Tennessee wildlife agency won’t appeal ruling that limits secret surveillance of private lands

A Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency vehicle. (Photo: John Partipilo)

The Tennessee Attorney General won’t appeal a court decision that found secret surveillance of private property by state game wardens to be unconstitutional.

The decision marks the end of a six-year legal battle initiated by two Benton county men who challenged forays onto their land by officers with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.

Terry Rainwaters and Hunter Hollingsworth sued the agency after finding hidden cameras on their respective properties, where game wardens also spied on them while wearing camouflage outfits and crouching in bushes.

Appeals court: Wildlife officers’ warrantless searches of private property are unconstitutional

TWRA officers have not sought permission from judges before entering private property, needed no supervisor approval, kept no record of their searches and conducted them based on the suspicions of an single officer.

The Tennessee Court of Appeals concluded in May the warrantless searches violated the Tennessee Constitution, which says that “the people shall be sure in their persons, houses, papers and possessions, from unreasonable searches and seizures.”

The court compared TWRA’s actions to the abusive tactics of British customs officials in colonial America. It concluded that state game wardens may not enter private property that is actively used without a warrant.

In its unanimous decision, the court also concluded that the so-called Open Fields Doctrine, which has traditionally allowed law enforcement to enter wild or waste lands that are left unused, does not apply to private lands that are in active use by its owners.

A 60-day deadline for the state to appeal the decision passed two weeks ago.

“The final victory has been a long time coming,” said Rainwaters. “For too long, TWRA officers have treated my private land like public property. But in Tennessee, our land just means more. It’s part of who we are. And to hear the court say our land deserves protections from TWRA’s warrantless intrusions makes me proud to be a Tennessean.”

State wildlife agency sued over secret surveillance on private land

The Tennessee men were represented by the libertarian-leaning law firm, Institute for Justice, which is challenging similar game warden practices before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court later this year.

TWRA is working with the Attorney General’s office for “further clarity on TWRA’s right to inspect hunters,” said Emily Buck, an agency spokesperson said this week.

The agency has long argued for the need to enter private property for hunting and fishing law violations and to protect wildlife. The vast majority of land in Tennessee is privately owned.

Buck said the agency will have new policies in place by the opening of dove hunting season in September and noted the agency already has a landowner consent process for property owners willing to allow game wardens onto their land.

“We learned a lot from this case and the public opinion we heard from Tennesseans,” Jason Maxedon, TWRA’s executive director, said in a written statement. “We appreciate the Court’s decision that Open Fields is still constitutional, and we will work diligently to ensure our officers are following constitutional law to protect wildlife and stop poachers.”

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