It seems you found a cop with too much time on his hands or a stick up his ass.
While each county can make their own rules for county highways, the state law
for state highways is clear. Look at section 346.52 (h).
https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/statutes/statutes/346/VIII/52
There is access to public lands from several county highways in Dane County, to
include the Vienna WPA on County Highway V. There is no available parking,
except on the shoulder. I have had a trooper and county deputy stop there to
check on me while birding there. I asked each if I was allowed to be parked
there, and each said I was. I also seem to recall birders being threatened by
landowners while parked in a right-of-way, and law enforcement siding with the
birders. There must not be any crime in Manitowoc County for the cops to deal
with.
Kyle Lindemer
Madison, Dane County
Sent from my iPhone
On Feb 29, 2016, at 18:07, <rcd2@xxxxxxxxxx> <rcd2@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:####################
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 deputy
sheriff, 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 –so
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 my
first Hooded Mergansers, my first Killdeer, and first Common Grackles. I was
really getting into getting out of the house and enjoying birds. Suddenly
the sheriff’s 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 “fog line” 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 are
subject 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 “Manitowoc County Ordinances”, then go to “Police Ordinances” and
then see rule number 6.16 ‘8’. By reading this ordinance they will learn
that they are in defiance of the law and subject to a fine. Also by stopping
so far off the road that my tire was on the grass at the edge of the road, I
was breaking a second law. This law is that one cannot park on private
property without the owner’s 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 owner’s 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. “The sole purpose of a
road is to convey traffic from one location to another.” 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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