Fishing In Wrong Pond Could Lead To Tickets: Village Board

OSWEGO, IL — Fishing in ponds owned by homeowners associations could get residents ticketed by police, the Oswego Village Board decided.

Trustees unanimously approved a trespass ordinance at its April 22 Village Board meeting to allow Oswego police to immediately ticket people who don't follow an HOA's rules.

"Some HOAs don't want anyone fishing in their ponds, including their own residents, and some HOAs want to only allow HOA residents to fish," Chief of Police Jason Bastin wrote in a memo to the Village Board.

Previously, Oswego police could address repeat offenders through the state statute for criminal trespassing, but officers couldn't act unless they received a written notice of trespass and an HOA board member was on site to sign the complaint. Bastin said this was "problematic during working hours," when most incidents occur.

The ordinance bypasses the statute's "shortcomings," according to the chief's memo to the Village Board. Now, officers can ticket people who trespass when a "written notice forbidding such entry has been conspicuously posted or exhibited at the main entrance of the land or the forbidden part."

Trustee Kit Kurht cited concerns with children who don't know the rules being ticketed. Bastin said adults are the predominant offenders.

The goal is "to help protect the property and the damage to the property," Bastin said.

"This would be like any other ordinance," the chief said. "... It's zero tolerance; it doesn't give officers the ability to give somebody a warning to begin with. It really comes down to we've got a few ponds where ... the same people are coming back and fishing at them again and again."