Don't think the same crap couldn't happen here in northern Utah! It does! Our State, County and local City governments infringe on more private property rights than we can even count! Time to put a stop to it! Video is below and it is very disturbing to see how elected government and employed government officials act. They have complete contempt for individual rights and the constitution. In Cache County and surrounding areas, they try to cover it up by saying "it's the right thing to do."

That was an interesting video. There were three people in it, and each of them did some things right and did some things wrong. For example, the property owner did well by recording the encounter and not physically threatening his visitors. He hurt his cause by making more vague references to constitutions than to specific code, not understanding how the code related to his specific situation, and coming across as greedy. The cop did well by standing his ground (he was legally allowed to be there) and calling for backup. He did poorly by making the faulty and irrelevant "if you have nothing to hide, you have no reason to deny us access" argument. The inspector did well by bringing the deputy, but she probably should have made sure whether she needed a warrant before exploring the property like she did.

In the end, the Indiana State code is clear that the officer was not trespassing, but it is difficult to tell whether the inspector was trespassing. Ultimately, the most that the property owner will be able to accomplish would be to make any evidence gathered inadmissible since it was improperly gathered. He might be able to sue the inspector for any actual damages that she made to the property, but that's not likely to be for much.

I get the sense that most people, and especially most people at this site, grossly misunderstand their legal rights as property owners. Before you try something like this, I would suggest that you seek some professional legal advice about what your specific rights are in that situation. If you are going to record the exchange, then I would suggest that you narrate as little as possible, limiting your narration to strictly factual statements (e.g. "She has just crossed over the property line," which is factual instead of "She has just trespassed," which is a legal statement) about things that aren't clear from watching the scene on tape. I suspect that you would do best to avoid the word "trespass" entirely, sticking to simple phrases such as "I do not give you permission to enter this property" and "please leave this property."

By the way, there are some interesting sites about this video. This one (http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=151x6014) points out that the health inspector was there for a lawful purpose and did not view anything that was not out in the open, so there was no trespass or illegal search. This one (http://the-post-postmodernist.blogspot.com/2007/05/indiana-sheriff-allows-illegal-trespass.html) cites another section of code that gives health inspectors the right to enter property to inspect, along with a few dissenting opinions of people who don't think that she met the criteria in the code (I suspect that she did--she showed proper ID and was there for a purpose that was explicitly stated in the code). This site (http://freedom4um.com/cgi-bin/readart.cgi?ArtNum=32963&Disp=14&Trace=on) appears to be the writings of the property owner on the situation. If so, the property was burned?, condemned?, and attempted to be sold at auction. He also called on the state militia to restore the Constitution.

Good times.