Ruling says public has right to access Lake Michigan beaches

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - The Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled property owners along Lake Michigan must allow access to the beach to members of the public because the shore is owned by the state and held as a public trust.

The court ruled Wednesday that property owners cannot restrict individuals from accessing the lake, fishing or walking on the beach as long as the beachgoers remain on ground that's usually covered by water.

The state land extends from the high-water mark to the low-water mark, the ruling said. That means landowners bordering Lake Michigan have property rights that overlap the state's public trust, The (Northwest Indiana) Times reported (http://bit.ly/2ggoupI ).

"Granting lakeshore owners the right to exclude the public from land between the low and high water marks would be inconsistent with the public trust doctrine," the court said in its 3-0 ruling.

The state's interest extends to the "ordinary high water mark," which the court defined as the line on the shore where the presence and action of water is continuous enough to distinguish it from land through erosion, vegetation changes or other characteristics.

That's a more flexible definition than the specific numerical level used since 1995 by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources to identify the lake's ordinary high water mark.

The court determined that the DNR rule setting a numerical ordinary high water mark impaired the rights of Hoosiers to fully enjoy the Lake Michigan shoreline, and it declared the rule invalid.

The case originated with property owners Don and Bobbie Gunderson of the LaPorte County town of Long Beach. They sought a declaratory judgment that their land extends to the water's edge regardless of where it is at any time and that they're entitled to exclusive use of that land.

LaPorte Superior Court Judge Richard Stalbrink Jr. rejected that claim last July, finding the state holds in trust for the public all land up to the ordinary high water mark, regardless of whether that land is covered by water.

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Information from: The Times, http://www.nwitimes.com