Punched in the face

Has something like this every happened to you? Did you report it?

  • Yes I've had a similar experience and DID report

    Votes: 1 6.3%
  • Yes I've had a similar experience and did NOT report

    Votes: 2 12.5%
  • Verbal confrontation only

    Votes: 5 31.3%
  • No, I've not had any negative encounters with private landowners

    Votes: 9 56.3%
  • Other ?

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    16
  • Poll closed .

slugsniper

Member
Nov 6, 2013
9
33
13
So here's the rest of the story from a thread started in the General forum (Hunter vs landowner). Last week I was confronted and accused by a local land owner in the Eagle Peak Rd area (approx between mile marker 4 and 5) of trespassing on his land while I was deer hunting.

Figured I'd post it in the Big Game section since that's what I was doing when this occurred....enjoy

As I returned to my truck after sundown, this person had been waiting at my vehicle for an unknown amount of time. When I approached, he exited his vehicle and light blinded me with a high power flashlight as he closed the distance between us. As he got closer I asked "Can I help you" and shielded my eyes. He demanded to see my boot prints and accused me of passing through his property. I informed him I was certain I did not cross private land and offered to pull out my Garmin to show him my track line (I have an onXhunt chip for my handheld Garmin and the app on my phone). A few more colorful words were exchanged and after I had set down my rifle and began to show my GPS screen to him, next thing I knew I was sucker punched in the dark. I did not see it coming and he gave no warning. At this point, I had not even taken off my pack yet and hit the ground with the full weight of my gear, I don't know if I was down for 2 seconds, 30 sec, or more.... but when I got back on my feet my face was a bloody mess. Realizing I was at a disadvantage I stated "let's start over" in an attempt to defuse the situation. A few more words were exchanged and eventually the land owner left, I cleaned up and went home.

After thinking it over, I came to the conclusion I needed to alert the Forest Ranger in the area to the incident, figuring it may help to prevent another landowner / hunter encounter. After speaking with Cleveland Forest Rangers and providing an incident report they advised I contact the Sheriff dept. At first I was reluctant, but after more consideration it seemed like the right thing to do. I was very impressed with the professionalism and interest exhibited by the deputies at the Julian sub station and encouraged by how serious they treated this matter.

It's my hope that by sharing this experience with this forum it will encourage other hunters to report incidents like this to the proper authority and make hunting safer for all. By speaking up we can protect other each other and deter negative and dangerous encounters such as this. Hopefully the end result will draw attention to the need to ensure private and public boundaries are clear to both hunters and landowners and remind us all to keep tempers and emotions under control. I'm thankful this did not turn out more serious than it did or escalate to more life threatening violence.

There are plenty of lessons to be learned from this and I will certainly have a new perspective from now on. I've replayed it in my head many times and picked it apart to the slightest detail and came to a few conclusions. In summary, you never know who you will run into out there and no matter how certain you are that you didn't do anything wrong...it may not matter to the other person. I have no way of knowing what previous experiences led this land owner to attack me that night. I also don't know if he mistook me for another hunter...who quite possible may have crossed his land. At this point it doesn't really matter, the take home message is to be prepared for anything and take a minute right now to imagine how you will handle this situation if you ever find yourself there. In my mind I was so certain I would show my GPS and it would be the end of the discussion, that I didn't even begin to think of the worst case scenario...until it literally hit me in the face. Keep your guard up and be smart, maintain separation if approached by a stranger and don't take anything for granted. Always consider the wild card !

Let's all finish the D16 season by focusing on punching our tags instead of each other.

For more info: http://apps.sdsheriff.net/press/default.aspx
If you've had a similar experience in the Eagle Peak area, or have encountered this same individual please take the time to contact the Sheriff dept and tell your story too. A few minutes of your time may end up contributing to correcting property line disputes, and more importantly, stopping this from happening to someone else [or worse].

Safe Hunting....and know where you are at all times.
 

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So here's the rest of the story from a thread started in the General forum (Hunter vs landowner). Last week I was confronted and accused by a local land owner in the Eagle Peak Rd area (approx between mile marker 4 and 5) of trespassing on his land while I was deer hunting.

Figured I'd post it in the Big Game section since that's what I was doing when this occurred....enjoy

As I returned to my truck after sundown, this person had been waiting at my vehicle for an unknown amount of time. When I approached, he exited his vehicle and light blinded me with a high power flashlight as he closed the distance between us. As he got closer I asked "Can I help you" and shielded my eyes. He demanded to see my boot prints and accused me of passing through his property. I informed him I was certain I did not cross private land and offered to pull out my Garmin to show him my track line (I have an onXhunt chip for my handheld Garmin and the app on my phone). A few more colorful words were exchanged and after I had set down my rifle and began to show my GPS screen to him, next thing I knew I was sucker punched in the dark. I did not see it coming and he gave no warning. At this point, I had not even taken off my pack yet and hit the ground with the full weight of my gear, I don't know if I was down for 2 seconds, 30 sec, or more.... but when I got back on my feet my face was a bloody mess. Realizing I was at a disadvantage I stated "let's start over" in an attempt to defuse the situation. A few more words were exchanged and eventually the land owner left, I cleaned up and went home.

After thinking it over, I came to the conclusion I needed to alert the Forest Ranger in the area to the incident, figuring it may help to prevent another landowner / hunter encounter. After speaking with Cleveland Forest Rangers and providing an incident report they advised I contact the Sheriff dept. At first I was reluctant, but after more consideration it seemed like the right thing to do. I was very impressed with the professionalism and interest exhibited by the deputies at the Julian sub station and encouraged by how serious they treated this matter.

It's my hope that by sharing this experience with this forum it will encourage other hunters to report incidents like this to the proper authority and make hunting safer for all. By speaking up we can protect other each other and deter negative and dangerous encounters such as this. Hopefully the end result will draw attention to the need to ensure private and public boundaries are clear to both hunters and landowners and remind us all to keep tempers and emotions under control. I'm thankful this did not turn out more serious than it did or escalate to more life threatening violence.

There are plenty of lessons to be learned from this and I will certainly have a new perspective from now on. I've replayed it in my head many times and picked it apart to the slightest detail and came to a few conclusions. In summary, you never know who you will run into out there and no matter how certain you are that you didn't do anything wrong...it may not matter to the other person. I have no way of knowing what previous experiences led this land owner to attack me that night. I also don't know if he mistook me for another hunter...who quite possible may have crossed his land. At this point it doesn't really matter, the take home message is to be prepared for anything and take a minute right now to imagine how you will handle this situation if you ever find yourself there. In my mind I was so certain I would show my GPS and it would be the end of the discussion, that I didn't even begin to think of the worst case scenario...until it literally hit me in the face. Keep your guard up and be smart, maintain separation if approached by a stranger and don't take anything for granted. Always consider the wild card !

Let's all finish the D16 season by focusing on punching our tags instead of each other.

For more info: http://apps.sdsheriff.net/press/default.aspx
If you've had a similar experience in the Eagle Peak area, or have encountered this same individual please take the time to contact the Sheriff dept and tell your story too. A few minutes of your time may end up contributing to correcting property line disputes, and more importantly, stopping this from happening to someone else [or worse].

Safe Hunting....and know where you are at all times.
was this guy in an old jeep, Caucasian, veins bulging out of his neck if so we had a similar experience , after turkey hunting he said our truck tires matched a burnout at his gate on his private road, we thought his head was going to explode, after calming him down and showing him our tracks on ONXMAPS we defused the situation, this guy is dangerous be aware!!! WE also reported this incident.
 
was this guy in an old jeep, Caucasian, veins bulging out of his neck if so we had a similar experience , after turkey hunting he said our truck tires matched a burnout at his gate on his private road, we thought his head was going to explode, after calming him down and showing him our tracks on ONXMAPS we defused the situation, this guy is dangerous be aware!!! WE also reported this incident.

Here's a map the gate icon is is where he came from, BEWARE THIS GUYS FUSE IS ALREADY LIT, JUST WAITING TO EXPLODE!
 
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Pretty sure the reason your not “Mother F-in” this dude on this forum, you got your self a Big Ol Swinggin-D**k lawyer that is helping you acquire some new hunting property!

112 acres to be exact

That dude is a prick.
 
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was this guy in an old jeep, Caucasian, veins bulging out of his neck if so we had a similar experience , after turkey hunting he said our truck tires matched a burnout at his gate on his private road, we thought his head was going to explode, after calming him down and showing him our tracks on ONXMAPS we defused the situation, this guy is dangerous be aware!!! WE also reported this incident.

steveo007 - your description is accurate. Kinda funny how that gate is so deep in the "green" . Glad you reported. Thanks for sharing your story
 
Pretty sure the reason your not “Mother F-in” this dude on this forum, you got your self a Big Ol Swinggin-D**k lawyer that is helping you acquire some new hunting property!

112 acres to be exact

That dude is a prick.

hahaha, I wish. But no lawyer for me. I figured it was better to take the high road on this one. I'll save the Mother F-in's for when I tell this story around a campfire one day.
 
Well this time it only split lip and bloody nose. I heard up in eagle peak area someone was putting nail spikes on the trails. During past hunting seasons.
Crazy FN people.
 
Many years ago (2000), I was confronted by a land owner and he came in with a short fuse too (same general area)....He asked to see my boots.....He then accused me of accessing thru his property to where I had just shot a turkey....I had written permission on the property where I was standing (he had crossed a fence to get to me).....This guy was carrying a shotgun....I told him to ask my land owner and that I was parked at his house....He later did and was told I had permission to be where I was....This ass then proceeded to go around telling anyone he could that he caught me poaching his land....I'm sure this was to make people not let me hunt their lands when I would asked for permission (and it worked in one case),,,,He later admitted (at another property & incident) that I wasn't on his land.

I'm sure it's very frustrating to these guys that people poach their land, but at least catch or accuse the ones that actually are.... Many of the big land owners in the Julian/Lake Henshaw/Santa Ysabel area are good guys....Unfortunately, they're a few that are real jerks (these two know each other two).
 
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I had a gun pulled on me. Situation was diffused by me. Way before OnX. Come to find out I was trespassing, but their land wasn’t marked properly. After being handcuffed and questioned by LEOs I was cited and released. With in a week DA dropped all charges due to lack of evidence and their lack of posting properly.
I don’t hunt up there much and it was a first time for me. Because of poachers all hunters have a bad name and you are guilty until proven guilty.
I applaud you for taking by the high road but I would probably file assault charges. One hit could have caused a lot of more grave injuries than what you came out with. Consider yourself lucky this time. Next one might involve others joining in when you are on the ground defenseless. I’ve seen after bar incidents of sucker punching that have left guys in comas or worse and the assailants are on manslaughter charges.
Be safe out there gents.
 
From the press release (my emphasis)...On Wednesday November 14, deputies contacted Mr. Martinez during a traffic stop on Highway 78 near Santa Ysabel. The deputies arrested Mr. Martinez for battery resulting in serious injury. Mr. Martinez was found to be armed with a loaded handgun at the time of his arrest.

Yikes! Could have been worse. Although him punching you out went way too far already I'm glad it didn't go further.
 
So here's the rest of the story from a thread started in the General forum (Hunter vs landowner). Last week I was confronted and accused by a local land owner in the Eagle Peak Rd area (approx between mile marker 4 and 5) of trespassing on his land while I was deer hunting.

Figured I'd post it in the Big Game section since that's what I was doing when this occurred....enjoy

As I returned to my truck after sundown, this person had been waiting at my vehicle for an unknown amount of time. When I approached, he exited his vehicle and light blinded me with a high power flashlight as he closed the distance between us. As he got closer I asked "Can I help you" and shielded my eyes. He demanded to see my boot prints and accused me of passing through his property. I informed him I was certain I did not cross private land and offered to pull out my Garmin to show him my track line (I have an onXhunt chip for my handheld Garmin and the app on my phone). A few more colorful words were exchanged and after I had set down my rifle and began to show my GPS screen to him, next thing I knew I was sucker punched in the dark. I did not see it coming and he gave no warning. At this point, I had not even taken off my pack yet and hit the ground with the full weight of my gear, I don't know if I was down for 2 seconds, 30 sec, or more.... but when I got back on my feet my face was a bloody mess. Realizing I was at a disadvantage I stated "let's start over" in an attempt to defuse the situation. A few more words were exchanged and eventually the land owner left, I cleaned up and went home.

After thinking it over, I came to the conclusion I needed to alert the Forest Ranger in the area to the incident, figuring it may help to prevent another landowner / hunter encounter. After speaking with Cleveland Forest Rangers and providing an incident report they advised I contact the Sheriff dept. At first I was reluctant, but after more consideration it seemed like the right thing to do. I was very impressed with the professionalism and interest exhibited by the deputies at the Julian sub station and encouraged by how serious they treated this matter.

It's my hope that by sharing this experience with this forum it will encourage other hunters to report incidents like this to the proper authority and make hunting safer for all. By speaking up we can protect other each other and deter negative and dangerous encounters such as this. Hopefully the end result will draw attention to the need to ensure private and public boundaries are clear to both hunters and landowners and remind us all to keep tempers and emotions under control. I'm thankful this did not turn out more serious than it did or escalate to more life threatening violence.

There are plenty of lessons to be learned from this and I will certainly have a new perspective from now on. I've replayed it in my head many times and picked it apart to the slightest detail and came to a few conclusions. In summary, you never know who you will run into out there and no matter how certain you are that you didn't do anything wrong...it may not matter to the other person. I have no way of knowing what previous experiences led this land owner to attack me that night. I also don't know if he mistook me for another hunter...who quite possible may have crossed his land. At this point it doesn't really matter, the take home message is to be prepared for anything and take a minute right now to imagine how you will handle this situation if you ever find yourself there. In my mind I was so certain I would show my GPS and it would be the end of the discussion, that I didn't even begin to think of the worst case scenario...until it literally hit me in the face. Keep your guard up and be smart, maintain separation if approached by a stranger and don't take anything for granted. Always consider the wild card !

Let's all finish the D16 season by focusing on punching our tags instead of each other.

For more info: http://apps.sdsheriff.net/press/default.aspx
If you've had a similar experience in the Eagle Peak area, or have encountered this same individual please take the time to contact the Sheriff dept and tell your story too. A few minutes of your time may end up contributing to correcting property line disputes, and more importantly, stopping this from happening to someone else [or worse].

Safe Hunting....and know where you are at all times.
i was with steveo007 when this happened and actually filed a complaint with CDFW and started a paper trail on Mr,Martinez.. Game warden told me that they had several complaints on this guy, he was pissed because he thought we drove in his driveway(which is on national forest not his property).I diffused the situation by telling him that his father had asked me politely not to park by the entrance and had respected his wishes. he then said that it was a good thing he didn't slash my tires. I told it was a good thing that he didn't do that and that he needed to calm down before he comes threatening and accusing people, especially when we're carrying on shot guns.
 
Is it wrong that my biggest concern with this thread is that it shows one of my Public Hunting spots? I have serious trust issues lol. Delete the ONX screen shot if possible. Just the guys name makes it easiest enough to find. We don’t need to advertise access points on a public forum.
 
i was told about McGee flats but was warned about that land owner who might give me shit about trespassing. ive heard from number of people about him but never ran into him. i always track myself on OnX for this reason. that guy had it coming to him. good for you for practicing discipline. if someone where to sucker punch me, being a vet hed had serious injuries.
 
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This incident is disturbing on many levels, not the least of which is an ongoing and seemingly increasing hostility by one property owner towards (presumed) innocent hunters recreating on public land. To the OP, I applaud your candor in sharing the story, and appreciate that you took one for the team (literally), and that you reported this asshole. What a bummer it ever had to come to this. No doubt the property owner has had to deal with trespassers and less than honest hunters, but come on... do so in a legal and ethical manner.
Why is the gate on NF land? What's up with that? Is that really the case? If so, there are rules strictly forbidding such practice, similar to the rules that forbid the false posting of no trespassing signs. I hope this particular arrest not only makes the area safer for hunters who hunt there, but that it results in the removal of the gate. The guy may have brought more attention to himself than he wants.
Seems like this incident also fits F&G code 2009 - Hunter Harassment. I'd be asking the local game warden to be issuing citation for that as well. (I know, small potatoes compared to the assault charges, but why not throw the kitchen sink at this douche.)
 
Yep, throw the book at him. I would contact the local newspaper and ask them to do a story on this incident requesting that they leave out your name. Ranchers need to be respected but they also need to show respect and know that hunters will push back when we are in the right. I would still retain an attorney to stay on top of this and by all means testify when this goes to trial. make notes of your recollection of the events/words/distance in the chronological order that as they transpired and be ready to articulate these details especially being blinded by a powerful light....
Good luck.
 
i was with steveo007 when this happened and actually filed a complaint with CDFW and started a paper trail on Mr,Martinez.. Game warden told me that they had several complaints on this guy, he was pissed because he thought we drove in his driveway(which is on national forest not his property).I diffused the situation by telling him that his father had asked me politely not to park by the entrance and had respected his wishes. he then said that it was a good thing he didn't slash my tires. I told it was a good thing that he didn't do that and that he needed to calm down before he comes threatening and accusing people, especially when we're carrying on shot guns.

When did this happen? Was it earlier this year? Glad to hear you contacted CDFW about it.
 
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