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Hunter harassment

Does anyone know what the penalty is for hunter harassment? I'm bowhunting a conservation area in z9. I set up a ladder stand a week before the season about 10 yards from the property line. The first time I came in to hunt it someone had taken off the ratchet straps and spun it around the tree. They also covered it in flagging tape and hung a private property sign on it. I reset it and hunted that day didn't see anything with all the noise I made. I came back about a week later and same thing !! So I moved it over about 30 yards, now I'm definitely 40 yards off the line. I also hid (I thought) a cell cam facing the stand. I figured that would make them happy. I hunted it about 10 days ago it wasn't touched. I killed a nice doe that night. I came back to sit it yesterday afternoon and they had taken the straps off and spun it around the tree again !! They also stuff a bunch of branches in front of the camera !! I reset everything and hunted it ,nothing. I came back this afternoon and guess what ?? Yup same fing thing !! Is it worth calling the epos ?? Will they really do anything ? Or do I just let this person do they're thing and schlep a climber in every hunt ?? This is a great spot with a couple of really nice bucks but I'm beyond aggravated !!

I would call epo. Where’s the spot and how nice are the bucks?

It’s obvious they know when your there…..are you parking near a house or something that they know when their safe to go and screw with your shit?? Also, mount the camera high. They can’t touch it then.

Exactly and put it in video mode. Also, I’d leave the stand, keep fixing it, and hunt 100 yards or more down wind from the ground. I pulled all my cams you wanna borrow my tactacams? We can put 4 all around, take video, Instant notification so epo can get them in the field. I have lots of time and energy and no buck tags.

Take noob up. That's a fun offer.

Definitely hunter harassment, be it a non hunter / abutter being a jerk or a hunter being a jerk. It's worth letting the EPO's know, maybe they can help? But for fun, print out the hunter harassment law and put it in a sealed zipper bag or something, then tape it to the ladder with a nice bright header like:

HUNTER HARASSMENT IS ILLEGAL

Might not do anything, but it may at least make em think a little.

No don't let them know anything. They have prob done this before and will do it again. Drop a dime on the arrogant son of a bitch. Or call noob. Or both

Can we do multiple batteries?

Call the EPOs. They will stop and warn any sympathetic friends they have who may also be prone to such fuckery.

Sam

I vote nobs idea and call Epo's. I would also be in favor of setting up some sort of tar and feather bomb pointed at the perpetrator that is triggered when they start messing with your stand. Or we can all just do it the old fashion way. So many options to choose from.

Bowhunt3138, like other have said, make the call. They are great and take this stuff very seriously. I had an area two years ago where the day before archery somebody placed long pieces of flagging tape everywhere in the woods with the intention of scaring the deer. I went to the office of the EPO and they were super helpful. They encourage you to report these things. His exact words were, "we want to be sure you guys are able to enjoy yourselves out there".

Also they snapped the antenna off my cell cam !!!

Wow very sorry. On a not-too-optimistic note, I was told (???) that not a single person has ever actually been fined for hunter harassment in MA. Hope that’s wrong.

I would get video first , then when you have the evidence for yourself , then can call EPO after.

You guys are making me enjoy western MA more and more each day!

PI, you might be right. And I like it. So much less stressful. You should give it a shot :)

Wonder if this got any traction

The penalty is that there is no penalty. Even if you caught them red handed on video showing ID, todays newspaper and 10 eye witnesses on your side. Most cops don’t want to deal with it and won’t do shit. At most they would actually advise YOU to hunt elsewhere.

So you can either try to catch them red handed and scare them somehow that doesn’t involve a weapon. OR!!!

Do what uncle Sosso does. Find out who they are, move your stand. Then dump an entire bottle of estrus urine in the air vents of their cars.

However, in the end, the law sides with you but in the manner of the way it’s enforced, the law will actually side with them.

This has been my #1 complaint about MA since I got here. I’ve never been in a place with so many raging pussies in my entire life (and I was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area).

It sucks man. I’ve had guns pulled on me before over hunting on legal public land, which was funnier than it should have been. But anyhow, cops aren’t going to do jack shit. Booby trap your stand and never go back, or just pull it.

….I need to lose weight so I can get me a saddle.

Sorry dude. People out here are made of 100% grade A sissy.

I’ve had good interactions with EPO’s when I’ve needed them. Your case is weak though. You really need proof of whose doing it. I’d set more than one cam and see if you can get pics.

I paint with a broad brush, you know I love you guys.

I called the town police on my way home. The cop I talked to actually seemed interested. He said I needed to come in tomorrow morning and file a report. We'll see ? I just don't have any faith in the epos. He'd probably find a reason to give me a ticket !?!? Previous interactions with them haven't gone well. But if this dick head thinks he's going to make me leave he or she doesn't know who they're f-ing with !! They've just given me something different to chase for the rest of the year.

Go get them Bow!!

Use an old cheap camera, and another watching that one.

Epo have been nothing but great for me. Everytime ive needed them they have gone above and beyond. Its the court system that sucks.

Epo have been nothing but great for me. Everytime ive needed them they have gone above and beyond. Its the court system that sucks.

If you get them on camera most likely epo will knock on their door and explain the seriousness of the crime. That should stop it. K owing it was multiple times and you moved further into public to avoid confrontation they may issue a warning or citation. If it can wait I would wait till after shotgun season. I have a broken tasco that doesn’t take pictures at night I’d offer that as a dummy cam.

I really appreciate the offer of using your cameras . But with this jerk breaking my camera I'd hate to have someone else have one wrecked or stolen. I can't believe they found the camera before they screwed with the stand. It was actually fairly well hidden. I'm guessing this isn't the first time they've done this.

Install a exploding dye pack on the rachet straps and a second camera. Then knock on some doors.

I got a saddle just put three cams up 15 feet all at your stand set on instant. Then one tasco down low or take your broken one or find a plastic box and draw a lens on it with a sharpie and hide it. This is good fun.

I got a saddle just put three cams up 15 feet all at your stand set on instant. Then one tasco down low or take your broken one or find a plastic box and draw a lens on it with a sharpie and hide it. This is good fun.

There should be something in this link that could be used with some creativity. "Skunkum" would be a start.

careful with the boobytraps guys. back in 2014 a landowner who had caught a guy tresspassing and told him to stop, set up a 'paint bomb' with a tripwire and a car airbag and a trail cam. the tresspasser got blasted in the face with paint....and the landowner posted the video, and the landowner was charged and fined for criminal mischief and criminal harrassment. link is to the article.

Bowhunt, you may want to look for HIS camera watching YOU. If you're hiding yours well, maybe he watched you do it. Good luck finding the scumbag .

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