Not really.
They're not the same and do not require the same level of probable cause.
As a matter of fact, a pat down, doesn't require PC at all.
I spent a little time on the phone today, with Mr. Steve Miller (what a cool name huh
) and a very nice lady named Karen, of the St. Johns WMD.
They indicated that another person (Mike) called and spoke with thier legal hounds yesterday. I assume it was our Mike, but I haven't seen a response on the board.
Mr. Miller forwarded a copy of the email response provided in reference to Mike's request (redacted).
We all wen't round and round for quite some time, and I found them to be very helpful, polite and patient when dealing with a citizens request.
So, in response to the above two (2) quotes:
In ufurther conversation with Mr. Miller, it seems they are and have been, keenly aware of the issue, and wanted it changed this year; however, our new Governor, Rick Scott, has places what essentially amounts to a freeze on new rule making for about a hear and a half to 2 years.
Considering all they have to do to amend the rules, public notice process, legislative sessions, the house.....blah blah blah, it'll be at least 1.5 years before this gets changed.
That said, they are aware of the rule, are being pro-active
, working to amend thier rules.
As for the property in question, I spoke with Karen about that particular piece of land.
It appears it borders the WMD land and that there is a public access road that runs between one property and the management area.
A long as you are on the road, you're golden!
Step off the road, and you're illegal.
One other point is, where in many cases, WMD and WMA (Wildlife Management Areas) overlap, WMA rules override WMD.
You really want to be careful there.
As for this and many other WMD only controlled properties, my "guess" would be, and it's nothing more than that, a guess, "if" you were caught on thier property doing nothing more than traversing it, had no other issues and were up front and professional with the security person or LEO, nothing would happen other than to tell you "you can't do that for now" and ask you to quietly leave the property.
But I wouldn't bet my license on it
BTW-For the record,
they use off duty FWC officers (who better to patrol the "woods"
) for property security and rule enforcement.
A little research goes a long way toward making a sound and reasonable decision.
Hope some of this helps.
GB