Post by Woody Williams on Jan 19, 2007 9:03:57 GMT -5
I'm sure that the COs on here would love to comment, but I'm sure that they can't.
To me this is ridiculous. I'll bet the bill author never approached the IDNR on this one.
Bill would let hunters pay fine in woods
Violations could be settled by card
By Rick Callahan
Associated Press
INDIANAPOLIS -- Indiana residents caught hunting or fishing without a license could avoid a court date by paying their fine in the woods, on a boat or wherever they committed the misdeed under a bill that has passed the House.
The bill co-sponsored by Rep. Robert Bischoff now goes to the Senate. The vote in the House on Wednesday was 89-4.
Bischoff said it was inspired in part by a program run by Wisconsin's wildlife agency that he said has been a big success there. It would let accused violators pay their fine on the spot to the state conservation officer who cited them.
Bischoff said the legislation's appeal is that it would save people from getting a court date and allow them to simultaneously buy a license so they could legally continue their day of hunting, fishing or trapping.
Under the bill, hunters, anglers or trappers could pay their fines by credit card only, through a portable card-reading device. Payments by cash or check would not be permitted.
Bischoff, D-Greendale, predicts the move would be popular.
"It's something they'll appreciate. You know sometimes a license expires, you're not aware of it, there's all kinds of situations, and you know how people hate to go to court," he said. "This would be a quick way to address a situation right there."
Lt. Col. Samuel Purvis of the Department of Natural Resources' Division of Law Enforcement said fines for hunting, fishing or trapping license citations vary widely -- from about $75 to $150 -- depending on the court costs assessed by Indiana's roughly 400 courts.
Last year, the department issued about 3,600 such tickets.
Purvis said most people cited for violations arrange to pay their fines before their court date.
The bill also would impose a $10 "convenience fee" for each transaction. That money would go to a fund that supports the agency's Fish and Wildlife and Law Enforcement divisions.
Rep. Larry Buell, who voted against the bill, said he has concerns about how it might affect conservation officers and the judicial process.
"I just felt a little uneasy about justice in the field instead of in a court situation," said Buell, R-Indianapolis.
Dick Mercier, president of the Indiana Sportsmen's Roundtable, said he has no objections to the bill and likes the idea of allowing hunters or anglers to avoid court dates. "We haven't really discussed it with our members yet but I have spoken to a couple of them and they had no objections to it," Mercier said.
Sen. Brent Steele, R-Bedford, who's sponsoring the bill in the Senate, believes it will pass there.
He said he wouldn't support it if it allowed the fines to be paid with cash because he believed that would place conservation officers in an unwelcome situation.
To me this is ridiculous. I'll bet the bill author never approached the IDNR on this one.
Bill would let hunters pay fine in woods
Violations could be settled by card
By Rick Callahan
Associated Press
INDIANAPOLIS -- Indiana residents caught hunting or fishing without a license could avoid a court date by paying their fine in the woods, on a boat or wherever they committed the misdeed under a bill that has passed the House.
The bill co-sponsored by Rep. Robert Bischoff now goes to the Senate. The vote in the House on Wednesday was 89-4.
Bischoff said it was inspired in part by a program run by Wisconsin's wildlife agency that he said has been a big success there. It would let accused violators pay their fine on the spot to the state conservation officer who cited them.
Bischoff said the legislation's appeal is that it would save people from getting a court date and allow them to simultaneously buy a license so they could legally continue their day of hunting, fishing or trapping.
Under the bill, hunters, anglers or trappers could pay their fines by credit card only, through a portable card-reading device. Payments by cash or check would not be permitted.
Bischoff, D-Greendale, predicts the move would be popular.
"It's something they'll appreciate. You know sometimes a license expires, you're not aware of it, there's all kinds of situations, and you know how people hate to go to court," he said. "This would be a quick way to address a situation right there."
Lt. Col. Samuel Purvis of the Department of Natural Resources' Division of Law Enforcement said fines for hunting, fishing or trapping license citations vary widely -- from about $75 to $150 -- depending on the court costs assessed by Indiana's roughly 400 courts.
Last year, the department issued about 3,600 such tickets.
Purvis said most people cited for violations arrange to pay their fines before their court date.
The bill also would impose a $10 "convenience fee" for each transaction. That money would go to a fund that supports the agency's Fish and Wildlife and Law Enforcement divisions.
Rep. Larry Buell, who voted against the bill, said he has concerns about how it might affect conservation officers and the judicial process.
"I just felt a little uneasy about justice in the field instead of in a court situation," said Buell, R-Indianapolis.
Dick Mercier, president of the Indiana Sportsmen's Roundtable, said he has no objections to the bill and likes the idea of allowing hunters or anglers to avoid court dates. "We haven't really discussed it with our members yet but I have spoken to a couple of them and they had no objections to it," Mercier said.
Sen. Brent Steele, R-Bedford, who's sponsoring the bill in the Senate, believes it will pass there.
He said he wouldn't support it if it allowed the fines to be paid with cash because he believed that would place conservation officers in an unwelcome situation.
