Not a lot happens on Saturday evening here in Marshall County, Ind. So, when you see even one police car jet past on the county road, something must be happening. Well they ended up with 6 to 8 emergency vehicles not a quarter mile from mom and dads’ house, beside one of the fields I rent.

Apparently, there was a runner. He stole a car, led police up and down backroads, and through yards. Then he thought it would be a great idea to try and drive through my cornfield to escape law enforcement. Fortunately, nobody got hurt as he blew through the intersection. He also didn’t factor in the 2-inch rain we had overnight. The car only made it about three hundred feet into the field before it stopped. Eventually he was tased and apprehended. It was our own real-life episode of Live PD.

Trespasser policy

Our policy on trespassers intentionally damaging crops or soil is to have their vehicle impounded when they get stuck out in the fields. Usually there is no other repercussion to them other than having to pay the impound fees. We have never seen a dime out of any of them.

Real accidents usually end up getting turned over to insurance. Sometimes they will call. We usually report the damage, but don’t push the issue - after all, it was an accident. This time we don’t know how it will play out. Dad had to recover the vehicle with the backhoe because a tow truck wrecker would have knocked down a lot more corn winching the car out (because the path the driver took was not straight).

As it is, there was about $500 of damage.

Someone is chopping our corn

While we’re on the issue of crop damage, there seems to be a trend this year where county residents take it into their own hands to cut back corn on intersections. Most farmers around here are pretty good and keep the roads mowed back to the crop line. The county also mows back 6 to 8 ft. from the road and maintains area around road signs. I have seen in several locations where someone has cut corn off 7-10 feet inside the corner posts or fences. This is ridiculous.

I’ll speculate these are the same people who think it is unnecessary to stop at the stop signs at intersections. Or maybe they pull out right in front you because their time is more important and waiting a few seconds would inconvenience them. They are likely also the reason a neighbor has to put up a sign that states ‘drive like your child lives here’.

The opinions of the author are not necessarily those of Farm Futures or Farm Progress.