Shooting on your property

zaphod07 · Sep 17, 2015

So I had heard about a article that stated the ST Marys county sherrif had stated that there is no restriction to shooting on your own propery. So with some searching I found this.

http://firstsheriff.blogspot.com/2015/08/sheriffs-office-response-to-target.html

platoonDaddy · Sep 17, 2015

Don't know about St. Mary's, but Calvert Co has a 150 yard restriction.

My friend in Calvert County was visited by the Sheriff's Department and informed of the 150 yards of a dwelling is illegal in Calvert County. His new neighbor who moved in from MoCo turned him in for shooting on his own property.

Friggin libs screwed up one county and now moving into farm country with their agenda. How sad.

engineerbrian · Sep 17, 2015

platoonDaddy said:
Don't know about St. Mary's, but Calvert Co has a 150 yard restriction.

My friend in Calvert County was visited by the Sheriff's Department and informed of the 150 yards of a dwelling is illegal in Calvert County. His new neighbor who moved in from MoCo turned him in for shooting on his own property.

Friggin libs screwed up one county and now moving into farm country with their agenda. How sad.

Same thing happened to my neighbor. The new residents "feared for their life", or at least that’s what they told the Fred Co Sherriff’s Deputy. The Deputy told them to get used to it because he was shooting legally.

Funny thing was they were jsut shooting .22's, but once the neighbor starting bitching he broke out the center fires :lol2:

byf43 · Sep 17, 2015

zaphod07 said:
So I had heard about a article that stated the ST Marys county sherrif had stated that there is no restriction to shooting on your own propery. So with some searching I found this.

http://firstsheriff.blogspot.com/2015/08/sheriffs-office-response-to-target.html

A very good friend of mine has a house and several acres in St. Mary's.

He's got a 25 yard, 50 yard, and 100 yard 'range' marked off, in his back yard. (And has adequate backstops/berms.)

One neighbor called the St. Mary's Sheriff.

The deputy that showed up said that he was fully compliant and legal.

traveller · Sep 17, 2015

byf43 said:
A very good friend of mine has a house and several acres in St. Mary's.

He's got a 25 yard, 50 yard, and 100 yard 'range' marked off, in his back yard. (And has adequate backstops/berms.)

One neighbor called the St. Mary's Sheriff.

The deputy that showed up said that he was fully compliant and legal.

The SAs rep also said that if you start building an actual range you may be subject to public nuisance actions based on regs relating to sporting ranges.

tkd4life · Sep 17, 2015

Luckily St. Mary's county is very good with shooting on private property. I've not really heard of anyone getting shut down.

K31 · Sep 17, 2015

byf43 said:
A very good friend of mine has a house and several acres in St. Mary's.

He's got a 25 yard, 50 yard, and 100 yard 'range' marked off, in his back yard. (And has adequate backstops/berms.)

One neighbor called the St. Mary's Sheriff.

The deputy that showed up said that he was fully compliant and legal.

And came back later with his own toys!

MMartini1969 · Sep 17, 2015

Does anyone know the restrictions for Frederick Co.? South of Route 70. I get mixed information.

thanks.

zaphod07 · Sep 17, 2015

Yeah this is that reg
§ 5-403.1.
(a) In this section, "sport shooting range" means an area designed and used for trapshooting, skeetshooting, or other target shooting.

(b) This section applies only to private nuisance actions and does not apply to public nuisance actions.

(c) If there has been no shooting activity at a sport shooting range for a period of 3 consecutive years, the date of resumption of shooting activity is considered the date of the establishment of a sport shooting range for purposes of this section.

(d) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, a person may not bring a civil nuisance action for noise against a person who owns, operates, or uses a sport shooting range located within the vicinity of the property of the person bringing the action if the sport shooting range was established as of the date the person acquired the property.

(2) This section may not be construed to limit a nuisance action against a sport shooting range established on or after June 1, 1997.

traveller said:
The SAs rep also said that if you start building an actual range you may be subject to public nuisance actions based on regs relating to sporting ranges.

traveller · Sep 17, 2015

zaphod07 said:
Yeah this is that reg
§ 5-403.1.
(a) In this section, "sport shooting range" means an area designed and used for trapshooting, skeetshooting, or other target shooting.

The way I read this (and I have no idea whether there is legal precedent in MD to support my assumption), you are fine if you go in your 10acre backyard, put up a portable target-thrower and bust some clays a couple of times a year.

However, if you come out with a D6,
- plow down 100yrds of trees,
- build a berm made from 99yards of dirt,
- put up target-stands,
- build a covered shooting house

....and every weekend you have 20 of your closest friends over to blast away with their .338 WinMags and full-auto M16s,

... you may find yourself at the receiving end of a nuisance suit.

The way I read it, the dedicated facility built for target shooting is what gets protection (or lack thereof) under that reg. There is no reg about shooting per-se.

As mentioned, Calvert has a county ordinace that pre-dates 1986 that restricts firearms discharge within 150yrds of a residence. Anywhere else in thestate that doesn't have such a regulation, you are only restricted from discharging a firearm for hunting purposes within 150yrds of a residence.

fidelity · Sep 17, 2015

MMartini1969 said:
Does anyone know the restrictions for Frederick Co.? South of Route 70. I get mixed information.

thanks.

I thought the South of I-70 concern only pertained to deer hunting restrictions in Frederick County during firearms season (pistol fine through-out, rifle or shotgun north of I-70, and shotgun south of I-70).

The last that I checked (which was for scouts with pellet guns), in Frederick County outside of Frederick City, with adequate backstop, you are good to go. Forget if there's a 150-yd (or 500 ft depending on the ordinance) from dwelling or roadway restriction.

bigdv · Sep 17, 2015

Wonder where the 150 yards is measured. From where you shoot? Or where you are shooting to???

JPG · Sep 17, 2015

platoonDaddy said:
Don't know about St. Mary's, but Calvert Co has a 150 yard restriction.

My friend in Calvert County was visited by the Sheriff's Department and informed of the 150 yards of a dwelling is illegal in Calvert County. His new neighbor who moved in from MoCo turned him in for shooting on his own property.

Friggin libs screwed up one county and now moving into farm country with their agenda. How sad.

Last weekend a neighbor was shooting Tannerite (I know:roll eyes

, everyone heard it Sheriff didn't show up. Some Deputies have shot the stuff at the same place in the past. In some places, we are still country and neighbors don't have a second guess at gun shots or explosions. Attitude is let people "have fun".

BradMacc82 · Sep 17, 2015

JPG said:
Last weekend a neighbor was shooting Tannerite (I know:roll eyes, everyone heard it Sheriff didn't show up. Some Deputies have shot the stuff at the same place in the past. In some places, we are still country and neighbors don't have a second guess at gun shots or explosions. Attitude is let people "have fun".

The handful of neighbors I have, have no issue with me occasionally lighting off a few rounds here and there. They know I'm shooting into a safe zone, and I don't wear my welcome out.

Test a new build, or a new load - no problem. Complete mag dumps or hours of shooting - I hit the actual range now.

OEH · Sep 17, 2015

zaphod07 said:
So I had heard about a article that stated the ST Marys county sherrif had stated that there is no restriction to shooting on your own propery. So with some searching I found this.

http://firstsheriff.blogspot.com/2015/08/sheriffs-office-response-to-target.html

Was that you in Dicks Sporting Goods? :innocent0

guthook · Sep 17, 2015

At my old place I St. Mary's I had a neighbor that could smell my guns being pulled out of the case. Cops were there after 3 rounds the first time. (Sighting in a shot gun.) The officer announced himself, asked what I was doing and I answered politely. He saw my backstop and said "Carry on".

The second occasion after a good session, 2 officers showed up. One was laid back, the other was flying off the handle. The first officer took a look at the back stop and gave a thumbs up. The second was freaking out, scrambling around the backstop and surrounding woodlands searching for ANY signs that we somehow missed the entire backstop. When he could find no wrongs, he felt compelled to lecture us about the dangers of "...possibly missing the target and shooting some hunter or kids in the woods (one of the largest wooded farms in Northern St. Mary's). They wouldn't find their body until the vultures were circling"...and all that shit. The first officer was rolling his eyes and giving the universal "he's crazy" sign behind his back.

#2 says he didn't find any signs of a miss, but he "...Didn't check Everywhere and was sure he could find some evidence if he looked harder." His partner thanked us for co-operating and gathered up his frazzled partner still cussing under his breath. Not sure who shit in his hat that morning, but I'm sure my neighbor embellished a nice, ugly scenario for him to get them there fast.

Anyway, what I took from it was, the officers stated:

{officer #1} "Just get a dump truck load full of dirt for a backstop and there isn't anything they can say about (shooting), until it gets dark."

Since I moved, it's pretty much what Brad said. My new neighbors are cool. We have a network for calling each other before we pop off rounds. :thumbsup:

.

johnnyb2 · Sep 17, 2015

Does anyone know the laws in Carroll County, or, is that 150yard rule state wide?

traveller · Sep 18, 2015

johnnyb2 said:
Does anyone know the laws in Carroll County, or, is that 150yard rule state wide?

Look in your county ordinances.

Calvert has a 150 yard rule on the discharge of firearms for any purpose.

The State has a 150 yard rule on the discharge of firearms for hunting purposes.

fidelity · Sep 18, 2015

I checked on Frederick County. There is nothing the restricts distance from roadway or dwelling when shooting on private property. The 150-yard rule only applies to firearm hunting. As I mentioned, in my previous experience, the only thing that MDSP advised me to do was ensure there was an adequate backstop.

Note, the city of Frederick is an exception in the County. No firearms can be discharged within city limits.

As a previous poster noted, there may be other municipalities with restrictions in the county as well ...

http://www.mdshooters.com/showpost.php?p=1433722&postcount=4

rico903 · Sep 18, 2015

I read somewhere recently that the antis now want the 100-150 yard restriction of any dwelling to apply to the shooter's house also. Sheesh.

Shooting on your property

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