Claim Jumpers, Altering Patented Mining Claim Boundaries Options

[Gold Hill Miner]

I have thwarted a claim jumper and an adverse possession. I am in possession of 6 survey plats showing the accurate location of my claim and 1 inaccurate setback line by an inexperienced surveyor and an incorrect Cadastral Survey/ meets and bounds survey from the BLM. I have been able to prove my claim jumper has rotated his claim 75' disrupting several mountain communities and 10 immediate adjoining parcels. I found what I needed buried in BLM case files that were missing listed documents/photos and also hidden in inaccurate case files. I am the 4th land owner since 2010 to have my claim locations fixed in my area. 4 other immediate land owners are next since I have completed my investigation. I am filing a lawsuit against this claim jumper. I have contacted the local authorities and I have contacted the BLM. I thought this was the BLM's fault. It was not.

What I am struggling with, is protection from the crazed claim jumper. I have also found there have been many land disputes over the mining claims in my area because of this ripple effect. The claim jumper claim is at the top of our mountain section. This has rippled into multiple mountain areas because the claim jumper altered his claim lines to encompass trespass issues on government land. The BLM, the County and the sheriffs department are not showing any accountability with this. All of us in the immediate area are filing the BLM letter to the claim jumper (ordering removal of trespass issue) and a recent survey showing the movement of many claims in our area by BLM to be inaccurate with the county planning department and with our deeds.

Who will finally arrest the claim jumper. His lawyer sent a letter wanting to settle out of court. Since I received the letter, the claim jumper has become more aggressive, destroys marked boundary lines and threatens my family continuously. Who will let the rest of our adjoining mountain communities know about this. I do have a TPO and will hopefully get a permanent one soon. My lawyer will be filing our lawsuit in July to recoup some of the damages caused by the claim jumper. I followed advise from a previous thread, took my land back, posted no trespassing signs and called the sheriff. Any of the remaining property in trespass on my land is mine now. How do I get this guy removed off the mountain. I can not believe the lack of accountability with the BLM, the County and the Division of Mine Reclamation. The Forest Service did help help me in 2011 and 2012 with survey equipment and we found every original stone corner monument for three of my parcels. No metal monuments unless they were thrown in mine shafts. We could see them. The forest service also proved all my GPS coordinates were a match to our county coordinates at the time. I have wasted a lot of time and money proving the same thing over and over again. No one wants to deal with this guy. I am afraid the claim jumper will cause serious damage with his bulldozer as he has in the past. Anyone remember Heemeyer in Granby or Kremmling?
On a good note, I have found my first gold flakes. At the rate I'm going it might be 10-20 years before I have an ounce. I am finding silver and gold in specific stones that have what I believe could be fluoride? It looks dark red and seems lucid or almost crystal like?

[Clay Diggins]

Thanks for clearing that up Gene. Now that you have shared the private status of the land in question (not a mining claim) the puzzle becomes clear. The original post seemed to indicate a mix of mining claims and patents. Your non legal advice is good information in my opinion.

Since there is no mining claim or "claim jumping" going on my previous information doesn't apply to this situation. This appears to be a private matter involving private property neighbors. If trespassing is involved the Sheriff would be the enforcement authority and if boundary disputes are involved it will be a matter for the courts. In both cases State law would be controlling, not federal law or agencies.

Perhaps clarity on the following points may help others in the future:

When a mining claim goes to patent it is no longer a mining claim it is private property. Being private property it is no different than any other private property, the BLM and other federal land management agencies no longer have a part to play in the former mining claim, now private land, status.

"Claim jumping" is the act of attempting to challenge a prior existing (senior) mining claim based on paperwork or technicalities. The courts have long frowned upon purely legal challenges to senior mining claims that are being maintained and occupied by their owners. Claim jumping does not often involve the theft of minerals and if it does the court must first resolve the adverse claim before mineral theft can be established.

"Higrading" is the act of stealing minerals from an active mining claim. Higrading is theft of minerals and is not a direct challenge to the validity of a mining claim.

Neither claim jumping nor higrading are terms that apply to private property. Virtually all of the private land in the public land states was once public land that has gone to patent. Where you live and work is patented land. Patented land = private land. Most patented private land was never a mining claim but in the cases where it was a mining claim that went to mineral patent the land is now private and is in no way a "claim" mining or otherwise.