No Trespassing .. ( Purple Paint Law)

R

Ronsc

LIberalism is a disease..
Joined
Jan 6, 2017
Messages
391
Location
South Carolina
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
From the FWIW dept….
Just a heads-up for those uninformed individuals (like myself) ….Admittedly I haven’t been able to do much over the last decade due to physical limitations, so I’m ‘behind the little curve’ when it comes to most things “outdoorsy”…However I did manage to get out last week to do a little deer hunting and noticed several trees with purple rectangles spay-painted at about eye level..???? After a bit of some research I found that (16) states have enacted what’s generally known as the Purple Paint Law. It seems, that trees and boundaries marked thusly, now carry the same legal weight and may substitute for No Trespassing signage if so desired by the land owner.

Home

The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission is the state government agency created by the General Assembly in 1947 to conserve and sustain the state’s fish and wildlife resources through research, scientific management, wise use, and public input. The Commission is the regulatory agency...
www.ncwildlife.org
 
Last edited:
I noticed purple paint a lot a few years ago and googled it out of curiosity. I like it. It stands out enough to make someone curious and just like I did, someone can google.

If I was posting my own land, I think I’d still throw up a few signs here and there.
 
Chuckman said:
I had no idea until this thread. What annoys me is that if one violates it, the judge will invariably hide behind "ignorance of the law is no excuse." OK, so I guess I better get to reading up on the 800 criminal laws in NC and the 89,000 federal laws.
Click to expand...
The wardens will since they (in NC) produce the booklet every year that is free and has in red the new changes as well as all the old regulations. I've seen them say this many times. Also regarding the purple, unless it is your land with your name on it (immediate family included) , you better have written permission to hunt if the land is posted or painted purple. The wardens will ask you for this and even if you've hunted it for the last 40 years (and it isn't your land) they can still write you a ticket. This has been the standard now for the last 5+ years. Most walmarts and academys have the booklets or you can ask for one online for free to be mailed to you.
 
On a day when I am grumpy (more often lately) I might be tempted to carry a can of spray paint in a contrasting color to spray over the purple squares.
 
tod0987 said:
The wardens will since they (in NC) produce the booklet every year that is free and has in red the new changes as well as all the old regulations. I've seen them say this many times. Also regarding the purple, unless it is your land with your name on it (immediate family included) , you better have written permission to hunt if the land is posted or painted purple. The wardens will ask you for this and even if you've hunted it for the last 40 years (and it isn't your land) they can still write you a ticket. This has been the standard now for the last 5+ years. Most walmarts and academys have the booklets or you can ask for one online for free to be mailed to you.
Click to expand...

I understand, and don't get me wrong, people have the right to protect their property in any form. I don't hunt anyway. My issue isn't with the purple paint law thing per se, but rather how laws come to be, and most people don't know until they have violated one and are on the wrong end of the ticket book.
 
There are definitely problems with this law. From a landowners perspective I would probably welcome it. Marking boundaries with a few rattle cans of purple paint would certainly be more cost effective and efficient than an equal amount of signage.. However the problem I see would be the “ permanence“ aspect. Hunting leases that are sold, or have property boundaries that expand or are moved could be a real concern. Would property owners be required to remove or “black-out” existing boundaries while establishing new one? Furthermore (If) this was not done, future hunters with continue to believe that a piece of property was still “posted” when in fact such may not be the case at all.
Another problem I can forsee is unscrupulous peeps marking their own “boundaries” on other folk’s property. I know here in SC, we have had problems with signage being removed from State DNR (Public) Land ( by locals) and replaced with posted signs.
And just to add another wrinkle…, how would the courts handle a violator who was color-blind????
Some things to consider…
 
Last edited:
Chuckman said:
I understand, and don't get me wrong, people have the right to protect their property in any form. I don't hunt anyway. My issue isn't with the purple paint law thing per se, but rather how laws come to be, and most people don't know until they have violated one and are on the wrong end of the ticket book.
Click to expand...
yes I understand. The NCWRC has tried to limit the confusion by putting out the booklet with all the hunting/fishing/trapping/etc type laws, regulations, all the way down to individual county ordinances. As you mentioned, outside of the hunting/fishing stuff it is a huge mess.
 
Chuckman said:
I had no idea until this thread. What annoys me is that if one violates it, the judge will invariably hide behind "ignorance of the law is no excuse." OK, so I guess I better get to reading up on the 800 criminal laws in NC and the 89,000 federal laws.
Click to expand...
Regardless of the paint color, you know when you're trespassing.
 
My farm is surrounded by housing developments and my deer stands are their kids playhouses and my pond is their pond and my fields are their place to walk their dogs. Purple paint counteracts everyone’s “rights” and I’m glad to have it. I buy it by the case. Know who has permission? People with the decency to ASK me and not assume until told otherwise.
 
gc70 said:
On a day when I am grumpy (more often lately) I might be tempted to carry a can of spray paint in a contrasting color to spray over the purple squares.
Click to expand...
aaannnnnddddd...this is why we can't have nice things. Do you often ignore personal property rights?
 
Property rights are weird. For example, if you have a beach house, and people walk along the fence or through your driveway to get to the beach, it may be considered 'common right of way' or something like that, and the property owner has no recourse. Same for personal property that abuts parklands.

I have never knowingly gone onto someone else's land (w/o permission), but I have been deep in the woods and been the recipient of a "get off my property!" scream. I am in the middle of the woods...how the eff would I know whose property it is?? But I just shrugged, apologized, and made my way.
 
Last edited:
tod0987 said:
...unless it is your land with your name on it (immediate family included) , you better have written permission to hunt if the land is posted or painted purple. The wardens will ask you for this and even if you've hunted it for the last 40 years (and it isn't your land) they can still write you a ticket. This has been the standard now for the last 5+ years.
Click to expand...
It's been law longer than that -- and came to pass specifically because of people hunting land for 40 years ... which had changed hands without them knowing ... and the new landowner taking issue with the trespassers being on the property. If memory serves and for the edification of others, as written, the law requires that hunters of private lands obtain written permission from the landowner in advance EACH YEAR and have it on his/her person (so that a warden can check it and will know its current) ... unless the hunter is the landowner or a direct family member of the landowner.


Hellquest said:
I have it ever 50 yards on my trees. One foot long. Even on my property that my house sits on. As the purple covers all forms of trespassing and activities.
Click to expand...
I post signs every 50 yards (the tyvek ones that come in rolls of 100 for like 30 bucks) using all metal electrical staples or roofing nails ... and I do purple paint inbetween. (I find the tyvek signs last 4-5 years -- i.e. about as long as paint before it needs a refresh.)


SINNER said:
Know who has permission? People with the decency to ASK me and not assume until told otherwise.
Click to expand...
Spot-on!
 
Last edited:
gc70 said:
On a day when I am grumpy (more often lately) I might be tempted to carry a can of spray paint in a contrasting color to spray over the purple squares.
Click to expand...
And people wonder why there are so many posted signs and so much purple paint around. Stay off land that is not your land unless you have permission. It is that simple.

One of the bad things about posted signs is that they can be torn down by people who want to trespass without being being ticketed by LEO. A person can legally go on land of another if it is not posted and if he/she/it/whatever has not already been told not to come on the property by the owner. Tearing down the signs allows the person to claim that the land was not posted. I have had that happen to me on numerous occasions. The purple paint is harder to destroy unless someone comes along with paint to cover it up or strips the bark off the trees. It can not be as far apart as can the posted signs but is easier to apply if you get the right paint.

I welcomed the law when it was passed and was widely publicized several years ago but wish they had gone one step more and had automatically posted all private land. It should be the job of the hunter to seek out the owner to get permission. The burden and cost of legally posting a piece of property should not have to be put onto the owner. If you have never spent several days and quite a bit of money legally posting a section of land, you have no idea what a pain it is. You can not just put up a few signs or paint along the public roads or by roads into the property. You have to go all the way around the boundary of the property putting a sign every 250 yards of paint every 100 yards. Those boundaries can run through some mighty tough territory.

I see no legitimate problem with the paint when it comes to change of ownership. If the new owners want to allow people on his land, he just needs to write them out permission slips when they do the right and descent thing and come to ask for permission.
 
RedneckFur said:
Regardless of the paint color, you know when you're trespassing.
Click to expand...

Yeah I’m more than a little disappointed with a few members responses to this.

If it isn’t your property stay the hell out.
 
Jerzsubbie said:
I noticed purple paint a lot a few years ago and googled it out of curiosity. I like it. It stands out enough to make someone curious and just like I did, someone can google.

If I was posting my own land, I think I’d still throw up a few signs here and there.
Click to expand...
Yeah, but signs can be damaged or stolen. It’s hard to cover up a fence post painted purple, or say you didn’t see it. I’m with you because some people don’t know what the purple means.
 
Property rights are a funny thing. Some have great big absolute responses and some not so absolute responses. I simply like to stay personally responsible for me which is a full time job in itself.
 
RedneckFur said:
Regardless of the paint color, you know when you're trespassing.
Click to expand...


Most of the time, but not always. When we lived in the Triangle, I hunted Shearon Harris gamelands a lot. I would walk WAY in, sometimes a mile or more, to try to get away from the most of the hunters. I found a great spot one season, sat down, and watched a flock of turkey come within a few feet of me. A couple days later, a doe came within about 15 yards of me, but I didn't shoot her since doe season on gamelands wasn't in (though it was in on private land in Wake County). I decided to find my spot on GIS at work and, lo and behold, I discovered I had walked right off the gameland and onto private property. Irony - that doe was in season after all, but I was illegally hunting there and didn't know it. LOL

I retraced my steps and there was no indication I had left the gameland on the trails I walked in on. Glad I wasn't caught by the landowner or a game warden. It was legitimate ignorance in that case. I hated to abandon that little honeyhole.

Edited to add - this was 20 years ago when everyone didn't have GPS on their phone.
 
Last edited:
Was told by DNR that the sign is hard to prove in court due to so many people not being able to read or understand English. Which is BS but lawyers always look for a way out.

The paint is universal. Plus I redo it every hunting season around about 850 acres which does cost more but is just something that comes with owning land. Plus we lease so it protects my income
 
Hellquest said:
Was told by DNR that the sign is hard to prove in court due to so many people not being able to read or understand English. Which is BS but lawyers always look for a way out.

The paint is universal. Plus I redo it every hunting season around about 850 acres which does cost more but is just something that comes with owning land. Plus we lease so it protects my income
Click to expand...


I bet you have to paint about 100 trees or posts if you go all the way around that 850 acres. That is a lot of work.
 
Charlie said:
One of the bad things about posted signs is that they can be torn down by people who want to trespass without being being ticketed by LEO. A person can legally go on land of another if it is not posted and if he/she/it/whatever has not already been told not to come on the property by the owner. Tearing down the signs allows the person to claim that the land was not posted. I have had that happen to me on numerous occasions. The purple paint is harder to destroy unless someone comes along with paint to cover it up or strips the bark off the trees. It can not be as far apart as can the posted signs but is easier to apply if you get the right paint.

...

It should be the job of the hunter to seek out the owner to get permission. The burden and cost of legally posting a piece of property should not have to be put onto the owner. If you have never spent several days and quite a bit of money legally posting a section of land, you have no idea what a pain it is. You can not just put up a few signs or paint along the public roads or by roads into the property. You have to go all the way around the boundary of the property putting a sign every 250 yards of paint every 100 yards. Those boundaries can run through some mighty tough territory.

I see no legitimate problem with the paint when it comes to change of ownership. If the new owners want to allow people on his land, he just needs to write them out permission slips when they do the right and descent thing and come to ask for permission.
Click to expand...
Well said! People not knowing what purple paint means is why I use signs closer together than required ... and the potential for the signs to be torn down or just wear away is why I -also- use purple paint.

It absolutely -is- the job of the hunter to obtain permission ... which is why failure to do so can result in a fine.

In addition to my own family's land, I also hunt the private lands of a neighbor and another friend -- and for each of those, as a way to give back I offered to supply the tyvek signage and do the posting of their properties after each had given me written permission to hunt their lands for the first time. Both took me up on it, and it was a LOT of work given some of the terrain. I was raised to believe that being a good steward of the land is one of the many obligations of hunters, and I try to do so -- and posting for the landowner was a way I could. The process really helped me get to know their lands better, and it's the kind of thing that was mutually beneficial ... so it was well worth it.

As for purple paint being an issue during changes in ownership, I too, see no issue with it. I mean, why would someone NOT want his/her property pre-posted for him/her such that s/he only needed to change signage if it has a name and phone number on it?
 
Last edited:
In this day and age of GPS on a phone, finding what you can and can't hunt is easy. If you don't us GPS, then you need to have land owner walk the line with you and make sure WHAT YOU CAN HUNT.
Knowing where you can hunt is no different that knowing when/ what/ how you can hunt.

If you don't understand this you are dumb, lazy or a thief.
 
Right after I bought my mountain property, I was up there one day and the game warden stopped by to introduce himself and he told me to get it "posted" as soon as possible with signage or purple paint. Said otherwise all they can do is run someone off, but with the signs and paint, they would get arrested. Nearly every tree along the road now has either a sign or purple paint, and limbs trimmed so they can be seen, but that still did not keep someone from breaking my lock off my driveway cable and doing whatever they wanted.

I have had issues with people tearing signs down, but it is a lot harder to remove the purple paint.
 
Eugnostos said:
Yes, you should easily know if you are not on your property. And as suck be aware what or who's property you are on.
Click to expand...

See post 16. Not a lot of paint or signs on mountains or in woods. Fields, farmland, property constrained by fences, but there's a veritable metric crapload of land out there that's not marked. And again, the courts have muddied the waters on absolute rights of non-owners using property.
 
Chuckman said:
See post 16. Not a lot of paint or signs on mountains or in woods. Fields, farmland, property constrained by fences, but there's a veritable metric crapload of land out there that's not marked. And again, the courts have muddied the waters on absolute rights of non-owners using property.
Click to expand...
Does not change the fact that you should know if you are on land you are allowed to be on.
 
Hammer12b said:
Yeah, but signs can be damaged or stolen. It’s hard to cover up a fence post painted purple, or say you didn’t see it. I’m with you because some people don’t know what the purple means.
Click to expand...
This right here. True Trespassers will tear down your sign when they cross on to your property and then look at the game warden and say "What sign officer?" Purple paint is hard to do the same.
 
What land doesn't belong to someone? "Public" lands are pretty clearly marked. If a land owner goes to the trouble to mark or post it, you should honor it.
A neighbor who just bought another piece of land nearby is having a problem with off road riders that will tear down signs. To me, that's looking to get shot.
 
georgel said:
What land doesn't belong to someone? "Public" lands are pretty clearly marked. If a land owner goes to the trouble to mark or post it, you should honor it.
A neighbor who just bought another piece of land nearby is having a problem with off road riders that will tear down signs. To me, that's looking to get shot.
Click to expand...

There are areas out west in which there are acres, sometimes hundreds of acres, of buffered land in between ranches or properties. Some people will squat on them, sometimes one of the ranches will take over some times they share.

But I do agree, you would think that if it's not private, then it must be public.
 
georgel said:
What land doesn't belong to someone? "Public" lands are pretty clearly marked. If a land owner goes to the trouble to mark or post it, you should honor it.
A neighbor who just bought another piece of land nearby is having a problem with off road riders that will tear down signs. To me, that's looking to get shot.
Click to expand...
DIY spike strips buried shallowly might be better than shooting.
 
georgel said:
What land doesn't belong to someone? "Public" lands are pretty clearly marked. If a land owner goes to the trouble to mark or post it, you should honor it.
A neighbor who just bought another piece of land nearby is having a problem with off road riders that will tear down signs. To me, that's looking to get shot.
Click to expand...
There’s a fella not far from me charged with first degree murder because of this. It’s conundrum knowing what to do with trespassers.
 
Last edited:
Tim said:
aaannnnnddddd...this is why we can't have nice things. Do you often ignore personal property rights?
Click to expand...

I do not ignore other people's property rights, but I do find the concept that purple paint is supposed to mean something to be highly repugnant.

YMMV and probably will.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom