Absent Maine Landowners: How to protect your land from Timber Trespass (Continuing Series)

Jo -- this is great, thank you. In particular, I like your advice NOT to put an out-of-state telephone number on the NO TRESPASS signs. You're right -- that would be like an engraved invitation to someone unscrupulous who wants your timber.

Thanks for this instructive series. Keep it coming!

“If you are still not sure, you can contact your local Maine State Forestry Department. They can help you locate your property markers.” Jo Woodworth

If, and I stress the word if, the State Forestry Department engages in offering this service, it seems problematic to me. In order for an employee of the State to ascertain where specific private property corners are, it would involve a fair amount of research beforehand. Deeds would have to be read and analyzed, and field work would have to be scheduled. Both time consuming activities. And unless trained and licensed surveyors are used, there would inherently be a question of certainty and accuracy over whether a found point is actually the point representing a corner or not.

If a Forest Service employee stipulates to a property owner that indeed a found point is what it appears to be, will the Forest Service defend that opinion in court on behalf of the property owner in the event it is challenged?

With property ownership comes some responsibility. If there is any uncertainty over where the property lines are, it is up to the property owner to takes steps necessary to nail down what they own. If that means they must fund a survey, then so be it. Then if an adversarial situation develops, a licensed professional can defend the findings on behalf of the owner. The State should not be in that position.

Good points, Northarrow. Thank you.

All good advice with one exception:

"Also, nail NO TRESPASSING signs with your local contact number"

Don't use nails. Use staples. Nails reduce the value of your trees and can injure the person operating a saw.

I know somebody who allowed his land to be harvested. There used to be nice old wood roads through the property from the days when wood was harvested with hand saws. The woods operator used those nice wood roads to slash and de-limb the logs. He left those trails choked solid with brush and slash. The landowner will not live long enough to clear out those old woods roads and make them pleasant walking trails again. There are some excellent foresters in Maine who can manage a harvest for you using your own long term goals. There are some skilled and responsible woods harvesters who don't leave a mess behind. You can learn who these people are in the local coffee shop. Don't go with the first answer you get. The person you speak to could be related to the woodcutter from Hell that ruined your land stole from you.

For some reason I don't understand, the Maine Forest Service will not warn you about irresponsible wood harvesters. It could be some political correctness condition they are afflicted with.

And keep in mind, whether you post your land or not, it is incumbent on the logger to know where the boundaries are and not to cut timber that a)isn't on the property being harvested and/or b) he isn't sure about it's ownership. A good forester knows this and should be able to locate and mark your property as part of the preparation for a logging job.

Wanna know how I learned that?
While I was being cross-examined by David Crane's attorney in my Civil Suit and he criticized me for not having my name or phone number on any of my numerous NO TRESPASSING signs. Knew then that was a dead give away to timber trespassers.

Thank you for your comment and this is exactly what I want to hear.
In my timber trespass against David Crane, MSF Ranger Courtney Hammond testified under oath that he had identified and marked my corner cedar post from my survey which David Crane cut down.

No, it is not the MSF Rangers job to mark property boundries. I put that in there b/c I wanted to get a response. They are not liable if they do this but, and I empathize BUT, they do know the lay of the land better than any other person b/c that is their job. They have access to better equipment and more resources than a surveyor.

You are correct. A property owner must be responsible but what if that responsibility makes them a target for timber trespassers? I had marked my propety with orange tape markers and David Crane followed my property lines to the 1/2 of a foot.

Roger, good point about the nails. I stapled until someone just kept tearing my signs down so I reverted to nails.

You are correct about the responsibility that the MSF Department should have to the general public when they approve a Harvest Application of a person who has been convicted of multipule timber trespasses. MSF Ranger Courtney Hammond allowed David Crane to forge the signature of the landowner on his Harvest Application which lead to my timber trespass. For those of you who want proof, I have the email from MSF Ranger Hammond to his boss, Mr. Bill Williamsom in Agusta, Maine where he admits knowing David Crane forged Mr. Robertson's signature b/c David Crane had presiously timber trespassed on David Robertson's property and the MSF Dept. had Mr. Robertson's signature.

Yes, there are more good people out there than bad but unfortunetly the few bad harvesters make all the harvesters questionable. A town office, the local MSF station, the Court house should all have a list of licensed, responsible foresters and harvesters in the area. In my series, I will be telling how to find a reputable harvester and forester and how to get paid for what the harvester is taking........

Thank you Bob.....that is coming up in my following series. A timber harvest should not be started w/out a compentant forester marking out the boundry lines of your property. It is even the land owner's responsibility to walk those property boundries with the harvester BEFORE the harvest begins. The designated agent is responsible for notifying the abbutting land owners of the harest BEFORE the harvest begins also. These are all steps that PROTECT everyone but what happens when you get a harvester who knows "How to work the system". They don't tell the land owners about these requirements until the land owner is in court and being held 1/3 or ALL responsible for the timber trespass. Mr. Robertson, the landowner who hired David Crane, died of cancer during trials and now his wife has a lien on thier property for $67,000.00 plus.

I am working with very reputable loggers/harvesters on how a harvest should be done correctly.

Operative word "good forester".......how do you find them? You go on-line to the Maine Licensing Board and find out which foresters have had complaints filed against them and then avoid them and those they work with. Go to the extent of calling that forester even and asking who he reccommends and then AVOID his reccommendations at all costs. There are many good foresters out there.

In my case, all the foresters and the loggers went way back and that is how my land became a target. "Good ole boy network" so to say so yes, ask in your local coffee shop but don't go to the first name you hear. It is to a land owners advantage, especially if you are an absent landowner, to take the time and research a good forester to mark your property boundries. As a landowner you should walk those boundries with your forester. It is my reccommendation to never hire "JUST" a logger/harvester. You should have BOTH. Loggers are not licensed by the State of Maine, they are not regulated by the State of Maine except when it comes to a harvest 75 feet from a stream/waterbody. Other than that, I have found no rules or regulations that are enforced by the State. Loggers march to a different drum. And the worse thing in my case, the State's case against Crane Contract Cutting, Inc. was labeled w/ the foresters name, Paul Gaddis so the court can't even pull up cases on Crane b/c the case begins with Paul Gaddis's name as he was the first found guilty.......poor computer programming but we are talking Washington County. You would think with all the "fines" David Crane has paid them, they could upgrade and join the 21st century. There is simply no way to research a logger but to interview them, at least 3. And I would stay away from a professional logger who wants to orginally meet you in the field. If he has a legit office then you have a place to go to find him when he cuts your wood and steals your money and won't return your calls.

My property and the road I own to it sounds much like your friends. It is so covered with 3 and 4 foot skid tracks, pooling water w/ alge and tons of slash. David Crane "cherry picked" my trees, leaving small trees or dying birch trees to become tinder. He cut down (10) huge piles of trees that he left to rot b/c he got caught and could not remove them from my property. The MSF Ranger deducted those (10) piles of trees from the original figure of $52,000.00 plus. No one feels I should be paid for those trees, even tho they were cut down against my will amd I was told by the Machias ADA that I could not take them off my property. Now isn't that a kicker? A dropped cigerette in a dry season with a stiff wind and hundred of acres are gone.

I want to expand on the last part of my series about contacting your abbuting landowners. When I grew up in Maine, everyone's door was always open, no matter who you were. House doors left unlocked, key in the autos ignition.......times have changed, even in Maine.

With the influx of out-of-state people coming into Maine and buying up property, while it may be good for the economy, it hurts most people who have lived in that area, many never leaving thier homestead. This has brought anger, outrage, break-ins and down right hatred for the out-of-state person.

I say this so you are not offended by what could be pure hostility....don't let that deter you b/c most Maine folks have good hearts, they just need to been softened up a little. Try to make friends, bring a peace offering your first visit, like a cake you bought at the grocery store or offer them a small fee to keep an eye out for suspicios activity on your land whether it is just land or has a house on it.Maybe give your neighbor a new address book that has all of your contact information in it, something pretty, colorful, not easily misplaced. Register your contact information with the local authorites in case they spot something on thier drive-bys, it saves the time of going to the town office. Get thier contact info AND follow up........every 3 or 4 months, give them a call and see how they are doing or their children or grandchildren......everyone enjoys talking about them. Be genuine and you will b/c friends soon. Send a christmas card with your contact information on it, just in case they lost your original info and can't get in touch w/ you.

My neighbor felt really badly b/c he had misplaced my contact info and had no way to get in touch with me b/c I DID NOT follow up. I tend to be niave and trust worthy and never expected this to happen to my property. Now I continue to call him, give him updates about my case, talk "shop talk" and I sent a gift certificate to a local resturant for him and his wife.

Find out the local MSF Department in you area and call or visit them to see if there are any Timber Harvest locations scheduled in you area or if there has been any trespass in your immediate area. Once the timber trespass starts, they can clean you out in a matter of days.

Visit your local county tax office and get thier contact information and make sure they have your information on file, every year. Very important to pay that property tax bill EVERY year, on time.

If you do have timber trespass on your property, have it re-appraised by the local tax office appraiser. It may not be much of a deduction but it adds up over time.

And you never know, your neighbors could be from out-of-state and have come to Maine to retire year round and you will enjoy a sense of comradely. My long winded point is this; your nighbors can be your best friends. Use your judgement when you meet them but try to pick someone that you can feel like you trust....you will have at least (2) abbutting properties, (3) or possibly (4). Exhaust all of your resources. And Good Luck!

Other comments or views happily recieved! : )

With the influx of out-of-state people coming into Maine and buying up property, while it may be good for the economy, it hurts most people who have lived in that area, many never leaving thier homestead. This has brought anger, outrage, break-ins and down right hatred for the out-of-state person.

Jo, I don't think the fact someone moves to Maine from out of state makes them somehow "bad" (aren't you a resident of Florida?). There are good neighbors and bad neighbors everywhere, and some have lived here all their lives and some just moved to town. While absentee landowners may be hard to contact or deal with, all you can do is try to contact the abutters and follow the rules for planning a harvest.

As for finding a good forester, recommendations are the key. Find other landowners who have had their land harvested and talk to their forester (assuming they were pleased with the service they received).

Also, several Maine wood products companies (Robbins Lumber in Searsmont is one, and I believe Hancock Lumber also) provide free landowner assistance programs through their own forestry departments, whether or not you're a neighbor, and whether or not you intend to sell them any timber. They offer it because they are good stewards of their own lands and they care deeply about the future of Maine's working forests. I believe there are folks at the Maine Forest Service who can direct you to other companies that also offer this service.

Lost of folks around here use aluminum nails for attaching signs to trees. I know the local snowmobile clubs do as well. They are more expensive than steel but don't wreck saw blades.

Thanks Bob for your suggestions, keep them coming.

My comment about out-of-state people moving to Maine and buying property was written from family experience. I am from Maine and much of my family remains there. Thier property values have soared b/c of houses and properties that are being bought up around them. I have had several discussions w/ ole time DownEasters who are very angry at the change AND the out-of-staters. I may live in Florida/Ohio but I own land in Maine and still consider myself a DownEaster regardless. I understand the world of change, I have lived in a large city for the past 30 years. Coming back to Maine is always like coming back home. I understand thier anger and I don't expect everyone to cozy up to an out-of-stater. I feel it really important to have a person around your property who you can depend on to call you when they see or hear something suspicious. Never meant Maine folks were bad neighbors...

As for finding a good forester.....recommendations are the key.......hmmmmmmmm......had I asked my neighbor in Steuben, Mr. Robertson, for a recommendation, he would have told me David Crane. The really funny thing about that is that David Crane timber trespassed on Mr. Robertson's a few years prior and Mr. Robertson dropped the charges and then hired David Crane, KNOWING HE WAS A TIMBER TRESPASSER????

I still think the best avenue is to go to the State web-site and check out Forester's personal profiles and then follow through with the MSF Ranger stations. They know the biggest offenders and yet they do not warn people about them???? I love your suggestion about Lumber yards who buy the timber. I will research them and get a list.

The safest tactic to a good Harvest is to interview more than one Forester and research the Harvester/Logger also. There are many good companies.....it only takes (1) bad apple to ruin the whole bushel....ayha!

Hey Rufus, Great suggestion. Anything that is better for us or the environment is always more expensive! Such is life.....

It's terriable that we even have to be forced to mark "our" property boundries to prevent trespass but again, such is life today. We create BULLS EYE's for the trespassers.

On my last trip to Maine, my third trip this year, I was dumb founded that there were so many house break-ins where thieves were stealing copper pipe and wiring.....makes me really, really sad that even though everything looks the same when I go home, things are really, really different.

I am still continuing my Series, just slightly behind.

I have had so much good advive that I want to compile it all b/f I begin.

That and my6 month Yorkshire Terrioer lost his"marble"s on Monday and I can only get on-line when he is sleeping, poor fella.

Keep your comments coming......Next topic: How to find a Forster. We have tools through the internet but I want to explore all the possibilities and included your comments.

Thank you!

When we lived in Washington County, we owned several small woodlots, in the 20 acre or so size. An abutting owner conducted a harvest on an adjacent lot. He cut 100 ft or more onto our lot, following the larger trees of course. We complained to the Forest service and the district supervisor came over to investigate.

He and I went up and walked the boundary using a GPS for accuracy and he determined that I was indeed right, that the guy had stolen some of our wood. He and I measured the stumps and counted the numbers. The forest service had a formula, using the number of stumps multiplied by the rate determined by the forest service, according to the diameter and the damages came to around $1250, not a major theft but an aggravating one for sure.

The district supervisor told me they he would contact the guy and present the bill to him. The guy who had done this, was a local that was well known to the forest service and LURC folks. He was known for not following the law......and making all kinds of threats. It turns out that they were kind of nervous being around this guy in a one on one situation. This happened around 2005 and we are still waiting for the bill to be presented and the money paid to us. Every time I encountered the ranger I would ask him about it and his standard answer was they he "hadn't caught up with him yet". We are still waiting.

We later cut our lots and eventually sold them so, to us, this was not a major thing as we left the area anyway.....for lots of other reasons. But the forest service did not help us with this at all.

I have been working in the woods off and on since high school in the early 1960's and have seen this happen often!

WC

Thank you so much for your story.....I understand your frustration, believe me. I am not sure what "rule book" Washington County reads but it isn't titled, "Justice".

The MSF s/h issued a citation, the ADA's office s/h filed a criminal case on the harvester and the man, would love to know his name, s/h been tried in a court of law....not that Washington has a court of law. If the man was abrusive and intimidating, he s/h been taken out right away but that doesn't sound like Washington County either. Maybe that is why Ellsworth sends thier timber trespass of David Crane to Machias, they don't want to dirty thier hands.....hhhmmmmm!

2005, you won't ever get anything if the MSF ranger never wrote the man a citation, the guy knows "how to play the system" and got away with it. Sorry for your violation and frustration but let it go at this point. Just contribute what you can to making a positive change, like telling your story. My aim is the have laws changed in Maine for Loggers/Harvesters, they get away with way too much stuff that even the landowner has to be responsible for. Contradicts everything I was taught growing up in Maine. Don't blame you for cutting your wood and moving on....it's a shame you had to do that.

I guess it is the fact that I have lived half of my life in Maine in the woods and the other half dreaming of going back there. This trespass has rocked me to my roots. And it was done by a person FROM Mine.... I am lucky in that I have liens on the landowner and the forester who pleaded guilty but the Judge wouldn't put a lien on the harvester, David Crane, who has had a revolving door at the Washington County Court house for YEARS.........hhhhmmmmmm. I will get some of my money back but it has come with a price. The stress of fighting this battle has given me high blood pressure and caused a stroke but I will not give up. Now the other victims, 18-20 ??, they won't get anything b/c they didn't put up a fight. At this point, I don't blame them. One day, someone will take the law into their own hands and this guy won't be in the woods anymore and HIS family will cry "Fowl". So far, they have had a FAT life based on stealing from other people's property. Hope they sleep well at night.

Part 2 "How to Hire a Forester"

As an absent landowner in Maine, whether you live ou-of-state and own Maine property or live in Maine and just own property in a different area from where you reside, especially if the land is in a remote area but easily accessiably, you need to be on-guard for a possible timber trespass, especially if their are no other houses around. This kind of property is a prime target to corrupt timber trespassers. They can go to the local town tax office and find out what your address is. They can go onto the property and strip your land in days and you won't know unless you get a phone call from the MSF Dept. or a neighbor and then it will be too late. If your property is a financial asset or an emotional asset, do everything you can to protect it.

It is relatively easy to go on-line and check for foresters in your area. The great thing about Maine is that all foresters NEED TO BE licensed by the Maine State Licensure Board and they are also regulated by the Maine State Licensure Board.

http://www.maine.gov/pfr/professionallicensing/professions/foresters/ind...

A licensed forester would be an individual you could hire to mark your boundries on your property if you do not have an original survey. Even if you do have the survey, you may not be able to mark your boundries properly. The location of your property will be in your deed and a good licensed forester will be able to read the deed and mark your property out. To hire a land surveryor is quite expensive. The alternative would to be to hire a licensed forester. I would make myself available to them and walk the perimeter of the property with him. The best time to do this, for your comfort, would to be in winter, when the ground is frozen, but without snow. Prepare to wear long sleeves, have bug spray (if warm weather), heavy pants like jeans, good boots and probably a hat so your hair doesn't get tangled in the tree branches. Virgen land can be choked with dead trees, dead tree limbs, boulders, small trees, ferns and other natural plant life that makes it difficult to walk. The cost and time is minimal when compared to a survey.

Before you go to your land with the forester, get a quote for what you want done. To just mark your boundries is a different price compared to getting a quote for a timber harvest. If intersted in a harvest, you could point out trees that you may not want to be cut and mark them with bright pink survey tape. Blue is used by realators and orange by surveyors so bright pink is safe. The forester can also count the types of wood and give you an estimate for the trees you want removed.

If you are making your boundries, the Maine State Forestry Department recognises painted orange, double slashes, / /, as proper land markings. I marked my trees with orange survey tape and served my land "on a platter" to the harvester who raped my property. I would have done it differently had I known then what I know now. I would make my marks less obvious to anyone but me and the forester. Pick a certain height, a certain area on the tree and make your mark so you will recognize your markings. Bring several cans of bright orange paint or tape, an axe if you want to axe blaze your line and a measuring tape to make your mark consistant.

I would take pictures or video of the markings on your property once you are done. I would also mark and photograph whatever things make your property special; natural habitats like a beaver dam, an eagle's nest, a stream, etc. I would post NO TRESPASSING SIGNS around these things along with around your property line. I would use cautin posting on out of state phone number or address on your signs.....this is a bull's eye to dishonest loggers and locals who "tip" trees for Christmas wreaths. It is not mandatory that you give this information on your signs, it's just letting everyone know to keep off. Your trespass case will stand up better in court when you have pictures of these things.

If you really want to keep your "eye" on your land, surveillance cameras have become very affordable, run on batteries and there are programs that allow you to view these cameras from monitars, via the internet. You can also put up fake surveillance cameras with signs. This is critical if your property is accessiable by any roads or trails wide enough for a trailor to go through. Where there is a will, there is a way and if there is even a remote chance they can get thier equipment on that road, they will make it happen. They are a greedy lot of men with no thought whatsoever to the environmental damage that they do when trying to cut down and steal wood as fast as they can without getting caught. The more remote, the better and the more money they will make.

Many people who have wooded acerage may just have gotten it from a family member who died and you may plan to past it down to your children. Some people actually work with universites to do studies on thier land concerning wood types or different species of animals. The government is very interested in sustainable forestry and you can actually get grants for certain things. If you have ever looked at a picture of Maine, there are alot of trees in this state with many different types of trees and many different types of animals. Some landowners may want to select certain hardwoods and harvest them for a profit. On a large piece of wooded acreage, some landowners may want thier own logs cut to build thier own log cabin. I have to say, I am not fond of people who clearcut thier property. This is a cruel and harsh way to one's forest to die. 90% of the trees can be removed and taken to mill for profit, leaving the land barron and the wild life on that acreage without thier home. This is devastating to the environment and I don't believe it should be allowed but Maine law does allow it, sad as it is.

Ok, so you have property and you would like to do a harvest on your property, for whatever your reasons. YOU have hired a licensed forester that you have checked out on the internet (general web search for foresters in your area; maine licensed forester hancock county, or with the Maine Licensure Board for Foresters. I would say the best Licensed Forester is one that has done a harvest for a friend or a neighbor and they are very happy and can give them a good reccommendation. You can locate the local mills in the area and get reccommendations from them. You can go to the local tax office and see if they reccommend any particular forester (s). I would get (3) names and interview them, preferrably in person. A good start is that the forester has a business card with (2) phone numbers; cell phone, home phone, business phone or a fax phone number. I would insist on (2) numbers and an address that you can locate them at. An email is a bonus. Many foresters start out with good intentions but if you have no way to contact them and they know it, then before long, your trees are missing and you are no longer getting your money. I know it sounds like it is alot of work, and it is, but it is in your BEST interest to be through. If you can meet your forester at his office, even better. You know then that he is pretty legit and you will have somewhere to go to when or if you have problems.

You can also just hire a forester to inspect your property, count the number of different kinds of trees on your property, identify landmarks such as natural habitats, streams, rivers, and any other types of bodies of water and write a narrative about your property. If you are out-of-state, offer them a fee to check on your property ervery few months. If you do not have family in the area or neighbors to keep an eye on your land, this is invaluable. And if he is a local forester, he may be in your area doing harvests with a logger so he will see your property on a regular bases. Unfortunetly, most licensed foresters, good foresters, are in high demand and you may have to wait awhile to get an appointment. This is a GOOD thing.

If you plan to do a timber harvest, no matter how big or how small, you should have a Licensed Forester. I would never suggest to hire a Logger without a Licensed Forester. No logger/harvester should be allowed on your property without your premission and that includes when you do hire a licensed forester. Until you have signed a contract with your licensed forester and proceeded with the other steps necessary to do a proper harvest, no one else should be allowed to come onto your land or given the location without your consent. A good licensed forester can take measurements and pictures and verbally explain your terrain and roads necessary for a harvester to know what he needs to know to give you a price for cutting down your trees and delievering them to the mill. I would discuss with the forester who he works with or reccommends as a harvesters and begin the researching and interviewing process all over again.

to be continued........ I have strong opinions about who should be the "designated agent" on a timber application and there are certain rules that must be followed prior to a harvest.......should YOU micro manage your own harvest or just get a third of the mill delievered costs?

As I have done with all my books, I begin with a list of definitions.......my bad I started without them. I had to learn these the hard way, many of us don't understand thier meaning and that is my whole reason for doing this series. So people in Maine will feel confident and comfortable going to the MSF Dept. and the DA's office with complaints and know they will get results because they know what they are talking about. THE IMPORTANT ISSUE IN PROSECUTING A PERSON AND WINNING FOR TIMBER TRESPASS; (1) OF THE (3) RESPONSIBLE PARTIES NEED TO BE CAUGHT ON YOUR PROPERTY STEALING! But being CAUGHT can mean a neighbor ( who's willing to testify ) sees them, someone photographs them, if you see them; immediately call the State Police if you think someone is on your property. You can call the MSF Dept., Sheriff's Dept.......whoever you can get in touch with that has authority. Do not confront them yourself! Take pictures if you have a camera or your phone has a camera but be safe. Call the authorities right away. And my suggestion would be to call the State Police FIRST. I know my neighbor met David Crane on his 4 wheeler with a shotgun when Crane first started the trespass and David Crane never went even 6 inches onto his property. David Crane should have known then he would have been smart to get off my property. Yes, I had given my neighbor my phone number and yes, I did call him several times a year but he claims he couuldn't find my number when they started cutting????? That's why I made such an emphasis about maintaining a good relationship with your neighbors. He also knew my Uncle who lived a mile from him and could have called him but I am from out of state and DownEasters just have that "frame of mind" about people who live out of state.

If you suspect someone on your property, my suggestion would be to call the State Police FIRST. After Davd Crane got caught on my property and I called my neighbor and told him about it, he called me a month or two later saying there was someone cutting on my property........he could hear them. I tried calling my contact at the MSF Dept. and he would not take my call so I called the State Police.....shortly after telling my neghbor that the State Police were on the way, another MSF Ranger called me and his comment was, "I better call David Crane and make sure it is not him cutting on the property." The cuttging ceased before the State Police arrived.

Things happen for a reason and it is not for us to question why. I just know for me, this is what I have to do to right David Crane's wrong and I have committed myself 100% to helping other people who live in Maine or live out of state protect their property from the David Crane's there.

Bump for reader.

To anyone following the David Crand and DEP thread;

REMINDER; you have until 5 pm today to email laura.welles@maine.gov your views on David Crane's lenient fine for being a repeat offender of destroying bodies of water during timber harvests and timber trespass. Thank you every one that took a minute to have thier voice heard about this man.

Bob, I wish you could read the court transcript of how the forester marked my property.....the man sounds ignorant but can't possibly be that ignorant, more like an intentional trespass and trying to cover his tracks b/c his harvester threw him under the bus. Gaddis used a tax map which was very explict in where Robertson's property was. BUT NO DEED.......DA? He walked the property, mine, and added orange flags to my existing flags ???, realized he came out to some blue berry fields and told harvester to call landowner to see if he owned blue berry fields, talked to some guy mowing his yard, someone working on lobster traps....on....and.....on.....to the point you felt bad for the guy being so stupid. And he was a Maine Licensed Forester.

Actually, the "Designated Agent" on a timber trespass is the person who, by Maine Statutes, shoulders all the responsibility for a timber trespass. And that was David Crane. The Maine Forest Service Ranger Courtney Hammond allowed David Crane to "forge" the landowners name on the Harvest Notice which enabled David Crane to then steal 17.9 acres of my property. If that 'Notice' had never been approved b/c #1) it was a forgery and #2) it was not filled out properly, I may still have my land. The Ranger knew there were bodies of water on Robertson's property and yet approved the Notice w/o making David Crane apply for a DEP permit which is mandatory ? ? ?

If EVERYONE just did thier job the way they were paid to do it and do it correctly, this timber trespass would never have gotten so out of hand.......4 or 5 ? other people were included along with my timber trespass in the days following the DEP violation of destroying the stream which was much more important than the hundreds of thousands of dollars that Crane stole and just walked right out of the woods with and has not paid any restitution to me.....oh, my bad, the DEP got their $8515.00 within days of Crane pleading guilty.

There has been NO due diligence in getting the 14-18 ? cases that David Crane pleaded guilty to trial and there certainly has been ZERO due diligence in making Crane pay restitution or GO TO JAIL!!!!!! This has been a very sad case of JUSTICE for all, except the victims.

while doing my 'GLOSSARY", I have found some great info:

"PROCUREMENT FORESTERS make up a large share of foresters. their job is to buy timber, typically for a sawmill or wood products manufacter, by contacting local forest owners and negotiating a sale. This activity typically involves taking inventory of the type, amount, and location of all standing timber's worth, negotiate its purchase, and draw up a contract for purchase. Next, the forester subcontracts with loggers or pulpwood cutters for tree removal and to aid in laying out roads to access the timber. Throughout the process, foresters maintain close contact with the subcontractor and the landowner to ensure that the work meets the landowner's requirements and Federal, State, and local environmental regulations."

Ideal timber harvest.

In my case, it was the Maine Forest Service having to watch the logger, even marking the corner of my property at one point!!!!
The whole thing is so "clouded by error" that it isn't even funny......it's totally obsured.