Don't kill the messenger but, I communicated with a Dallas County GW and he said that if you read the regs it says that having the bait > 100 yards and out of sight gives you a presumption of not hunting over bait. This presumption can be superseded by other evidence which would indicate that you are hunting over bait. The local judges seem to agree with him on this.

BTW, I have no dog in this fight since we don't feed during the season, therefore I have not read the regs about this. I'm just passing on what I was told. I do agree this whole mess is confusing and either allow bait or don't allow bait. Make it that simple. I fall in the don't bait camp simply because if you can't kill a deer in Alabama without corn, you don't need to be hunting. That, of course, is just an opinion of someone that doesn't really care one way or another.

As in Jerry Roach??

lets say this was my setup. You can clearly see the house and the shooting lanes. Let's say the circled area is 125yds away. I can put corn behind the trees on either side of one of the junctions. It would be out of sight and 100+ yds away. Now the way it's laid out and where it's put, there is a very high probability that any deer that goes to "secondary feeding station" will be seen by the hunter. Based on the way it's written the hunter would be totally legal right? However based on how squeakys conversation went that gw would right the hunter a ticket no questions asked? Way to much muddy water and way to many gw's interpreting it differently. It was definitely poorly written. However the bigger issue is that they are not all on the same page. If they are going to enforce it as it's written then everyone of them should have a rangefinder or a 100yd tape measure.


We don't corn at my place. For one you really don't have to and two if I corned up a feild one day there's a good chance that someone else will be or maybe hunting that stand or area tomorrow. Why waste my money on Corning up a feild so that the next guy can hunt it? Either legalize it 100% or make it illegal. It's really that simple.

I know the discussion is about Alabama law, but here in MS the above screen shot would be legal. 100 yd from a land line, 100 yd away, and not in sight of hunter. Feed/corn must be in a covered or spin cast feeder. If a warden can see one grain of feed/corn and see your stand you will get a ticket. Most of the wardens say they only look when they get a complaint.

Jawbone sounds like you spoke with the same GW we did. That is basically what he said to our group but a lot more questions and conversation was involved.

Looks like you could take it to a higher court and subpoena Chuck Sikes.

No Daniel. Allen Roach

I read somewhere tbat 80% of hunters are feeding corn, I wish they would come to aldeer and join up, we could use the membership. Since we are the 20% that dont, just think how rich Skinny could get if we grew 4 fold.

I've never seen a topic so hotly contested, and everyone says they don't do it, and don't care about it. Ya'll are full of sheit.

Yep. Also cite Alabama V. Phillips.

What does it state?

got ticket for using rainbow trout as bait. in court the regs state no native gamefish rainbows arent native to bama. it was thrown out. the law has been changed to adress that.

So... All those corn bags on the side of the roads come from the one's that say they don't do it . I do agree with you BTW.

im getting at is they will change the wording of laws and it will be even more messed up.

I'll try to remember, maybe Troy can help us. Several years ago I believe it was Archie Phillips and several others were caught hunting a "baited" dove field. Only a couple of folks knew it was baited. The group fought it all the way to Alabama Supreme court and won. The justices said those that had no knowledge weren't guilty as I remember. I'd think it could apply in many cases, but I'm no lawyer.

Say I'm hunting with Squeaky and they have feed out I can't see that's also 100+ yards away. That GW that thinks he can read a deer's mind and likes to write tickets contradictory to the laws and regs wording writes me. I'd think I'm in good shape on court day. Might see him in Montgomery but so be it.

Note I said "feed", feed is legal, bait is not.

Yep, that's the Cliff's Notes version. Basically, they were convicted in court, then an appellate court upheld the decision. The case was taken to the Alabama Supreme Court where it was overturned, based on some of them "not knowing" the field was baited.

it wasn't a dove field, was turkey bait.

Supreme court said GW had to show that the hunter "knew, or should of known" the bait was there.

internal directives from Montgomery reflect this ruling. Most seem to of forgotten those earlier directives.

Current laws/regs in Alabama wouldn't pass the state Supreme court because in all they are confusing and vague when taken together.

I don't know what % of hunters are using corn to some degree but the feed store in Woodstock on Hwy 5 is selling about 6 tons of corn a week!!!!

That's right...he was hunting turkeys. If I remember correctly, some of the wheat was already sprouting out of the ground, as well as quite a bit in seed form. Seems like Phillips was accusing his neighbor of throwing the seed out trying to get him caught, but I can't remember for sure.

Sure seemed like it was a helluva coincidence that he just so happened to be hunting in that exact spot without knowing the area was baited.

It wasn't wheat,he wasn't hunting the exact spot,it wasn't his neighbors! If you don't know the facts don't post what you assume is true. He purchased the property just before turkey season,the prior owners had given someone permission to hunt and he put corn out for turkeys. When Archie bought it he told the guy he couldn't hunt there so the guy told the game warden where he put corn out to get Archie in trouble. Opening day the game warden gave Archie a ticket for hunting over bait. Archie asked him to show him the bait and the warden told him he couldn't because it was gone but it hadn't been gone for 10 days. Archie had no knowledge of the bait or location therefore won in court.

Well, YOU need to take it up with the court system, because the court record 100% states that it was wheat, there was a large amount of it still on the ground as well as sprouting up, it WAS his neighbor, Phillips did claim his neighbor was trying to set him up, and it was March 31st (NOT opening day). I didn't remember the exact details, but apparently I remember them a lot better than you do...

http://caselaw.findlaw.com/al-court-of-criminal-appeals/1079123.html