Self Defense in Colorado, a commentary Options

[Coalbunny]

Self defense in Colorado, a commentary


Self defense is among the most essential and primal of human action. The very nature of it alone is what keeps us alive. It goes from something as small as the white blood cells that defend us from infection to the great military forces we have to defend America.

Self defense is not something that anyone should ever be refused. As seen in C.R.S. Section 18-1-704, Colorado recognizes the importance of self defense. And this is good. But can anyone be exempt from this law?

In a recent case a fellow miner, "Q", was arrested by USFS rangers and held against his will without the ability to utilize his Miranda rights and without cause. He was released later as the arrest was apparently to "defend" USFS personel from him. This was on USFS property, but on a mining claim that Q had legally obtained. Q had the neccesary documents to show that he was in compliance with STATE laws. But, was he in compliance with federal laws? Good question. but even then, *had Q physically defended himself, he would have been justified under C.R.S. Section 18-1-704*.

The so-called "Make My Day law" (C.R.S. Section 18-1-704) is not over JUST defending your home. It's not just defending your wife from rape. And it's certainly not just for defending your children from kidnappers. It's there for the COMPLETE self defense of an individual from the illegal acts commited by others.

We are not talking about just anyone, mind you. But those that intend on performing acts of illegal nature against you, your home AND your family as well as defend a third party from the same or similar threats. So if you're walking down Colfax Blvd. in denver and find a woman being accosted, you have the right to use whatever force is needed to defend her. Likewise, if you are on a mining claim, patented or unpatented, and you are under physical assault, you have the right to defend yourself and your personal property. Take note that I didn't say that you could defend your claim. THAT is a different can of worms.

In defending your mining claim you need to clarify a few issues before hand. Is it patented or unpatented? That is very important. If it is patented, yes. This is because it is no longer USFS or BLM ground and is considered by both the state and federal government agencies as well as the county the claim is in as private property. But an unpatented claim is still USFS or BLM, and to know the answer on that one must first consult with an attorney. But to defend property that is certainly yours, such as truck, trailer, generator, or ever your family and yourself is still there. You have that right so long as you are within the boundaries of the State of Colorado.

An arguement has been made that the "Against the Wall" laws and "Obligation to walk away" have to still be obeyed before defending oneself. I do not beleive this is so. And the last person you should ask is a cop or ranger. They do not know these laws and they know only enough to arrest a person. They aren't there to defend you. In fact, "law enforcement" is all they can do. Law enforcement does not have an obbligation to defend you if they are present during an assault. This has been proven in court repeatedly. They are the proverbial "clean up crew". They come in after it;s over and they clean it up and arrest anyone they feel needs it.

Please keep in mind that I am not a lawyer, so it's best to hire one to find out. I know what I have read, I can refer you to where you can find it, and I have "been there done that got the t-shirt".

Just make sure you know what the laws are, and watch your six!
Carl

[CP]

Well, in a way you are right, unpatented claims are still public lands and the claim owners have claim to the minerals. And you should always triple check all research for sure.......good advice!

What is wrong is, the word "lease" used in the context with claim ownership.........there is clearly a distinct difference between leasable and claimable minerals.
For instance coal is leasable where as gold is claimable, but a claim owner can lease his/her location claim to others......but it's not the same as "leasable" minerals concerning the government or mining rights for claimable minerals/gems.
A location or unpatented claim owner is just that......an owner. That person has claimed and owns (in a real property sense) the minerals or gems within that claim. Location claims are in fact real property that can be leased to others, sold, willed etc. They are also still public land in the sense that there isn't a deed to the claim owner for the land, but yet claim owners have exclusive rights of the land during mining....which is stated in the laws/regs. In other words, when filing plan of ops the claim owners then have a say so in what other activities are allowed as their ops may be disturbed which isn't allowed and or safety of the public is a concern as I mentioned earlier.
Location claims are still accessable to the public for other activities but propsecting would be claim jumping, and as long as those other activities do not disturb mining ops on that claim.

Pantented claims are entirely private land and today pantented claims are refered as just that....privately owned as they were actually deeded to the claim owners through the pantenting/perfection process in the past and they pay a tax on those lands each year.
Location/unpatented claims are not taxed by the federal government as there is no deed to the land.

Hopefully this explains it a bit better. I know there are quite a few other claim owners who read this forum and will be happy to jump in and correct me if I'm wrong.

CP