Police: ATV driver shot Forest City man with a pellet gun at rec trail

Published: June 29, 2009

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Man wanted in pellet gun attack

FELL TWP. - State police are looking for information about a one-legged ATV driver who allegedly shot a Forest City man in the ankle with a pellet gun Friday after the man tried to block three ATVs from entering a recreation trail where they are banned.

The incident began as an argument at the entrance to the rails-to-trails site off Homestead Street at 3:15 p.m. and ended with the three ATV drivers fleeing north along the trail, police said.

Police described the three drivers as a 240-pound man with one leg on a camouflage ATV, a 10- or 12-year-old boy on a racing-style ATV and a slender female with a black halter top. Robert Polednak of Forest City was not injured by the pellet, police said.

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28 posted comments

I have to comment here on this one. Firstly, I personally know Mr. Polednak, and he is a volunteer member for our snowmobile club that PAYS membership dues to BE ALLOWED access to the rails trails via private property during the snow season. The club does not own the land, we have private treaties with the landowners to have access, we much carry insurance on behalf of the landowners, our sleds must be registered, and insured. The landowners have generously allowed us to use their land on several conditions. NO ATVS is a strict condition. We only have access to the land during a small 4-5 month window in the winter for our enjoyment, but volunteers like Mr. Polednak contribute many hours thru out the year to maintain the trails and such. If illegal quad riders continue to trespass (which is exactly what the one legged quad rider was doing!) we will loose our access to the trails which WE have spent hundreds of hours, dollars, and time to create and maintain, due to some backbred yahoo who thinks he has the right to something he doesn't..
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bb,  07/29/2009 06:16
Jeepster, doesn't matter if the guy owned the property or not. The ATV didn't belong there. End of story.

I really doubt the guy was "protecting his family" when he whipped out the pellet gun but instead his only purpose was to bully and get his way. The right thing for him to do would have been to simply turn his ATV around and go elsewhere. Maybe the guy who got shot was trying to protect families who were walking the trail from getting run over by maniac ATVers who didn't belong there. Ever think of that?

I hope the guy gets nailed not only for riding illegaly, but for assault too.

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Jeff,  06/30/2009 16:29
I have been riding ATV's for many years. I trailer mine to legal riding areas. The one legged man knew he was tresspassing. He had no right to be there. There are plenty of DCNR and other legal riding areas in Pa. If you can afford to buy an ATV then you can afford to by a trailer to haul it to a legal riding area. ALso there is no need to alter your exhaust unless you race your ATV on a legal track. Tresspassing,loud exhausts and speeding down a trail are the 3 main reasons ATV's are coming under fire. It's the few bad apples that spoil it for the rest of us.In Pa. once an ATV leaves your property it must be registered and insured. Insurane is cheap and so is the registration fee. There is no reason for anyone to ride without it or to ride without a license plate and a helmet.
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D.K.,  06/30/2009 13:34
No one said Mr. Polednak was the property owner. Just someone trying to be a tough guy and blocking ATV's who does he think he is? He's someone who got shot in the ankle and the dumb *** could have been run over. That's why he should mind his own business. If he owned the land I wouldn't blame him, but he doesn't. You don't know who you're going to come across in the woods. Why mess with someone you don't know? I bet he doesn't do it again. I agree with Garrett the guy was probably protecting himself and his family.
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Jeepster,  06/30/2009 10:57
I know alot more good atv riders than bad ones. This clown gives us all a bad rap.
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Joe Honda,  06/30/2009 06:00
How dare anyone blame the man who got shot? As a property owner I have to say - I am so sick of low-life atv drivers thinking they can drive where-ever they want. If you want to own and drive an atv... buy some land. If you can't afford to buy the land then you can't afford to drive an atv.
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sick of atv's,  06/30/2009 00:28
Oh my...first off the police should be patrolling the area, they know that people on ATV try to sneak onto the trails. Second of all why not are st the little punks riding up and down the sidewalks and flying down the alleyways on their ATV's, dirt bikes and lawnmowers. They are a nuisance and a safety hazard.
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Fed up,  06/29/2009 21:01
I agree with Jeff Jeepster, ATV riders who don't obey the law make ALL ATV riders look bad. The one legged ATV rider should not have been riding his ATV where it is not supposed to be!
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John,  06/29/2009 20:15
To blame all atv'ers for the actions of a few is wrong. I belong to an atv club which I co-founded in March of 2000. We abide by all the rules and recommendations set forth by the DCNR and the ATV Safety Institute. Our club and a few others helped the rail trail conucil re build their bridges and also spent countless hours cleaning up trash which was dumped by local residents. Afetr all our hard work we were banned. It's the local riders with no reguard for rules and regulations that put a black mark on all atv'ers. They think it's their God given right to ride there because they did before rails to trails came to town. We don't need more laws we just need to enforce the ones already in place. If the rail trail council would spend the money to hire a patrol they could control this problem.
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D.K.,  06/29/2009 18:48
Hmmm, I wonder if alchohol was involved
Got to love NEPA
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Cubs881,  06/29/2009 17:56
If Robby jumped in front of the ATV, maybe he's the attacker and the one legged man was defending himself and family.
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garrett,  06/29/2009 16:46
It is renegades like these people who give the law abiding decent ATV riders a bad name. Most ATV riders are good people who respect the trails they are riding on, but you only hear of the renegades like this article says. Last year several ATV clubs held a fundraiser for a 3 year old girl with cancer and raised over $10,000 for the family. There was no coverage of that event here. Fox 56 covered it on their "The Great Outdoors" Oct 5,2008
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mikeexplorer,  06/29/2009 16:27
ATVs are dangerous noisy and often trespass on public roads and private property. Some property owners will protect their property if police won't enforce the law and parents won't control their children or themselves.
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P.O.,  06/29/2009 16:01
You've got a friend in Pennsylvania.
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Tom Ridge,  06/29/2009 14:50
Regulate ATV's -- They are a noise, pollution and environmental nightmare
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Ted,  06/29/2009 14:43
Jeepster, maybe it's the ATV riders that need to mind THEIR business. Riding on trails where ATVs are banned is NOT their business.
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Jeff,  06/29/2009 13:46
It sounds like Mr Polednak was watching a Death Wish marathon and thought he was Paul Kersey.
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JCB,  06/29/2009 12:16
Sounds like a pretty high-class family. Fortunate for ol' Hop-along he didn't pull that "gun" on someone carrying a concealed REAL gun.
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Jerry Springer,  06/29/2009 11:40
Always blame the ONE LEGGED MAN!!!!
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PEG,  06/29/2009 11:02
This is why people should mind their own business. Could have been a real gun the guy had. Is it worth it to play tough-guy and block a trail?
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Jeepster,  06/29/2009 10:49
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