You CANT Do THAT Here!

[dahut]

I had a little time between appointments today, so I jotted on over to the local high school. This site was once a former plantation home, then a school was built there in the early 1950’s. Everything from Barber coins to common clad has come out of there. And while finds have diminished over the years, it has always offered a restful place to detect when school is out. Until today.

I was working along some trashy sidewalks with my sniper coil, when I looked up at the sound of a car going by. This was at the back of the school, where interim classrooms are sited. It was an odd place for a car, so I was not really surprised to see it was a cop car prowling along. My next thought was that they had seen my truck parked nearby, under the trees.
“Uh oh,” I mumbled. “This can't be good.“
So I clicked off and went to talk to them. Better to go to them, than to have them come looking for me.

As I rounded the classroom building, a cop was standing next to my truck, looking around nervously - looking for me, no doubt. She had her walkie-talkie microphone in her hand and was speaking into it.

I hollered and waved, smiling broadly as I approached. "Looking for me?" I called.
At the sound of my voice the policewoman spun around and made a bee-line for me.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded. Few good encounters start out with that phrase.
So, I held up my detector and pointed out the obvious to her.

"Oh, well... you cant do that here!"'

"Why?" I asked.

"Only students and faculty can be on school property," she declared smugly. Without asking, she was certain I was neither.

It didn’t matter that both of my children graduated from that very high school. Nor was it known that I knew most of the teachers at one time, and many of the students, too. And I pay my taxes to keep the place in operation, like everyone else. It didn’t even matter that I had known this very policewoman personally, for years.

"Now Penny, you can see I’m not up to any harm, can’t you? How long have you known me?
What if I told you I returned a high school ring to its owner last year - a ring found on these very school grounds? This is my hobby.”

"Well, that’s nice of you Mr. H. But you can’t be here, doing that sort of thing. We’ve had break ins…"

So there it was, the "The Unassailable Break-in" excuse. I had been waiting for that. When all else fails, use the threat of security.
I mean, when has a school not faced the threat of break ins… and how can anyone muster a rally against that? I knew, then, that the jig was up.

About that time the second cop car arrived and stopped a little too abruptly, swirling up a big cloud of dust for effect.
The summoned back-up had arrived!
I felt kind of important actually, a middle aged detectorist that rated backup. The new cop jumped from the car and made straight for the other officer. The two of them talked quietly amongst themselves, never once speaking to me. I might have not been there for all the care they showed me.

Back Up Cop finally turned and said officiously, "You can't do that here; you can do it anywhere else you want, just not here."

"So that’s how it is, eh?" I retorted politely.

"Yes, sir, we’re just doing our jobs."

Again, how does a decent citizen argue with that untouchable statement?
Controlling authority figures have relied on it for compliance down through the ages for good reason.

I suppose it is a sign of the times. The sad thing is, it will be hard to drum up support for my high-school detecting case, when I mount my inevitable protest. See, most other people will blindly accept it, parroting the New Age line, "The cops are just looking out for the kids, you know."
So what am I, chopped liver? I also have a stake in protecting my neighborhood school and would turn in anyone I thought was suspicious.

In fact, once it was learned that I am a decent citizen with nothing up my sleeve but my arms, these authorities ought to say,
"Oh, you’re alright, Mr. H., and you know - it‘s good to see you.
By the way, if you see anything suspicious, please let us know. There have been break-ins, after all..."

But I'm dreaming, aren't I? Perhaps in another time, it might have happened that way.

Today, the Great Collective Mind kicks in, and slips on it’s smiling mask. Much frowning goes on behind that mask, however, over anything that smacks of independent activity. The New Agers can’t relate to you being alone within their realm of authority, pursuing some harmless activity.
Suspicion is their by-word, "We need to pass a law!" their motto.

Once it is known that you are within their sphere of influence, yet out of their direct control... on school grounds, no less... well, something must be done about that. It is just that simple, for them. We have rules, you know.

"Go somewhere else, sir,” they'll say. “And remember - you can’t do that here. Oh, and have a nice day.“

 

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[Monty]

Sorry I lost my temper folks. I can only take so much of bashing anyone. I had to spend 21 years of my life listening to people denegrate me and my friends and the guys I trusted my life to on many occasions, and I don't have to listen to it anymore and remain silent. So i blew off some steam. Heck I know there's bad cops, just like in any profession. But I really feel hurt when the good guys are put into that category regardless of how honest and dedicated they may be. So, I won't bash lawyers or professional people or artists or even.....gasp liberals if you will treat me egually. Deal? Monty

 

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[NHBandit]

One of my favorite places to detect is a local ghost town that's run by the Army Corps of Engineers. There is nothing there except a few cellar holes and a sign where the gate is you have to walk around listing all the do's and don'ts. Hunting is allowed, camping is allowed, you need a permit to build a campfire but it's allowed. it even specifically says metal detecting is allowed but anything found with a value over $100 has to be reported. Lots of guys have been going there for many years to detect (and still do) and while the finds are getting slim it's 30,000 acres so I doubt it will ever be completely hunted out. Well one day a couple years ago a park ranger pulls up in his government issue Chevy Blazer and asks me what I'm doing. Usually they ask if I've found anything good just to be friendly. This guy goes on to tell me that metal detecting is not allowed. I politely ask him if he's ever read his own sign or noticed the bag of trash I'm carrying out with me. He gets all official looking and informs me that it's at his discretion as to what's allowed and what's not and tells me to come back anytime but leave the detector at home. Last week a guy I know from a local club found a large cent there and the ranger (a different guy from the one who hassled me) congratulated him and gave him directions to where the old town dump used to be... I assume the guy I ran into has moved on and it's safe to go back. What's the opinion of the others here ? The government issue sign clearly says it's allowed.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

NH-bandit, liked your example scenario.

On the one hand, a place may have no prohibitions, or may even SPECIFICALLY ALLOW metal detecting (like in your example). But what he said is quasi true, when he informs you "that it's at his discretion as to what's allowed and what's not". This is because public employees (rangers, cops, etc...) are given latitude to interpret laws, to fit a variety of situations that may arise. Otherwise everyone would be arguing semantics with cops all day long. For example: "But officer, I wasn't violating the anti-nudity laws, because I had one sock on!" and so on, and so forth.

So if he saw you violating what he suspected was something else he morphed to apply to your activity, then he could, in the "interest of public safety", say "stop it". And superiors of all public servants usually side on the side of the rank-&-file in the field, to sort out such judgement calls (otherwise, no one would ever want to a be a cop, etc...).

This is why, if I were to hunt a site like yours, NO MATTER HOW ALLOWED, I still seek to be discreet. I still go at "off hours". The less busy-bodies, the better. Because let's face it: we're in an odd hobby that attracts attention. And then people start wondering "gee I wonder if he gets rich off the public resourses and the mis-fortunes of people who loose things?" and "Gee I wonder if he's going to leave a messy hole", etc... Why even allow for that? Just go when those busy-bodies aren't there. Or in your case, just go back now that your barney fife is gone.

I've even hunted parks that I've been booted in the past from, after specifically studying to know when the park is being gardened, or the specific cop is off-shift, just to "avoid that one busy-body" in the future (in cases where I feel they are in the wrong )