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Title: Welcome To Amerika: Family Fined, Threatened With Jail for Building a Sand Castle
Source:
Free Thought Project
URL Source: http://thefreethoughtproject.com/we ... il-for-building-a-sand-castle/
Published: Apr 1, 2017
Author: Matt Agorist
Post Date: 2017-04-01 14:32:49 by Deckard
Keywords: None
Views: 20229
Comments: 146
Panama City Beach, FL — In the ostensible land of the Free, cops claim the legal authority to extort money from you, or even kidnap you for a slew of activities which have no victim. Window Tint, smoking a plant in you own home, not wearing your seatbelt, walking across the street, sagging your pants, and even juggling — can and will get you extorted, kidnapped, caged, or even killed. Now, as a recent case in Florida illustrates, we can add building a sand castle to that long list of victimless “crimes.” Bryant Rylee and his family were at the beach last week building an awesome sand castle when they were confronted by police. The officer, who was ‘protecting society’ by patrolling the beach for illegal sand castles, told the Rylees that their sand castle was in violation of the law. At first, Rylee thought the officer was joking. After all, he and his son were harming no one while building their most epic castle. In a Facebook post, Rylee explains that it is ‘illegal’ to build a sand castle with a hole deeper than two feet. However, he explained that their hole was only one foot deep, so there was no way it was in violation. It wasn’t the hole from which the cop was protecting society, though — it was Rylee’s son’s equipment that was criminal. According to their obscure ordinance, only plastic tools are allowed on the beach, and they had some metal ones. It is important to note that the officer explained to Rylee that she would let him off with a warning if he simply filled in the hole. But Rylee wasn’t buying it. He wanted to know what ordinance he was violating. It was Rylee’s questioning of authority which led to police escalating the call. When her authority was put into question, the officer brought in backup. Before the officer could tell Rylee which ordinance he was violating, the family was surrounded by police. In fact, four patrol units would show up and sit there for 20 minutes before any of them could produce the law which said metal beach toys were illegal. According to FEE: While Rylee, a devout Christian, says he supports law enforcement and prays “daily for their protection,” he also said on his social media account that, “I do believe that ‘we the people’ have a right to ask what ordinance number or to see the ordinance.” Rylee is absolutely correct. In the American legal system, there is a pillar of jurisprudence known as Mens rae, which is latin for “guilty mind.” The principle itself comes from the latin phrase actus reus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea, which translates to, “the act is not culpable unless the mind is guilty.” This is a standard test of criminal liability that asks the state to consider whether or not a person has broken a law knowingly before guilt can even be assessed. After it was all over, as Rylee explains, the construction of a sand castle cost him $25 and could’ve cost him $500 and up to 60 days in jail. When building a sand castle becomes a criminal act, it is high time we question where this ostensible Land of the Free is headed. Bryant Rylee added 5 new photos. This is the sand castle that cost me a $25 fine & could have cost me up to $500 & no more than 60 days in jail. Incase you didn't know, at Panama City Beach you can't dig deeper than 2ft & not exceeding 2ft long on the beach & you can't use any metal tools. I've been going to PCB for spring break for over 13 yrs, we've always built things digging with metal tools. So be sure you study your ordinances before you make a trip. My big mistake was asking the ordinance number & asking to see the ordinance. Apparently the beach patrol lady didn't like that so she called for back up... That's when three other units arrived on the scene. One officer said, if I'd just cover the castle, I wouldn't get a ticket but if I must inquire or see the ordinance, I will receive a ticket. It took them 20 minutes to find the ordinance & it's not exactly the way they quoted. It said "2ft deep" but it didn't say "not more than 2ft long" & since I had dug only about 1ft deep, I was only ticketed for my metal tools. I do support law enforcement & pray daily for their protection. And I do believe that "we the people" have a right to ask what ordinance number or to see the ordinance. So... How many cops does it take to shut down a sand castle bandit & his son? The answer is 4! Be careful out there!
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#71. To: Tooconservative (#57)
Coming back to your comment … I cannot show you an example from the Panama City Beach, but posted below is a notice from Orange Beach, Alabama….just across the state line from the beaches in Florida. You will note in the “DO NOT” section of the Beach Notice, it specifically states …
Ah ha … The Panama City Beach Spring Break Rules Notice:
Yep. Like when the MSM made a big deal about the crowd size at Trump's inauguration using photos taken hours before the event. They went on and on and on. Then when Trump showed the photos during the inauguration proving that he was right, the MSM responded by saying, "Hey. Why are you so obsessed about this?" Yea, always the same. They will fight tooth and nail to their last breath to spin, duck and dodge everything and anything in order to promote their isolated opinion of what is right and wrong….while they absolutely refuse to ever admit the fact that they are/were wrong.
During the spring breaks at Panama City Beach, there have been numerous murders, rapes and drug/alcohol abuse arrests. Just a quick Internet search showed: Third person arrested in alleged spring break gang rape on crowded Panama City Beach - Source. Spring Break rapists get 10 years in prison - Source.
Code for: you're idiots to worry over this on a fine spring day.
Code for: you're idiots to worry over this on a fine spring day. Weather has nothing to do with being correct ... Besides, it beats the Hell out of discussing those Freedom Caucus assholes....Which I will do, if I must to keep setting you straight.
Part of the problem is that there is entirely too much fun in this country. We need to redefine the parameters of what is considered "fun" and thus provide limits to unsociable behavior. Then perhaps careless parents would be more likely rein in the behavior of their undisciplined offspring and so prevent them from creating hazards to life and limb for beachgoers on our national shores. Time for some sanity.
After you posted 25 articles about them, I just assumed you wanted ongoing non-stop coverage of them. I was only trying to please you. What an ingrate.
Ah, but you restricted it to “this on a fine spring day.” I just followed your lead....for once. You did not say anything about all other times …
Hey, when it's not the Freedom Caucus, it's the Libertarians!
You would sue the city, because they have a legal obligation (not so much as moral) to prevent accidents like this from happening. Unlike Malibu Beach, Ca, this is not a private beach as it belongs to the visitors to enjoy. You could also join the individual as well if you chose to and sue both parties for comparative damages (depending on who was more at fault; the one with the metal shovel 40% and the city 60% for their failure to provide public notice). Also attach compensatory damage for seeking declaratory relief.
I just noticed from Gatlin's post #71 they do reference in there about not digging large holes with metal shovels. So it appears the city does indeed have an ordinance posted somewhere on this beach but some people failed to read it. So, disregard my post #82. This dude would lose in court.
I thought you might want to know that the area about which you speak in Malibu is called “billionaire’s Beach” and it is not a “private beach”…. there is public access. There is no such animal as a “private beach” in California. In California, the area between the water line and the mean high tide line is public land by law. To put it simply, wet sand means public beach. In theory, anyone could walk the length of California's coast -- some 1,100 miles -- and never set foot on private property.
Part of the problem is that there is entirely too much fun in this country. Then perhaps careless parents would be more likely rein in the behavior of their undisciplined offspring and so prevent them from creating hazards to life and limb for beachgoers on our national shores. Time for some sanity.
Your picture is a not-so-subtle attempt to portray the father of the kids as irresponsible for taking his kids to that beach. Why are making yourself the sole arbiter of what parents should be allowed to do with their kids, when and where? Below is the scene referred to in the article. Your holier-than-though, self-righteousness is growing tiresome. I'm going to Panama City beach this summer. Going to be fun.
:)
Except that I don't blare my music at 3am. Miss White would divorce you. I'd simply call the friendly police and they would come and shoot you. Then there would be some discussion in cyberspace about what a dumb ass you were and you deserved it.
Furthermore, digging holes in the sand “is not normal and acceptable in the USA for the purposes of beach fun” when a teenager dies after being trapped in sand hole he dug at the beach. An Oklahoma teenager has died after a sand tunnel he was digging at a Florida beach [Panama City Beach] collapsed on him, KOTV 5 in Tulsa reports. The report says 17- year-old Travor Brown of Broken Arrow, Okla. was found Wednesday (June 8, 2016) trapped in a hole he had been digging into sand bank on Panama City Beach. Emergency responders were unable to revive the boy and he was transported to an area hospital in critical condition. A family friend told KOTV 6 Brown's mother made the decision to take Brown off life support and "let him go home to Jesus." I will strongly support what Panama City Beach Police Chief Drew Whitman said: It's not the first time this has happened to a young woman in Panama City Beach, authorities say. The woman's face can't be seen in the video, and parts of it were blurred. But she recognized her tattoos and contacted authorities. Four young men were involved in the assault, authorities say. Two have been arrested and an arrest warrant has been issued for a third suspect, who federal marshals are trying to track down, said Bay County Sheriff Frank McKeithen. Investigators are also hoping to talk with a fourth person who is a possible witness. Within feet of where the attack was happening, "There's hundreds, hundreds of people standing there -- watching, looking, seeing, hearing what's going on," McKeithen said. "And yet our culture and our society and our young people have got to the point where obviously this is acceptable somewhere. I will tell you it is not acceptable in Bay County." [….] The video shows the suspects pushing the victim's hand aside and holding her legs down, Corley said. "You can see in the video there are people two feet away. They were assaulting her and we believe the people around her knew she was being assaulted." The suspects can be heard commenting about what they are doing to her, Corley said. Authorities have three sworn statements from witnesses stating that the assault happened, Corley said. [….] 'This is not the first time. While the video is "one of the most disgusting, repulsive, sickening things that I've seen this year on Panama City Beach," it's not an isolated incident, said McKeithen. "This is not the first video we've recovered. It's not the second video. It's not the third video. There's a number of videos we've recovered with things similar to this, and I can only imagine how many things we haven't recovered." Corley said that through social media, "we have been able to find video of girls, incoherent and passed out, and almost like they are drugged, being assaulted on the beaches of Panama City in front of a bunch of people standing around." There's a major problem investigators are dealing with, McKeithen said: Spring break has gotten out of control. About 100,000 spring break revelers come to the beach community every year. This year, the Bay County Sheriff's Office made more than 1,000 arrests for various crimes -- about triple the number of arrests made in the same period last year. McKeithen said he is being more and more aggressive in trying to stop the assaults. "I have asked for help and I have asked for changes" for more than two years, he said. "People talk, and people promise, and nothing gets done." A recent county ordinance stated that "the overpopulation of College spring Break and the violence and disrespect for law and order which now are accompanying College Spring Break have overwhelmed the valiant efforts of law enforcement to protect the community and the spring breakers themselves," and that additional restrictions were needed immediately "to help address the dangers being observed." [….]
From my post above … "And yet our culture and our society and our young people have got to the point where obviously this is acceptable somewhere.” Please don’t ever tell me again that I was wrong when I said that I lived during The Greatest Generation.
It has been said by many, you will find the most beautiful beaches in the world there….westward from Panama City Beach through Fort Walton and over to Pensacola. Having grown up in a small farming community some miles North of there, I agree with those who made the comments about the beauty, since I had the occasion to spend lots of time on the beach at Panama City Beach. Also, our Summer 4-H Club camp was not too far away from there. During week days, it was not uncommon to stand on the beach and not see anyone when looking either to the East or the West. The big traffic [big for that period] was only on weekends. Y'all enjoy your stay there, ya hear….I just couldn’t pass that up.
:) Yea... But every point I made was a valid one ...
I see. Your rights trump my rights every time -- assuming I have any at all.
Which it where it should be settled.
"And yet our culture and our society and our young people have got to the point where obviously this is acceptable somewhere.” Yet you guys have wasted all these posts ranting over some crappy trench that is one foot deep on this beach instead of the rampant crime by hordes of outsiders committed every year there. People go there from around the country for the criminal mob activity, much as they once went to Mardi Gras for the same thing. What, you think I am a millennial? Wrong again. And you can't insult my own generation much more than I already do. You weren't even out of high school during WW II (unless you've been lying to us). So you were part of the So-So Generation that lost the Korean War and the Vietnam War. Stop trying to steal the glory (such as it is) of the WW II generation. You aren't one of them. You're just a wannabe.
For God's sake, don't dig a dinky hole in the sand with a metal hand shovel or Gatlin and misterwhite will be calling for your arrest and execution.
But posting an article about Justin Amash who is a libertarian and in the Freedom Caucus and is an Arab congresscritter is like winning the Triple Crown. ; )
Disturbing images come to mind about how Gatlin would celebrate.
. . . We're proud you're considering visiting the World's Most Beautiful Beaches. In order to maintain public safety during spring break, we will be STRICTLY enforcing the following ordinances. -Chief Drew Whitman Which does imply that, as a matter of policy, that the local PD does not strictly enforce those ordinances at other times of the year.
I know about Malibu "billionnaire beach" but they act like it is their property. A friend and I had been there numerous times when we would dine out by The Sandcastle Restaurant (which was bought out in 2001 by new owners) just a few yards away from Dick Clark's home. The problem is you cannot park your car on the beach. I was never impressed. I prefer Florida beaches better with all the hotels and accommodations that are supposed to accommodate visitors and not just billionnaires. You could park your car on the beach and even build sand castles without being labeled a public nuisance. And even buy an icecream from the ice cream truck that drives by. That's my definition of a real beach. Venice Beach "Muscle beach" is not so bad though. Kind of fun.
Looks like fun to me and my kind of crowd. Part of the problem is that there is entirely too much fun in this country. Too much fun? We are the country that is the most overtaxed and overworked nation than any other country in this world. We shell out much of our income taxes which go to USAID through the IRS and it goes to feed foreign countries. Betcha' didn't even know that. So when it comes to Spring Break, you damn right those kids are gonna party like there is no tomorrow and oggle gorgeous babes.
Nevertheless, if words have meaning, then the police chief was telling us that some of the listed ordinances are not enforced rigorously except during spring break with its huge crowds. Which is an entirely valid observation and counterpoint on this stupendously irrelevant non-news steaming turd of a thread.
But he never said they weren't enforced at all. Just not as rigorously. Does that make you uncomfortable? Would you rather he enforce the law rigorously year round?
There you go …. Hey, what are you doing on this thread anyway? Aren’t you the one who said:
For brevity on the agreement IRS has with USAID with regards to foreign countries may be found here https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/competent-authority-assistance https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/tax-treaties
Does that make you uncomfortable? Would you rather he enforce the law rigorously year round? Some posters on this thread seemed to be trying to portray this as a strictly enforced ordinance year-round despite the fact that the officer who was on patrol for exactly these kinds of infractions was so unfamiliar with enforcing them that it took her and several backup units of police to finally know the correct statute number to cite if they were to write a ticket for the infraction. Which means that the cops themselves are extremely unfamiliar with writing tickets for that infraction for beach holes (which was not violated) and the "metal implement" infraction. I suppose the perp should be happy that the cops didn't just shoot his dog and his kid.
I don't even get your point. I doubt anyone else does either. It seems I've been sucked into the vortices of a Complete Bullshit Thread.
Whoa! Who? According to the article the officer said she'd let him off with a warning. That's not strict enforcement. Why would anyone think this ordinance was strictly enforced? You're just making shit up again.
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Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest I also think that the beach rules should be prominently posted …
The beach rules are posted everywhere, not only on the beach but flyers are left in motel/hotel rooms, placed on vehicles and personally handed out to people approaching the beach. 
Dig large holes on the beach or have steel shovels.
#72. To: Tooconservative (#71)
We're proud you're considering visiting the World's Most Beautiful Beaches. In order to maintain public safety during spring break, we will be STRICTLY enforcing the following ordinances. -Chief Drew Whitman
I have to believe that with the wide distribution of these beach rules, there was no way that Bryant Rylee did not know what he was doing all the time….when he had the steel shovel on the beach and was digging a large hole. He has a Face Book page….he was seeking his 10 minutes of fame and he got it.
- Drinking alcoholic beverages on the sandy beach is prohibited during the month of March.
- Possession and consumption of alcohol is prohibited in the commercial parking lots.
- All alcohol sales end at 2 a.m. throughout the entire month of March.
- Parking in a closed business' parking lot is prohibited.
- Overnight scooter rental is not permitted.
- It is illegal to climb, jump from or throw things from balconies.
- Parking is prohibited on unmarked or unpaved portions of the road after dark.
- Metal shovels are not permitted on the beach, and any holes dug in the sand not be deeper than two feet.
Violation of these laws will result in;
- Arrest and at least a night in the county jail
- A criminal record that will follow you past your spring break
- Up to a $500 fine or by imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed 60 days.
#73. To: misterwhite (#70)
"Code for: You guys are correct."
#74. To: All (#73)
Panama City Spring Break shooter sentenced to seven life sentences - Source.
I simply cannot understand why….WHY…. Bryant Rylee, a man who describes himself as a “devout Christian,” would ever….EVER….take his young children to Panama City Beach during spring break with all the bad stuff happening there and making national news.
#75. To: Gatlin (#68)
Code for: You guys are correct.
#76. To: Tooconservative (#75)
Code for: You guys are correct.
#77. To: Pinguinite (#25)
and, yes, digging holes in the sand for purposes of beach fun is normal and acceptable in the USA
#78. To: Gatlin (#76)
Besides, it beats the Hell out of discussing those Freedom Caucus assholes...
#79. To: Tooconservative (#78)
#80. To: Tooconservative (#78)
After you posted 25 articles about them, I just assumed you wanted ongoing non-stop coverage of them.
#81. To: misterwhite (#16)
(Edited)
#82. To: misterwhite (#1)
(Edited)
So if I run along the public beach, fall in his hole, and injure myself on a metal tool, who do I sue -- him or the city?
#83. To: misterwhite, Gatlin (#81)
(Edited)
#84. To: goldilucky, misterwhite (#82)
(Edited)
Unlike Malibu Beach, Ca, this is not a private beach as it belongs to the visitors to enjoy.
#85. To: randge (#77)
… and, yes, digging holes in the sand for purposes of beach fun is normal and acceptable in the USA
This is insane….spring break at Panama City Beach: 
We need to redefine the parameters of what is considered "fun" and thus provide limits to unsociable behavior.
There have been murders, gang rapes and numerous other “unsociable behavior” happenings durint spring break in Panama City Beach. One guy is serving 4 [or more] life sentences for murder and one guy is serving 10 years for gang rape….there are more stories like this.
#86. To: Gatlin (#85)
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.
#87. To: Deckard (#86)
#88. To: Tooconservative (#65)
I'll let you guys obsess over this virtual non-event of a non-national news story
#89. To: misterwhite (#53)
I lived next to you, I would play my music at maximum just to show you what it's like to live under your own philosophy.
#90. To: Pinguinite, misterwhite, All (#25)
…. and, yes, digging holes in the sand for purposes of beach fun is normal and acceptable in the USA.
Ah….but, digging holes in the sand “is not normal and acceptable in the USA for the purposes of beach fun” when those holes are “about 10 feet in diameter and about 4 feet deep” are then dangerous for people walking on the beach at night. 
Now perhaps you want to take the liberal stance that would mandate restrictions in beach use that would help ensure that stupid people don't get hurt.
I will be your huckleberry. I will take a strong conservative stance that mandates restrictions in beach use that will help ensure that stupid people do not get raped, accidentally hurt and killed while on the beach or murdered while attending spring break at Panama City Beach. "The rule was put in place because a couple of years ago, during Spring Break, we were having college kids dig holes that were probably larger than my desk, where they could play beer pong, we had some sexual assaults down there, we enacted where they couldn't take full size shovels down there, that's what the ordinance states, because kids were using them as weapons, fighting other kids." 1
Here is but one “ “beach fun” that is not normal and acceptable in the USA. It is a gang rape and but one of the sexual assaults that Panama City Beach Police Chief Drew Whitman talked about. The last I remember reading about this was that one perp had been sentenced to ten years…I don’t know about the others. A young woman was watching a video on the news when she discovered a nightmare scenario: She may have been drugged and gang-raped on a crowded Florida beach in broad daylight, as bystanders watched.
So as far as I am concerned, you libertarian assholes can take your ”anything goes anarchist philosophy, policies and attitudes” and go straight to Hell with them….if you don’t see the dangers here and the need for the authorities to establish controls to prevent these occurrences, because as you say: “[they] would mandate restrictions in beach use that would help ensure that stupid people don't get hurt.”
Ryan Calhoun, left, and Delonte Martistee were arrested in connection with an alleged gang rape in Panama City, Florida.
#91. To: Tooconserative (#90)
(Edited)
Within feet of where the [rape] attack was happening, "There's hundreds, hundreds of people standing there -- watching, looking, seeing, hearing what's going on," McKeithen said.
This is you generation, TC, not mine ...
#92. To: A K A Stone (#87)
(Edited)
I'm going to Panama City beach this summer. Going to be fun.
It is a wonderful place, except of course during spring break.
#93. To: A K A Stone (#88)
(Edited)
I'll let you guys obsess over this virtual non-event of a non- national news story
#94. To: A K A Stone (#89)
#95. To: goldilucky (#83)
"This dude would lose in court."
#96. To: Gatlin (#91)
Within feet of where the [rape] attack was happening, "There's hundreds, hundreds of people standing there -- watching, looking, seeing, hearing what's going on," McKeithen said.
This is you generation, TC, not mine ...
Please don’t ever tell me again that I was wrong when I said that I lived during The Greatest Generation.
#97. To: A K A Stone, Gatlin, misterwhite, Deckard, hondo68 (#87)
I'm going to Panama City beach this summer. Going to be fun.
#98. To: Pinguinite (#80)
Hey, when it's not the Freedom Caucus, it's the Libertarians!
#99. To: Tooconservative (#98)
But posting an article about Justin Amash who is a libertarian and in the Freedom Caucus and is an Arab congresscritter is like winning the Triple Crown.
#100. To: Gatlin (#72)
(Edited)
Ah ha … The Panama City Beach Spring Break Rules Notice:
#101. To: Gatlin (#84)
#102. To: Tooconservative (#100)
"Which does imply that ... the local PD does not strictly enforce those ordinances at other times of the year."
#103. To: Gatlin (#85)
This is insane….spring break at Panama City Beach:
#104. To: misterwhite (#102)
#105. To: Tooconservative (#104)
"Nevertheless, if words have meaning, then the police chief was telling us that some of the listed ordinances are not enforced rigorously except during spring break with its huge crowds."
#106. To: Tooconservative, misterwhite (#100)
Which does imply that, as a matter of policy, that the local PD does not strictly enforce those ordinances at other times of the year.
Which as a matter of policy does imply, or mean, that during other times of the year there are no gang rapes, no murders, no people jumping off balconies and no folks digging 10-foot diameter holes 4-feet deep where rapes occur….so there are no violations of these ordinances to be strictly enforced. I'll let you guys obsess over this virtual non-event of a non- national news story.
#107. To: All, Gatlin (#103)
(Edited)
#108. To: misterwhite, Deckard (#105)
But he never said they weren't enforced at all. Just not as rigorously.
#109. To: Gatlin (#106)
Which as a matter of policy does imply, or mean, that during other times of the year there are no gang rapes, no murders, no people jumping off balconies and no folks digging 10-foot diameter holes 4-feet deep where rapes occur….so there are no violations of these ordinances to be strictly enforced.
Hey, what are you doing on this thread anyway?
#110. To: Tooconservative (#108)
"Some posters on this thread seemed to be trying to portray this as a strictly enforced ordinance year-round ..."
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