State v. Gaulke

Following an eviden-tiary hearing, the trial court dismissed the actions because the warden had trespassed when he issued the citations, his trespass was not privileged in that he had no articulable suspicion that a violation of law had occurred, might occur or was occurring when he entered the land, and the game law violations were minor.

Whether trespass by a warden on private land without such a suspicion is a defense in a forfeiture action by the state for violation of the game laws requires application of the law to those facts. That raises a question of law. See State v. Maloney, 161…