legal issues regarding BASE jumping

[andy2 0]

What is the legal severity of being "caught" BASE jumping. The charge is tresspassing? Anything else? Have you known people who have had minor misd charges in their past get caught BASE jumping? Has this weighted the sentence dramatically more? What generally happens in cases where people are caught? Any pointers to websites that list this information would help. I wouldn't say I am afraid of being caught, but this is certainly one issue that I am working through regarding BASE jumping, as I have had a few problems with the police in my past. Thanks for any light you can shed on this.

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let my inspiration flow,
in token rhyme suggesting rhythm...

[TomAiello 25]

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What is the legal severity of being "caught" BASE jumping.

It totally depends on where you get busted. I've known it to range from "don't do that again, bad jumper" (I got this from the California Highway Patrol), to hand-cuffs (got that from a small town sheriff in Pennsylvania) to community service time (had a friend who got that at a popular span in Northern California) to a night in jail, gear confiscation, and a fine anywhere up to $10,000 (that's for the historic bridge by the Bay, the highest fine I know of), all the way up to Muff Brother #1's 90 days in the Federal Pen (that's the stiffest penalty that's yet been handed out).

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The charge is tresspassing? Anything else?

Depends on the mood of the good people of wherever you happen to get busted. I've seen Trespassing, Breaking and Entering, Reckless Endangerment, and Illegal Aerial Delivery. I'd bet that someone who was really pissy could throw down some of the new anti-terrorism stuff, strip you of citizenship, and deport you to Baghdad.

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Have you known people who have had minor misd charges in their past get caught BASE jumping?

Yes. Your best bet is to get a good lawyer and get off on the BASE stuff. It's better to spend a few more bucks on the lawyer every time then let stuff keep adding onto your rap sheet.
In general, on a "per bust" basis, the minor priors (say DUI or some such) aren't that big a deal. But it does totally depend on where you are, and what the latest charges are (and the mood of the police, what the judge had for breakfast, etc.).

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Has this weighted the sentence dramatically more?

Not in my experience.

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What generally happens in cases where people are caught?

The most common result is that the jumpers throw down one or two grand for a lawyer, and end up getting off either totally, or with a minor punishment (I've seen $50 trespassing tickets).

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Any pointers to websites that list this information would help.

Check out BLiNC. At one point there was a whole "legal" archive there.
If you're serious about the legal issues, contact a real lawyer, in the jurisdiction you might be busted in. For more general questions, try contacting Fred Morelli (the BASE defense lawyer from some high profile NPS cases). You might also look into the Colorado case a while back where the jumper beat the reckless endangerment charges. I believe that Marta at Vertigo was one of the expert witnesses called, so you might want to drop them a line.

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I wouldn't say I am afraid of being caught...

You're a braver soul than I, then.

-- Tom Aiello

[email protected]
SnakeRiverBASE.com

[andy2 0]

Thanks, Tom. All good stuff, exactly what I was looking for, I appreciate it.

---------------------------------------------
let my inspiration flow,
in token rhyme suggesting rhythm...

[motherhucker 0]

Tom's information is more or less correct (although he's wrong about the stiffest penalty handed out for BASE jumping busts)

They obvious key though, is don't get caught.

Sounds stupid, I know, but the reason I bring it up is because as the number of active BASE jumpers grows exponentially, the number of objects pretty much stays the same. If we are not WAY more stealthy (and dare I say, paranoid) about the way we BASE jump, Objects will be forever burned, and our sport will incur an additional expense; bail money and legal fees.
In a city relatively close to me, in the last couple of years someone decided to do an afternoon load from a downtown building. Good for them. The price that is left in their wake for locals to pay is Anti-BASE legislation. This is not trespassing, folks, this is making BASE jumping illegal! There are few things I can think of that are more deserving of a good T&F than that. For what? to get some good video? Try planning your jump better! BE SMARTER THAN THE MAN! Plan ahead, give yourself outs, and just in case, have a good lawyer on standby.
check these links to know your rights:
[THANKS T.M.]
http://www.refuseandresist.org/big_brother/100401knowrights.html
http://www.acluozarks.org/know.html
http://archive.aclu.org/issues/criminal/bustcardtext.html

hope this helps.

[hookitt 0]

http://www.refuseandresist.org/big_brother/100401knowrights.html
http://www.acluozarks.org/know.html
http://archive.aclu.org/issues/criminal/bustcardtext.html

My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

[Zennie 0]

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I've known it to range from "don't do that again, bad jumper"

Raises hand....

- Z
"Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

[TomAiello 25]

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...stiffest penalty handed out for BASE jumping busts...

Wow. Something bigger than the 90 days in the Federal Pen? What was it?

-- Tom Aiello

[email protected]
SnakeRiverBASE.com

[riggersam 0]

It seems to me that JV got some time for that one jump near the Mississippi River.. I can't remember how much.

[stilettodude 0]

I heard that J.V. did 4 mo for his moment of fun in St. Louis????? Don't quote me on that one but i will ask him next time i see him.
Philip

"HOW LOW CAN YOU GO?"