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Michael P. Ramirez

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

<title>Daily Cartoon: Wednesday, November 29, 2023 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Daily Cartoon: Wednesday, November 29, 2023

Kolby fedore

Kolby Fedore

Crime & Courts

Courts

A Washington man is facing 14 wildlife-related criminal charges in Campbell County after Wyoming investigators say years-old Instagram videos, voice messages and cellphone data uncovered evidence of alleged illegal hunting trips that stretched back more than a decade.

Court records filed in Campbell County allege Bobby Chuck Ephrem, 48, illegally killed antelope and mule deer in Wyoming in 2014, 2015 and 2020, sometimes from vehicles, sometimes without licenses and at least once using a .22-caliber pistol that investigators say was illegal for taking big game.

The charges stem from an Idaho wildlife investigation that eventually led Wyoming Game and Fish investigators to social media posts, archived videos and cellphone extractions that they say show hunting activity in Campbell County.

An arrest warrant was issued June 4, 2025. Ephrem later appeared in Campbell County Circuit Court for a hearing on Tuesday, where bond was set at $75,000. Court records show he posted a surety bond on Wednesday.

As a condition of release, Ephrem is not allowed to leave Campbell County and is barred from hunting, fishing, trapping, collecting shed antlers or accompanying anyone engaged in hunting or fishing activities while the case is pending.

A voicemail seeking comment from the Campbell County Attorney's Office was not returned before publication.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"A Case Built From Phones And Social Media"}]

The investigation began in April 2024 when Idaho conservation officers shared information uncovered during an ongoing wildlife investigation, according to an affidavit filed by Wyoming Game and Fish Investigator Daniel Beach.

Investigators say Instagram videos, voice messages, and other evidence pointed them toward multiple incidents involving antelope and mule deer.

Beach wrote that he later traveled to Oregon in June 2024 to assist Oregon State Police while that agency executed a search warrant at Ephrem's home.

During the search and interview, investigators say Ephrem talked about several mounted animals displayed in his home and admitted to killing some of them in Wyoming.

The affidavit shows Wyoming investigators subsequently reviewed cellphone extraction data, Instagram videos and archived voice messages that they believe corroborated those admissions.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"'No Permission, Just Shoot'"}]

Some of the most serious allegations center on an October 2020 antelope hunt in Campbell County.

Investigators discovered Instagram voice messages sent from Ephrem's account that referenced plans to hunt antelope in Wyoming.

One message cited in the charging documents read, "We're going antelope hunting today."

Another allegedly said, "No, just drive around and shoot shit. No permission, just shoot."

Investigators say they later identified the location shown in one of the videos as private property owned by Peabody Caballo Mining LLC south of Gillette.

Neither the company nor the rancher leasing the pasture granted permission for the hunting activity depicted in the videos, wrote Beach. 

In another video, investigators say Ephrem can be seen firing a rifle at antelope from inside a vehicle. 

Investigators also allege the video showed Ephrem handing the rifle to a younger passenger.

The charging documents include allegations of wanton destruction of antelope, taking big game from a vehicle, trespassing to hunt and accessory counts connected to those offenses.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"The .22-Caliber Pistol Allegation"}]

A separate video described in the affidavit forms the basis for another series of charges.

Investigators say the recording showed Ephrem driving a Dodge Ram pickup while firing a pistol at multiple antelope from the roadway and adjacent ditch.

Beach wrote they later determined the firearm appeared to be a GSG 1911-style .22-caliber pistol, and that Ephrem fired 10 rounds at several antelope from close range.

During a June 2024 interview, Ephrem said, "I remember shooting, yes, got it.'" 

The case includes charges alleging illegal use of a firearm for taking big game, wanton destruction and taking big game from a vehicle.

Investigators also allege another man, who they say appeared in some of the videos, later confirmed witnessing portions of the hunt during a recorded interview.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Allegations Reach Back To 2014"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"The investigation didn't stop with the 2020 videos."}]

Cellphone data allegedly connected Ephrem to an antelope killed in 2015 and a mule deer killed in 2014.

Beach wrote that Ephrem admitted during a 2024 interview to those killings. 

Wyoming licensing records showed Ephrem did not possess licenses for those species during the years in question, says investigators, and that Ephrem improperly used or transferred hunting licenses connected to his son during some of the incidents.

Cellphone photographs, taxidermy records and statements made during interviews were used to support those allegations.

The charges remain allegations. Ephrem has not been convicted, and the case will proceed through Wyoming's court system.

Campell county pronghorn 4 5 26

<title>'No Permission, Just Shoot': Instagram Videos Lead To Wyoming Poaching Charges | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A Washington man faces 14 Wyoming poaching-related charges after Game and Fish investigators say Instagram videos and phone data exposed illegal hunts over more than 10 years. “No permission, just shoot,” the man messaged, Game and Fish says.

'No Permission, Just Shoot': Instagram Videos Lead To Wyoming Poaching Charges

A Riverton man who admitted to slitting the throat of a Wind River Reservation man, binding his hands and feet, wrapping his body in hotel bedding and dumping it in the snow was sentenced Thursday to life in prison with the possibility of parole.

Fremont County District Judge Jason Conder imposed the sentence on John William Goodman, describing the case as a "brutal killing of a human being" and one "replete with an overwhelming abundance of aggravating factors."

The sentence comes more than three years after 37-year-old Gustave Elmer Yellowhair's body was discovered by "little kids," partially buried in snow on the Wind River Reservation, Conder said during Thursday's hearing.

Fremont County Attorney Micah Wyatt urged the court to impose the maximum sentence available, arguing Goodman had already received "substantial mercy" through a plea agreement that reduced the charge from first-degree murder to second-degree murder and dismissed a separate kidnapping charge.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"This is not a normal second-degree murder,\" Wyatt told the court."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"'Even After The Victim Was Dead'"}]

Wyatt argued Yellowhair was not killed in self-defense or during a drunken fight.

"Even after the victim was dead, the violence did not stop," Wyatt said.

Goodman attempted to decapitate Yellowhair after killing him, Wyatt argued, a fact he said demonstrated an "extreme de-valuing of human life."

[{"type":"text","text":"\"That fact matters,\" Wyatt told the judge."}]

Wyatt argued Goodman then treated Yellowhair's body as "disposable," abandoning it in a remote area before later bringing two underage girls to view the remains.

"This is not an isolated event from an otherwise peaceful person," Wyatt said before walking the court through a lengthy and violent criminal history that included multiple assault and battery convictions.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Defense Argued For Lesser Sentence"}]

Assistant Federal Public Defender Valerie Schoneberger acknowledged the gravity of the crime but argued for a lesser sentence.

"This case involves the death of a human being and it's tragic," Schoneberger said. "We don't dispute a serious sentence."

Goodman endured a lifetime of instability and hardship, Schoneberger said, noting he was arrested when he was only 14 years old.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"He has a history of being mistreated by the system,\" she said."}]

She also pointed to a family history of alcohol abuse and described a life shaped by dysfunction and trauma.

Then Schoneberger reviewed five homicide cases she considered similar to Goodman's, including one she characterized as more egregious, involving a father who killed his premature infant and attempted to conceal the child's remains.

Schoneberger argued those cases demonstrated that a lengthy prison sentence could be imposed without condemning Goodman to spend the remainder of his life behind bars.

[{"type":"text","text":"Goodman declined to address the court before sentencing."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Judge Rejects Comparison To Other Cases"}]

Judge Conder said Schoneberger was "spot on" when describing the many hardships Goodman had faced throughout his life, and that he had endured "innumerable tragedies."

At the same time, Conder noted that Goodman had inflicted tragedies on others.

Conder rejected the defense's invitation to compare Goodman's sentence to punishments imposed in unrelated cases.

"That's illogical,” the judge said, adding that what happens in "some other court" does not dictate what sentence should be imposed in a case with a different set of facts.

In addition to the life sentence, Conder ordered Goodman to pay $6,355 in restitution to victim services.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Jailhouse Boasting"}]

in March 2023 after the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs was alerted that Goodman had shown two underage girls a dead body on the reservation.

When FBI Special Agent Scott Jensen arrived at the scene, he found Yellowhair partially buried in snow, according to an affidavit filed in his case. His feet protruded from the snowpack, and investigators discovered the body wrapped in bedding with the feet bound by a cord.

Despite the gruesome discovery, it would take more than two years before prosecutors formally charged Goodman with murder.

During that time, investigators with the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation and Riverton Police Department continued working the case while Goodman sat in jail on unrelated charges.

They reviewed recorded jail calls, interviewed associates and cultivated multiple confidential informants, the affidavit says.

According to court records, several witnesses told investigators Goodman had spoken openly about killing a man at a Riverton motel, cutting his throat, wrapping the body in motel bedding and dumping it on the reservation.

Investigators also reviewed calls in which Goodman discussed a gang he called the "Maniacs" and made statements they interpreted as admissions connected to the killing.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"A Single Hair Becomes Critical Evidence"}]

While witness statements helped investigators piece together the timeline, forensic evidence ultimately provided one of the strongest links to Goodman.

When Yellowhair's body was discovered, investigators recovered a hair clutched in the victim's hand. During the investigation, Goodman reportedly told an associate he had learned his hair had been found with the remains and said that was why he cut his own hair short.

[{"type":"text","text":"The breakthrough came when FBI laboratory testing analyzed the hair."}]

Initial testing found a possible DNA association with Goodman. Investigators later collected cheek swabs from Goodman and submitted them for comparison.

Results returned in April 2025 showed it was 13 sextillion times more likely that Goodman contributed the DNA found in the hair than an unknown person, according to court records.

Investigators also found DNA on motel room keys and USB cords recovered from the crime scene that showed strong support for a mixture containing DNA from both Goodman and Yellowhair, according to the affidavit.

Combined with witness statements, jail calls and other evidence gathered during the two-year investigation, prosecutors said the forensic findings helped solidify the case that ultimately led to Goodman's murder conviction.

John W Goodman Wind River Indian Reservation sign 7 9 25 copy

<title>Riverton Man Who Slit Man’s Throat And Dumped Body Gets Life In Prison | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A Riverton man who admitted to slitting the throat of another man, wrapping his body in hotel bedding and dumping it in the snow was sentenced Thursday to life in prison. "Even after the victim was dead, the violence did not stop,” said the prosecutor.

Riverton Man Who Slit Man’s Throat And Dumped Body Gets Life In Prison

Jen kocher

Jen Kocher

Law Enforcement

For more than 30 years, the body of an unidentified woman discovered in the remote desert along Interstate 80 in rural Nevada has kept her secrets hidden.

The woman, known colloquially as “Shafter Jane Doe,” had been beaten and shot in the chest and back.

Her nude body was posed on the ground, arms extended to either side in the shape of a cross with legs slightly parted.

Less than a week after her death on Nov. 16, 1993, a geologist who had pulled off at the remote Shafter exit off I-80 to stretch his legs discovered her body, according to news reports from the time.

Later investigation in 2010 revealed that the woman had spent seven months in Afton, Wyoming, which was determined through the isotope testing. 

For years, her donated headstone has read, “Who Am I?”

Now more than 32 years after the gruesome discovery, authorities finally have an answer.  

Her name is Marion Hertha Alexander, who was a German immigrant who moved to California with her family in 1972.

After a decades-long investigation, members of the Elko County Sheriff’s Office and other law enforcement partners told the Elko County Commissioners on Thursday afternoon that they identified her through the use of advanced DNA testing and forensic genetic genealogy.

The decades-long investigation also revealed the woman was in Afton, Wyoming, for about seven months before she was murdered. 

Alexander left home around age 18, and her family told investigators that Alexander was a free spirit who liked to drift around.

Her family questioned where she had gone, but given her lifestyle, they did not report her missing to law enforcement.

Her living family members were notified of the identification in January of this year, Elko County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Douglas Fisher stated, and continue to be in touch with law enforcement.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"No Justice"}]

Her suspected murderer, however, will not see justice.

Authorities were closing in on Roger Lee Durkee of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, who was identified through semen found on a vaginal swab that yielded a full DNA profile, authorities said.

The profile was run through the FBI’s Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) but did not result in a match, so the Elko County Sheriff’s Office contracted a private group to perform forensic genetic genealogy analysis in February 2022 that led to Durkee as a potential suspect.

Further investigation indicated that Durkee was likely the murderer, but as detectives began planning their trip to Wisconsin to make an arrest, they learned that Durkee had died on Nov. 13, 2025.

He died within 14 days of detectives learning Alexander’s identity.

Now, however, Alexander will be properly laid to rest.

The Elko Sheriff’s Office asked the commission — and were granted — money to buy a proper headstone to finally put her to rest.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Piecing Together Mystery"}]

Authorities worked for decades to identify Alexander through the use of several forensic tools.

Initially when she was discovered, Alexander’s face was beaten beyond recognition, so the FBI created a computer-generated image of her likeness to help local authorities attempt to identify her, according to a 1993 article by the Elko Daily Free Press.

Along with her image, authorities had little else to go on.

They were able to extract a partial print from her right thumb, which did not find a match in any federal databases.

The only other identifying characteristics were what appeared to be a burn scar or birth mark on her right calf, pink fingernails that looked to be professionally done and a tooth that had undergone a partial root canal, according to the same article.

A portion of her skull was sent to the Minnesota State Crime Lab, according to reporting from the Casper-Star Tribune, where her DNA was extracted and run through databases with no match.

They turned to the media and a national crime show, but no viable leads to her identity were forthcoming.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Human Time Capsule"}]

A big break came nearly two decades later with the advancement of using stable isotopes that tracked Alexander to Afton, Wyoming.

This discovery came in 2010 when scientists at Utah State University were able to determine she had spent the past seven months in Afton by analyzing isotopes in her hair that traced her to the area.

Though not new science, this application of stable isotope analysis has transformed how law enforcement solves cold cases, said Christy Mancuso, an assistant research professor at the University of New Mexico and sales representative for Thermo Fisher Scientific.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Mancuso knows the science well."}]

She got her doctorate degree in biology from the University of Utah and was affiliated with the stable isotope lab, where her thesis advisor, Jim Ehleringer, started the now-shuttered IsoForensics lab.

She wasn’t familiar with Alexander’s case, but said that stable isotope analysis is an excellent tool for helping to identify remains.

Essentially, humans are like time capsules of chemical information that are stored within one’s bones, teeth and hair, Mancuso said, which helps trace that person to a generalized location.

Humans living in these various regions incorporate the stable isotope signal from their drinking water and food that correlate to particular regions.

When forensic scientists analyze human remains, they examine the various stable isotopes — carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen — that act as chemical signatures reflecting what a person consumed and where they lived during their lifetime, both recent and past.

Every geographical location has a unique chemical composition evident in its local water and food sources, soil composition and climate, Mancuso explained.

Researchers can then track these predictable geographical patterns using isotope maps called “isoscapes” to identify likely regions where that person lived or traveled.

Hair in particular, which was used to trace Alexander to the Afton area, serves as an excellent linear time recorder of isotope information because it grows at a predictable rate of about one centimeter per month and provides a chronological record in its keratin protein structure, Mancuso said.

In this case, isotopes in Alexander’s hair matched those in drinking water that suggested she’d lived in the that particular area of Wyoming for the past seven months.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Great Basin Murders"}]

Alexander is thought to be one of about nine victims killed between 1983 and 1997 across four states in the Great Basin geographical area that includes Wyoming, Utah, Nevada and Idaho, and dumped along interstates in the remote arid watershed.

Many had been sexually abused or assaulted and either strangled, shot or stabbed.

Some were posed like Alexander, including another Jane Doe found in rural Elko County in July 1972 who also had been shot twice with her body posed to resemble a cross.

Initially, it was thought that one serial killer might be responsible for all the deaths, but it was quickly determined that most the murders were committed by different people.

The first victim was thought to be 23-year-old Janelle Johnson, who was hitchhiking from Denver to Riverton in February 1983 and was last seen at a truck stop in Sinclair, Wyoming.

The aspiring model was found less than a month later in a shallow grave near Shoshoni, Wyoming, according to the national nonprofit Parents of Murdered Children.

 in March 1988, was also among the young women killed.

Her body was found floating in the North Platte River near Casper and it took until 2004 to bring her killer to justice.

Eaton had also been suspected in Alexander’s murder because he had reportedly lived in the Elko area at the time and had been arrested for domestic violence, according to a 2010 report by the Elko Daily Free Press.

One of the other Wyoming victims, who remained unidentified for years and was known as “Bitter Creek Betty,” was identified in 2025 as Irene Vasquez.

Both Vasquez, and Cindi Arleen Estrada, who had formerly been known as “I-90 Jane Doe,” 

were determined to be victims of Clark Perry Baldwin

Baldwin, a long-haul truck driver who was convicted of murdering a woman in 1991 in Tennessee, was 

Other victims affiliated with this geographic region and time period are Vicky Lynn Perkins, 19, who vanished from Oregon and whose body was found two months later off 1-70 in Emery County, Utah, in May 1989.

Two more victims were found within one month of each other in 1991.

The badly beaten deceased body of Ermalinda Garza Sherman was found in St. George, Utah, in April while a Jane Doe, later identified as Barbara Kaye Williams, was found in Salt Lake City in March.

Shafter Jane Doe inset 6 3 26

<title>32 Years After Her Posed Body Was Found Along I-80, ‘Shafter Jane Doe’ Identified | Cowboy State Daily</title>

More than 32 years after her body was found along I-80, the woman known as “Shafter Jane Doe” has been identified, officials announced Thursday. Her nude body was posed on the ground, arms extended to either side in the shape of a cross.

32 Years After Her Posed Body Was Found Along I-80, ‘Shafter Jane Doe’ Identified

Cheyenne police are evaluating whether a man could face criminal charges for setting fire to a book, tossing it into the main branch of the Laramie County Library and pulling a fire alarm, forcing an evacuation of the building.

The man walked into the library at 2200 Pioneer Ave. Monday morning carrying his own copy of the young-adult novel “Paper Towns,” says the Cheyenne Police Department. 

A short time later, library staff were extinguishing a burning book, evacuating the building and waiting for first responders after the man allegedly dumped a milkshake on the floor, tossed the smoldering novel into the building and pulled a fire alarm. 

The incident remains under investigation, and the CPD says it is still evaluating whether criminal charges are appropriate.

According to police, the man left on foot before officers arrived, then later contacted police and said he wanted to turn himself in. He was subsequently transported to a hospital for a mental health evaluation.

[{"type":"text","text":"No injuries or property damage were reported."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Milkshake, Fire Alarm And A Burning Book"}]

Joelle Ashley, marketing and communications manager for the Laramie County Library System, said the man bought the milkshake from the library cafe before intentionally dumping it on the floor.

He then lit his personal copy of "Paper Towns" on fire and threw it into the library's entrance area, pulled an alarm, and left, Ashley said.

While police said the book did not continue burning once it landed inside, Ashley said library employees quickly extinguished it and began emergency procedures out of caution. The alarm prompted the library to clear out. 

"Safety is something we take very seriously at the Laramie County Library," said Ashley. "We are incredibly proud of our staff's response.

“They were very professional; they were very responsible. They immediately picked up the book, extinguished the fire, and then got everybody out of the building safely."

Staff and patrons remained outside until first responders determined it was safe to return.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Why ‘Paper Towns'"}]

One question that remains unanswered is why the man chose to burn particular book and if the act was some kind of a statement or just random vandalism.

Ashley confirmed the title was "Paper Towns," a young-adult novel that has appeared on lists of frequently challenged books compiled by the American Library Association.

However, she stressed that the library has no information about the man's motivation and is not drawing any conclusions from the choice of title.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"I obviously cannot speculate on his motives at all,\" Ashley said."}]

The John Green young adult novel has been targeted for removal by school districts across the nation over its sexual themes and use of profanity.

[{"type":"text","text":"Police likewise report they have not identified a motive."}]

Instead, investigators say the incident may have been connected to a mental health crisis rather than criminal intent.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Charges Still Under Review"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"The investigation remains active."}]

Police said surveillance footage and physical evidence were collected from the library following the incident. They have identified the man involved but have not publicly released his name.

Meanwhile, library officials say they are grateful the situation ended without injuries and proud of the staff members who responded when a routine Monday morning suddenly became anything but routine.

Ashley said she is unaware of a similar incident ever happening at the library.

Laramie County Library Cheyenne IMG 6436 6 3 26

<title>Man Sets Fire To Controversial Book In Cheyenne Library, Then Pulls Alarm | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Cheyenne police are evaluating whether a man could face charges for setting fire to a book, tossing it into the Laramie County Library and pulling a fire alarm. The book he burned, “Paper Towns,” has been targeted by some school districts for removal.

Man Sets Fire To Controversial Book In Cheyenne Library, Then Pulls Alarm

Heinz mark

Mark Heinz

Outdoors

Wildlife

An elderly woman out for a walk in Alameda, California, was mobbed by a flock of urban wild turkeys, knocked down from behind, and left bleeding and needing stitches.

Mary Jo Kelly, 83, described the turkey attack as terrifying.

Wild turkeys recently attacked an elderly California woman, leaving her bruised and bloody. Casper's urban turkeys also "have absolutely established a reputation for aggressive, bold, and disruptive behavior,” says Game And Fish.

Daily Cartoon: Wednesday, November 29, 2023

Michael P. Ramirez

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