Trespassing fines

smithy1801 · 10 May 2014, 12:40 pm

So me and my mates went to this old building and exploring. Anyway we picked the wrong night to go cause a bunch of teens were holding a rave upstairs. We went to exit the building but we saw police near the door so we ran through the building but they had every exit covered and caught us. They took our names, numbers ect. It was just a warning but does this mean we can't explore and if we get caught it's gonna screw up the rest of our lives and affect our future jobs?

Jaffs · 10 May 2014, 1:02 pm

Certainly something to be aware of. I doubt this will mean much if you get caught another time, but that next time you might not get off with a warning. Any conviction isn't going to help you in life. Just make sure all you ever do is take pictures and have a look and nothing more. Much easier to say to the cops or a court "hey, we are just interested in having a look, we didn't damage anything, we weren't there to tag anything, the fence was already fucked and the door was open" rather than having spray cans or tools that can be construed as ones used for break and entry.

Nuggs · 10 May 2014, 1:49 pm

Sounds like you might have gotten off lightly.
They will probably check any of your past records now, if any.
However, there is a chance they will follow up on this and you'll have to go to court, most probably not though. Only if your record is already blemished, or you had stuff for graff on you.

A couple of good tips:
-Think of a good, harmless reason why you might be in that place (if possible), photography is the most common, though its still trespassing, you don't look likely to be a vandal etc.
-Never carry paint, or even a marker

If caught/questioned:
-Don't bullshit the cops, and be polite, helpful
-Give them your real name/address
-You don't have to answer any other questions, but if you pull that tactic when caught trespassing, they are likely to arrest you. So, best to be upfront, answer their questions.

Note this is only general advice, I'm not a lawyer, and the law differs from state to state.

Nuggs · 10 May 2014, 2:03 pm

Read this,

and (though you shouldn't have to worry about it) - this.

maggot · 10 May 2014, 9:08 pm

Running away from the cops is a pretty good indicator that you've been doing something you're not supposed to.

smithy1801 · 11 May 2014, 3:43 pm

Yeah haha all we were doing was taking pictures but we are teens so I guess they automatically associate us with being bad

cheers for the help guys

No+Pro · 11 May 2014, 5:47 pm

pesky youf

smithy1801 · 11 May 2014, 10:55 pm

yeah they wont be too worried about us hahahaha they will probably be more worried about the people upstairs with joint and who knows what hahaha but I was just concerned. we weren't doing anything but taking pictures and I think they could tell we didn't want trouble and even started having a laugh with us. they still said they needed our names for a field report and told us to get out of there.

theedge · 12 May 2014, 9:09 am

Did you hear any music from outside before you went in? I would have stayed away if I heard something was going on.

smithy1801 · 12 May 2014, 7:11 pm

Nah they were setting up and people outside probably saw others walking in

Kto · 13 May 2014, 12:39 am

That is quite unlucky. I never go during the night, you see *so* much more during the day and you're less likely to run into squatters/anyone/troublesome folk.

benderz · 13 May 2014, 12:05 pm

Some places are too public to go during the day so night is the only option.

I work with a few ex cops and have asked them, hypothetically of course, what they would do if I was caught in an abandonment. The answer is exactally what happened to you. Name taken and make sure that you are not doing any graff. One said that if I ran she would have pulled her baton out though, so I would prob advise against running again.

benderz · 05 Jun 2014, 11:45 pm

Continuing on my last post.

I got caught last night comming out of a factory. Apparently one is still in use and has security cameras. I was caught on camera and the police called the secuiry who gave my description.

They looked in my car and at my camera before taking my details and letting me lose. Any calm reasons I had for being there went out the window as soon as they pulled up next to me with flashing lights.

Fudoh · 09 Jun 2014, 7:51 pm

Ouch, were they just waiting for ya to come out to get to your car before they pounced? Them sneaky bastards

benderz · 11 Jun 2014, 5:06 pm

The factory was in an industrial estate with only 1 entry road. I saw a car drive down it, do a u turn and then drive away. I instantally thought security as there is no reason for cars to drive down the street.

I ran back to the car, jumped in and was about to take off when the police drove down the street. A minute sooner and I would have been gone.

No worries though, they let me off so was lucky.