Judge Sides With DNR Officer in Michigan Hunters Property Rights Case

[00:00:00]In another flashpoint between private landowners and wildlife enforcement, a federal judge has dismissed a civil rights lawsuit brought by Michigan deer hunters, Denison and Denae Vanderlaan, against DNR conservation officer Cameron Wright. The encounter happened on the opening day of Michigan's 2025 firearm deer season. The Vanderlaans were lawfully hunting from an enclosed blind on their own property when officer Wright entered the land without a warrant responding to a neighbor's complaint of hunter harassment. The couple recorded the entire interaction and later posted online. In the video, they showed valid licenses, full compliance with regulations, and the officer even told them they were doing everything right. Yet, he still said he'd file a report with the prosecutor.

[00:00:44]You see, the Vanderlaans aren't coming into this with very clean hands. Court records show they previously pled guilty to a misdemeanor for interfering with a lawful hunt just one season prior. With a history of neighborly disputes about hunting, it becomes plain to see that officer Wright wasn't on some random expedition fishing for excuses to bust the law-abiding duo. He was instead responding to a pattern. The couple filed both federal and state lawsuits alleging Fourth Amendment violations.

[00:01:14]The state case challenges the application of the federal open fields doctrine under Michigan's Constitution arguing that officers should need a warrant, consent, or clear exception to enter posted private hunting land. Just last week, US District Judge Robert Jonker granted qualified immunity to officer Wright on the federal claims ruling the video showed him acting in good faith to investigate a harassment complaint amid conflicting accounts leading the Vanderlaans to appeal to the Sixth Circuit. Their attorney says the case is bigger than just one encounter.

[00:01:48]The federal appeal focuses on what happened after the officer entered the property while the parallel Michigan challenge questions whether the government should be allowed to enter private land without a warrant in the first place. From where we sit, private property rights should be damn near absolute. Yet, this case forces uncomfortable question. When a neighbor files a legitimate harassment complaint backed by the Vanderlands prior guilty plea for interfering with a lawful hunt, does that not give an officer enough reasonable suspicion to step onto the land and investigate? The open fields doctrine has long been a judicial shortcut that feels increasingly outdated in the age of trail cameras, cell service, and body cams. But, at the same time, hunter harassment is real, illegal, and corrosive to the sport.

[00:02:33]Using your own land as a cover to screw with neighbors who are simply trying to hunt legally turns property rights into a shield for petty The unfortunate reality for our conservation officers is that they get stuck in these no-win referee type roles during peak season sorting good-faith hunters from those willing to poison the well for everyone. The appeal should be worth watching.