Bob &All. I sent an email to inquire about this situation to the Manitowoc
County Executive Bob Zeiglerbauer, and Manitowoc County Board Jim Brey. They
have responded that they were under a similar impression of the law as most
of us, and referred me over to Manitowoc County Undersheriff Gregg Schetter.
Bob, if you are willing to share some details with Gregg, we can get a
betteridea of just what is, and is not allowed by law. I will send you his
contact privately. Thank you,
Bill Krouse
-------- Original message --------
From: rcd2@xxxxxxxxxx
Date: 02/29/2016 6:07 PM (GMT-06:00)
To: Wisbirdnet <wisbirdn@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [wisb] Birding and the Law
Until this morning I considered myself a kosher citizen. I do not
smoke, I do not drink (other than water and V-8), I do not swear, and I do
not do most things. But I do go birding and that, it seems, has made me all
these past 50 years a habitual lawbreaker. And, as I explained to the
deputysheriff, I intend to be a hardened criminal the rest of my natural
life. I have no remorse or sense of repentance for the wrongs I have
committed âso you had better lock me away in prison right now so as to
prevent future crimes sprees. And when he left, I did indeed continue in my
criminal pursuit. But, as the deputy sheriff kindly explained, he is there
to enforce the law and to let ordinary citizen (such as myself) understand
the law and the consequences of breaking those laws. He asked that I let
other birders understand that they are also engaged in unlawful activities
and should understand what will happen when they break the law. It is thus
that I am sending this me
ssage to other birders.
I was birding the Collins Marsh area enjoying the experience of seeing
geese and ducks as each day new species were arriving. This morning I had
myfirst Hooded Mergansers, my first Killdeer, and first Common Grackles. I
was really getting into getting out of the house and enjoying birds.
Suddenly the sheriffâs car pulled up behind me with its lights flashing.
It took him a few minutes (perhaps to check out my past misdeeds) before
approaching my car. I was parked in my car and looking for birds through my
window mounted spotting scope. I must admit that I was parked not far from
a curve in the road. The shoulder was VERY wide and I was parked well off
the road (completely on the gravel and over a foot away for the edge of the
pavement and some 4 feet away from the âfog lineâ with my two passenger
side wheels on the grass. It seems by doing this, I was breaking two laws.
The deputy sheriff even printed off the law for me so that I could fully
comprehend th
e crime I was committing. It seems it is illegal to stop at the side of any
road in Wisconsin. This includes state highways, county roads, and town
roads. If one does this for any purpose other than for car problems, you
aresubject to a stiff fine. It seems, according to this deputy sheriff, the
law is especially strict in Manitowoc County. He asked me to tell other
birders to Google âManitowoc County Ordinancesâ, then go to âPolice
Ordinancesâ and then see rule number 6.16 â8â. By reading this
ordinance they will learn that they are in defiance of the law and subject
toa fine. Also by stopping so far off the road that my tire was on the
grassat the edge of the road, I was breaking a second law. This law is that
one cannot park on private property without the ownerâs consent. I
commented that I thought the county or the township owned the first few feet
off the gravel edge of the road. But I was wrong. According to this person
of authority, the hi
ghway has only a right of way on this private property. And thus I am in
violation of a second law.
I then told him that for about 20 years I worked on BBS routes, which are 25
miles long and one needs to stop every half mile, get out of their car, and
take count of what birds are noticed in a 3 minutes period. Is this an
illegal activity? According to this deputy sheriff that is indeed a
violation of the law and if caught, such deviants are subject to big fines.
It also seems it might be illegal to park my car on private property (with
the ownerâs permission) and then walk to the road to watch for birds. It
would be ok if I kept walking but, it I should happen to stop (for instance
to use my spotting scope to look at shorebirds from the gravel edge of the
road) that is likely illegal. Also, if I should step off the gravel edge of
the road and stand on the grass at the edge of the road, this would be
illegal without the consent of the property owner. âThe sole purpose of a
road is to convey traffic from one location to another.â Standing at the
edge of the gra
vel part of the road and scoping for shorebirds is an impediment to traffic
and thus likely illegal. Though he was not quite certain of this. He would
need to look into other ordinances. It would also seem that it is illegal
for me to take my long walks, even if I did keep moving. One of the reasons
I moved to Manitowoc County was that I could park my car along some rustic
rural road and take a long county walk of 25 or 30 miles. But if I should
park on any road within Manitowoc County so as to take a walk, I am subject
to a fine for illegal parking.
Again, I am sending this at the request of the deputy sheriff who wants
to let all birders know of their lawless behavior and how they will be
treated if they should enter Manitowoc County. You have now had fair
warning.
-- Bob Domagalski, from the not so friendly confines of Manitowoc
County
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