Folks, Don't Be This Guy

[Mr. Bassin II]

Farmerville man arrested for battery, harassment of Lake D'Arbonne fishermen

Ditta allegedly poured gasoline on anglers legally fishing near his dock

FROM NEWS REPORTS   June 08 at 2:39pm

 

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Enforcement agents with the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries arrested a 64-year-old Farmerville man on Tuesday after he allegedly confronted fishermen legally fishing in front of his property and dock on Lake D’Arbonne — and poured gasoline on them in an attempt to get them to leave.

 

Agents arrested Vincent Ditta for simple battery and harassment of fishermen, according to a press release.

Three people complained to the LDWF on May 31, after they said Ditta threw gas on them while they were fishing in Lake D’Arbonne. Agents investigated, and found the anglers were legally fishing in front of Ditta’s property and dock when he allegedly poured gasoline on them from a handheld gasoline tank, the release states.

After getting a positive identification from the fishermen, agents arrested Ditta June 5 and booked him into the Union Parish Detention Center, according to the release.

Simple battery brings up to a $1,000 fine and six months in jail. Harassment of people lawfully fishing carries a $100 to $350 fine and up to 60 days in jail, the release states.

[A-Jay]

When priorities are out of whack ~ 

A-Jay

 

[Sam]

The crazy guy is a Toolame fan.

[NHBull]

If a man on a dock pours gas on me, that puts him at 3-4 meters........I wouldn’t miss!

[Darren.]

Edited June 14, 2018 by Darren.
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[Mr. Bassin II]

1 hour ago, NHBull said:

If a man on a dock pours gas on me, that puts him at 3-4 meters........I wouldn’t miss!

Knowing how the ol'baws down here can be, would not have been surprised if this would have happened.

 

Actually, about five years ago, on the same lake, a landowner did fire at two fishermen for fishing around his dock similar to the guys in this article.  Luckily no one was injured and the landowner was held responsible for his actions.

 

On another note, the fishing on this lake justifies these risks.   

[greentrout]

Confrontations like this happen on the La./Ms. marsh...No wake zone be careful... good fishing...

[OCdockskipper]

The thing that caught my eye is that the guilty party is 64 years old.  How in the world do you live this long on this planet and still 1) Get mad at other people fishing near your dock & 2) Think it is a good idea to throw gasoline on anyone?  If a 20-something had done it, I could have understood and chalked it up to stupid youthful bravado.  But 64?!?  C'Mon man...

[Angry John]

And this my friends is how you get killed.  Try that in Texas and you will not get a second chance to harass anyone.  Cooler heads prevailed in this case but the land owner was lucky.  

[Bluebasser86]

Had a way overserved, (and overstuffed), fella tell me and gardnerjigman to "Get out of here, we don't need you crowding us", when I guess he felt we got too close to his dock. There was a couple in a pontoon floating off the end of their dock talking back and forth so I tried to go around the back side, off towards the middle of the lake, but drunk #2 that was driving the boat started it up and began backing towards my boat, so I cut to the inside and kicked the motor up on 100% right before he threw it into ramming speed full speed ahead towards the dock. That's when the guy on the dock, who's shirtless stomach was about longer than his shorts, decided I was "crowding them", even though if his eyes hadn't been glassy and watering so bad, he probably could have seen I was just trying to avoid getting run into by his drunk buddy in his "vintage" (see also piece of junk), pontoon. It's really rare to have anyone say anything around here, usually it's the opposite where they want to know if you're catching anything and will even point out areas around their docks where they've seen fish. My BIL and I even had a conversation with a guy at 1AM who stumbled down to his dock from his backyard party to ask us how the fishing was and poured his heart out that he couldn't catch anything and wanted to know what he needed to do to catch a fish. I doubt he remembers what I told him, but it was funny that it was eating at him bad enough that he left his party to come talk to us about it. 

The rare times I've encountered a dock troll, I just move along, it isn't worth the hassle to me. Neighbors shoot each other over grass clippings getting blown into their yards and now gas getting thrown on people for fishing public water, nope, no little green fish is worth that to me. Kansas does have harassment laws though that you can't harass or interfere with a legal hunting or fishing party and I've heard of it being enforced. That would be the only advisable course of action if someone was being a problem. 

[TOXIC]

They could have charged him with willfully dumping fuel in the lake as well!!  

 

I error on the side of submission to avoid conflict but I also fish the Potomac where confrontation is a daily occurrence.  Sometimes you just can't avoid it.  

[NYWayfarer]

9 hours ago, OCdockskipper said:

The thing that caught my eye is that the guilty party is 64 years old.  How in the world do you live this long on this planet and still 1) Get mad at other people fishing near your dock & 2) Think it is a good idea to throw gasoline on anyone?  If a 20-something had done it, I could have understood and chalked it up to stupid youthful bravado.  But 64?!?  C'Mon man...

Sounds like Dementia to me.

 

Harassment on the water is no joke. I had two boats tailing my kayak this weekend. They would anchor less then 20' away from me every time I stopped anywhere. I am one of those rare folks that do not target docks anymore. My aim is not the greatest and I do not want to damage anyone's property. I tend to avoid populated fishing areas for more rural ones.

 

My shadows could clearly see I was casting away from shore, looking for deeper pockets yet they continued stalking me until I moved to where there was no shoreline property. I have had issues in the same areas from boaters mad  that I am in their spot. I rarely if ever anchor. Most of the time I stay less than 20 minutes in one spot. It's quite frustrating.

[Gundog]

My opinion is the boaters did the right thing in this case. Reported the individual to the proper authorities and didn't escalate the situation. There are a lot of crazy people out there. I know some people say they would have shot the man. The legal ramifications of that are huge. Even if you are justified legally that doesn't mean you get off free. There are lawsuits that have bankrupted people who were, by the law, in the right. Not to mention the stress of any investigation hanging over your head. Not worth it.

5 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

no little green fish is worth that to me

^^^Bingo. Be careful out there. Remember its suppose to be fun. If someone is trying to ruin that fun, move along. 

[Glaucus]

1 hour ago, Gundog said:

My opinion is the boaters did the right thing in this case. Reported the individual to the proper authorities and didn't escalate the situation. There are a lot of crazy people out there. I know some people say they would have shot the man. The legal ramifications of that are huge. Even if you are justified legally that doesn't mean you get off free. There are lawsuits that have bankrupted people who were, by the law, in the right. Not to mention the stress of any investigation hanging over your head. Not worth it.

^^^Bingo. Be careful out there. Remember its suppose to be fun. If someone is trying to ruin that fun, move along. 

Wouldn't be hard to justify shooting the jerk at all. Poured gasoline on people who would then fear for their lives thinking he was gonna spark a flame.

[Gundog]

19 minutes ago, Glaucus said:

Wouldn't be hard to justify shooting the jerk at all. Poured gasoline on people who would then fear for their lives thinking he was gonna spark a flame.

If you ever get to talk to a trial lawyer I think you would believe differently. I got to talk to one when a relative of mine was involved in a shooting. The lawyer basically told me that even if he was justified he could still be convicted of the shooting or a huge number of other crimes that range from discharging a weapon near a residence to disturbing the peace. Most of which could lead to him losing lots of money, his job, hunting license and freedom even if he wasn't jailed. House arrest, monitored release or what ever you call it doesn't look like fun to me. All I'm trying to say with my posts is THINK BEFORE YOU ACT. Don't be like the guy with the gasoline because then you become no better than him.

[D3FT]

Ok, pouring gas on someone is bad, but why (legal or not) do you need to fish so close to a persons property that they can pour gas on you from a hand held gas can?  

[NYWayfarer]

3 hours ago, Glaucus said:

Wouldn't be hard to justify shooting the jerk at all. Poured gasoline on people who would then fear for their lives thinking he was gonna spark a flame.

I can see the news now. 64 year old man shot dead after pouring gasoline on angler near his dock. Consequently the angler burned to death as the muzzle flash from his gun discharge set the gasoline on fire.

 

Darwinism at it's best.

[OCdockskipper]

49 minutes ago, D3FT said:

Ok, pouring gas on someone is bad, but why (legal or not) do you need to fish so close to a persons property that they can pour gas on you from a hand held gas can?  

No one "needs" to fish close to a dock, nor do they "need" to fish a certain cove or lake for that matter.  Heck, those of us who practice catch & release don't even "need" to fish at all.

 

However, there are many legitimate reasons why someone would "want" to fish close to a dock.  Common sense and basic etiquette tell you not to crowd someone who is using a dock, even if they are just relaxing in a chair on it.  However, if the dock is unoccupied, there should be no issue with someone fishing close to it, needs have nothing to do with it.

 

Mark Zona had a funny skit utilizing Greg Hackney about this subject.  Good manners & a pleasant disposition will work with the 99% of the population who doesn't consider gasoline to be a cologne.

[the reel ess]

On 6/13/2018 at 7:41 PM, NHBull said:

If a man on a dock pours gas on me, that puts him at 3-4 meters........I wouldn’t miss!

Think about that. You have gasoline on you and you're going to fire a FIREarm.

17 hours ago, OCdockskipper said:

No one "needs" to fish close to a dock, nor do they "need" to fish a certain cove or lake for that matter.  Heck, those of us who practice catch & release don't even "need" to fish at all.

 

However, there are many legitimate reasons why someone would "want" to fish close to a dock.  Common sense and basic etiquette tell you not to crowd someone who is using a dock, even if they are just relaxing in a chair on it.  However, if the dock is unoccupied, there should be no issue with someone fishing close to it, needs have nothing to do with it.

 

Mark Zona had a funny skit utilizing Greg Hackney about this subject.  Good manners & a pleasant disposition will work with the 99% of the population who doesn't consider gasoline to be a cologne.

I'm not saying the guy was in the right in any way whatsoever. But there are illegitimate reasons to get very near other people's docks too. The guy should have done what i used to do and watch the fisherman. Let them know you're there and speak respectfully. Ask how it's going or if they ever catch anything from your dock. Being belligerent just makes them dig their heels in. I always wanted to learn something too. If he wanted them to leave he could have just made noise on his dock.

 

In SC people can actually walk on your dock and there's no legal right to tell them to get off. There are docks I used to get out on to jig for crappie if no one was home. But people being people will often do whatever they can get away with when no one's looking.

[Chuck Popeeye Moser]

1 hour ago, D3FT said:

Ok, pouring gas on someone is bad, but why (legal or not) do you need to fish so close to a persons property that they can pour gas on you from a hand held gas can?  

 

really!.  fishing under docks is part of the game. SOB thriws or pours gas on me, get 1 warning.  Next throw, dead thrower.

[LonnieP]

1 hour ago, D3FT said:

Ok, pouring gas on someone is bad, but why (legal or not) do you need to fish so close to a persons property that they can pour gas on you from a hand held gas can?  

They were fishing on public property, even if they were close to the dock. Totally legal. 

[Todd2]

This dude is crazy and this is not a defense but I stay away from docks if there are people there or if they have their boat in the slip. I see too many fisherman bouncing their jig off boats..not cool. You have a right to the water, not to damage someone's stuff.

 

 

[D3FT]

39 minutes ago, LonnieP said:

They were fishing on public property, even if they were close to the dock. Totally legal. 

100% agree, but why put yourself in old coot with gas can range. I'm not against fishing docks, just trying to understand the reason for being so close, unless you wanted a confrontation.

[Tennessee Boy]

Some people just get crazy when they don't get enough fiber in their diet.

[OCdockskipper]

3 minutes ago, D3FT said:

...I'm not against fishing docks, just trying to understand the reason for being so close, unless you wanted a confrontation.

Depending on the dock and the surrounding cover & shoreline, there are a myriad of reasons to be close to a dock.  All of them have to do with attempting to get a lure within striking range of the bass.

 

For example, docks are the primary cover in my lake.  There are a few that are close together (less than 6 feet apart) and have boats docked in the front of them, so the only access is from the sides.  Trying to thread the needle with a bait from 30 feet away will often result in hitting the dock or something else.  Rather than being a jerk & damaging someones property, I will instead squeeze between the docks with my Pond Prowler and make the desired cast with no issues, ONLY if there is no one on either dock.  If there are people present, I have asked if it is OK for me to momentarily slip between the docks to make a cast.  Most folks say yes and are interested in seeing what you are doing.  They find the idea of skipping a bait as awesome and they are genuinely thrilled if you catch a bass in front of them (especially when you release it right there and they know they could do the same thing one day).  

 

I have had 2 women ask me to not fish near their boats or docks and in conversing with them, I find out that someone had damaged their boats or left a snagged lure on it.  I let them know that is completely unacceptable and that I will keep an eye out for anyone that is doing that sort of thing.  What they wanted really had nothing to do with me, but rather with some other inconsiderate jerk who doesn't respect others property.  Taking a few moments to hear the other persons side & story and then align yourself with them works wonders.  Those woman never came close to throwing gasoline on me  and now wave at me from their homes if I am near their dock.