WARNING Sherwood now Hostle to Caching .. Got Arested today

[releejr]

While Caching at the below Cache

IndianHead's Indian Head

I was picked up on the security cam of a near by Exxon station while hunting this cache, he came out and ask me what I was doing. I explained, and he decided to call the police and the Sherwood Police proceeded to arest me for Criminal Trespass and possition of criminal materal (the Cache .. I had just found it) The officer claimed there was some "residue" of sort (they are going to have it tested).

I want to warn everyone to remove all caches in Sherwood and do not Cache in that area anymore .. the Cops are now aware of us and looking to ARREST US .. Because there is NO SUCH THING AS PUBLIC PROPERITY !!!!!!!!

[arkansas_stickerdude]

Thats wild maybe someone need to EDUCATE the police so they can figure out how to use a gps also.

[NatureFish]

EVERY cache requires permission from the landowner, get it and you'll have no problem.

How hard to grasp can that concept be?
Ed

[releejr]

I agree Fish, but who get the primission, should we be going to every bussiness and shop in the area to ask if it ok for us to look aroind on the edge of the parking lot near their shop? Or does the placer have that responsibility? I went with the thought that it it was placed there it was OK to look for it, especally on the edge of a public parking lot. But I was informed by the owner and the police that there is no such thing as PUBLIC property, that that lot was for parking to go to the shops ONLY to and from the car, anything else was Trespassing

[NatureFish]

... but who get the primission, should we be going to every bussiness and shop in the area to ask if it ok for us to look aroind on the edge of the parking lot near their shop?

No, you shouldn't. Groundspeak Cache Listing Guidelines clearly require that the hider gain permission for the hide. It is in fact the first line of the Guidelines.

When hiders create a listing page they must click two checkboxes, attesting that they have read both the Cache Listing Guidelines and Terms of Service and will abide by them.

This is what makes our game work - geocachers trust that the hider has done as promised and can assume that permission has been given.

If anything threatens our game it is caches hidden without permission.

What territory we have lost, and the issues we have today, are almost all directly attributable to the hider's failure to live up to this permision commitment.

Or does the placer have that responsibility? I went with the thought that it it was placed there it was OK to look for it, especally on the edge of a public parking lot.

Yes, you should be able to assume that listings have permision... the hider has stated that it does!

But I was informed by the owner and the police that there is no such thing as PUBLIC property, that that lot was for parking to go to the shops ONLY to and from the car, anything else was Trespassing

They're right! All property in the continental US is owned by someone.

All property managers set land use rules - be it a State Park, National Forest, cemetary, Wal-Mart or strip mall parking lot or city sidewalk, it's all owned and regulated.

Many people do not understand that there is no such thing as public land - only land designated for Public Use... a big difference! All Public Use lands, just like all private lands, have Land Use Rules... that's why parks have Rangers!

Private lands such as mall parking lots generally allow access only during specific hours for the specific purposes of servicing or doing business with the businesses there located. Private Security and Public Police enforce these policies.

Please, geocachers, file a Should Be Archived note anytime you have reason to believe that the hide does not meet the Guideline's permission requirement.

Ed

[mountainborn]

>>>
There has to be more to the story.

[releejr]

Actually it is about both. The officer in question did not know anything about Geocaching and to believe him, he had onlyuheard of GPSrs. Also none of the 10 or so people he called knew anything about Geocaching. Maybe it was just that shift of the Sherwood police, or maybe they just wanted to get an Arrest to meet a quota or maybe just make the owner happy.

But at the end of the all, they claim was that they had never heard of Geocaching. They called it some internet game that I was playing

[NatureFish]

My point is that permission trumps education!

If the land manager had said "Yes, they have permission to put that there and others may look for it" the police would have had no issue.

Since you were arrested for trespassing it was most likely because the landowner chose to press that charge, not the police.

[releejr]

You are completly correct there! Though I have my doublt about hime being the "land owner" it probably belongs more to the McDonnalds or the Shopping center, but in truth I am sure he wanted to dang sure I was not one of the guys stealing his stuff, so he wanted me arested just for being anywhere near his lot, even if I was taking a walk .....

[BACKPACKNJACK]

When submitting a cache I send the land manager’s name and phone number to the reviewer and once placed I take and print pictures of that (each) actual cache container , print the cache page with cords as listed on GC, print pictures of the contents of each cache and give copies to the land manager/s (rangers, park personnel , etc.) plus to the local police. I also drop in or mail them updated print-ups of all the great comments cachers have posted about each cache. I don’t know why but I thought everyone was just as careful but will now think twice about the caches I visit.
I do this for fun, and being hauled off to jail is not my ideal of fun-on-the-run.
As for esidue, every cityu and state park, every parking lot, every used car lot, airplane, etc. will have residue and I don’t see all those people/owners/managers/etc going to jail.

Sorry you got caught up in someone else’s error.
The local police can go to the GC site and see where you did not own the cache nor did you cause anyone to trespass.