Ticketed for Shed Hunting with Dogs
bullwallow
6/7/10 1:14pm
Need fire power.
I was shed hunting with my 2 labs, which I do just about every weekend in the spring here in Colorado. One has been shed hunting for 6 years and my youngest for 2 years. In March I was ticketed on a State Wildlife area for having a dog off leash. The regulations say that a dog must be on leash unless it is 1. Actively hunting 2.Training a dog for hunting 3.Dog participating in a designated field trial course. The officer said that the regulation does not allow for shed hunting with dogs off leash and was intended for bird or lion hunting dogs. Except nowhere in the regulations does it call out specifics on what type of hunting is allowed and there is no definition of what they consider hunting to be. As all of you on this forum are probably like me and consider our dogs hunting when they are looking for sheds. I am taking this to trial and would like any experiences or suggestions on how I shall win this case. I'm fighting this for our sport of shed hunting with our best friends for the good of everyone on this site.
Background: I arrived at 9 am to shed hunt. At about 5 pm officer pulled up to my truck and walked around my truck an tracked me for a few yards in the opposite direction of my now location. He got in his truck and hid behind a dirt berm. As I figured he wanted to talk to me, I healed my dogs for 1/2 mile plus and when I got about 50 yards from my truck he could see me and I continued to heal them and put them in my truck. Officer pulled up and asked if I was looking for sheds at which time I stated that me and my dogs were. He fined me for one dog off leash which holds a $70 fine plus 5 points off my hunting and fishing privileges of which you get 20 over a five year period, much like a drivers license does. DA thought I had a good argument and called the officer to try and drop the case, but he wouldn't budge. Now I'm going to trial.
Any help would be appreciated. Thank you all for your time in reading and responding.
I was shed hunting with my 2 labs, which I do just about every weekend in the spring here in Colorado. One has been shed hunting for 6 years and my youngest for 2 years. In March I was ticketed on a State Wildlife area for having a dog off leash. The regulations say that a dog must be on leash unless it is 1. Actively hunting 2.Training a dog for hunting 3.Dog participating in a designated field trial course. The officer said that the regulation does not allow for shed hunting with dogs off leash and was intended for bird or lion hunting dogs. Except nowhere in the regulations does it call out specifics on what type of hunting is allowed and there is no definition of what they consider hunting to be. As all of you on this forum are probably like me and consider our dogs hunting when they are looking for sheds. I am taking this to trial and would like any experiences or suggestions on how I shall win this case. I'm fighting this for our sport of shed hunting with our best friends for the good of everyone on this site.
Background: I arrived at 9 am to shed hunt. At about 5 pm officer pulled up to my truck and walked around my truck an tracked me for a few yards in the opposite direction of my now location. He got in his truck and hid behind a dirt berm. As I figured he wanted to talk to me, I healed my dogs for 1/2 mile plus and when I got about 50 yards from my truck he could see me and I continued to heal them and put them in my truck. Officer pulled up and asked if I was looking for sheds at which time I stated that me and my dogs were. He fined me for one dog off leash which holds a $70 fine plus 5 points off my hunting and fishing privileges of which you get 20 over a five year period, much like a drivers license does. DA thought I had a good argument and called the officer to try and drop the case, but he wouldn't budge. Now I'm going to trial.
Any help would be appreciated. Thank you all for your time in reading and responding.
7,314
Sounds like the officer was having a bad day and decided to make someone else join him in that venture.
Hope all goes well, but I would fight it to the end if its neccesary. Let me know if there is anything I can do, or others here can do to help you.
That may make it tough to win on that grounds.
I'm all for laws to keep dogs from running loose/wild and chasing game on winter ranges etc. but this seems like an extreme case to me. Just my 2 cents. My lab could care less if there was a deer standing right by, she doesn't bark or chase but I'm sure some do.
Got to be better time spent as far as a CO.
Prior to trial look up the violation he cited you for and read it. Try to find a loophole in the statue that you can make fit your situation. Identify the terms like "hunting" and find the definition that applies to your statue. Good luck hope it works out in your favor.
"Utah Code 23-13-2 defines take as to hunt, pursue, harass, catch, capture, possess, angle, seine, trap or kill any protected wildlife or attempt to do any of these actions."
I'm not sure if this will help but it may be a start. I'll keep looking and give whatever I can find!!