School boundry questions

[FormerUser123]

I live in a small town with a few elementary schools and the middle/high school in it. I love to go on long walks, but it's hard to walk very far without passing a school.

I read on here that your property boundries technically reach the middle of the street infront of your house. Does this apply to schools, too? Would it be unlawful to carry on the sidewalk infront of a school? (Other lawful purposes clause withstanding)

[fingers80002]

I asked this at 1 of gunlawyer's seminars.
He stated he was not sure, but he thought it would be difficult to prosecute.

[whoshisface]

I believe we can transport firearms outside the school if we have a licence. Grab the law and post it! IANAL

[knight0334]

Recorded Right-of-Ways supersede owner rights.

For PA law, the school's edge of property is the area of concern. Sidewalks along state and municipal roads are generally public domain via a Right-of-Way.

Federal law puts a 1000ft distance from the school for those that are unlicensed.

I have a drawing to assist you in determining property lines at the following link. Keep in mind though, if the area/sidewalk between the pavement and what appears to be a properly line is in question - you should call up the regional PennDOT office for a width of Right-of-Way for state roads, and your local municipality for township/borough/city roads. You can also go to the courthouse to look up the parcels in the tax maps, then look at the deeds for "attachments", easements and Right-of-Ways.

http://forum.pafoa.org/attachment.ph...7&d=1229536698

In older boroughs and cities, not all parcels reached the center of the road because the roads and parcels were laid out and staked together. In a rural setting, and in most other settings, the municipality or state got a RoW for a road after the parcels were laid out, and they generally centered on a property line. Thats why in most settings you own half the road, but the RoW creates a public domain.

[ungawa]

Cops don't even know or worry about these petty details when they arrest you. Why should you?

Just kidding.

If you really want to know where you can carry, get a law degree and keep on top of it.

[Wiley-X]

I read on here that your property boundries technically reach the middle of the street infront of your house.

Wow! That's interesting. Never heard that before. Any citations?

[gnbrotz]

Wow! That's interesting. Never heard that before. Any citations?

Common knowledge and many parcel maps.

[knight0334]

I work directly with property lines as an engineer for telephone and cable companies. Knowing what the property laws are and how to figure out boundaries so that I can place poles and cables is critical for my job.

PA uses the old standard of Metes & Bounds for surveying, using reference points and footages to plot holdings. IE: "from old rock at whatever location, proceed 780ft to tree, bear north 90 degrees to stump 480ft away" etc, etc..

Most of PA's parcels and land grants were laid out many years ago, from William Penn's time to the Revolutionary grants to soldiers. Parcels slowly divided up since. Then the state and municipalities came through later and got RoW's for roads. They typically followed property lines where they could, taking half from one land owner, and the other from the neighbor. Those folks still own that land an pay taxes on it, but the RoW grants domain to the holder of the RoW. Now some cities that were formed from a single tract like Old Philly have both the roads and parcels laid out together, with the city actually owning the roads, and you only owning the parcel outside the public domain. Many cities and boroughs are like that..

[JGeezer1986]

To add a tid bit of info to this thread... My grand parents were sewed by a lady who was injured due to a sidewalk that was bad in fron of their house which technically was a state road. Although, they technically did not own the property in front of their house that the sidewalk was on , they were considered responsible for the upkeep on the 20ft or so of walk way. I actually had the same question about a school down the road from where i live. I would have no reason to walk the pacitular section of walkway , i wondered the same thing my self. If an owner is responsible for the secion of walkway infront of their property, does that consider thus walkway part of property as far a gun laws and school props?

[Statkowski]

If an owner is responsible for the secion of walkway infront of their property, does that consider thus walkway part of property as far a gun laws and school props?

You want a black-and-white answer? It doesn't exist.

As previously stated, the sidewalk and roadway is generally an easement onto the property, allowing unhindered public access. It would either be a desperate district attorney, or one who's piling on charges atop other already existing charges, to try to argue that the public sidewalk was indeed school property. And, would a judge or jury find such an explanation digestible?

Basically, I believe this is a non-issue.