Registered: Sat Dec 10 2005
Posts: 65
Loc: West Middlesex, PA
So my father has been feuding with this neighbor who used to be allowed to hunt on our property. When this neighbor saw that we had erected a tree stand in the area he used to hunt, he placed a salt block on his property a couple hundred yards from the new stand. We already have a call in to the local WCO, but I'm curious what the actual distance is that a stand must be from bait.
There is no distance set by law, the terain and other actors determine if it is huntig over bait. Let the WCO make the decision. I think he will be smart enough to determine what is going on.
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Life is short, Eat dessert first!
Registered: Fri Jan 30 2009
Posts: 256
Loc: Carlisle, PA
Now if he planted one acre of clover, you would be OK... Which is why PA baiting laws are so backwards... (and also why the PGC removed the license suspension from a first offense)
The problem is it is not illegal if you don't know about the bait... But once you know, you have a duty stop hunting over or around it... and there is no specified distance.
In fact if I were an anti hunter I would advocate scattering baiting over an entire gamelands, since it is the presence and knowledge of the presence that is the violation... (which again is why the law [censored])
Of course the government could probably never prove you knew about the bait unless you told them you knew about it, unless it is obvious....
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Karl Rominger Facebook me!
Registered: Sun Aug 30 2009
Posts: 53
Loc: Lawrence Co.
Seems to me a good lawyer could destroy a case against the PGC for not having a specified distance and ticketing on judgement. How can one officer write you up for being 50yds away and another not bother with anything inside of 200 yds?
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Small steps today make for big leaps tomorrow.
Registered: Sat Dec 10 2005
Posts: 65
Loc: West Middlesex, PA
I guess it is better that he told us about it instead of just putting it out there the day before the season opens...but that doesnt make it any less of a crappy thing to do. I'm really hoping the WCO understands the situation. I've tried to be neutral in the whole feud, but if i have to move the stand and make new shooting lanes, his stand (which is 25 yards from the property line) might have a similar issue in the near future. Sorry to vent guys...just trying to get over what was otherwise an enjoyable weekend at camp.
Nope a good lawyer, if there are any, wouldn't stand much of a chance since it was the courts who said no distance can be set in a written opinion. Karl, wrong again, the reason for no loss of license for a first offense if no game was killed was because of the general assembly grumbling about the phone calls they were getting from prosecuted baiters. Seems we have a lot of baiters in PA. You have now been enlightened.
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Life is short, Eat dessert first!
And I stand corrected I should have said government changed the law, as you are correct it takes a legislative act.. But it wasn't "baiters" whining it was citizens in general, who realized the penalty was too harsh when the charge is subjective, placing the hunter at the mercy of the WCO's personal disposition..
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Karl Rominger Facebook me!
