What can I legally do if I’m having trouble with tresspassers on my land?

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What can I legally do if I’m having trouble with tresspassers on my land?

Kids (I think) have been trespassing on my land to get to the trailer park behind my house. I have a “No Trespassing” sign in my front yard, and a block wall in the back. However this doesn’t stop them from walking through and hopping the wall. Would I be liable for their injury if I installed barb wire, or razor wire above the back wall?

Asked on September 10, 2012 under Personal Injury, Arizona

Answers:

Leigh Anne Timiney / Timiney Law Firm

Answered 11 years ago | Contributor

Ms. Brady gives a reasonable answer.  Sometimes the law is not black and white.  Often times property owners are not found to be liable if an uninvited guest, such as a trespasser, is injured on your property by an obvious hazard.  It is possible razor wire could be considered an obvious hazard.  I would think that if the razor wire is obvious and marked and you have no trespassing signage clearly visible, you could make a strong argument that the trespassers assumed the risk if they were to trespass and climb the wall with the razor wire visible. 

Anne Brady / Law Office of Anne Brady

Answered 11 years ago | Contributor

Probably.  You are liable for inury to trespassers if you essentially install a trap on your property designed to injure them.  What you are proposing sounds like such a traip.


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