Saturday, October 19, 2002

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


SUBJECT; Adventure Pass and Appellate Court.

The U.S. Forest Service can no longer threaten forest visitors who choose
not to purchase or display the Adventure Pass with a criminal offense
carrying excessive penalties. The Appellate Court decision on October 11,
2002 ruled that the violation is not a class B misdemeanor with a maximum
$5000 penalty and/or six months in jail. Instead, the offense has been
reduced to an infraction, which carries a maximum fine of $100 and no jail
time. This is no more severe than a parking ticket. It will not result in
a criminal record, nor will it jeopardize the vehicle's registration.


Keep up the good Work guys...The government is finally seeing that this program is flawed....



:usa:

It will be nice to see this program done away with entirely.

Originally posted by DesertOutlaw
It will be nice to see this program done away with entirely.

Many of us want this program to go away, me included, although it is a program that can be used (and is used) to fund OHV trail maintenance and trail restoration (keep "most difficult" 4X4 trails open).

Think about a few things regarding these program funds:

The collected funds cannot be diverted like the State Off-Highway Motorized Vehicle Commission (OHMVR) Green Sticker grant funds, it's up to the local Ranger to determine how the funds are spent (not some state or federal council).

All those green hikers are funding the maintenance and restoration of our 4x4 trails, by paying to park at remote trailheads reached through dirt 4x4 roads and trails (why they hate the program so much). Greens funding off-road recreation (it really burns their hide to help us out).

Drivers do not have to pay for a pass, only people who stop and leave the vehicle for an extended period of time risk getting a citation (OHV'rs & 4x4'rs tend to stay near the vehicle and do not need a pass).

The penalty for an Adventure Pass violation has always been an infraction, a minimal penalty (not as referenced in the release, call your local forest for clarification to skip the propaganda).
Vehicle confiscation has never been allowed for an AP violation, but it is allowed under another law violation if resource damage is suspected as the result of the violators entry (the misdeneaner is for damage to federal property, not an AP violation).

The only way to elevate the AP penalty was to allow the infraction (citation) to go unanswered, allowing it to go to warrant. This inaction allows a Judge to rule it as a misdemeaner, and if unaddressed again, a Judge can rule to elevate the violation to a felony. This is the same elevation of offence that applies to all laws in the vehicle code (rather than get BS'd by a release, call a Criminal Law Attorney).

The release sounds like a significant victory, and it may be for the defendent in the exact case reviewed (a green who allowed the infraction go to warrant), but it only restates the original status of an AP violation (it has always been an infraction, and is restated inthe court decision as an infraction).

It's amazing how a group can neglect to properly inform the public, to gain the image of victory (a victory for a negligent individual, but a false victory for the general public), and almost everyone buys into the propanganda.

The AP program may not be a good program, but the reporting on the legal aspects need to be correct even if we do not like the program.

Happy Trails!