JiveDash

Last month, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania ruled against two Clearfield County hunting clubs who had filed a lawsuit against the Pennsylvania Game Commission over surveillance issues.

The court found that the Game Commission was allowed to use cameras on the clubs’ property without a warrant because of legislation that dates back to the 1920's.

Now the clubs’ lawyers plan to appeal.

The Institute for Justice has been representing the Punxsutawney and Pitch Pine Hunting Clubs since December of 2021.

One of their lawyers told us that they now have an opportunity to take their case to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

Josh Windham, from the Institute of Justice, says that things are going according to plan, even after the court ruled against them last month.

He said there is a supreme court decision from 2007 that they are trying to overturn because it doesn’t provide any protection over these warrantless searches.

He said that decision was decided by a narrow majority and that there is good reason to re-examine the case.

He claims that the court cited a nearly one-hundred-year-old open fields doctrine, which says that privately owned land is entitled to no protection.

“What’s at stake here is all private land in Pennsylvania. We’re talking about well over 90% of privately owned property in the state and the question is whether the government can treat all of that land like public property or whether, instead, it has to respect the fact that people have fenced their land or put up no trespassing signs.”

Windham said that a date has not been set for them to appear in front of the state’s supreme court but that it will likely be sometime in early 2024.

6 News did reach out to the Game Commission, but haven't heard back from them.

ncG1vNJzZmivmpawtcKNnKamZ56axLR7y6iamqRfmLy2vtNmqa6klah6orPAoqWsrF2pxLB5z5pkoa2eqbavs4yco66ao2LEqbuMn6ClnZRiwLa102aYoJmZo8C1ecaapJ5lk6S6rrXSrKCopl2kw6a%2BjKysq66Vnrmtrc2cnGaZoKWyorjSZqelmZ6jsqU%3D