Fed up with ATV trespassers, Burrillville family spikes property, warns riders

Say police need a system like No. Smithfield's

By ETHAN SHOREY, Valley Breeze Staff Writer

BURRILLVILLE - At first glance, a trespasser might not believe the warning signs of impending spike strips, but upon further examination, he would be a fool not to.

Farley family members, living on Round Top Road, say installing spikes in the ruts along National Grid's power lines in their back yard is one of the only ways they can combat trespassing groups of individuals on all-terrain vehicles. They say it's an escalating problem local and state police have struggled to address.

"In North Smithfield, the cops are actually doing something," said Will Farley, of thousands of dollars in fines levied in the neighboring town against trespassers on dirtbikes and four-wheelers. He said he wasn't sure if Burrillville police don't care or just don't have the resources like their neighbors.

"I think they're pretty much coming here because all the other towns are stopping them," said Will's son Matt Farley.

Reached Tuesday, Burrillville Lt. Kevin San Antonio said he wasn't aware of any complaints coming from the Farleys this year, but that police dealt with trespassers when contacted repeatedly the last two years.

"We had (police) go up there and told them to call us if it happened again," said San Antonio.

He said it is difficult for Burrillville police to catch riders because "we have no way of getting into the woods," like North Smithfield police who have ATVs for their own use.

"Unless we catch them by the road, it's (very difficult)," said San Antonio.

A Valley Breeze story in February detailed how an ordinance instituted last July in North Smithfield had netted the town approximately $5,000 in fines, as police used a donation of ATVs to conduct raids of the power line trails.

The ordinance calls for $250 fines, $150 more than what state law calls for when punishing off-roading trespassers.

San Antonio said Burrillville police have spoken to some riders when called to the Farley property but have never levied a fine.

"The last call that we got from (the Farleys) was January of 2007. They reported ATVs along the power lines, there was a disturbance, foul language," said San Antonio. "We tried to locate ATVs on power lines and adjacent roads and didn't find any."

Will Farley said he even received a threat from a youth saying that he would be back with a .357 magnum revolver.

San Antonio said the Burrillville police have received 10 calls from the Farleys in all, mostly in 2006, and have posted officers in the area periodically, "especially on weekends."

With no catches yet, the Farley family has taken it upon themselves to combat the problem in their own back yard.

Will Farley's son Matt has developed a unique tracking system, using an Excel spreadsheet, to chronicle nearly 100 owners of ATVs from Burrillville, neighboring Massachusetts and Connecticut. He uses information posted by ATV riders themselves on personal My Space Web pages, including a picture, the color of their particular vehicle, ages, Web site address, and any other identifying feature, like license plates.

Matt Farley said he is close to his first identification of a trespasser, saying that using My Space, he is able to determine when certain riders plan on meeting up and going riding.

Both Matt and his brother Zachary say they have been struck by riders, with one trespasser "popping a wheelie" into Zachary Farley's chest in December of 2006, sending him to the hospital with burns from the ATV's oil tank. Matt Farley was struck in the leg in a similar instance, but the violators escaped again before police arrived.

The spikes themselves, said Matt Farley, are meant to deal crippling blows to groups of up to 20 ATV riders, who roar past almost daily. He said no one they have confronted so far has believed him about the spikes, but says they will when their tires pop.

Asked if there is any middle ground in accommodating trespassers on ATVs, who have few to no open spaces to ride legally in Rhode Island, Will Farley said sport enthusiasts should have thought about that before they bought a bike or four-wheeler.

"That's something they should have considered before getting into the sport," he said.

The Farleys and their neighbors now worry that a plan by National Grid to expand power line right of ways by up to 50 feet could mean that trespassers travel even closer to their homes, as a sound buffer wall of trees is reduced.

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