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2nd Annual Coyote Calling Contest

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Liberty Belle says that in her area, Game Wardens are tresspassing if they dont ask her permission to enter her land, that is completely crazy. If I were a poacher I would love your area.Texas Game Wardens, have vast powers in our state, especially in the search and siezure area, and have great relationships with our ranchers.In Texas, Game Wardens dont need your permission to enter your property, and if you intent to lock them out, they would cut the lock off and come in anyway. I agree with this as it is usually the outlaw landowner who locks them out. If you can legally lock out the game warden, who is policing the landowner. Liberty Belle, if your fish and game laws are so weak that a landowner can lock out a Peace Officer, I would be writing my state rep, trying to get some teeth put into fish and game dept. laws.
 
Liberty Belle says that in her area, Game Wardens are tresspassing if they dont ask her permission to enter her land, that is completely crazy. If I were a poacher I would love your area.Texas Game Wardens, have vast powers in our state, especially in the search and siezure area, and have great relationships with our ranchers.In Texas, Game Wardens dont need your permission to enter your property, and if you intent to lock them out, they would cut the lock off and come in anyway.
If that doesn't sound like a police state, I don't know what else you'd call it. Anyone, game warden, county sheriff, or any other law enforcement officer needs either a search warrant or my permission if they want to go wandering around my pastures looking for something to use against me in a court of law. Read the 4th Amendment of the Bill of Rights, if the words aren't too big for you, and you'll see that the US Constitution requires that. And that goes for Texas too.

Maybe Haymaker can tell us how come the Texas Game Wardens, with those "vast powers in the search and seizure area" manages to have such great relationships with the landowners? Or if this highly unlikely story is even close to being true? TXTibbs and jersey lilly, what do you know of the way things are handled in your fair state?

I agree with this as it is usually the outlaw landowner who locks them out. If you can legally lock out the game warden, who is policing the landowner.
Policing the landowner? Why, pray tell, do you think we need to be policed by the deer police? We have very able law enforcement officers here in South Dakota who uphold the law perfectly well without calling in the coyote cops. I understand that is also the job of the Texas Rangers and your local sheriff, or do you think I have that wrong?

We have always been led to believe that the Republic of Texas had some of the strongest private property protections on the books. Do I have that wrong too? If so, would you please quote me the laws that allow the game and fish to violate property rights?

By the way, what do you think we are doing on our own land and in our own homes that is so illegal that we need some game warden sneaking around to keep us under control? Get a grip!
 
Well fedup2, I guess I did start out on the wrong foot, put I don't care for finger pointing in that way, and yes those words are in the bible, what's yer point. I do know however that sometimes we try and say one thing and it comes out backwards. If I offended you with the women comment, I and sorry. I did love that story you told about the boy and his brother, thank you. Maybe these late night posts, I should avoid. again I am sorry. God Bless ya, veteran :!:
 
Hometowngurl, there is an old saying:
"You never get a second chance to make a good first impression"!
It appears that we have both blown that opportunity. Your apology is accepted and mine is given. I hope you accept it as well. Have a nice evening.
 
Rural Rites: Texas game wardens' authority spelled out

By KARI KRAMER | East Texas Edition

Oct. 27, 2005 - With fall firearms white-tail deer season fast approaching, landowners may begin seeing unfamiliar faces in the area, among those will be the Texas game wardens.

Texas game wardens work for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD throughout the year, but attempt to become more visible during major hunting seasons in order to curb violations in the state.

TPWD employs more than 500 law enforcement specialists throughout the state. These figures carry a great deal of authority and responsibility. They enforce all areas of the TPWD code, regulations, Texas Penal Code and several specific regulations that relate to the environment.

In 2004, Texas game wardens became federally commissioned. According to TPWD, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agreed to provide training to TPWD game wardens about federal laws and their enforcement. Texas game wardens then had the authority to make arrests and seizures in federal wildlife violations. In return, TPWD offered training to federal agents and provided them with jurisdiction within the state of Texas.

The State of Texas provides a spectrum of authority to the state's game wardens. Game wardens, for scientific and investigative purposes, can take wildlife into their possession. They may also seize any pelts and living or dead aquatic life they suspect has been taken in violation of TPWD codes.

In addition, if a game warden believes a person has violated any statute, code, or regulation under his or her authority, he or she is authorized to inspect any license, permit, or tag issued by TPWD, any device used to hunt or trap wildlife, and the contents of containers that are capable of storing wildlife and wildlife resources. Furthermore, under Chapter 12 of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Code, game wardens may inspect any wildlife resource that is in plain view of a peace officer. Anyone over the age of 17, engaging in activities under the jurisdiction of TPWD (such as hunting or fishing) should, at all times, have a driver's license or state issued identification card in their possession for review.

TPWD law enforcement officials may also seize any equipment believed to have been involved in the unlawful taking of fish or wildlife. According to the state code, if a person is found guilty of allegations brought against them, the seized items will be auctioned by TPWD and the funds received will be deposited in an appropriate state account. In addition, seized aquatic equipment can be donated to institutions of learning for the purpose of education.

Game wardens can perform seizures and inspections in a person's home, temporary residence (such as tents, hotel rooms, and campers), on roadways, and public property.

Property owners should be aware that in most cases, a game warden can enter private property. In Chapter 12 section 103, the code states, "An authorized employee of the department may enter on any land or water where wild game or fish are known to range or stray. No action may be sustained against an employee of the department to prevent his entering on land or water when acting in his official capacity."

However, the code established, if a game warden enters privately-owned land and obtains information, without the written consent of a landowner, that information must be carefully protected. The information that is not directly relevant to any current investigation or research cannot be utilized for additional purposes or entered into a database accessible or maintained by anyone other than the investigating game warden. If this information is disseminated without the landowner's written consent, the landowner make seek civil damages of $1,000 from the department in the county of residence or in the county the land is located, should they differ.

To view the chapters and contents of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Code, visit:

http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/statutes/pw.toc.htm. To locate your local game warden office and phone number visit:

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/warden/find_warden/index.phtml. TPWD's general phone number is 1-800-792-1112.

If a property owner suspects illegal taking of game on their property, they should contact Operation Game Thief, a division of TPWD. Their number is 1-800-792-GAME (4263).
 
Boy and I thought this was about a coyote calling contest!!! :???: Thank you Jersy Lilly - - - It's good to have the facts. :D

I was a Deputy Sheriff for 5 years and in Indiana a Game Warden can indeed go any where fish or game can travel naturally. :D

I feel this is a good thing as they help a lot more than they hurt unless you are trying to hide something. :???: On two occasions the GW has come to me and told me of remote areas of my property with strange activity. In both cases people from Indianapolis were trying to grow pot. :mad: :evil: I was happy to help them in the capture of these pest to us all. :D :D :D
 
Thanks for posting "Texas game wardens' authority spelled out" jersey lilly. Reading it over carefully, I see no "vast powers in the search and seizure area", do you? It looks to me like the only "search and seizure" the game wardens can do are related to wildlife and game violations, which, unless I miss my guess, is exactly what they are hired to do.

Furthermore, under Chapter 12 of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Code, game wardens may inspect any wildlife resource that is in plain view of a peace officer.
What about any wildlife resource that is not in plain view? Do they have to obtain a search warrant for any further investigation?

Property owners should be aware that in most cases, a game warden can enter private property. In Chapter 12 section 103, the code states, "An authorized employee of the department may enter on any land or water where wild game or fish are known to range or stray. No action may be sustained against an employee of the department to prevent his entering on land or water when acting in his official capacity."
It looks to me like the game warden had better have a good reason for being on private land if he is found there.

However, the code established, if a game warden enters privately-owned land and obtains information, without the written consent of a landowner, that information must be carefully protected. The information that is not directly relevant to any current investigation or research cannot be utilized for additional purposes or entered into a database accessible or maintained by anyone other than the investigating game warden. If this information is disseminated without the landowner's written consent, the landowner make seek civil damages of $1,000 from the department in the county of residence or in the county the land is located, should they differ.
If I understand this right, the game warden is unable to use any information gathered without the written consent of a landowner in any case unrelated to what he came onto the private land to investigate. Have I got that straight? If the game warden is doing a game count and finds a meth lab in your pasture he cannot "utilize" that information unless he obtains your permission? That's not much different than the way things are done here.
 
George: Boy and I thought this was about a coyote calling contest!!!
Yeah, I did too. It never ceases to amaze me how much it galls some folks, who live outside South Dakota and have no idea of the long history of abuses by our GF&P, that we as private property owners have locked our land to hunters simply to protect ourselves from our Game Fish and Parks.

My dad was a cop, my husband's uncle was a cop killed in the line of duty and we have very good friends in the county sheriff's offices in both of the counties where our ranch is located. This move is NOT anti-law enforcement, and is nothing more or less than a property rights issue.

NONE of this has anything to do with the three coyote calling contests advertised on this thread, so how about we drop the rhetoric about the lockout and start talking about killing some predators. Okay?
 
George said:
Boy and I thought this was about a coyote calling contest!!! :???: Thank you Jersy Lilly - - - It's good to have the facts. :D

I was a Deputy Sheriff for 5 years and in Indiana a Game Warden can indeed go any where fish or game can travel naturally. :D

I feel this is a good thing as they help a lot more than they hurt unless you are trying to hide something. :???: On two occasions the GW has come to me and told me of remote areas of my property with strange activity. In both cases people from Indianapolis were trying to grow pot. :mad: :evil: I was happy to help them in the capture of these pest to us all. :D :D :D

Ah-HAH!! G.W. stands for "Game Warden", NOT George Washington. That's the problem with coming into the middle of a fight :roll: :roll:
 
First of all Liberty, I did not say you were up to anything on your property. I think you need to reread the article which states" A Game Warden can enforce all state and federal laws. this includes all laws in the texas penal code. I have seen them make arrests for DWI, MURDER, POSSESSION OF NARCOTICS, etc. A Texas Game Warden has to deal with all crimes. Texas Rangers do not enforce Game Laws as do not Deputy Sheriffs. I am a little biased toward the wardens as we have a lot of rich city guys who come out, buy land,, and run illegal hunting operations, charging idiots up to$ 5.000 to shoot all the deer they want. When the land is shot-out they sell it and move on, we also have abig problem with road hunters, I personally had five good cows shot dead in one night by these idiots and the Game Warden is the only Law Enforcement officer who chases road hunters. I may not agree with you, but I respect your opinion, Have a Good day.
 
TWOROPES, we are kind of an independant bunch of folks here in our part of SD. This county has a fair amount of non-deeded land that we operate on, and that may be part of the problem too. We can't control who hunts our state or federal lease lands as long as they have access to them, and that brings on some unwanted trespassing when they get off the lease lands on to our private land. A lot of it is intermingled with our deeded in smaller chunks. This is still fairly big country around here for the pasture size and such, and it is not that we do not want to recoginze the hunters rights to be on those lands, it is just that there is no boundry to tell them where the line ends and that can cause problems. We like to handle our own problems, and can be touchy about losing our God given rights. Not that we are more right than people from anywhere else, it's just that we like to stand up for what we believe in still as there are a lot of do goody politicians that are constantly trying to do away with what is right.

The governor has the say over who he hires or fires as the head of the GF &P here in SD so he pretty much controls policy. What the governor wants he pretty much gets.

I bet you would agree that a rancher has to deal with a heck of a lot of variables during his/her year.
:???:
I'll step down off my soapbox now.
 
Yes I do remember how it was back in SD as I used to live there awhile back and unless you got a decent Game Warden (GW) you might as well roll up the ground. :lol: :eek: :wink:
 
real jake - let me add my applause: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:
And kudos to you jinglebob and hometowngurl!!! Nice to have folks weigh in on this discussion who actually understand the situation we're facing here in South Dakota.
 
Are mice considered wildlife?

Or are they varmints or, I don't know, let me see here, awhm, maybe VARMINTS?

Do they belong to the state and if so, shouldn't you have a license to hunt and/or trap them?

Just wondering? :wink:
 
AnterlessMulie057.jpg


Just to show you we don't hug all our yotes up north-that's my boy packing one in after smacking him with his .243.
 
Northern Rancher said:
What's worse being posted to Iraq or being a game warden in South Dakota. Coyotes can be hunted year round in Saskatchewan also but we still have game laws involving them-no chasing with vehicles,no night hunting,no hunting within 500 yards of buildings etc. So I guess there are some things to be policed about hunting coyotes. Funny thing I thought all you gunslingers who headshoot deer with .223's would of exterminated the coyotes by now.

:roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:
 
My 84 year old uncle called me a couple days ago to tell me he had nailed a mangey bitch coyote that was coming in to get in the dog dish...I gave him a bad time about shooting a mangey one- didn't want him to get too cocky :wink: - about 2 hours later he called to tell me he had shot another - a big old dog coyote out by his gate... I had to agree with him then that his shooting eyes were still OK and that him and that old 250 Savage were still a potent combination.....
 

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