State Beach -- with a few conditions. The group launched a campaign called "Save the Sea Kittens" and sent a letter to California State Parks Director Ruth Coleman saying that if the state renames the beach to "Sea Kitten" State Beach and bans fishing from the shoreline, they will contribute to keep the beach open. Pescadero State Beach is...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- The California governor's office says federal officials are threatening to seize six state parks if they are closed to help balance the state's budget. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed closing 220 state parks. But the National Park Service warned in a letter to Schwarzenegger that six of those parks are on former federal land that could revert to the U.S. government if they are not kept open as parks.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's budget cuts could mean the closing of up to 220 state parks, among them the home of the world's tallest tree and other attractions that draw millions of visitors. Schwarzenegger this week recommended eliminating $70 million in parks spending through June 30, 2010. An additional $143.4 million would be saved in the following fiscal year by keeping the parks closed. "This is a worst-case scenario," said Roy Sterns, a spokesman at the state parks department. "If we can do less than this, we will try. But under the present proposal, this is it." Among the parks that...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Friday named two Democrats to replace his brother-in-law, Bobby Shriver, and actor-director Clint Eastwood on a state parks panel that voted to oppose a controversial toll road the governor supports. The two were dumped from the State Park and Recreation Commission in March after they refused to back a six-lane toll road that would cut through one of Southern California's most popular beaches. Schwarzenegger replaced them with California NAACP chairwoman Alice Huffman, 72, and television production company president Lindy DeKoven, 55. Huffman is a former lobbyist for the California Teachers Association and a Democratic superdelegate who...