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A little embarrassed to post this, but....

DeerCamp

DeerCamp

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A few weeks ago, I posted about how someone had apparently destroyed one of my cellular trail cams, but had forgotten the SD card which is pretty hard to spot.

I notified the Sheriffs department to file a report. They declined to take the camera or fingerprints. Also never heard from an investigator, so figure they have other more important things to worry about.

Well, it turns out - that's ok - because all the evidence would have only pointed back to me.

Before I tell you this next part, I'm asking for a little mercy here, I didn't handle the camera when it was discovered. It really did appear someone had ripped it apart. I immediately put it and all its contents in a ziploc bag to file a report. I tried not to touch it with my bare hands. After the Sheriffs department declined to take fingerprints, I thought - what the heck - might as well inspect it.

After looking over the camera more clearly, it became obvious - the camera had "exploded" - or more accurately, probably one or more of the batteries. I could only some of them.

You can see from the picture that the camera was hot enough to actually melt the contact points, and one of the batteries is even welded to the battery compartment. It also explains why the SD card wouldn't read - it had severe shock damage (Boy am I glad I didn't pay someone to recover it!)
1630102526335.png

I contacted Spypoint, who immediately blamed me for putting the batteries in incorrectly.

1630102727949.jpeg

I told them... Listen - the camera had been working for 10 weeks when this occured. Can a camera work with incorrectly installed batteries?

Lucky the camera also shows the battery level over time. It was at 76% when this occurred. My guess is that the camera shorted out somehow. BUt I really don't know.

After some back and forth, they agreed to replace the camera (Apparently a "I guess I'll have to post these pics on social media to warn everyone" got the message across.

Nevertheless, I wantedto update here just so everyone would be aware that this could happen. At one point I even considered putting one of these in my house to monitor when I was out. NOPE!

I just bought my first Stealth Cam and I really like it so far. Don't think I will ever by another Spypoint.

Anyhow - feeling a little silly for not realizing what happened at the time.
 
If lithium, I have seen this before in a few other devices. I had a thermometer explode in my medicine cabinet, and phone in my truck. I think they have also been blamed for aircraft mishaps.
www.flyingmag.com

UPS 747 Crash Highlights Lithium Battery Danger - FLYING Magazine

Accident investigators have traced a fire that destroyed a UPS Boeing 747 in the United Arab Emirates in 2010 to the lithium batteries being carried in the cargo hold. Unless something is done to prevent similar disasters, the FAA now says such crashes are all but inevitable in the future. A...
www.flyingmag.com www.flyingmag.com
 
I wouldn't be embarrassed. I've never heard of a trail-camera's batteries exploding before. Especially not your basic Energizer Lithiums. I could understand if they were rechargeable, as there have obviously been many explosions of vape pens
 
BSK said:
I wouldn't be embarrassed. I've never heard of a trail-camera's batteries exploding before. Especially not your basic Energizer Lithiums. I could understand if they were rechargeable, as there have obviously been many explosions of vape pens
Click to expand...
These weren't even Lithiums. Just standard Alkaline. They were brand new and had been in the camera for about 10 weeks best I remember.
 
The important thing here, I think, is that you now don't have to worry about somebody trespassing and messing with your stuff.
I once thought I'd had a camera stolen only to discover it a year later in a spot I later recalled I'd hastily shifted it to walking out one morning -- just totally forgot I'd done it in haste.
Because of neglect, rodents had chewed it up, water got in, it was ruined.
But I no longer worried about thieves ...
 
T. J. Mercer said:
The important thing here, I think, is that you now don't have to worry about somebody trespassing and messing with your stuff.
I once thought I'd had a camera stolen only to discover it a year later in a spot I later recalled I'd hastily shifted it to walking out one morning -- just totally forgot I'd done it in haste.
Because of neglect, rodents had chewed it up, water got in, it was ruined.
But I no longer worried about thieves ...
Click to expand...
I know that's right. I don't really hunt this property, but my wife and daughters do. And it's where our house.

A few years ago my wife had three guys walk up on her while she was hunting. Scared the life out of her. I ended up chasing them down and confronting them, they were looking for a wounded deer. I ended up helping them find it, but it scared her quite a bit.
 
DeerCamp said:
A few weeks ago, I posted about how someone had apparently destroyed one of my cellular trail cams, but had forgotten the SD card which is pretty hard to spot.

I notified the Sheriffs department to file a report. They declined to take the camera or fingerprints. Also never heard from an investigator, so figure they have other more important things to worry about.

Well, it turns out - that's ok - because all the evidence would have only pointed back to me.

Before I tell you this next part, I'm asking for a little mercy here, I didn't handle the camera when it was discovered. It really did appear someone had ripped it apart. I immediately put it and all its contents in a ziploc bag to file a report. I tried not to touch it with my bare hands. After the Sheriffs department declined to take fingerprints, I thought - what the heck - might as well inspect it.

After looking over the camera more clearly, it became obvious - the camera had "exploded" - or more accurately, probably one or more of the batteries. I could only some of them.

You can see from the picture that the camera was hot enough to actually melt the contact points, and one of the batteries is even welded to the battery compartment. It also explains why the SD card wouldn't read - it had severe shock damage (Boy am I glad I didn't pay someone to recover it!)
View attachment 112186
I contacted Spypoint, who immediately blamed me for putting the batteries in incorrectly.

View attachment 112187
I told them... Listen - the camera had been working for 10 weeks when this occured. Can a camera work with incorrectly installed batteries?

Lucky the camera also shows the battery level over time. It was at 76% when this occurred. My guess is that the camera shorted out somehow. BUt I really don't know.

After some back and forth, they agreed to replace the camera (Apparently a "I guess I'll have to post these pics on social media to warn everyone" got the message across.

Nevertheless, I wantedto update here just so everyone would be aware that this could happen. At one point I even considered putting one of these in my house to monitor when I was out. NOPE!

I just bought my first Stealth Cam and I really like it so far. Don't think I will ever by another Spypoint.

Anyhow - feeling a little silly for not realizing what happened at the time.
Click to expand...
Not taking up for the Sheriffs Office, of whatever county you live but, in Tennessee, any and all fingerprints lifted or sent to the TBI Crime Lab for identification. This is where folks get upset, and please don't take offense, I am a Sheriff's Office Detective since 02' and 13 years as a Road Deputy before that. Now back to the prints. If the TBI were to analyze every piece of evidence submitted for latent prints, they would never finish in a 100 years. So, they set limits. Certain crimes where prints are lifted such as Murder, Kidnapping, rape, Aggravated Assault, the heavy hitters. Also if there is an Aggravated Burglary and Theft over $25,000 would qualify as well. So, knowing that going in, what do you think the TBI would do if they were lucky enough to lift a print ? I can speak from experience. I had a case that was a borderline qualified case that I sent in some prints. I got a response from them after the Statute of Limitations was up and I couldn't charge anyone. It took 4 years to get a response. Again not trying to take up for the Sheriffs Office, and the Investigator should have called you, just explaining things.
 
Invmp12 said:
Not taking up for the Sheriffs Office, of whatever county you live but, in Tennessee, any and all fingerprints lifted or sent to the TBI Crime Lab for identification. This is where folks get upset, and please don't take offense, I am a Sheriff's Office Detective since 02' and 13 years as a Road Deputy before that. Now back to the prints. If the TBI were to analyze every piece of evidence submitted for latent prints, they would never finish in a 100 years. So, they set limits. Certain crimes where prints are lifted such as Murder, Kidnapping, rape, Aggravated Assault, the heavy hitters. Also if there is an Aggravated Burglary and Theft over $25,000 would qualify as well. So, knowing that going in, what do you think the TBI would do if they were lucky enough to lift a print ? I can speak from experience. I had a case that was a borderline qualified case that I sent in some prints. I got a response from them after the Statute of Limitations was up and I couldn't charge anyone. It took 4 years to get a response. Again not trying to take up for the Sheriffs Office, and the Investigator should have called you, just explaining things.
Click to expand...
I didn't really blame them at all. I totally understood. The main reason I filed the case was so that when I recovered the photos, I would have something to tie it too. I just didn't want to touch the camera *in case*. But yeah, I totally get it.

BTW - Appreciate all that you guys do!
 
So if I understand correctly, you filed a report for trespassing and destruction of property basically on yourself with the sheriff's department?

You should write a song. It will be a greatest hit for sure. Include Jussie Smollet....definitely chicken little in the lyrics....jumping to conclusions....blaming others for failure. Heck, it absolutely had to be trump supporters and anti-vaxers from an Internet deer hunting site trying to protect animals from deermunists.

I would love to see the report.
 

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