Most people have seen or heard the commercials “What happen in Vegas, Stays in Vegas” but when you run afoul the law in Yosemite “What happens in Yosemite, Stays in Yosemite.” That’s because Yosemite is one of only two National Parks (the other being Yellowstone) that have it’s own court house. So when you get a ticket in Yosemite you go to court in Yosemite.
FresnoBee.com: “Even in this bucolic wonderland, where sheer granite walls frame one of the most stunning views on Earth, justice must be served.
After all, tourists run stop signs. Park employees get rowdy. Some people even get busted for ‘BUI’ — bicycling under the influence of alcohol.
Anywhere outside of Yosemite, which is federal land, such crimes would be handled at the local county courthouse. But when park visitors and employees run afoul of the law, they often find themselves before a bow-tied judge at a tiny federal courthouse tucked away in a remote corner of Yosemite Village.
Visitors who aren’t looking for the courthouse may not even see it. Finding the building involves several turns, passing an ‘Authorized Vehicles Only Past This Point’ sign, and then a right turn onto a tiny residential street known as Castle Cliffs Court.
The court — a quirk of the federal legal system found in just one other national park, Yellowstone — hears misdemeanor and petty offense crimes committed inside the park and also any criminal case arising from the nearby Stanislaus National Forest.
It’s been a Yosemite institution since 1920. But the court is undergoing a review by federal authorities, who will determine if it should stay open. All satellite federal courthouses — in addition to Yosemite, the federal Eastern District of California has satellite courts in Bakersfield and Redding — are periodically reviewed to determine if caseloads justify costs.
“It would be devastating to the [National] Park Service if we were to have to close our doors,” said William M. Wunderlich, the magistrate judge who has presided here for the past three years.”
Gotta say, I love the hangmans noose in the photo. Although I’m sure he only uses it one in a while.