HB 1627 Unlawful Removal of Wildlife Parts from Private Property

[Special T]

So how do you determine if they are shed hunting? If they already have some I suppose but.... In the future the sheds would be inside the pack and they are just taking a walk...

[Birdguy]

We do not seem to have the resources to enforce the ridiculous number of laws we already have. Almost all of our wildlife laws and penalties are weak and we all know enforcement is poor at best so another law that does almost nothing is as useless as the others that evidently do not work or we would not be looking for another one  .

[Elkaholic daWg]

Someone needs to tell the legislators that there's free food, alcohol, and sex in Syria so they'll leave this state and quit trying to steal our money!

[bigtex]

So how do you determine if they are shed hunting? If they already have some I suppose but.... In the future the sheds would be inside the pack and they are just taking a walk...

And then you would still charge them with trespass.

[Firedogg]

 How about we just light a fire under "all" the county prosecutor's asses to enforce the laws as they are now instead of ignoring them to the point that LEO are reluctant to cite.

[Rainier10]

I was thinking they should make a law that if I catch someone on my property taking stuff I can go to their house and take what I want, eye for an eye.

[pianoman9701]

Do we really need more laws that say the same ole thing?
 If you are on private property without the owners permission you are trespassing. End of story...,
 Doesn't make a rats azz what your excuse is..... Shed hunting, retrieving game, enjoying nature, looking for lost dog.... Excuse's are like azzholes everybody has one and they all stink....

More laws that say the same thing means more charges for one action. It's all about revenue, baby.

[Firedogg]

"More laws that say the same thing means more charges for one action. It's all about revenue, baby."


 No revenue at all, it's a misdemeanor crime and some prosecutors are not even enforcing it. Snohomish County is one I can think of that publicly stated so. So it's one more level of frustration for property owners and LEO knowing nothing will be done.

[pianoman9701]

Whether or not a prosecutor enforces a law has nothing to do with the existence of it. The landowners should be pounding on the prosecutor's desk to enforce the law.  It is conceivable that with this law a person could be charged with two separate charges for one act of trespassing. I strongly believe in property owner rights. If the current level of punishment for trespassing isn't enough to deter it, then get the fines raised. Creating new laws is a stupid way of achieving that. One more statute on the books that won't be enforced instead of shoring up an existing statute? Use the existing one.

[buckcanyonlodge]

HB 1627 sponsored by Representative Schmick (R) would expand WA's hunting while trespassing law to include the activity of collecting wildlife parts (such as antlers) from private property. However, under the current law if you are convicted of hunting while trespassing you lose your hunting license for 2 years, under this bill you would NOT lose your license if you are convicted simply for collecting wildlife parts.

http://lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov/biennium/2015-16/Pdf/Bills/House%20Bills/1627.pdf

Not true. To lose your license while trespassing you have to had killed something. Just hunting while trespassing you do not lose your license.

[Rainier10]

The problem I had was they were just walking through and only took the antlers that were on the ground, and the antlers "technically weren't mine, they had fallen off an elk" and "nobody owns the game animals".  If they would have been "hunting" it would have been "worth" trying to prosecute.

I agree it would be better if they actually enforced what was on the books but they find grey areas to get around it and not enforce it.

[pianoman9701]

I get it. They were trespassing on your place. They should've been charged with it. But, they weren't. How much more effective would the new law be if the LE and prosecutor respond the same way with that? I think what they're telling you is you aren't getting any help from LE on trespassing, regardless of the law. You may need to take it into your own hands. Sometimes the pins accidentally come out of all four tire valves at once. I think it's atmospheric or something. Stuff happens.

[Rainier10]

I get it. They were trespassing on your place. They should've been charged with it. But, they weren't. How much more effective would the new law be if the LE and prosecutor respond the same way with that? I think what they're telling you is you aren't getting any help from LE on trespassing, regardless of the law. You may need to take it into your own hands. Sometimes the pins accidentally come out of all four tire valves at once. I think it's atmospheric or something. Stuff happens.

I have heard of it happening with footballs, I guess the same thing could happen to tires. 

And I am not sure what more would come of it with another law.  Like someone else said probably just more frustration for the landowners when that doesn't get enforced either.  Luckily karma has a way of working things out.  I see that one of the guys that thinks that trespassing is okay came on here and complained about someone trespassing on his place, then it was a different story.  Funny how that works.

Karma..

[sakoshooter]

Stupid.

[buckfvr]

All about extraction of $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

   The creative minds of wdfw working on sources of revenue.............its all about revenue.