The Voice of the Community Since 1909, Serving Moorcroft and Pine Haven, Wyoming
The Voice of the Community Since 1909, Serving Moorcroft and Pine Haven, Wyoming
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Strike-down of affirmative action will not impact admissions at UW or CSU CHEYENNE (WNE) — The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to strike down affirmative action in college admissions on Thursday will not impact the admissions processes at either the University of Wyoming or nearby Colorado State University. Though the court declared race can no longer be a factor in admission, neither university anticipates changes in their own admissions. “The university does not see any direct impact from this,” UW associate vice president of institutional comm...
North Antelope Rochelle Mine workers injured in tornado released from hospital GILLETTE (WNE) — All mine workers hospitalized after a tornado carrying up to 130 mph gusts struck North Antelope Rochelle Mine early Friday night have been released and the large open-pit coal mine is gradually resuming its operations. The tornado touched down at about 6 p.m. Friday while shift change was underway, knocking over at least 12 empty train cars, flipping multiple buses there to transport workers and sparking a search and rescue operation that drew n...
Man who led deputies on chase with meth and fentanyl in car gets 8-10 years GILLETTE (WNE) — A man who led sheriff’s deputies on a car chase through Gillette while his passenger threw meth and fentanyl out the window was sentenced to up to ten years in prison. Zachary Thomas Stott, 29, was given two imposed eight- to 10-year sentences in May for possession with intent to deliver meth and fentanyl. The two sentences are to run concurrent with each other, according to court documents. Dawn M. Merdink, 44, was in the car with Stott and acc...
The Wyoming Department of Transportation wants to remind residents about upcoming changes to license plates for light trailers. Starting July 1, owners of light trailers – defined as trailers weighing less than 1000 lbs. – can purchase a permanent plate for their trailer. Light trailers that are less than 6 years old would incur a $350 one-time permanent registration fee for the plate. To register older trailers, owners will need to pay a $50 one-time administration fee, a one-time fee equ...
Temple Grandin to speak in Sheridan in support of new nonprofit SHERIDAN (WNE) — Temple Grandin, a prominent figure in both the agriculture and autism communities, is coming to Sheridan in July to help raise funds for a new local nonprofit. Grandin is an advocate for the humane treatment of livestock. According to her website, around half the cattle in the U.S. are handled in facilities she designed specifically to reduce stress on animals before slaughter. A professor of animal science at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado, sh...
GILLETTE — Gary and Darva Rye looked out their window to a surprise Thursday morning. On days when the sky is clear, they have a full view of the Big Horn Mountains situated more than 70 miles from their home on Bell Road, just south of Gillette. But when they looked out toward Highway 50 last week, it wasn’t the mountains that grabbed their attention. That morning, construction began on a 5200 square-foot cryptocurrency mine, one of at least two crypto mines currently being built in Campbell County. The mine sits close to Highway 50 south of...
SHERIDAN - Learning to read well should be a reliable outcome of K-12 public education, but when Crystal Lenhart started as a reading specialist at Big Horn Elementary she confronted the heartbreaking reality that's not guaranteed in American schools. After a decade of teaching - from fourth grade to art to kindergarten - Lenhart shifted her focus to literacy. The change coincided with the publication of Emily Hanford's reporting on how the American education system fails to teach kids to read....
Bond revoked for Dell Range shooting defendant CHEYENNE (WNE) — Tirso Munguia, 19, one of the three defendants charged in connection with the shooting death of Angelina Harrison, 16, had his bond revoked last week after violating the terms of his bond by allegedly making contact with Harrison’s family. Judge Edward Buchanan ordered the District Court to revoke Munguia’s bond, saying that he “materially violated his bond.” Buchanan also said that his bond could be reinstated on the same terms, with the condition that Munguia be subject t...
CHEYENNE — Wildfire season can cause concern for the general public, especially considering the increase in damage done by fires in the West. In spite of this, the state of Wyoming is confident in its ability to manage fires this season. During a press briefing Monday, officials from state and federal agencies discussed the expectations and resources available for the upcoming fire season. The National Significant Wildland Fire Potential Outlook has indicated that Wyoming is expected to have an average to normal fire season. “The extra sno...
Gillette woman’s prison sentence commuted GILLETTE (WNE) — The prison sentence of a Gillette woman convicted of embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from a homeowners association in the early 2000s has been reduced to time served, making her eligible for release. Julie A. Jacobsen, 70, had her sentence commuted April 5 and was transferred to the Scotts Bluff County Detention Center in Nebraska after serving just more than 12 years in the Wyoming Women’s Center in Lusk. In 2011, Jacobsen was sentenced in Campbell County District Court...
Man arrested after allegedly kidnapping woman from Walmart GILLETTE (WNE) — A 26-year-old man was arrested for felony counts of kidnapping and probation violation, as well as misdemeanor counts of theft, use of drugs and interference with a peace officer after a 24-year-old woman reported that he tried to kidnap her at Walmart on Friday morning. The woman told officers at the police department the man came up to her at Walmart and told her that she was going to go home with him and that his friends were outside with automatic weapons, Police D...
Meeteetse annexation approved CODY (WNE) — A proposed annexation that will increase the size of Meeteetse by more than 70% moved forward last week following a 3-2 vote by the Town Council on May 4. The question of whether to annex 390.7 acres into the town limits proved divisive among council members. Mayor J.W. “Bill” Yetter and council members Eric Scott and Josh Blake voted for the measure, while Corey Guthrie and Dustin Taylor voted against it. Yetter said the annexation would have significant benefits for the town. “The benefit to the tow...
Black Hills Energy to use Wyodak coal to research hydrogen generation GILLETTE (WNE) — Black Hills Energy will be using Powder River Basin coal to research hydrogen generation. Black Hills Energy was recently awarded a grant from the Wyoming Energy Authority to conduct a feasibility analysis on hydrogen generation using coal from Wyodak Mine. The ongoing research project partners engineers from Black Hills Energy with clean power production experts from Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, or B&W, as well as members of the Chemical and Biomolecular E...
KEMMERER — Microsoft billionaire and TerraPower Chairman Bill Gates toured the Naughton Power Plant in Kemmerer on Friday and saw where TerraPower will build a nuclear reactor before conducting a press conference that afternoon. “Getting things right here will be a big part of how we keep electricity reliable and keep the United States at the forefront of providing energy technology to the entire world,” Gates told locals who packed a room at the Best Western Fossil Country Inn. “The United States has had some challenges with energy securit...
CASPER — The Wyoming Republican Party is asking local school districts to adopt policies that align with Senate File 117 — a bill proposed during the session this year that’s similar to Florida’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law, and which would have barred classroom instruction about gender identity and sexual orientation in certain grades. Two county parties — Park and Sheridan counties — passed resolutions in April and March, respectively, urging their local districts to adopt policies that align with Senate File 117. The state GOP central...
Situations involving guns result in teen’s death, felony charge CHEYENNE (WNE) — Two apparently unrelated shooting incidents took place in Laramie County over the weekend, with one resulting in the death of a teenage girl. The Cheyenne Police Department is continuing its investigation of a shooting at Lincoln Park in south Cheyenne as a homicide after the 15-year-old female victim was declared deceased Monday morning. The unidentified girl was injured in an incident police officers responded to at about 12:23 Sunday morning. At the scene, res...
GILLETTE — The Campbell County Joint Powers Lodging Tax Board is continuing with its contract with Zartico, a company that compiles anonymized geolocation and credit card data. A group of county residents has raised concerns about invasion of privacy and constitutionality since early April, when the Campbell County Convention and Visitors Bureau told commissioners it would be using a geofencing technology to track spending and activity habits during the National High School Finals Rodeo. The board held a special meeting Wednesday to discuss t...
Man dies after rollover crash on I-90 near Rozet GILLETTE (WNE) — A 37-year-old man died after rolling his car on Interstate 90 near Rozet Wednesday afternoon. Jachob Irish was driving a Honda Civic eastbound on Interstate 90 when he failed to negotiate a left-hand curve in the road near mile marker 145, according to Wyoming Highway Patrol. He drove onto the shoulder, then overcorrected, causing the Civic to go into a ditch and turn over several times. Campbell County Coroner Paul Wallem said Irish died from blunt force trauma, specifically t...
Degenfelder opposes proposed Title IX rule change CHEYENNE (WNE) — State Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder released a statement Thursday regarding the Biden administration’s proposed Title IX rule changes. Title IX is a 1972 law that bans sex discrimination in public schools, colleges and universities that receive federal funding. Among other changes, proposed new rules that are due to take effect in May would include protections for transgender and nonbinary students for the first time. Degenfelder said in the sta...
CASPER — Wyoming and three other states applied formally last week for more than $1 billion in federal funds for the creation of a regional clean hydrogen hub. The Western Interstate Hydrogen Hub partnership, which began a little more than a year ago, also includes Colorado, New Mexico and Utah, along with eight private companies. It’s projected to create more than 26,000 jobs — and considerable economic opportunity — if the U.S. Department of Energy signs off on the $1.25 billion proposal, according to a press release. “As an all-of-th...
Probation recommended for man accused of pointing rifle from car GILLETTE (WNE) — The man accused of pointing an AR-15-style rifle at a car full of people after cutting them off reached a plea deal that recommends probation on reduced charges. Christen H. Best, 18, pleaded no contest March 15 to amended counts of possession of a deadly weapon with unlawful intent, a felony and misdemeanor reckless endangerment. District Judge James M. “Mike” Causey accepted and withheld judgment on the felony plea and found Best guilty of the misde...
Trial for Cody couple delayed to August for possible plea agreement CODY (WNE) – The jury trials for the Cody couple charged with abusing their 15-year-old child by putting her in cruel confinement have been delayed until Aug. 7 due to possible plea agreements. Jacob Wayne Guyer, 38, and Christine Philbrook, 48, were charged separately in 2021, each with one count of child abuse after they allegedly locked the child in a room for several hours a day, under poor living conditions and with little food. Both Guyer, the child’s father, and Phi...
Mountain lion shot and killed in Slater GUERNSEY (WNE) – As local ranchers Jeb and Lalonda Baker were sipping an early morning cup of coffee and looking out toward the horizon, they wondered why their dog was out agitating the cattle. When the dog came walking in between them, they knew something else was out near the calf pen. As Baker grabbed a pair of binoculars and took a closer look, all he could say was, “it’s a lion,” before heading for the gun cabinet. This mountain lion was a 130-pound male that was on the prowl close to Normand...
JACKSON – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service opposes Wyoming congresswoman Harriet Hageman’s legislative push to remove Endangered Species Act protections from Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bears. But the Wyoming Game and Fish Department backs delisting “by whatever means is necessary.” Game and Fish Director Brian Nesvik told Hageman, a first-term Republican, and other members of the United States House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries as much Thursday morning. He described Yellowstone area grizzli...
CASPER – Anti-abortion lawmakers in Wyoming celebrated a historic win following the U.S. Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade over the summer, vowing to further restrict the procedure by next deleting the rape and incest exemptions in the trigger abortion ban that the Legislature had passed months earlier. But more than half a year and two lawsuits later, that initial jubilation has quieted as anti-abortion lawmakers in the Equality State face the realities of a complex post-Roe landscape. On Wednesday, a Teton County judge temporarily blo...
