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courthouse grounds

Herb Jones

New member
I was thinking of detecting around an old county courthouse. Has anyone ever detected one? I wonder if I need permission and if so from who?
 
My guess is if the court house is still being used you would definitely need permission, if it's not being used just start hunting and see what happens, the worst thing is somebody ask you to leave.
The chances of finding something good would be good with all those people hanging out there over the years.
 
I have hunted courthouse grounds (the grass park-like grounds) wherever I come to on my travels. And have never asked anyone "can I?". They are simply a park. And I would imagine a county park (since courts are usually a county-function, not a city function). So whatever rules would apply to that county's county-parks, I would think would simply apply to their park surrounding the court-house.

Albeit perhaps more "uppidy-up". So, like any place, (turf has "connotations" after all) don't stick out like a sore thumb.

If you start asking around "can I?", you can open up a can of worms. And perhaps fetch the "safe" answer from someone who'd rather not be bothered (but perhaps would never have given the matter a moment's thought before). Just go.
 
Ask and ye shall find, don't and you are definitely taking one heck of a risk. Check with the county/city as just better pr. John
 
Its private property owned by the county in Pa. Its governed by commissioners and chances of them voting you permission are not good...I would contact the groundskeeper as better chance of getting permission. Without any permission imagine getting arrested is a possibility...
PS: Imagine it would not be virgin territory and hunted many times if permission was easy to get...
 
Dan-Pa. said:
.... Without any permission imagine getting arrested is a possibility.....

Huh ? Do you have any examples of someone "getting arrested" for hunting a routine run-of-mill courthouse lawn ?

And the premise of what you're saying, carries the implicit message that permission is needed. (lest you be "arrested"). If this starting premise is true, then everything else you're saying logically follows. But since when is this a 'given' ?

And what do you do if the groundskeeper says "no", yet you find out later that others in the area never had a problem or an issue. So you become aware you were the latest victim of "no one cared till you asked".

Just look it up for yourself. County park rules are no secret. Eg.: dogs on leash, no fireworks, etc.... And sure, don't be a nuisance or stick out like a sore thumb. I've hit scores of county courthouse lawns wherever I come to, and had no problem.
 
Back in the 80's and 90's I've seen countless people hunting our local court house grounds, but in recent times I've not seen a sole detecting it.
So, I don't know if people just quit hunting it or if someone put a stop to it?

Mark
 
MarkCZ said:
Back in the 80's and 90's I've seen countless people hunting our local court house grounds, but in recent times I've not seen a sole detecting it.
So, I don't know if people just quit hunting it or if someone put a stop to it?

Mark

As someone who's been doing parks and school turf since the 1970s, I believe it's that ....... in vast portions of the USA, it's just simply no longer fun to do turf in the *obvious* spots. I can think of parks where, during the 1970 to as late as the 1990s, it was routine to bag silver from various certain parks (and schools, and courthouse lawns, etc....). But now I pity the poor soul who shows up there now. They are just riddled with zinc and wino caps. And all the "4-star gimmees" are gone. You gotta be one-tough-cookie to milk any more silver. So whereas back in the 1970s we'd train newbies there (and they'd get silver on their first try). But now .... there's simply not enough to get the mental "pattern" down. So all you can do is go for clad. And pity the poor soul who tries to be a "hero" and get gold rings from the mess of aluminum.

Thus I too recall passing by parks back in the 1980s and '90s and you'd always see the md'rs religiously hunting silver. But now things are different. And it has nothing at all to do with "someone putting a stop to it".
 
We hunt Court House parks on the weekends, and speak with grounds keepers continuously they often change crew depending on the city. Most of them are curious, friendly and enjoy a conversation so don't be shy approach them and share. Also, Show the grounds keepers you're their friend, cover holes and you shouldn't have any issues.

With Parks and Court House yards pounded over the years, I've switched to using Pi's for the deeper and masked signals especially at Court House yards. Defect the flower and bush beds, you'll be surprised what surface's even just an inch or two below the surface.

Good luck,
Paul
 
I always laugh when I read 'State Property No Trespassing'....just WHO do you think 'owns' the State? YOU DO, the taxpaying citizens. Somewhere along the way, we've forgotten that the State answers to the People, not the other way around. The government has distanced itself from its citizens and has established itself as a separate entity, ignoring the will of the People, which it now considers 'subjects'. In reality, YOU own that land and you pay for it every year with your 1040.
 
its simple for me. i detect wherever i can find suitable spots. i ask permission always or
at least make someone aware of my presence. i smile act polite, and do everything i can to
leave the place better than i found it. i share my experiences and knowlege to those who inquire,
and i always try to turn the conversation in a way that i can offer my assistance, i rven offer to
laon spare detectors if someone wants to give it a try. we are all ambassadors of the hobby.
and if there is ever any static i just move on... and possibly try yo approach a true authority having jurisdiction.
as with all things ... attitude makes the biggest difference.
 
I agree that County Courthouses are public property, but in the few instances I have sought them out I have been denied by 75% of them to be able to hunt them. Don't even bother with Johnson County Nebraska (huge open area) as they will tell you "you can detect here, but you can't take anything out of the ground." True story.
 
75% failure rates on courthouse lawn permissions. Eh ? Did you ever stop to wonder if you're simply a victim of the "safe" answer psychology ? ( from persons who would rather not be bothered). Ie.: the old "no one cared TILL you asked" phenomenon ?

And in the 25% that you DID get permission at, were you sure to mention "holes" and "dig" in the phrasing of your question ? (after all, you don't want to be "less than forthcoming" or "mince words", right?)
 
Herb Jones said:
.... i ask permission always or at least make someone aware of my presence.....

Question: Is this just for court house lawns ? Or did you mean that for all parks and schools, etc.... ?

What do you do if get a "no", only to later find out that detecting has never been an issue for long-timers in that area ? This was what happened in our city. Fellow that just moved to town took it upon himself (bless his little heart) to go to city hall and ask about detecting the city's parks. Someone there told him "no".

Imagine his surprise when he showed up at the club meeting in our city, when he saw that others of us routinely detect the parks. He objected and said "I thought it was illegal ?". To which several of us turned around, looked at him, and said "since when?" and "who told you that ?".

Confusion ensued amongst club members. Some of them thought "oh no, the parks are off-limits now". While others thought "nonsense, I'm not stopping, no one's ever said 'boo' to me". And yet others thought it was now our duty to go to city hall and "seek clarification" (or "fight this no", etc....). To which some long-timers said "nonsense, all that's going to do is swat hornets nests. Trust me, no one cares". To which the skittish rightfully asked "but how can you say no one cares, if this fellow got a 'no' ? After all, you can't argue with an answer straight from city hall can you?"

That was 35 yrs. ago. And to this day, you can hunt the parks here till you're blue in the face (so long as you're not being a nuisance or standing out like a sore-thumb begging for attention). Moral of the story ? : Sometimes no one cares TILL you ask.
 
just courthouse lawns was all, i wondered if it fell into some special category or if
it was just the same as any public property
 
use some discretion and timing and if it feels wrong don't do it, i agree with Tom stick your neck out to some suit with no idea or who's wife just left him is asking to get your head chopped off...

in battle sometimes retreat is a victory to fight another day and in this sport its about timing and being as invisible as possible learning when and where and leaving if need be being unpredictable etc..

in other words put some thought in to it , is hunting a little court house worth putting up a neon sign ? and then becoming a bigger target ?

we learn as we go and we learn where & when to go..

AJ
 
I'm sure if anyone asked long enough and hard enough of enough pencil pushers that, sure: you'll be told they're different, or "no", or whatever.
 
a different day almost always results in a different answer when dealing with low level
beaurocrats... power and percieved authority are dangerous in the hands of the uninformed.
call any government agency ask a question... call back later and ask the same question to someone else
... id bet a buck the answers wont mesh.
 
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