A Virginia Golf Course owner is digging all the way back to a 1743 edict from the King of England to try to keep fishermen, including a man of the cloth, out a portion of the Jackson River that he apparently deems to be his.
The developer of the River's Edge Golf community in Covington, Virginia, claims that, based on an 18th century land grant, he owns the riverbed of the Jackson where it runs adjacent to his land.
Nevermind, I guess, that Virginia law states that all riverbeds belong to the people. A group called the Virginia Rivers Defense Fund is trying to fight for angler's rights to use that stretch of the river. You can read about their plight in greater detail on their site.
The developer originally brought criminal charges against three anglers, but when they were dismissed, he filed a trespassing civil suit.
The Defense Fund worries that a ruling in their favor could set a dangerous precedent for other Virginia waterways.
The developer was kind enough to dismiss their case against a fourth angler, Frank Garden. Why? Maybe because he's a pastor. How kind of them.
Using the word of a King to prosecute a man of the cloth…didn't that go out of style a few centuries ago?
-Rick Bach
Via: Trout Underground
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