# Posting and Trespass



## win4win (Sep 8, 2003)

> *Posting and Trespass*
> "It is illegal to hunt on posted land without permission. Upon conviction for a violation of this law, the court shall suspend the defendant's hunting, fishing, and trapping privileges for at least a period of one year. *Only the owner or tenant may post land.* Signs must give the name of the person posting the land and be placed not over 880 yards (one-half mile) apart around the land. Where the land is entirely enclosed by a fence, posting of signs at all gates is sufficient. It is illegal to deface or destroy posting signs.
> 
> Any person may enter upon legally posted land (without a weapon) to recover game shot or killed on land where he/she had a lawful right to hunt.
> ...


Does "tenant" include a person leasing the hunting rights to a field? In the past what have you done when you come across an improperly posted field or one posted with a name other than the owner's?


----------



## Bobm (Aug 26, 2003)

Stay off it, all its going to do is start trouble if you start debateing the validity of how they have it posted. Go find the guy that owns it and ask if you can hunt it, you must know who he is or you wouldn't know its supposedly improperly posted. IF he tells you no, tell him thanks for taking the time to talk to you and move on. Somebody telling you no won't hurt a bit.


----------



## KEN W (Feb 22, 2002)

I would check with the landowner.

Aslo those are GNF regulations....a lot of signs are put up and the name,address phone number may be washed off...it is still legally posted by ND law.


----------



## drjongy (Oct 13, 2003)

Even if the land is not posted as it should be, the intent of the landowner is still clear--STAY OFF WITHOUT PERMISSION!


----------



## tb (Jul 26, 2002)

When land is incorrectly posted, you probably wouldn't be charged with hunting on posted land. But, you can still be charged with criminal trespass, even if its not correctly posted.


----------



## win4win (Sep 8, 2003)

How does ND law read? Do you have a link? I havent been able to find it. Just trying to satisfy my curiosity.

Im not going to start a pissing contest over a posted field....there are plenty of places out there. After seeing a couple fields with the same name on them I started asking around and the poster doesnt own any of the land. I imagine the poster is a friend or family member of the land owner but I was curious if the poster using his own name was kosher.

I have heard stories of hunters gaining permission for land and then posting it themselves without the owner being aware of what they are doing. Next hunter comes along to get permission thinks he is calling the land owner, instead ends up talking to a guy trying to lock everyone else out of the field.

In this case I checked the guy out and dont think there is any way this is the case. Anyone else had an experience like I described above with a field squatter?


----------



## Scraper (Apr 1, 2002)

I know some guys that hunted an improperly posted field and got fined.

They entered the field from the 1/4 section line and it was not posted. When they got to the side by the main road, it was posted. Right then the landowner drove up and chewed them out, they apologized for the mix-up and explained what had happened and politely left.

Later that day the warden's plane was diving over their pickup. Finally, on thursday the warden called to get their side of the story because the landowner had turned them in and he had confirmed that their vehicle was in the vicinity.

When he went out and checked the land the following tuesday, it was now posted legally. They consulted a lawyer friend that said, pay it. In a dispute of stories the landowner always wins.

The kicker is that the landowner gets half of the damages paid to the state. It is a nice trap.

Moral of the story: Ask before you hunt.


----------



## jimboy (Apr 1, 2003)

I agree, ask!

In the area I used to hunt a guy posted his land with an old tire hanging on the fence post and all it said was no hunting in white spray paint. It just isn't worth the headache to push the limits. you know what the landowner wants so just respect it and move on. go ask and the worst that can happen is that he says no. :beer: I have also heard that a few rounds on a friday night in the local tavern can also open up a few gaits. :wink:


----------



## Remmi_&amp;_I (Dec 2, 2003)

Here's a personal story along this topic...... kinda funny now!

I was hunting around Lake Sakakawea last fall on a piece of land owned by a friend/acquaintence of my dad's. Every time we hunt there (maybe twice a year) we call and ask him if it is OK and he always says yes to us. Well, we were walking some cattails and all of a sudden this truck comes flying through the pasture towards us. The guy gets out and starts chewing us out, says he called the game warden because he owns the land (we hadn't had a chance to speak yet), and to stay right here because the warden would be right over. Dad and I simply got into our truck and we called the guy who owns it and. He laughed his a** off about it. The man chewing us out was another friend of the landowner and he was ****** we were walking the slough he wanted to walk.

As it all ended up, when the game warden got there we explained the mix up and this other guy walked the slough with us. We had beers later that day and he told us he has to kick people off the land all the time because the landowner lives in Bismarck and doesn't hunt so once the harvest is done he stays in Bismarck. Kinda funny!


----------



## PJ (Oct 1, 2002)

I have heard of outfitters posting land. Sometimes even without permission from the land owner. I believe this happens a lot when landowners live far away or don't visit the land after harvest. 
Hunting with permission is the best way to go.


----------

