1996 Logging Case
I keep hearing about a 1996 logging event in my past, now 26 years ago. Yes, I took logs off of state land to build a log home. The sheriff’s office had an issue with it. I explained to the sheriff’s office the authority in the law to do exactly what I did. The sheriff’s office turned the case over to the prosecutor as the question had become a legal one. The prosecutor told my attorney “I think Hart is right, and I’m not touching this case with a 10 foot pole.”
Some bureaucrat must of said “We can’t let him do what he did”, and they sent me a demand letter to pay them money. My attorney responded; ‘show us your authority,’ which they never did. Instead I was subjected to bullying. So we ended up in a civil suit. Although I prevailed with the law and the prosecutor’s office, I lost on the emotional and cultural arguments. The court said I had to pay for the logs. The missing link for the bureaucrats was that I didn’t get a permit from them.
Recently I did get such a permit, and you can view it here: Logging Permit 