legality of beaches

Tom_in_CA

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Mar 23, 2007
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I posted this years ago, but it has slipped way down off any list by now. Thought I'd relate it again here in a new thread, just for kicks. It seems to be a recurring theme amongst the type of question that ends up on a legal issues forum.

In about 1996 or '97, when the internet was still fairly new, there wasn't many metal detecting forums. T'net for example, was the only one I knew of, and even at that, there weren't multiple pages to choose from. Like, no state specific forums, etc.... Just one big main page is all I remember.

One day I logged on and saw a thread titled something to the effect "legal to detect state-of-CA beaches?" Being from CA, I naturally clicked on this to see what was written. Someone was getting ready to do a business trip to CA, and was considering bringing their detector. They wanted to know if it was legal to detect state-of-CA owned beaches here.

As I read it, I could see that someone else had already responded to their question, so I clicked on that next. The person answering their question had simply gone to a book called "Treasure Laws of the United States", by a guy named "R.W. Grim". They quoted the entire text of the page out of that book, that dealt with state of CA beaches. It was downright dire :'( Things like: "Alert the ranger upon coming and leaving. Turn in all jewelry to lost and found. If you find any old coins, flag the spot with a little flag and alert the state archaeologist..." etc... If not forbidden, it was seemingly downright frowned on according to this text :o

What was and is weird though, is state of CA beaches are detected routinely, at will, and no one ever says anything to anyone. You can ask anyone from So. CA to No. CA, and they will tell you that state beaches have no restrictions, to anyone's knowlege. So where did Grim get his information? He asked! To make his book, Grim sat down and wrote letters to all 50 states, asking them what, if any, rules they had regarding detecting in their state park's systems. His book is merely the compilation of those 50 response letters. So depending on the way the person opening that letter in some bureaucratic office feels, is the answer they would give. Like, if you get someone who reads it in an archaeological light, then yeah, they would color their answer in terms of archaeological resourses, mel fisher wreck stuff, shiloh, bodie, etc... Heck, for that matter, I suppose if someone reads a letter like that, and thinks of "damaging the vegetation", they could just say "no" because of that. Ie.: anything they think they can morph to apply to detecting. Afterall, they've got to give the "safe" answer, and they certainly must have in mind that their answer, if it's going to be in a book for throngs to read. Other bureaucrats may have read the letter's question in a more narrow light, and might conclude that there is nothing that specifically mentions detecting, per se, so there was technically no prohibitions. But they would add "check with each ranger at each park, blah blah blah"

And the minute the average skittish reader sees "check with each ranger at each kiosk you come to", guess what happens? People start asking, and this only casts aspursion on you, as if something where inherently wrong with you, that you had to ask, to begin with. And you can see how the downward spiral begins :tard:

At the time I was reading that old T'net post 10+ yrs. ago, I was getting ready to reply "sure, state of CA beaches are open to one and all". But now, reading this citation out of that book, I got to wondering: If this is true, then how come beaches here are detected at will with no problem? It occured to me that ...... since beaches here have simply been detected since the dawn of detectors (for the last 30 or 40 years), it has probably just never occured to the rank and file ranger, to even pay a second thought when he passes by one of us. In fact, at about that same time, storms were hitting Asilomar State beach near me. We were getting old coins, rings, etc... off the eroded beach there. The storm was severe enough that it ruined a staircase leading down to the beach. Each day, for several days, as 3 or 4 of us would be scurrying around down there on the eroded beach, I'd look over and see several rangers assessing the damaged stairway, taking measurements, adding sandbags, etc.. etc... All the while paying us no mind. I couldn't help but think of the internet post I'd just read, and wondered: "how often is this same scenario played out accross the USA, where people ask 'can I detect such & such place?', and get a 'no', when in fact, no one would really have cared less?"
 

Arizona Bob

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Apr 3, 2007
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Maybe it's like spittin' on the sidewalk. There's a law (against it) on the books, but the cops rarely enforce it. Same for beach detecting?
 

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Tom_in_CA

Tom_in_CA

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Mar 23, 2007
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Salinas, CA
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Explorer II, Compass 77b, Tesoro shadow X2
Bob, yeah, maybe kind of like "nose picking" too: If you ask enough people "can I pick my nose at Main and 3rd St. at high noon tomorrow?" Someone will eventually tell you "no, you can't pick your nose". Or if you asked at city hall, they'd say you need to get a "public street use permit", etc...
 

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