Daily Darwin

Darwin 2 6 23

Cowboy State Daily is Wyoming’s largest newspaper with Wyoming’s most experienced journalists. 

<title>Daily Darwin: Monday, February 6, 2023 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Hey, I got you some flowers....  Hold it, is that ice???

Daily Darwin: Monday, February 6, 2023

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's Feature Reporter, Andrew Rossi.

Andrew Rossi

Outdoors

Public Lands

A tourist caught on video climbing on top of one of the iconic buildings in Grand Teton National Park not only broke the law, he disrespected “my family’s heritage,” said the grandson of Thomas Alva Moulton, who along with brother John Moulton, built the most famous homesteads on Mormon Row.

. A man climbed to the top of one of the historic structures adjacent to the pink house on the John Moulton Ranch.

“A tourist climbed onto the roof of one of the historic buildings just to take photos,” she said, but she didn’t say whether the man had been reported to park rangers.

<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Da00gdXO94z/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style=" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding:16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Da00gdXO94z/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;" target="_blank"> <div style=" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div></div></div><div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;"><svg width="50px" height="50px" viewBox="0 0 60 60" version="1.1" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><g stroke="none" stroke-width="1" fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"><g transform="translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)" fill="#000000"><g><path d="M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631"></path></g></g></g></svg></div><div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style=" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;">View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"><div> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"></div> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style=" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)"></div></div><div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style=" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"></div> <div style=" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"></div></div></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"></div></div></a><p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Da00gdXO94z/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;" target="_blank">A post shared by @touronsofnationalparks</a></p></div></blockquote> <script async src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script>

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"My Family’s Heritage"}]

While the Moulton family no longer owns the historic structures, they still have a deep connection to their homesteads in the Teton Valley.

Steve Moulton is the grandson of T.A. Moulton, who built 

of the still-standing structures on Mormon Row and one of the most photographed barns in the world.

“My grandfather built the T.A. barn way back in the early 1900s,” he told Cowboy State Daily. “My dad helped build it and worked on it over the years. I have worked on it myself. I've been on the roof of the T.A. barn because we were putting a new roof on it.”

Moulton admitted that he climbed all over the T.A. Moulton Barn as a child, but that was when it was his family’s property.

The 1-acre parcel with the T.A. Moulton Barn was sold to the National Park Service in 2018, making it the last privately owned real estate on Mormon Row to be folded into Grand Teton National Park.

“I’m associated with the T.A. Moulton Barn, but that doesn't mean that I want to see anything going on down at the John Moulton Barn either,” Steve said. “It’s my family's heritage.”

omeone clambering over the historic building, especially since there’s been such an effort to ensure the remaining structures at Mormon Row remain standing.

“It's clear that there are people in this world who have no respect for public property,” he said. “To keep them in good condition, we have to take care of them, because yes, they are fragile.”

Grand Teton officials "are aware of the video" and warn that "climbing on historic structures can cause irreversible damage," said park spokesperson Emily Davis in a statement to Cowboy State Daily.

“At Mormon Row, visitors come to experience a remarkable historic landscape,” she added. “When someone disregards the rules and climbs on these structures, it detracts from that shared experience and puts an irreplaceable piece of our nation's history at risk.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Loved To Death"}]

Most people who visit Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks from around the world don’t have destructive intentions. They just want to take in the beauty of the landscape, like millions of others.

[{"type":"text","text":"That, however, can be part of the problem."}]

As visitation to national parks increases, one commonly heard concern is that they’re “

” The reason is that higher densities of tourists are, intentionally or unintentionally, causing more destruction and disturbance to the natural vistas that drew people there in the first place.

“We ask all visitors to help preserve historic buildings by viewing them from designated areas and not climbing on or entering the structures,” Davis said. “Historic buildings can be more fragile than they appear, and even what might seem like minor actions can contribute to the buildings' deterioration over time.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Steve shares some of that concern. "}]

[{"type":"text","text":"As Mormon Row has become more popular, the impact on the area is evident."}]

“What bothers me is there's so much foot traffic around the T.A. Barn,” he said. “The pictures used to have green grass in front of the barn. Now, it's just dirt because there is so much traffic.”

 at Mormon Row is underway. Jenkins has said it was part of several “micro-geographic” efforts to improve popular spots in the park for a better overall visitor experience.

“We want to be able to host more visitation at Mormon Row, so we're looking at things we can be doing to help manage that visitation,” he told Cowboy State Daily in May.

The list of desired site improvements includes a larger, centralized parking lot, new interpretive and wayfinding signs, distinct walking paths, and furnishings like benches and trash cans, new restrooms, and a 0.75-mile trail extension connecting Mormon Trail Road to Antelope Flats Road.

“Construction started at Mormon Row earlier this month,” Davis said. “Site improvements there are part of a multi-phase project to improve accessibility and the visitor experience while protecting the site's historic character.”

These improvements will go hand-in-hand with an ecological restoration of Mormon Row. 

Native vegetation will be planted and damaged areas restored, and the new parking lot will be built further away from the historic homesteads to ensure the landscape and views remain as pristine as possible.

they’d help to mitigate the damage of visitor traffic. However, that doesn’t eliminate the damage caused by reckless tourists who are determined to do their own thing to the detriment of the park and its visitors.

“We want (Mormon Row) to last many more decades, so we have to be really careful with anything that goes on around them, as far as touching, climbing, or taking stuff off them for souvenirs,” he said.

Many people value the serenity of Mormon Row and the Moulton barns as much as the Moulton family itself. Steve hopes that will lead to better decisions and increased awareness.

“I want visitors to understand their historical importance,” he said. “I want them to have the same feelings as my family does about preserving the integrity of those structures, so we have to take great care to not do anything that will be destructive to them.”

Climing on Moulton building 1 7 21 26

<title>Grand Teton Tourist Caught Illegally Climbing On Famous Mormon Row Building | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A tourist caught on video climbing one of the famous Mormon Row buildings in Grand Teton Park broke the law and disrespected “my family’s heritage,” said the grandson of T.A. Moulton who, along with his brother, built the most park's famous homesteads.

Grand Teton Tourist Caught Illegally Climbing On Famous Mormon Row Building

Heinz mark

Mark Heinz

Montana grizzly advocates say it should be mandatory for hunters and trappers to carry bear spray in grizzly country — a move they say will make people safer and save bears from being shot.

A coalition of 19 Montana organizations and 46 individuals Tuesday submitted a petition to the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission to require carrying bear spray, much like hunters are required to wear fluorescent orange.

Similar petitions were filed in Wyoming and Idaho in 2019, but those efforts failed.

The push for mandatory bear spray touches on the debate over whether a firearm or bear spray is better for stopping a grizzly attack.

Another point of debate is how many grizzlies can be killed without imperiling bear recovery in Wyoming, Montana and Idaho.

While grizzlies are not hunted in Wyoming, Montana and Idaho, it is legal to kill one in defense of human life.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Alternative to ‘Going for the Gun’"}]

One of the petitioners, Mike Bader of Missoula, said the intent is not to forbid hunters or trappers from also carrying handguns for bear defense if they choose.

But making bear spray mandatory would be no different than wildlife agencies requiring fluorescent orange or requiring that boaters wear life jackets, he told Cowboy State Daily.

“We’re looking at the facts of the matter. And the fact is, hunting and trapping significantly increase your chances of having an encounter with a bear,” said Bader, a grizzly ecologist and former Yellowstone National Park ranger.

Trappers might use meat or other bait that can attract bears, he said. And hunters move stealthily, often through thick cover and at dawn and dusk.

Mandatory bear spray would give them “another alternative rather than going for the gun first” in case of a bear encounter gone bad, Bader said.

There has been a steady increase in the number of bears shot and killed by hunters claiming self-defense, he said.

That adds to the grizzly death toll, which could threaten bears’ full recovery in the Rocky Mountain West, he added.

An important element of full grizzly recovery is robust genetic exchange between subpopulations, such as the Greater Yellowstone population and Montana’s Northern Continental Divide grizzly population, Bader said.

Requiring bear spray would help protect grizzlies, but human safety should remain a priority, Bader said.

“Of course we want to stop bears from getting killed. But the primary thing, just like with hunter orange or life vests, is that it’s a public safety thing,” Bader said.

“All of the wildlife agencies encourage bear spray,” he added.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Game and Fish Stresses Education"}]

Petitions were filed in 2019 to mandate bear spray for hunters in Wyoming and Idaho, Kristin Combs, executive director of Wyoming Wildlife Advocates, told Cowboy State Daily.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"The petitions were rejected, she said."}]

Then-Game and Fish Commission member Peter Dube said bear spray should be encouraged for anyone venturing into Wyoming’s backcountry.

However, “I don’t think it needs to be a requirement,” he said, according to notes from the commission’s July 19, 2019, meeting in Rock Springs.

Game and Fish Director Angi Bruce told Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday that the department emphasizes education regarding safety in grizzly country and how to properly use bear spray.

“We have discussed this option (mandating bear spray) with our commission in the past and decided, rather than making it mandatory, that we would prioritize providing education and outreach, as well as providing free bear spray and training,” she said in a text message.

Mandating bear spray also isn’t something the Game and Fish Commission could have decided on its own. 

It would have required action by the Wyoming Legislature, Bruce added.

Game and Fish hosts bear safety seminars around Wyoming. Participants are invited to test their bear-spraying skills by going up against Robobear.

Robobear is a wheeled contraption with a facsimile of a bear mounted atop it that can reach speeds of 20 mph or more as it charges.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Won’t Fly With Hunters"}]

Guy Eastman of Cody has hunted numerous times in grizzly country and told Cowboy State Daily that he acknowledges the value of bear spray.

Even so, he doesn’t favor making it mandatory, and the idea “isn’t going to fly with the hunters,” said Eastman, who represents the third generation of the outdoor multimedia family.

“It’s one of those things that sounds good on paper. But the actual logistics of implementing that, monitoring it and babysitting people to carry it — that’s a whole other issue,” he said.

Also, even when hunters are carrying bear spray, they might see the rifle in their hands as the best first option if a grizzly charges them, Eastman said.

“You think you’re going to set your rifle down and reach for the bear spray? No. There’s going to be a ‘boom,’” he said.

Eastman added that he thinks the number of grizzlies killed defensively by hunters will never come close to the number killed by wildlife agencies for such things as attacking cattle.

Some argue that opening a hunting season for grizzlies in Wyoming wouldn’t affect human-bear conflicts. Others claim that it would make a difference by making grizzlies more fearful of humans.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Eastman takes the latter view."}]

"We’re not arguing over whether bears are going to die. Bears are going to get killed. We’re arguing over who is going to do it (hunters or wildlife agents),” he said.

Bruce recently told the Legislature’s Joint Travel, Recreation, Wildlife and Cultural Resources Committee that Game and Fish agents are likely killing more grizzlies than hunters would during grizzly hunting seasons.

Griz bear spray 7 21 26

<title>Montana Grizzly Advocates Want Bear Spray Mandatory for Hunters, Trappers | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Grizzly advocates in Montana submitted a petition Tuesday to make bear spray mandatory for hunters like wearing fluorescent orange is now. Guy Eastman of Cody has hunted numerous times in grizzly country and said the idea “isn’t going to fly with hunters.”

Montana Grizzly Advocates Want Bear Spray Mandatory for Hunters, Trappers

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's general assignment reporter, Clair McFarland.

Clair McFarland

Politics

Government & Politics

The doctor whom Gov. Mark Gordon sought to remove from the Wyoming Board of Medicine over the doctor’s outspoken advocacy for a ban on child sex changes has won his appeal – halfway.

 in the governor’s personal and official capacity for three alleged free-speech and petition violations, all stemming from Cubin’s advocacy for “Chloe’s Law” – a proposed ban on sex-change treatments for kids that ultimately became law.

Cubin, a Casper radiologist, was pushed off the board because of things he said while lobbying state lawmakers to pass Chloe’s Law while he was a member of the Board of Medicine. 

This came after his multiple failed efforts to try and convince Wyoming Medical Society leadership to change its opposition to the bill.

In a letter to state legislators, Cubin called the Medical Society, of which he was a member, “woke” and taken over by “extremely liberal” members.

“I urged our legislators to be circumspect about the information they were being provided and cautious about what they allow physicians to do to kids in our state — something that is now the law across Wyoming,” Cubin said at the time.

[{"type":"text","text":"Gordon wrote to Cubin to remove him from the Wyoming Board of Medicine."}]

The governor told Cubin the doctors the board governs should “have confidence that board members prosecute their responsibilities on the board in an objective and unbiased way.”

[{"type":"text","text":"But Cubin resigned instead."}]

Then he sued the governor in both his official and personal capacities. For the official claims, Cubin wanted the court to make Gordon restore Cubin to his seat on the board, and to declare that Gordon had violated Cubin’s First Amendment rights.

For the personal claims, Cubin sought “monetary damages” against Gordon “in an amount to be determined at trial.”

U.S. District Court Judge Scott Skavdahl pronounced the whole lawsuit insufficient for court and dismissed it.

The judge found that Cubin had failed to show the governor unconstitutionally retaliated against him for his speech because, in Skavdahl’s view, Cubin’s speech didn’t rise to the level of “public concern” and the government’s interest in “promoting efficiency” on the board outweighed Cubin’s expressive rights.

Skavdahl also concluded that for the personal-capacity claims, Gordon has qualified immunity.

A panel of three 10th Circuit Court of Appeals Judges disagreed, saying Cubin’s speech does rise to the level of public concern.

Their Tuesday order sends the case back down to the Wyoming-based federal court for further review – and revives Cubin’s claims against Gordon in his official capacity.

Cubin's attorney Brendan Philbin, of the Liberty Justice Center, said he and Cubin are "thrilled with the result" of the appeal. 

"I think the court really nailed it on what this case is about, when they said that speech on matters of democratic debate is of paramount public importance," said Philbin. "We’re rally happy the court saw that Dr. Cubin was participating in the legislative process and really exercising the rights that we hold dear, to participate in representative government. And we’re excited now to go back to the district court and continue to seek justice for him."

[{"type":"text","text":"Philbin also called the remand a win for Wyomingites. "}]

the governor remains confident that the merits of this case will show he did not infringe on Cubin’s freedom of speech.

“The Governor is confident that he will also prevail in his official capacity upon remand to the District Court,” said Edmonds. 

[{"type":"text","text":"A Matter Of Public Concern"}]

A person is likelier to prove that his government employer retaliated against him for his speech if his speech was a matter of public concern.

Cubin’s complaints about the Wyoming Medical Society cut against that claim because that’s a private group, wrote 10th Circuit Court Judge Nancy Moritz in the Monday remand order. But he was clearly lobbying for legislation, on a matter of high public concern, the order also says – which cuts in his favor.

“Gordon urges us to view Cubin’s frustrations… as personal grievances with the internal dynamics of the Society, a private organization,” wrote Moritz. 

“On the other hand,” the order counters, “Cubin raised these concerns in opposition of the Society’s 

facts characteristic of ‘the type of core political speech the First Amendment was designed to protect.’”

Cubin’s speech was a matter of public concern, so his retaliation claim against Gordon as an official is revived, the order says.

[{"type":"text","text":"Balancing Disruption Vs. Speech"}]

Gordon had explained his decision to remove Cubin as a safeguard against people questioning the board’s impartiality, and against disruption of “at least some of the Board’s core functions.”

Government employers have an interest in regulating their employees’ speech, but courts also balance that interest against employees’ rights.

Skavdahl’s court hasn’t seen enough evidence for the judge to side with Gordon on that one, the 10th Circuit decision says.

[{"type":"text","text":"Just Sue The Government Though"}]

The Monday order upholds Skavdahl’s ruling that Gordon gets qualified immunity for his attempt to remove Cubin.

[{"type":"text","text":"That means Cubin can’t sue Gordon for money in his personal capacity. "}]

A key tenet of qualified immunity holds that government officials – such as police officers, governors or other public employees – would have to break a clearly-established right to face lawsuit liability as individuals.

Though Cubin showed a strong enough case for retaliation to revive his official-capacity claims, he didn’t prove that Gordon was violating a clearly-established right, the appeals court ruled.

“It was not clearly established that Cubin’s email (complaining about the Medical Society) addressed a matter of public concern,” the order says. “And Gordon is entitled to qualified immunity in his personal capacity.”

10th Circuit Court Judge Richard Federico and a Utah-based U.S. District Court Judge filling in on the case - Ann Marie McIff Allen – also joined Mortiz’s ruling.

Eric Cubin and Gordon 8 29 24

<title>Doctor Who Lobbied Against Child Sex Changes Wins Second Chance In Court | Cowboy State Daily</title>

The doctor Gov. Gordon sought to remove from the Wyoming Board of Medicine for advocating a ban on child sex changes has won his appeal – halfway. A Tuesday ruling sent the case back to federal court, reviving First Amendment claims against Gordon.

Doctor Who Lobbied Against Child Sex Changes Wins Second Chance In Court

Kolby fedore

Kolby Fedore

Jory Thomas, 14, was absent-mindedly flipping loops with a rope while visiting his grandparents' campground on the Yellowstone River over the Fourth of July weekend when he heard someone start screaming for help.

Within seconds, the Montana ranch kid emptied his pockets, splashed across a side channel and waded chest-deep into the river.

[{"type":"text","text":"Then he did something he'd spent the past year practicing on calves."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"This time, he roped a drowning man."}]

The July 5 rescue unfolded so quickly that by the time the first Sweet Grass County Sheriff’s Office deputy arrived three minutes after Jory's father called 911, everyone was already safely on shore.

"My opinion, Jory saved the individual's life, 100%," Sweet Grass County Sheriff Alan Ronneberg told Cowboy State Daily. "Had Jory not acted, I believe the chances of this individual not making it to shore were very slim.”'

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"A Boat Hits A Bridge"}]

The Thomas family lives on a ranch about a dozen miles outside Big Timber, directly across from a campground where Jory's grandparents had been staying for the week.

Jory wandered over to visit with his parents and grandparents that afternoon, a rope already in his hand as he casually practiced throwing loops.

"All of a sudden he heard some yells for help," Jory's father, Jase Thomas, told Cowboy State Daily.

A boat had struck a bridge pillar, throwing its occupants into the Yellowstone River.

Three people fell in, but only two managed to get out, leaving one person alone in the swift current, desperately clinging to a cooler.

[{"type":"text","text":"Jory didn't hesitate."}]

Somehow, said his father, he convinced the drowning man to let go of the cooler. Then he threw the rope, catching the man around the neck and one arm. 

Jory and another bystander then pulled the man safely to shore before emergency responders arrived. 

In the moment, Jory didn’t think about any potential danger to himself, he just acted on instinct, the teen told KTVQ television in Billings, Montana, which first 

"This current was pretty fast then, and he was moving pretty quickly," he told the outlet. "Only thing I could focus on was helping him get out of the water because I didn't want to see anyone go in front of me.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"'Let Me Have My Son Back'"}]

Jory's father has spent three decades on the Big Timber Volunteer Fire Department and immediately called 911.

Dispatch records show the call came in at 5:39 p.m. A deputy arrived just three minutes later and reported everyone was already out of the water. 

[{"type":"text","text":"Watching the rescue unfold wasn't easy for the elder Thomas. "}]

He knows that stretch of river, and that it becomes more dangerous just downstream, where swift current, deep holes and logjams create deadly hazards.

"My biggest concern was to let me have my son back," he said before taking a long pause, reflecting on the potential for Jory to also get caught up in the current.

"He understands water, but I don't think he understands what could happen,” Jase said. "I mean, he does, but he had one thing in mind, which is great, and he got it done." 

Jase believes the man his son rescued likely wouldn't have survived much longer.

[{"type":"text","text":"Sheriff Ronneberg agrees."}]

"I'm not sure how close the individual was to being 'lost,' but in my experience such things happen faster than you might guess they can," he said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"'He Loves Roping' "}]

Although the rescue looked almost unbelievable, it wasn't blind luck. Jory has spent the past year immersing himself in roping.

He practices on roping dummies in his spare time and started roping calves from horseback during local brandings, his father said.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"He's always had a rope,\" Jase said. \"He loves roping.\" "}]

Outside of ranch work, he's an avid hunter and is spending this week showing a steer and a pig at the county fair. 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"'That's Just Who He Is'"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"To his family, the rescue wasn't entirely surprising."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Jase said his son has always been the first person to help someone else."}]

"We'll be in town at the grocery store, and you'll see an elderly person," he said. "They can't pack the groceries, and he never says a word. He goes over and gets their groceries and packs them out. That's just who he is." 

Ronneberg said the rescue is a reminder that courage often appears in ordinary moments.

"Jory saw another in trouble and acted, not for himself but for another," Ronneberg said. "He didn't pull out a phone, but a lariat. He didn't watch what was happening but intervened."

"Jory is a lesson for all of us in this day and age and showed us what is courageous and right.”

Montana lasso teen 7 21 26

<title>14-Year-Old Ranch Kid Ropes Drowning Man On Yellowstone River, Saves Life | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A 14-year-old ranch kid from Big Timber, Montana, had a rope in his hand when cries for help erupted from the Yellowstone River. He sprinted into the water, threw one loop and caught a struggling man around the arm and neck, pulling him safely to shore.

14-Year-Old Ranch Kid Ropes Drowning Man On Yellowstone River, Saves Life

Two tourists were seen getting dangerously and illegally close to Grand Prismatic Spring on Sunday in Yellowstone National Park, enraging hundreds of spectators and millions of internet onlookers.

Tanya Saueressig of Livingston, Montana, was visiting Yellowstone with a friend when she witnessed the incident. She was standing on the Grand Prismatic boardwalk around 7 p.m. during what was otherwise a pleasant evening.

“It was a really nice crowd,” she told Cowboy State Daily. “People on the boardwalk were being lovely, giving each other space, and being quiet. It was a really nice experience.”

Saueressig was getting her final look of the evening when she saw something moving across the expansive microbial mats toward Grand Prismatic.

“I stopped in my tracks and was like, ‘Is that people? That can't be people. Nobody's that dumb,’” she said. 

[{"type":"text","text":"After all, temperatures in the spring run from 145 - 188 degrees. Deadly."}]

But, it was people. Two women, who appeared to be approaching the massive hot spring from the Fairy Falls Trail, which runs along the western edge of Grand Prismatic.

Saueressig's lovely evening quickly soured, as she was immediately overwhelmed by a wave of different emotions.

“I started getting scared because I thought they were going to fall in and get really, really hurt,” she said. “I worried people at the overlook were going to watch someone die that day. They were out there where nobody could help them.”

Concern quickly turned to anger. As she watched the women nonchalantly walk along the edge of Grand Prismatic, within 50 feet of its scalding-hot water, she got “so furious that I literally had tears in my eyes.”

“You could tell they were just strolling along, taking their selfies, without a care in the world,” she said. “They were totally oblivious to what was right under their feet. You're causing so much damage with every step you take, and you don't care.”

Someone else filmed the dark-haired duo 

. That video has been viewed millions of times in less than 24 hours. 

Two tourists got dangerously and illegally close to Grand Prismatic Spring on Sunday in Yellowstone. Montana resident Tanya Saueressig, who filmed them taking selfies right next to the scalding water, said she "was so furious" she had tears in her eyes.

Daily Darwin: Monday, February 6, 2023

More in Daily Darwin

Daily Darwin: Wednesday, July 22, 2026

Daily Darwin: Tuesday, July 21, 2026

Daily Darwin: Monday, July 20, 2026

Daily Darwin: Sunday, July 19, 2026

Most read