jcooking said:
I have had this happen twice this year, and both times had the same result. Both times the police kicked me from the public park, complaining that someone was making a mess, and now no one was allowed. I had done my research of city ordinances and it is not prohibited, and the officer agreed to that, but said that it was CRIMINAL MISCHIEF digging a hole because they had previous problems with it (I couldnt help but chuckle that this was considered criminal mischief). I am trying to go through the correct channels to plead the case of the responsible MD. Any advice from you all of points to make or strategies to use when speaking with police chief and city manager would be much appreciated. These over-zealous cops make me feel like a criminal! In my encounter yesterday, the officer even said I was preaching to the choir when justifying my hobby, he agreed that I was properly filling holes and removing all trash found. I know that unfortunately this has been the trend in many places in the country. What has worked well for others with my same problem? Thanks for helping me out and HH (if you have a spot to hunt)
Jon
Welcome to the New World of Urban Detecting.
Ive had little luck in my town persuading the Parks people to allow detecting, across the board. To date, it is hesitatingly allowed - but there are caveats and it is being "closely monitored," according to what the Parks Department chief told me.
Tom is right - you are engaged in a suspicious activity. Your fellow citizens know the least you might do is find something of value they didn't know was there, and that rouses jealousy among the sheepizens. That has always been a problem faced by treasure seekers.
Add to that the harm you can do, real or imagined,ie, digging holes, defacing property, leering at children, "just being there"... and you are in a fix. As JT says, people are watching you. They DON'T mind their own business anymore. The "groupmind" predicted by the early social thinkers has started to take over.
Sadly, the worst thing that ever happened to this hobby was that it became profitable. Once detectors were sold by the millions to a teeming horde of seekers, then everyone else knew what you were up to. TV commercials have made it clear what your intentions are. Thanks to just a few slackers and ill-mannered citizens, the need to control the activity has now arisen. 20 years ago, no one even knew what you were doing, nor did they care.
For the time being, I suggest you plan on a siege with your local watchdogs. Bad detectorists have spoiled it and enforcement is the way officialdom will always react to that.
It is expedient, and sacrificing your individual rights on the "Altar of the Common Good" is deemed an acceptable price to pay.
You may indeed have to go elsewhere if you wish to detect. But I urge you to view that as only a temporary solution. The banishment of detecting is likely to follow you.
Ive experienced it in very small, out of the way towns, the last place you would expect it.
In time you must attempt to make a case with your officials to develop permits and other municipal blessings. That will take time, a good bit of campaigning and "networking" for support at city hall. Bottom line, there is nothing in it for them by granting you permission, except for a few bucks made off permits, etc. Meanwhile, the first moral busy-body that calls to complain about you digging or hanging around a tot lot will have their ear.
However,once the municipal watchdogs begin to get involved, there is little else to do but play along with the System. So you will have to find a way to put some pain on them by applying pressure from without. Until you make it uncomfortable for THEM by denying your detecting activities, then they keep the upper hand.
There is a guy here in CA that got one of those new-fangled velcro-attached camcorders, that's palm-sized. He velcros it on to his hat, so that wherever he turns to face and look, he's taking real-time recordings, up to several hours storage space. At the end of the hunt, he just erases and starts over for each new hunt. Occasionally when he, or his buddies, gets a goodie being in-the-process of being dug, it also makes for a cool you-tube "in-the-moment-as-being-dug" clip 
