The Arkansas Game and Fish has taken it upon themselves to take the personal property of many hunters in the name of the greater good to other hunters. A buddy of mine that i hunt with that grew up in North Eastern Arkansas told me to forget about trying to help him sell the 4 duck blinds he had for sale on the St Francis river. The Arkansas Game and Fish went through the area in the middle of the night and painted numbers on everyone's duck blinds along the river and posted them as first come first hunt. This includes decoys and all. His cousin went to hunt his blind and found 2 hunters in it. He asked them what they where doing in his blind and they said that they got there first. He called the Game and Fish and they sent an officer out. The officer said that that he could hunt it if they would let him. He said that he was going to leave and take his decoys with him but the officer said that he could not take them. Now these duck blinds have been on the river since before the Game and Fish took over the river, and have been kept up to the standards set by the game and fish. Now they have come into the area without telling anyone and laid claim to their personal property. I know my buddy has big $ tied up in his duck blinds. He has 5 on the river and each has thousands tied up in them. They have propane heat, and boat houses. Some of the hunters are trying to get a class action law-suit going against the Game and Fish and the theft of their property.

Thats not right.  If it were me id pull all my decoys and whatever else i could get first and go from there.  Thats garbage

That is BS to me. 

That doesn't sound justifiable at all, especially with no given notice of intended actions.

I could see an argument where they would take ownership over the structure.. but holding onto accessories and personal belongings is straight up theft the way I see it.

X2

X3

when you leave personal property on public land I guess you are really abandoning it.  I guess your buddy should be cited for dumping.

When they Built the blinds it was not Public Land, it was all privet land that the Arkansas Game and Fish thought they needed to control. The Game and Fish took over the river, and let them keep the blinds on the river after taking it over under a grandfather clause, as long as they kept them up to the standards set by the Game and Fish. They never where abandoned, and/or dumped. What people out of the state of Arkansas don't understand is in this state the Game and Fish take what they want when they want. They can come into your house without a search warrant and go threw everything if they want.

Wouldn't this be kind of the same as an officer going onto a frozen lake, painting numbers on ice fishing shacks and saying first come first serve? The lake is on public water? Not right, and doesn't seem legal at all.  I also agree with BEDB, I would just grab my decoys and anything I could carry and let whatever happen, happen. Nobody is stealing my fowlin' equipment.

 X2

But i would also set fire to my blinds! and take the loss

Man I thought we had it bad here in Michigan, X2 on getting your gear and burning the blinds. Make all the lazy asses that wont build a blind go some other place and hunt.

amen. torch it

Massive slap in the face! feathers would fly and I don't mean duck feathers. I would retrieve my decoys no matter what anyone said or who was there.

How can they do that? I think I'd fight them.

In Missouri if your not in the river blind "wich you build with your own hands/money" by 6am its open to the public. However if you choose to leave your decoys out and they don't get stolen you can pick them up if someone is hunting your blind. Not sure what recourse Game and Fish hae to govern floating decoys.

In illinois if someone tries to take my decoys they better be real damn fast or bullet proof