Trespassers

Well it happened again last night. Upon arriving home at 12:05 I noticed some lights in the woods behind my house. To make a long story short it was the same group of guys that have trespassed previously at all hours of the day and night. One went as far this time to threaten me with a brick that he had picked up from a fire pit that I built.

Now besides calling the police, which I did and warned them several times to stay off my property. What else can I do legally?

I know some of them were drunk and they had two four wheelers to help pull out the electric golf cart that was stuck in the creek.

My two boys play in the woods alot and this has made them uneasy in their own yard.

I know next time I will be carrying the Glock since they have became more aggresive rather than the normal cussing and swearing at me. I did call the Police and they came out took my story and then left and supposedly drove through that neighborhood although I did not see any light go there from my back porch. About 20 minutes later the trespassers went back into the woods and stirred up my dogs in the house. I called the Police again, and of course by the time they made it back out the trespassers were gone again.

I am about to place my trail camera back out to try and catch them, but hope that they do not steal it.

Big spotlight + big bullhorn + big firearm. You might also consider adopting an unusually large dog who gets that particular section of the yard for himself..

They'll steal it.

My advice is illegal and not fit for the forum but IS a lasting solution so I'll not say it.

Why place a trail camera out there, don't you know what they look like already? Next time you confront them you are going to arm yourself with a pistol. Do you really think you would kill someone over trespassing? Think about that hard before you end up in prison for the rest of your life.

I think your best bet would be to call the police since you know these nitwits can be violent. Let the police deal with them. If it appears that the police don't really check the area out then speak to a supervisor and let him know whats going on.

Sure he would!

His kids play back there, who wouldn't kill for the safety of their kids?
If they are bad people and you hassle them with police then they might just burn your house down for it. People are crazy.
I've said too much, sorry everyone. Please continue the discussion towards legal solutions.

Why are they in your woods? Just to hang out and drink?

How are they getting into the woods? If they're riding 4-wheelers , I assume that there is a road or trail... maybe something like that that can be easily barricaded?

Do you know their names or where they live? It shouldn't be hard to get them cited for trespassing, if you do.

gorn said:

Why place a trail camera out there, don't you know what they look like already? Next time you confront them you are going to arm yourself with a pistol. Do you really think you would kill someone over trespassing? Think about that hard before you end up in prison for the rest of your life.

I think your best bet would be to call the police since you know these nitwits can be violent. Let the police deal with them. If it appears that the police don't really check the area out then speak to a supervisor and let him know whats going on.

Click to expand...

+1 on this! :thumbsup:

Keep calling the police... every time there is a peep or squeek or flicker of a bic. Keep them coming out to check it out. They'll get sick of it and do something about it. If they don't? You have a record of the dispatch calls you've made and you go to their Sgt.... then the Lt... and the Cpt... and the Chief, if necessary. And if you really feel the need? Go to a city council meeting... they pay the Chief's salary.

Ask the police what you are supposed to do about this... not a bunch of flashlight geeks. Not that we're not a smart bunch... but ultimately, it doesn't matter squat what we advise you. What matters is what YOUR cops are going to do to you when you break THEIR law. Know what I mean?

God forbid you should shoot them. This thread could be retrieved from the Internet Wayback machine as evidence of premeditation.:thinking:

Nitroz, I'd keep my eye out for that Nitwit that picked up a brick and threatened you with it just for being told to keep off your property. He's definitely the kind of moron that can't be reasoned with unless you have the upper hand. If you can get your Camcorder, Camera or get a cpl wireless security cams and hook them up to your computer and get a picture of him to show the Police to ID him and when/if they tresspass into your yard. I would def file a complaint on him to "Send a message". The next time you call the Police ask the dispatcher to send the call over the Mobile Data Terminal (MDT) or cell phone to the officer not over the air. I'd make you a bet one of those clowns has a scanner and heard the calls and just slid inside. Don't blow off the guy with the brick boneheads like that are capable of anything.

Sgt LED I agree with you totally, Believe me I hear you LOL

Nitroz I'm not sure what the rules are where you live but here in Jersey it's, Pull your skirt up over your head and run willynilly away screaming or we'll try to charge you with a crime for defending yourself.

The old timers where I grew up hand loaded shotgun shells with rock salt. You'd probably go to jail for that today.

let us know what happens. I'd be surprised if the police ended up helping you in any real way with your particular problem. My feeling is that they are there to take down reports about bad things that have happened to you or your family after the fact.

I don't mean to side track things, but I'm very cynical about law enforcement especially after just having listened to a radio story about a local female who went to the police a couple nights ago regarding a man that was violating a restraining orders. They drove her back to her place and said they would keep an eye on her over night for protection. They parked a patrol car on the block that night and the officer was awoken by screams. They realized it was coming from this ladies house. They entered and found her stabbed to death. The suspect had climbed through a back window. Oh well what are you going to do? Time to write another report.

Bottom line is that nobody cares about you or your family more than yourself. You can't count on other people to do that for you.

Keep calling the police.

If they get calls every night, they may just start checking out the area more often, without receiving calls.

Greta said:

+1 on this! :thumbsup:

Keep calling the police... every time there is a peep or squeek or flicker of a bic. Keep them coming out to check it out. They'll get sick of it and do something about it. If they don't? You have a record of the dispatch calls you've made and you go to their Sgt.... then the Lt... and the Cpt... and the Chief, if necessary. And if you really feel the need? Go to a city council meeting... they pay the Chief's salary.

Ask the police what you are supposed to do about this... not a bunch of flashlight geeks. Not that we're not a smart bunch... but ultimately, it doesn't matter squat what we advise you. What matters is what YOUR cops are going to do to you when you break THEIR law. Know what I mean?

Click to expand...

Sometimes the best way to deal with the problem like this is by being more active in your community and let them know what's going on in the neighborhood. Most of the street cops would not get invlive in minor issues unless they receive enough of the complaints and think they have a probable cause to investigate themselves. Also sometimes by showing up at the neighborhood watch meeting and discuss the problem with the sgt in charge of the district so they will know the situation as well. Trust me, it's better to be alert rather than being a sheep!!

If this is your property, research the local and state laws on trespassing.
Do you have no trespassing signs posted? I put more faith in knowing the law and my rights within it than law enforcement.
If you have it clearly posted and a trespasser threatens you or your family with violence then you MAY have the unabashed right to handle it. :shrug:

If you can videotape and record everything that's taking place in and around your property and report everything there is to the proper chain of command if you think there's something fishy going on. Trust me, when in doubt strike first and it'e better to be safe than sorry.

Sorry if I missed something, but is it posted "No Trespassing" in accordance with state laws?

Arming yourself is your constitutional right, especially if this is your property AND your trail. You'll want to start calling the police and documenting these incidents also, whether it's on a physical paper report, or just the audio of you on the 911 tapes to the dispatcher.

As some have stated, post "no trespassing" signs and perhaps rope/chain off the trail as well, so that a reasonable person would believe they are trespassing if they are on it and go past it. The first thing these kids are going to say is that you never told them they were trespassing and they never saw any signs and/or barricades.

By the way, picking up a brick and threating to hit you with it is an assault in my state, and i'm sure it is a crime in every other state in the US (though it may be worded different) and you should make a report for that incident as well, start your paper trail now.

I would suggest trying to talk to these kids when they're sober or during daylight hours in a calm manner and let them know what they can and cannot do on your land. If they are young, try and talk to their parents. If they are simply trash, this route isn't going to work and you'll have to post signs, build barricades, make your trail "unpassable", etc. and this will cost you time and money.

It sounds like you live in a more rural area, and the police are probably in short supply and miles away, so I wouldn't rely on them for anything other than documentation and maybe some advice.

In the meantime, if you do confront them, be prepared for it to possibly get physical, and if you bring a weapon, make sure you've exhuasted all reasonable options before you have to use it. Be careful, people don't like having guns pointed at them as a scare tactic, and the next time they come around, they may be armed too. Don't display it unless you must use it. Remember, they know where you live, but you may not know where they do. I'm sure it won't come to this of course, but it's just a fair warning.

Make sure every step you take is the same steps that a "reasonable" person would take if they were in your shoes. This is how most federal, state and local laws are written and how it's decided what is and isn't legal. Of course this is subjective, but it usually works.

Just as a side note, it's true the police are here to serve and protect, but we cannot make your ex-boyfriend stop calling you, we can't make your kid go to school, we can't just appear out of thin air when you really need us, and we are not private bodyguards that can watch you, your loved ones, or your property 24/7. You have to do that yourself, and although that may sound like a burden, it's a natural burden inherent to all people living in a society everywhere.

I hope I didn't scare you, and hopefully this'll blow over. These disputes usually have a way of working themselves out one way or another. Just make sure every choice you make is done with a clear head and not a hot one. Good luck!

that's some good advice, I have to admit.

I had a similar problem with trespassers on the 47 acres that I own. Had posted about it in another thread a while back. My property is nearly all woods, and the trespassers were mostly teens from a nearby new neighborhood who decided that my land was a good place to party and have sex. There are a lot of trails and such, and blinds I use for hunting, forts and tree houses that my kids and their friends have built. Have it clearly posted at all trail entrances and several other spots with no trespassing signs. Up until they built this neighborhood, my closest neighbors were about 3/4 mile away, and I never had problems with any of the local kids, they were raised right, respectable. So I knew where these kids were from, but I did not know who they were or what house each one lived at. We gave a nice letter to each family there, but the trespassing continued. We were kind of in a dispute already with some of them over the fact that they did not like that we were shooting our guns a lot. The trespassing continued, so one night I snuck up on them, has my PS90 in hand, and a 1911 on my hip. Asked them politely to leave, that they were trespassing on my property. Did not point either gun at them, explained to them how trespassing could get them shot, but did not threaten them as such. Did not have any problems for quite a while until late this past summer, it started up again. Not sure if it was the same group, there were a lot more of them this time, and they were far more belligerent than before. One of the older boys even had the balls to question what I was doing at their party site. I really felt like smashing him in the face with the butt of my AR, but kept my composure at least in my actions. After this we sent trespass notices to all of the families in the nearby neighborhood, along with pictures of beer/alcohol bottles and used condoms, hoping that this would wake them up. Obviously their parents did not care what their kids were doing as they still continued to use my land for their parties. So enough was enough. On one of their heavy party nights my fiance and I went out there again, I had my AR15 in hand this time, my gf had the PS90. We crept up on them, and ordered them to get on the ground face-down. I lit them up with my 1200 lumen Surefire M6 floodlight modded w/ three P7s from one side of the trail going in to the area they were at, my gf had the 650+ lumen Milky Roomsweeper from the othe side. Cut off any easy escape routes. I was screaming at them as loud as I could, but did not specifically threaten to harm them and we did not point our firearms at them. Called the county deputies out, they all got hauled away, and this time I pressed charges. Most of them are also being charged for underage drinking, a few are being charged with contributing to the delinquency of minors, and two boys who are 18 are being charged with statutory rape of a minor.

Nitroz, I don't know the laws where you are at, but here in IN, we were within the law in what we did in our situation. Here we can use any reasonable force necessary to remove trespassers from our property. I can be armed anywhere on my own property for any reason whatsoever. Many of the local law enforcement use the range on my property and we have had many conversations about this situation. We used less force than what the deputies here recommended. The last thing I would have wanted to happen was for this to escalate to a deadly force situation, esp considering that most of these were ignorant teenagers. But it would have been foolish to approach them unarmed. Who knows what any of these kids these days could be carrying and what they would do. With all of the prior reports that we had filed, the law is on our side with this one.

In your case, if you confronted the trespassers before calling the police, they probably knew you would do so which gave them ample time to get away. Next time, covertly make sure they are there, and then call the cops out right away. Might have a better chance at getting them next time. If for some reason you do want to handle ejecting them yourself, I would definitely recommend that you ask your local law enforcement what your rights are in your jurisdiction.

Thanks everone for your thoughts on this matter, I just wanted to get everyones opinions and ideas. The Police were called twice that night, BTW.

As far as being worried about this post being public, I am not worried about it.

And just for those who wonder if I would shoot someone for trespassing, well no. The gun is for my protection against morons like this and would be the very, very last resort with no other options and only if they proceeded to follow back to my home.

After the first incident I had my land surveyed and posted "No trespassing" signs along the property lines. This morning I found that they tore one of my trespassing signs off of the tree it was on. I also took my digital camera and took pictures of all of the trails and ruts from the 4 wheelers and golf cart, aswell as my trail camera and the damaged sign. From the looks of the well worn trail in the green space area that they drive to access my property, the still use this alot.

I will continue to handle this in an appropriate manner but it does get frustrating as it is usually a long process. I am building my case against them and will have my neighbor report the times that she has been cussed at when she had the same probelm with these individuals.

Thanks for listening, rant off.

I need one of those tripple p7 lights or something extremely bright. I have a single but still want more.