{"id":9004,"date":"2024-10-25T09:53:50","date_gmt":"2024-10-25T16:53:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/?p=9004"},"modified":"2024-10-25T09:53:50","modified_gmt":"2024-10-25T16:53:50","slug":"rural-landowner-sues-after-state-searches-property-without-warrant-or-consent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/2024\/10\/25\/rural-landowner-sues-after-state-searches-property-without-warrant-or-consent\/","title":{"rendered":"Rural Landowner Sues After State Searches Property Without Warrant Or Consent"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It would seem this government worker should be fired for dishonesty (report at bottom). And this is something to be aware of, as you give up some of your rights when you obtain certain licenses or operate certain equipment with an implied authorization. For example, if FCC agents show up to your residence, you’re supposed to let them in to check your radio equipment without any warrant necessary. And I’m pretty sure this would apply to anything radio, WiFi, cordless phone… Of course you could deny the request, though you may lose your license or face a fine. And after how they treated the Jan. 6th “mostly peaceful” protestors, incarcerated until trial, it’s good to have apprehension with federal agents who show a propensity to follow orders over doing what is right. And you could throw in other government officials as well as there is also civil asset forfeiture happening with law enforcement agencies around the country seizing vehicles and large amounts of cash<\/a>, with expensive law suits required to get it returned even when no laws were broken, and the feds play a part in this scheme violating people’s rights as well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Section 303(n) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, (Act) gives the Federal Communications Commission the “authority to inspect all radio installations associated with stations required to be licensed by any Act, or which the Commission by rule has authorized to operate without a license under section 307(e)(1), or which are subject to the provisions of any Act, treaty, or convention binding on the United States . . .” 47 U.S.C. 303(n) Both Section 303(n) of the Act, and the Rules which implement the Act, grant the right to inspect most radio operations to the Commission, and by delegated authority to the Commission’s Bureaus and agents. The Enforcement Bureau conducts inspections of radio installations as part of the Bureau’s function to “[e]nforce the Commission’s Rules and Regulations.” 47 CFR 0.111(a).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both licensees and non-licensees must allow an FCC Agent to inspect their radio equipment. Along with the privilege of possessing a license come responsibilities such as knowing the applicable rules, including allowing the station to be inspected. Licensees should be aware of the Commission’s right to inspect. Equally important, FCC Agents are allowed to inspect the radio equipment of non-licensees. Non-licensees include those individuals or entities operating in accordance with Part 15 of the Rules. Non-licensees also include those who should have a license to operate their equipment but have not obtained a license and are operating without authority.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\n

Q: Can I have my attorney present during the inspection? Can I make the agent wait to start the inspection until my attorney is present?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: You may have your attorney present during the inspection; however, there is no constitutional right to have your attorney present. Therefore, you may not make the agent wait until your attorney arrives. Making the agent wait for your attorney conflicts with the “unnecessary delay” requirement discussed earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.fcc.gov\/reports-research\/guides\/inspection-fact-sheet<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/political\/rural-landowner-sues-after-state-searches-property-without-warrant-or-consent<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n

<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

By Chris Bennett<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Twice accused, twice vindicated, and twice insistent on the sanctity of the Fourth Amendment. After Tim Thomas\u2019 property was entered and searched on multiple occasions by state officials without warrant or consent in 2023, he filed a federal lawsuit challenging the power of water conservation officers to access private property.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAll other law enforcement officials at every level must have a warrant to do what a water conservation officer did around my house,\u201d says 62-year-old Thomas. \u201cI\u2019m suing to get a law changed because this should never happen to anyone else. I want people to know what\u2019s gone on at my property, and to my family, and how our rights were trampled.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wherever and Whenever?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

On May 13, 2023, Thomas\u2019 wife, Stephanie, was alone inside the couple\u2019s single-story lakeside cottage at the end of a gravel road on the shoreline of 80-acre Butler Lake in Pennsylvania\u2019s Susquehanna County. Their property encompassed less than 1 acre of ground, including a dock and 300\u2019 of shoreline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Together, the couple owned Thomas\u2019 Chimneys & Stoves<\/a> in nearby Kingsley. \u201cWe had the business for 42 years,\u201d Thomas says. \u201cI\u2019ve always respected the law and done my best to serve the community as a deacon and citizen. People are blown away when they hear what happened on our quiet property.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Diagnosed with breast cancer in 2022, Stephanie was non-ambulatory during a period of recovery following a round of stage 4 treatment. According to the complaint filed in Thomas\u2019 subsequent lawsuit via representation by Institute for Justice<\/a> (IJ), Stephanie heard someone loudly knocking on the front door of the cottage. The individual then went around the side of the house, past no-trespassing signs, entered the back yard, walked onto the back porch, and began \u201cpounding\u201d on the back door. Stephanie did not know the individual at her doorstep was Water Conservation Officer (WCO) Ty Moon of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission<\/a> (PFBC).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alarmed, Stephanie used a walker to retreat to a bedroom. Per the complaint<\/a>: \u201cWhile pounding on the front and back doors of the cabin, WCO Moon yelled, \u2018I know you\u2019re in there,\u2019 and \u2018I\u2019m going to call the police.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Citing open litigation, PFBC declined comment related to Tim Thomas\u2019 lawsuit.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cShe peeked through the drapes and saw a man she didn\u2019t know in dark clothes yelling, and she managed to get into our room,\u201d Thomas describes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Stephanie hid, Moon peered in the windows and then moved about the property, according to Thomas, taking pictures of the home, motor vehicle, and pontoon boat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ball began rolling on a steady chain of glaring constitutional violations, contends IJ attorney Kirby West<\/a>: \u201cThe government cannot go wherever and whenever it wants\u2014that\u2019s the very reason for the Fourth Amendment in the first place. We see a lot of cases where government goes overboard, but this statute is the plainest example I\u2019ve seen that contradicts the Fourth Amendment on its face.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Search, Seizure, Citation<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

On Mother\u2019s Day, May 14, a day after WCO Moon entered their property, the Thomas duo stopped roadside, roughly 1 mile from home. \u201cWe were on our way back from church and I pulled over to pick Stephanie her favorite flowers\u2014lilacs,\u201d Thomas recalls.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs I was picking, a white truck pulled in front of us, and a tall man I didn\u2019t know came angrily towards me, shouting that he\u2019d seen me fishing the day before and claiming I had refused to talk to him. He got up close and started yelling in my face that he\u2019d \u2018get to the bottom of things,\u2019 but I had done nothing wrong and had no idea what he was talking about. Other than the knocks on the door the day prior, this was the first time either Stephanie or myself had met or even heard of Ty Moon.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Four days later, a PFBC citation arrived in the mail, accusing Thomas of fishing without a license and fleeing on May 13: Def. did willfully refuse to bring boat to a stop, flee after given an audible signal. Thereafter, attempted to elude a WCO.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe were accused of trying to get away from Ty Moon while fishing. It was preposterous,\u201d Thomas says. \u201cMy wife with stage 4 cancer fleeing from the law on the water? Supposedly Moon was onshore, and we fled by boat. We never saw him, don\u2019t know where he was standing, and certainly didn\u2019t run away. Bottom line, the charges were bogus, but that\u2019s why he came knocking later at our house.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since age 12, Thomas had obtained Pennsylvania hunting and fishing licenses. He had never been ticketed for a wildlife violation in his life\u2014until May 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In response to the citation and a fine nearing $462, Thomas telephoned Moon\u2019s superiors and sent a letter of complaint to Captain Tom Edwards, manager of PFBC\u2019s northwest region. Edwards personally called Thomas; all charges were dropped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI considered it over,\u201d Thomas says. \u201cMy wife didn\u2019t. She told me, \u2018Whatever is going on, I don\u2019t think he (Moon) is through with you.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Several months later, Moon was back on Thomas\u2019 property for another search, seizure, and citation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vendetta?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At roughly 9 a.m., on Aug. 12, 2023, Thomas piloted his pontoon boat home after fishing on Lake Butler.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Thomas pulled to his dock, WCO Moon approached Thomas\u2019 property on foot, walked along the driveway to the side of the cabin, entered the back yard via a gap between bushes and structure, and passed by a bathroom window\u2014ignoring a total of four no-trespassing signs, according to the complaint.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Arriving at the dock, Moon accused Thomas of exceeding regulation by fishing with eight rods\/lines. \u201cUntrue charges,\u201d Thomas says. \u201cBut in that moment, Ty Moon\u2019s charges weren\u2019t my main concern. I was worried about Stephanie.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In accessing the back yard, Moon had walked by a window where Thomas\u2019 wife was bathing. \u201cThe house was our sanctuary after Stephanie was diagnosed, and because of the way we set up the bushes and landscaping, the bathroom provided her with a place to soak and look out at the scenery in total privacy with the curtains open, just inside the window in a clawfoot tub\u2014the same window where a state water officer had just come within an arm\u2019s length.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI wanted him off our property and away from the window where my wife\u2014a cancer patient\u2014was exposed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thomas informed Moon he was trespassing, and insisted on continuing the conversation on the public road. Once the men were out of the back yard and on the edge of the driveway, Moon asked for Thomas\u2019 fishing license and boat registration. Thomas provided the license. However, the registration was inside the boat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thomas offered to get the registration. Moon declined, announcing his intention to reenter the back yard to obtain the paperwork and perform a safety inspection on the boat. Despite Thomas\u2019 protests, Moon walked back to the dock and boat. Moon returned\u2014and then announced he need to return to the dock a third time to confiscate Thomas\u2019 fishing rods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThree times,\u201d Thomas says, \u201cwith me telling him no, over and over. Three violations of our private space while my wife was dying. Officer Moon knew my wife was a cancer patient because I told him. It\u2019s hard to describe the frustration and needless abuse of power.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After confiscating Thomas\u2019 rods, Moon ended the encounter with a $354 citation for fishing with eight rods\/lines: Def. did fish with more than the maximum amount of devices while in Commonwealth waters.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thomas says the charges are false. \u201cOfficer Moon said he\u2019d been watching me with binoculars since around 8 a.m. from a boat ramp several hundred yards away and could see eight lines in the water. No way, period. I had three lines in the water and no more. And who believes he just happened to be on the shore, just passing by the area, on tiny Butler Lake? I suspect he had a vendetta against me; that\u2019s my opinion.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

29 Hours<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In November 2023, several months after the second citation, Thomas appeared in Magisterial court. The PFBC citation stated Thomas had eight lines in the water\u2014therefore Thomas owed $354. Case closed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe evidence didn\u2019t matter,\u201d Thomas says. \u201cI was supposed to accept the fine and shut up. No. I place the highest value on individual liberty and there are tremendous repercussion effects when the government abuses power.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond his main vocation as a chimney business owner, Thomas often drove for Lyft and Uber. After the criminal citation was filed, he automatically lost both driving jobs\u2014banned by both companies due to the legal violation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thomas appealed the PFBC citation to a Commonwealth court. On June 5, 2024, Thomas\u2019 case was heard. \u201cThe judge actually was interested to know all the evidence, and when he heard what Moon claimed to have seen and what Moon did, he knew things weren\u2019t adding up. We won\u2014for the second time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, Thomas\u2019 court victory was bookended by the heaviest blow of his life: 29 hours after the judge\u2019s decision, Stephanie<\/a> lost her cancer battle and passed away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn memory of my wife, and to ensure no other families are dealt with by the state like this, I\u2019m making a stand,\u201d Thomas says. \u201cIn open court, out loud, Officer Moon said he wasn\u2019t bound by no-trespassing signs, and said he had a mandate to go anywhere. He is wrong because private property is sacred. The Fourth Amendment and its protection from search and seizure is the only thing standing between us and tyranny.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No Monetary Gain<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

According to 12 words of Pennsylvania state code<\/a>, PFBC officials have authority to \u201center upon any land or water in the performance of their duties.\u201d The statue provides wide latitude for PFBC to enter onto any property without consent, probable cause, or warrant\u2014with no limits on duration, frequency, or scope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Represented by Institute for Justice (IJ), Thomas sued PFBC in September 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The PFBC statute provides water conservation officers with more latitude than all other types of law enforcement, says IJ attorney West. Even the wide-ranging Open Fields doctrine (currently under legal challenge in multiple states) denies government representatives the power to enter curtilage\u2014the greater yard area surrounding a home. Yet, PFBC asserts power beyond Open Fields.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Commission believes these types of invasions, such as happened at Tim Thomas\u2019, are within their law enforcement powers,\u201d West adds, \u201cbut when people first hear about Tim\u2019s case, it doesn\u2019t make sense to them because they know it\u2019s an obvious violation of the Fourth Amendment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thomas and Institute for Justice await an answer from PFBC to the initial lawsuit filing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is no monetary gain for me to fight this, I only want this statute declared unconstitutional, so the next landowner or homeowner is protected,\u201d Thomas concludes. \u201cOur framers would roll in their graves to see this case, and I\u2019m willing to invest whatever time it takes so nobody else has to go through the loss of basic constitutional rights.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It would seem this government worker should be fired for dishonesty (report at bottom). And this is something to be aware of, as you give up some of your rights when you obtain certain licenses or operate certain equipment with an implied authorization. For example, if FCC agents show up to your residence, you’re supposed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9004","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-world"],"blocksy_meta":[],"featured_image_src":null,"author_info":{"display_name":"Jason","author_link":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/author\/jturning\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9004","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9004"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9004\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9005,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9004\/revisions\/9005"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9004"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9004"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9004"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}