During Tuesday’s Farm Bureau delegate session, North Dakota will be seeking a change in the open fields doctrine. NDFB President Daryl Lies said this doctrine allows law enforcement officers to enter a farmer’s property without a search warrant. “We just want the same protections that the people in town have,” said Lies. “On a farm, if it is not attached to your house, such as your barn, your shop, your outbuildings, your pasture, they can come on that land without a warrant.” Lies said the ability to search all private land outside of the home without a warrant is being abused. The original objective of the open fields doctrine was national security, “but, now we have Game and Fish or the Department of Natural Resources abusing that and going on land and harassing landowners.” NDFB sees this as a private property rights issue.
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