One More For The Road

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

<title>One More For The Road: Thursday, June 15, 2023 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Meet the inventor of the crosswalk...

One More For The Road: Thursday, June 15, 2023

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily reporter, Dale Killingbeck

Dale Killingbeck

Crime & Courts

Courts

CASPER — A 21-year-old Casper man pleaded not guilty Tuesday to his alleged part in a confrontation that led up to a fatal shooting at south-side apartment last year. 

Jadin Zander Tripplett is accused of being with an armed friend on May 11, 2025, when he pointed a gun at a man in the apartment — who was also his cousin —and pulling the trigger.

Triplett told Casper police the gun didn’t fire because he had forgotten to take his safety off. 

His accomplice, Anicio Bernard, 20, did fire his weapon as did the man in the apartment, leaving Bernard dead and the cousin wounded.

In Natrona County District Court on Tuesday standing beside his defense attorney Dylan Rosalez, Judge Kerri Johnson read Triplett the aggravated assault and battery charge he faces for the May 11, 2025, incident. 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"He told her he understood the charge."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Johnson asked him how he would plead."}]

“Not guilty, your honor,” Triplett said.

The judge said she would order the case be put on the court docket for trial.

Rosalez asked that Triplett’s $100,000 cash or surety bond be continued.

Triplett pleaded not guilty in a separate file on July 9 to a charge of conspiracy to commit aggravated assault and battery related to the same May 11 incident. 

That charge and the aggravated assault and battery charge were separated in Casper Circuit Court due to a legal issue during Triplett’s first preliminary hearing on both charges.

The Natrona County District Attorney’s Office has asked to joint the cases again.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"The Background"}]

Charges against Triplett stem from an incident in the early evening of May 11, 2025, when court records state he and Bernard had gone to his cousin’s apartment to retrieve a weapon allegedly stolen from Triplett.

Both men put on masks before entering the apartment and they were accompanied by Triplett’s girlfriend, Neevah Marie Neeman.

A police affidavit states that at least four people were in the apartment when the pair entered the door and Bernard yelled out, “Give me all your shit, give me all your shit.”

Neeman told police that while walking into the apartment building, Bernard had chambered a round in his pistol. 

The affidavit states Bernard had gotten the weapon from Triplett a few weeks earlier. Neeman also said Triplett had a handgun as well.

Once inside, Triplett’s cousin pulled out the weapon he had and the shooting began, according to the affidavit.

A handful of witnesses interviewed by police inside and outside the apartment estimated that seven to 11 shots were exchanged, the affidavit states. 

Police recovered two 9 mm shell casing and 11 10 mm casings.

Triplett’s cousin was hit in the heart and gall bladder causing “extensive damage,” the affidavit states. 

He was transported to Banner Wyoming Medical Center and then sent by life flight to Colorado for further care.

Bernard was also transported to the hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Last Word: ‘Run'"}]

Witnesses told police that Bernard was lying in a pool of blood on the concrete outside the door wearing a ski mask and in possession of a pistol.

Triplett and Neeman both told police following the shooting that Bernard’s last word to them was “run.”

Bernard’s girlfriend, who remained in the car outside the apartment, said prior to going into the building that she and Bernard had taken off their religious necklaces, put them together and said a prayer.

None of the trio called 911, they just took off in the car to gather weapons at Triplett’s residence to give to a friend.

Witnesses interviewed by police described the cousin and shooting victim as someone the apartment renter wanted out of the place. 

Triplett told police that initially he thought that he and Bernard were going to be “pressing” his cousin with their fists, but when he saw Bernard pull out his gun, he continued because he did not want to be labeled a “pussy.”

The affidavit states Triplett admitted pointing his gun at his cousin with a round in the chamber, but when he tried to pull the trigger he had forgotten to release the safety.

“Triplett stated he took this as a sign and left the apartment,” the affidavit states.

The police investigation included a recording sent from a “reliable” and “unnamed source” after the shooting where Triplett and his girlfriend were heard talking about the shooting,” the affidavit says. 

On one recording Triplett is heard stating that “KB (Bernard) had his blick.” 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Blick is a slang term for a weapon."}]

In a second recording, Triplett is heard describing what he would tell police who maybe would find his fingerprints on shell casings or the gun.

“Know what I’m gonna say? This (n***a) was just in my crib, he got two warrants, and he robbed my blick,” the affidavit states was on the recording. 

The affidavit states prior to May 11, Triplett was offering people $500 to get his weapon back from his cousin. 

A police search of Triplett’s cellphone found a message sent to his cousin on May 9 that read, “I’m coming for you cuz.”

Both the aggravated assault and battery and conspiracy to commit aggravated assault and battery carry potential penalties of 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

Neeman was charged with accessory after the fact in the case and faces arraignment next month in Natrona County District Court.

Jadin Tripplett 7 14 26

<title>​Casper Man Pleads Not Guilty To Role In Deadly Apartment Shootout | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A 21-year-old Casper man pleaded not guilty Tuesday for his alleged role in a deadly shootout at an apartment complex in May 2025. He’s accused of trying to shoot his cousin over a stolen gun during an armed raid that touched off a gunfight.

​Casper Man Pleads Not Guilty To Role In Deadly Apartment Shootout

Heinz mark

Mark Heinz

Outdoors

Hunting

An outbreak of canine distemper and other setbacks has left northwest Wyoming’s wolf population at a 20-year low, so the quota for the upcoming wolf hunting seasons is less than half of last year’s.

As of Jan. 1, there were 132 wolves in the wolf management area in northwest Wyoming, state Game and Fish Department biologist Ken Mills told the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission, during the commission’s meeting Tuesday in Sheridan.

The Game and Fish Department’s objective is for 160 wolves in that area, said Mills, a large carnivore biologist and wolf management specialist.

The department recommended setting the wolf mortality quota for the 2026 hunting season at 20, less than half of the 2025 44-wolf quota.

The mortality quota designates the number of wolves that can die, by any cause, before the hunt is shut down. 

If the mortality quota is met before the end date of the hunting season in that area, the hunting season is still shut down, regardless of how many hunters are left holding unfilled tags.

Hunters killed 31 wolves in 2025, falling short of the 44-wolf quota, Mills said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"What About 1090F?"}]

Fans of Yellowstone National Park’s famous Wolf 1090F said her pack is denning in one of the hunt areas.

Some asked the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission to carve out an exception to the proposed 2026 season regulations and suspend hunting in that area.

The commission voted unanimously to accept the wolf hunting seasons as proposed by the Game and Fish Department. Those include a quota of four wolves total in Hunt Areas 1 and 2 (Clarks Fork, North Fork).

Wolf 1090’s pack, the Mollie’s pack, is now denning on the Shoshone National Forest in Hunt Area 1.

The wolf hunt season there is set to run from Sept. 15 to Dec. 31.

In January, Wolf 1090F reached the age of 11 years, 9 months, making her the 

At that time, she surpassed the age of the legendary 907F, who died at roughly 11 years, 8 months old on Christmas Day in 2024 a few days after a fight with members of a rival wolf pack.

Just prior to the commission voting on the wolf seasons, Lisa Robertson of Wyoming Untrapped and Marke Cooke of Wolves of the Rockies called in to the meeting via Zoom to object.

Given the decline in the wolf population, Wyoming Untrapped and other wolf advocates would like to see wolf hunting suspended for two years, Robertson said.

Or, at least hunting should be suspended this year in Hunt Area 1 to protect Wolf 1090F and the rest of the Mollie’s pack, she said.

That would preserve an “internationally-recognized and highly-studied wolf pack,” she said.

Cooke also emphasized that the Mollie’s pack is prized by wolf researchers.

“Once they are gone, decades of irreplaceable knowledge are gone with them,” he told the commission.

Sparing the Mollie’s pack from being hunted could also bolster Wyoming’s image, Cooke said, adding that, "Wyoming is getting pretty beat up lately on some wildlife issues."

There have recently been high-profile cases of alleged wildlife abuse in Wyoming. 

Those include Daniel resident Cody Roberts capturing, tormenting and killing a wolf in February 2024. Also, a Unita County rancher allegedly videotaping two others 

Commissioner John Masterson noted that the Mollie’s pack is popular and frequently watched and photographed.

“From a pure management, scientific standpoint, is there anything substantially unique about that pack?” he asked the commission.

Mills responded that from the department’s perspective, “a breeding pair is a breeding pair, a pack is a pack” in terms of monitoring and managing wolves.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Numbers Down"}]

Wolves in Wyoming fall under three classifications, depending upon where they are in the state.

Inside Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks, they remain protected and may not be hunted.

In areas immediately adjacent to the park — in the Game and Fish wolf management zone — they may be shot by licensed hunters only during set seasons and within mortality quota limits.

Outside of the management zone, which is about 85% of Wyoming, wolves are classified as a predatory animal and may be killed at any time, with no limits or hunting tag required.

According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Wyoming is “committed” to maintain a population of 100 wolves, including 10 breeding pairs, inside the management zone, Mills said.

A breeding pair is male and female wolf that successfully raise at least two pups through the end of December.

Game and Fish wolf objectives include a “buffer” above the federal commitment, Mills said.

The department’s objective is for 160 wolves and 13 or 14 breeding pairs inside the wolf management zone, he said.

At the beginning of the year, there were 132 wolves in 22 packs, including 10 breeding pairs, Mills said.

The decline in wolf numbers might be largely due to an outbreak of canine distemper, which started in the fall of 2025 and has been especially hard on wolf pups, Mills said.

Wolf populations tend to recover quickly, he added.

For the wolf population stabilize at 160 by the end of 2026, as many as 63 could die of all causes, he said.

Of those, 35 could be “human-caused” wolf deaths by year’s end, Mills said.

Allowing for 15 wolves to be killed for such things as attacking livestock, that leaves a hunters’ quota of 20 across the entire wolf management zone, he said.

Howling wolves 7 14 26

<title>Wyoming Game And Fish Commission Cuts Wolf Hunt Quotas By More Than Half | Cowboy State Daily</title>

With northwest Wyoming’s wolf population at a 20-year low, the state Game and Fish Commission on Tuesday cut the wolf hunt limits by more than half. Some advocates said that’s not enough, arguing to suspend hunting wolves altogether.

Wyoming Game And Fish Commission Cuts Wolf Hunt Quotas By More Than Half

Kolby fedore

Kolby Fedore

A summer camp drive through Cody took a disturbing turn when, investigators say, a group of children allegedly found themselves looking out the windows of their van at a man driving alongside them without pants and pleasuring himself while making eye contact with those in the van.

Court records show that rather than let him disappear into traffic, two camp counselors followed the vehicle through Cody, photographed its license plate and called law enforcement.

Cody police officers say they quickly realized the registered owner was someone they already knew.

Andrew Crawford, a Cody resident born in 1988 and a registered sex offender, has been charged with felony indecent liberties with a minor and several public indecency misdemeanors spanning multiple years. 

who was convicted of public indecency in April 2023 after he repeatedly exposed himself to female baristas at Cody coffee kiosks during the fall of 2022.

Those incidents continued for weeks before one barista responded by dumping scalding 170-degree water into Crawford's lap after he exposed himself. 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"6 Juveniles "}]

Park County dispatch got the report about Crawford's more recent allegations at about 4:34 p.m. on Friday, court records show.

One of the camp counselors told investigators that he and another counselor were traveling through Cody with six juveniles when a blue Chevrolet Impala pulled alongside their van.

The counselor reported that the driver had removed his pants and was masturbating while looking through the van's windows. He told deputies all six campers and both counselors witnessed the alleged conduct.

Dispatch identified the vehicle as being registered to Crawford, whom the investigating officer wrote he recognized from prior law enforcement contacts involving similar allegations.

Court records show he was accused of exposing himself to two girls and their mother in a Cody Walmart parking lot in 2011 — this while under investigation for allegedly possessing child pornography while serving in the U.S. Air Force in 2009. 

He was sentenced in 2012 to 72 months in federal prison followed by a lifetime of supervised release.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Witnesses Identified Crawford"}]

Investigators presented the counselors with a six-photo lineup, according to an affidavit of probable cause filed in the case.

Before the officer had finished explaining the identification process, a counselor said he already knew who the suspect was and immediately identified Crawford's photograph. 

He told investigators he recognized him by his bald head, facial hair and face shape, saying the only difference was that the driver had been wearing glasses.

The other counselor also identified Crawford as the man he said he made eye contact with during the incident, says the affidavit.

The following morning, investigators reviewed the counselors' written statements. 

"Both witness statements corroborate the emotional distress and shock of the juvenile campers after they all witnessed the same exposed genitalia and masturbating motions with his hand on his penis," says the affidavit. 

Investigators also confirmed with camp's operations director that the van's windows were not tinted and that passengers inside were clearly visible from outside.

Because Crawford has prior military and Wyoming convictions involving public indecency and sex offender registration violations, the investigating officer asked prosecutors to expedite an arrest warrant, he wrote. 

[{"type":"text","text":"Deputies arrested Crawford later that afternoon without incident."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Court Proceedings"}]

Crawford made his initial appearance in Park County Circuit Court on Monday, where a judge set his bond at $100,000 cash only.

[{"type":"text","text":"If released, Crawford must remain in Park County as a condition of bond."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"A preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 22 in Cody."}]

Andrew Crawford Cody sign 7 14 26

<title>Repeat Cody Sex Offender Accused Of Pleasuring Himself Next To Van Of Camp Kids | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A registered Cody sex offender is accused of exposing and masturbating alongside a van of camp kids while making direct eye contact with those in the van. He’s the same man convicted in 2023 for repeatedly exposing himself to female coffee baristas.

Repeat Cody Sex Offender Accused Of Pleasuring Himself Next To Van Of Camp Kids

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's managing editor, Greg Johnson.

Greg Johnson

Despite a Wheatland police officer running out of gas during a harrowing chase of up to 112 mph through two towns, the driver of a white BMW failed his second attempt to elude law enforcement.

Taron Hunziker-Ford, 27, had already eluded Colorado State Troopers prior to driving north on Interstate 25 to Wheatland on Sunday, Wheatland Police Department Officer Jesse Walton says in an affidavit filed Monday in Platte County Circuit Court.

Walton wrote that Wyoming officials had been alerted to watch out for Hunziker-Ford, who was wanted on “multiple felony warrants out of Colorado.”

When he saw the white BMW with no back bumper and a temporary Colorado registration tag driving north on I-25 at about 7:09 p.m. Sunday “traveling at excessive rates of speed,” Walton says in his affidavit the pursuit was on.

At one point, Hunziker-Ford attempted to get off the interstate at exit 87, “but the exit is too sharp and his speeds were too fast,” the affidavit says. “He pulled out of the turn and continued northbound.”

By that time, Walton wrote that he was driving more than 100 mph and having trouble keeping up with the BMW.

When Hunziker-Ford got to highway 26, he took it east toward Guernsey, and Walton followed, the affidavit says.

[{"type":"text","text":"From there, the BMW led police on a dangerous 26-mile ride to Guernsey."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Ran Out Of Gas"}]

“I could see the vehicle still ahead of me and what appeared to be passing other vehicles on the right shoulder — and my speed was at 111 mph shortly there (when) the BMW turned southbound on Highway 320 and continued back south toward Wheatland,” Walton wrote.

While topping 112 mph, the officer reports that he was having a hard time trying to catch this vehicle.

In the meantime, the BMW also failed to stop for other law enforcement in pursuit and set up in its path, the affidavit says.

When Hunziker-Ford got back into Wheatland, Walton hit another obstacle in the chase.

“At about this time I reached Oak Street and my vehicle ran out of fuel and I lost site (sic) of the vehicle,” he wrote.

Walton was not out of the chase for long, as Wheatland Police Chief Bradley Otte picked him up and they continued after the BMW, as was a Wyoming Highway Patrol trooper and Guernsey police.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"‘Gave Us A Shoulder Shrug’"}]

With the BMW ahead of Walton and the police chief, and other officers in front of the fleeing vehicle, “we tried to attempt to make a stop on him,” the affidavit says.

That’s when Hunziker-Ford “stopped at the stop sign there at 317 and looked at us, gave us a shoulder shrug, and continued eastbound,” Walton wrote.

By then, the end was near for Hunziker-Ford because Guernsey police officers had set up spike strips in his path ahead, which he ran over.

“(The chief) and I continued to follow the vehicle for another 3 to 4 miles when he finally was unable to keep the vehicle on the road and he drove it off the south side of 27 into the ditch, through the fence, spun out about 75 yards into the field,” the affidavit says.

Law enforcement was right behind and approached the BMW with their weapons drawn, but “the driver did not respond to any commands,” the affidavit says.

Hunziker-Ford appeared incoherent and was unresponsive, so was pulled from the BMW and handcuffed.

After being evaluated at a hospital in Torrington, Hunziker-Ford was booked into the Platte County Jail on suspicion of fleeing or attempting to elude police and reckless driving.

Both are misdemeanor charges, punishable by up to six months in jail and fines of up to $750.

He was arraigned Monday and remains in the Platte County jail on a $3,000 cash bond, according to court records.

Taron Hunziker Ford and Wheatland sign 7 14 26

<title>Wheatland Officer Runs Out Of Gas During 112 MPH Chase, Still Gets Driver | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Despite a Wheatland police officer running out of gas during a chase of up to 112 mph through two towns Sunday, the driver of a white BMW failed to elude law enforcement. The driver also at one point looked at pursuing officers and shrugged.

Wheatland Officer Runs Out Of Gas During 112 MPH Chase, Still Gets Driver

A 70-year-old Gillette man's treasured classic 1965 Ford Mustang disappeared from his driveway, then turned up about 100 yards away in a neighbor's shop with its hood open and connected to a battery charger.

By then, investigators say the older man — who Campbell County Sheriff’s Office deputies describe as frail, having dementia and living in squalor — had allegedly signed paperwork transferring the car to the neighbors for $500 and a promise that his lawn would be mowed every weekend until he died.

Deputies now allege that wasn't a bargain, they believe it was exploitation of a vulnerable adult, a felony.

Jeremy Talon Boggs and Jazlyn V. Foltz are accused of taking advantage of the man's declining mental condition to get the classic Mustang, which investigators estimated is worth anywhere between $30,000 and $44,600.

Court documents show the couple allegedly insisted the man willingly sold them the vehicle. 

The 70-year-old, however, told deputies he didn't know who they were and never gave anyone permission to take his car.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"A Neighbor's Call"}]

The investigation began Saturday afternoon after other neighbors of the man on Peaceful Valley Drive called the Campbell County Sheriff's Office.

They told deputies he suffered from dementia and believed Boggs and Foltz had recently begun spending an unusual amount of time at his home.

One neighbor reported seeing flashlights moving around the man's property the previous night. The following morning, the man's classic green Ford Mustang was parked at the home of a nearby residence occupied by Boggs and Foltz.

Neighbors said the had always considered the Mustang one of his prized possessions and repeatedly told them he would never sell it because it was such a beautiful classic car.

Concerned they were watching an elderly neighbor being taken advantage of, they called law enforcement.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Inside The Home"}]

When they responded, deputies found the man seated in a recliner, according to an affidavit of probable caused filed in the case.

According to the affidavit, he appeared "extremely weak and feeble" and was unable to answer basic questions, including that day's date or his own phone number.

Investigators described the home as being in severe disrepair with trash, spoiled food and other biohazards throughout the residence.

During the interview, deputies noticed the older man also struggling with basic personal care. 

Investigators concluded he was unable to properly care for himself and "was not sound of mind" while speaking with deputies.

Adult Protective Services had already been notified of the man's situation and was reportedly planning to visit the following day.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"The Mustang"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Deputies then went looking for the car, the affidavit says."}]

They found it inside a shop on Commerce Drive with its hood open and connected to a battery tender.

Boggs told investigators he had bought the Mustang from the man for $500. As part of the deal, Boggs said he promised to mow the man's lawn every weekend for the rest of his life.

Foltz allegedly told deputies the older man initially wanted $10,000 for the car before negotiating the final arrangement.

Boggs also played a cellphone video that he said showed the man signing a bill of sale.

Deputies reviewed the paperwork and noted what they believed were several red flags, according to the affidavit.

The bill of sale listed the wrong model year for the Mustang, was not properly notarized and included Foltz's signature as a witness, reported Campbell County Sheriff's Deputy Kyle Rhoades.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Two Different Stories "}]

A Gillette couple is accused of exploiting a 70-year-old neighbor with dementia into giving them his classic 1965 Mustang worth more than $44,000. In return, they allegedly said they’d give the man $500 and promised to mow his lawn once a week for life.

One More For The Road: Thursday, June 15, 2023

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