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Tschumper, who has already pleaded guilty once to being a public nuisance earlier this year because his cattle ran loose, is scheduled to appear Monday in Houston County District Court for two more public nuisance tickets. Tschumper paid the last $137 ticket, but he’s not letting this one go so easily: His attorney will represent him in court, because he doesn’t think there’s much of a case against him.
“This is sort of the ongoing epic of the law versus my cows,” Tschumper said. “I’m not paying this one before I find out some more specifics.”
He was warned 11 times between April and October 2007 — Tschumper says the warnings happened over seven years — for letting his cattle run at large on roadways and in ditches, according to the Houston County Sheriff’s Department. Tschumper received a petty misdemeanor ticket Oct. 17 when his cows escaped.
The issue isn’t about cows but about a neighborly grudge, Tschumper said. He suspects hard feelings over a property-line dispute may be the root cause.
One of the incidents he’s been ticketed for occurred a few months ago, when a hired hand left a gate open. The other occurred three weeks ago, when a previously undetected hole in a fence allowed Tschumper’s cows momentary freedom. He said in both cases, the cows were rounded up in 10 minutes.
Tschumper, who said in January when he paid his last ticket that he wasn’t upset over the situation, has maintained a sense of humor about the dispute. Still, he said he isn’t going to swallow his pride this time and fork over the fine.
“Cows get out every day in Houston County, but you know, nobody writes their owners a ticket,” Tschumper said. “There’s a real issue here about the misuse of the legal system.”
Contact Nolan Rosenkrans at (507) 453-3519 or nrosenkrans@winonadailynews.com.
