One More For The Road

[{"type":"text","text":"This may be an illegal turn...."}]

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

<title>One More For The Road: Monday, February 26, 2024 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

This may be an illegal turn....

One More For The Road: Monday, February 26, 2024

Kolby fedore

Kolby Fedore

Crime & Courts

Courts

Nearly three weeks after a commercial tanker 

in a construction zone west of Casper, killing two people and injuring eight others, no criminal charges have been filed as a Wyoming Highway Patrol investigation continues.

That isn't stopping a Casper attorney from pursuing the first civil lawsuit stemming from the deadly crash on behalf of a family hurt in the pileup.

The negligence lawsuit, filed Friday in Natrona County District Court, names Ryan Brothers Trucking Inc. and a John Doe defendant, identified as the tanker driver whose identity was not yet known to the plaintiffs when the complaint was filed.

The identity of the truck driver hasn’t been publicly released as the investigation is active, the Wyoming Highway Patrol has said.

Contacted by Cowboy State Daily on Wednesday, WHP spokesman Aaron Brown said the investigation has so far taken weeks because of the sheer amount of evidence investigators must review.

Unlike a typical fatal crash, this one involved a commercial tanker truck and seven other vehicles, which requires investigators to analyze electronic data from the truck and any available from all the civilian vehicles.

“It’s the scale. There’s a ton of data to be coming out of this thing,” Brown said. “We have a ton of data to sift through to try and get this thing done."

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Makensi Van Patten and Chantry Van Patten, individually and as parents and guardians of their two minor children.

A Wyoming Highway Patrol crash summary reports that the driver of a westbound Western Star tanker truck failed to stop for traffic queued to enter a one-lane construction zone on U.S. Highway 20/26 near mile marker 58.3, striking seven stopped vehicles.

The crash killed James Faris Cox, 74, and Susan Horn Cox, 69, of Golden, Colorado, and injured eight others. The Highway Patrol listed driver inattention as a possible contributing factor.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Family Seeks Damages"}]

The lawsuit alleges the tanker driver negligently failed to stop for traffic backed up at the construction zone, triggering the eight-vehicle chain-reaction crash.

It further claims the Van Patten family's Toyota Highlander was struck after the commercial truck plowed into the line of stopped vehicles.

Makensi and Chantry Van Patten, along with their two children, suffered physical injuries in the collision, according to the complaint. 

It also claims the parents and one of the children witnessed another family member suffer serious bodily injury, causing emotional trauma in addition to physical injuries.

The family is seeking compensation for medical expenses, pain and suffering, emotional distress, permanent injuries, loss of enjoyment of life, lost earning capacity and other damages to be determined at trial.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"'Get This Case Going' "}]

Attorney Dallas Laird, who represents the family along with James Fitzgerald, said the lawsuit was filed to protect his clients' legal rights.

"The lawsuit was filed to get this case going and to preserve my client's rights," Laird told Cowboy State Daily on Wednesday.

Laird said it is too early to determine the full extent of the family's damages.

"We don't know at this point because they're still in treatment, and these are kind of long-term injuries," he said.

Asked what the family hopes to accomplish through the litigation, Laird answered simply: "A settlement of the case."

He added that the complaint could change as additional evidence becomes available.

"Our theory is, at this point, we may have to amend the complaint once we get the Highway Patrol report," Laird said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Fifth Amendment "}]

Among the lawsuit's allegations is that the tanker driver invoked the Fifth Amendment right with law enforcement and declined to answer questions following the crash.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"That was told to me by the Highway Patrol,\" Laird said. "}]

Since the crash, Cowboy State Daily has repeatedly asked about the investigation and the potential for criminal charges to be filed. 

Among the unanswered questions are whether the tanker driver has been cited, arrested or could face criminal charges; whether investigators can confirm the lawsuit's allegation that the driver invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination; whether the case has been referred to prosecutors for criminal review; and when investigators expect to conclude the investigation.

The Highway Patrol did not respond except to say the investigation remains active and that it’s complicated and involved nature takes time to complete. 

Cowboy State Daily also reached out to Natrona County District Attorney Dan Itzen to ask whether the case has been submitted for criminal review or whether any charges are anticipated. He also did not respond before publication.

As of Wednesday afternoon, no criminal charges had been announced in connection with the crash.

Ryan Brothers Trucking said that it has "no comment on ongoing litigation at this time."

Double Fatal Crash Go Fund Me 7 15

<title>Family Hurt In Semi Crash That Killed 2 West Of Casper Sues Trucker, Company | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A family hurt in a crash west of Casper that killed two people when a semitruck plowed into a construction zone is suing the trucking company and the as-yet unidentified truck driver. No criminal charges have yet been filed as an investigation continues.

Family Hurt In Semi Crash That Killed 2 West Of Casper Sues Trucker, Company

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

Clair McFarland

Government & Politics

Politics

Two of the 10 Republicans vying for Wyoming’s lone U.S. House seat faced off Wednesday at a convention hall on Riverton’s airport hill, headquarters of “The Gentry.” 

The morning coffee group comprising men of a certain age has become a hot destination for political candidates of all levels 

from local sheriff candidates to governor

Former Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow and state Senate President Bo Biteman converged on the coffee meet at the same time Wednesday. 

“There are some folks in this race of good character. And there are some folks in this race of suspect character,” said Balow. “So I’m thankful to you folks for doing your homework. 

"As awkward as it is for Bo and I to be here together — this is great.” 

[{"type":"text","text":"Biteman nodded."}]

The two candidates will vie for the GOP nomination to U.S. House in Wyoming’s Aug. 18 primary election. 

 Secretary of State Chuck Gray, Teton County rancher Frank Chapman, Casper businessman Reid Rasner, philanthropist Steve Friess, 

 veterans David Giralt and Kevin Christensen, former lawmaker Keith Goodenough, and Richard Dodson. 

 fielded questions, heard frustration and shared their visions.

Group regular, biker and former elementary school puppeteer Wayne Dick voiced a sense of futility over the polarization in politics. 

“I guess that’s where my struggle is: to try to get the country working for the country instead of so split; so out in la-la land and (saying), ‘If you don’t agree with me you’re wrong,’” said Dick. 

The Gentry’s host and former Riverton Mayor Ron Warpness echoed that, and said he consumes too much news and has concerns about policymaking on both the state and federal levels, but has reached a point at which his only outlet at times is to “come here and vent.” 

As for Congress and U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell specifically, “My God, he makes Joe Biden look like a mental giant,” lamented Warpness. 

Biteman answered that its time pragmatic delegates took back sanity from the far right and far left. 

“If you let (fringes) dictate policy, no one’s happy, everyone’s fighting and we get gridlock,” said Biteman. 

, asked the candidates multiple questions. One of those was about their stance on data centers.

Balow said the state should develop consistent framework toward the industry, exercise what she cast as rightful suspicion, and stop giving tax breaks. 

She pointed to her work on the top state executive boards, where she said her opposition to some wind farm advancements helped craft more consistent framework. 

Biteman echoed Balow on the tax break sentiment especially, saying that state law has outlived its purpose. 

As a former state representative, Gray voted twice to keep Wyoming’s sales tax exemption for large data projects in place — in 2021 and 2022 — though he’s come out altogether against data centers in his current campaign. 

He’s since told Cowboy State Daily that when he voted to keep that exemption, people didn’t expect the rapid advance of artificial intelligence now amplifying data center controversies. 

on a private lands level, landowners should have freedom to contract with data centers. He voiced opposition to the “NIMBY” (not-in-my-backyard) crowd, which he said seeks to dictate how people can use their own property. 

Biteman, who is a professional landman, pointed to his background in energy and his energy advocacy. 

He took the data center topic as a chance to criticize “the surveillance state,” and said if Congress has a role 

 data centers, it should be ensuring they’re not farming people’s information around privacy constraints, and to ensure the government isn’t using private companies to get around the Fourth Amendment. 

[{"type":"text","text":"“Get a warrant, if you want my private information,” said Biteman. "}]

He voiced opposition toward Flock and other-brand license plate reader cameras, which he cast as expansive data miners. 

Both candidates touted their energy backgrounds. Balow noted that she grew up in Gillette, one of the state’s mining strongholds. 

She and Biteman both said they want to unlock energy dominance to free the industry from its boom and bust cycle. Both voiced favor toward the nuclear industry. 

Balow said Wyoming can develop nuclear energy businesses without having to store nuclear waste.

[{"type":"text","text":"Miller asked for each candidate’s stance on the Iran war. "}]

President Donald Trump has vacillated on Iran, a conflict that has halted trade through the Strait of Hormuz and driven up gas prices for Americans but which, on the other hand, is a gesture to halt Iranian advanced weapons development and attacks on

[{"type":"text","text":"The Constitution is the answer, said Biteman. "}]

“Congress has the power to declare war. If we’re going to declare war, we need to declare war,” he said. “If not, Congress needs to take back the authority. I don’t care if it’s our guy in the White House or the other guy in the White House. Rules are rules. The Constitution matters.” 

The last war for which Congress declared the nation’s entry, World War II, was also the last war in which the U.S. “kicked maximum ass,” said Biteman. 

Here Warpness recalled the Vietnam War, saying he spent time there and “questioned what we were doing there sometimes,” but has believed that the nation is good if it does good. 

Biteman said he agrees, but would like Congress to declare what that “good” is, rather than the president. 

Balow voiced similar sentiments about the separation of powers. She said the Iran war was realistic at its start. 

“Iran is a threat to us,” she said, adding that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon, should not be sponsoring terrorism, and should not be controlling the Strait of Hormuz. 

But at this point, she said, the war “needs to end … and Congress needs to have a say in that.” 

[{"type":"text","text":"Department Of Education"}]

Both candidates said they want to get rid of the U.S. Department of Education.

Casting that vote to eliminate the agency should be the extent of Congress’ involvement in local education, said Biteman. 

Balow said the federal government should send DOE’s money to the states in a thoughtful way, rather than into the coffers of certain businesses. 

Both candidates pointed to their extensive work in this area, Balow as former schools chief for Wyoming and Biteman as a member of multiple education-related committees in the Legislature. 

Balow emphasized the value of school choice but said it shouldn’t detract from the public school system. 

Biteman, who helped pass a state stipend program for private and homeschooling programs, said the Legislature ensured the money for the program doesn’t come from the K-12 funding pot. He 

he federal government has degraded public education.

“The whole system is screwed up. It is rotten to the core it needs to be fixed,” said Biteman. 

Cowboy State Daily asked if Congress has a role in mitigating the housing shortage and if so, what form that should take. 

Balow said deregulating and more proactive legislating, like offering incentives to first-time 

, are among the solutions. She said refusing to create and raise taxes will help drive interest rates down and get the market moving. 

“Above all, (the solution is) making sure we’re curtailing this reckless spending we now have,” she said. 

“Housing is one of the issues where I think there needs to be some legislation that can really pave the way for more affordable land, more — just more of an opportunity for communities to meet their needs,” Balow added. 

Biteman, who reiterated a minimalistic approach to nearly every issue throughout the gathering, said Congress’ role in this area should be deregulation and reining in its own fiscal decisions. 

He also urged the deregulation of the timber industry on public lands, saying that would drive homebuilding and job creation both, while reducing wildfire outbreaks. 

Balow and Biteman both touted multiple use public lands approaches and strong energy advocacy. 

Riverton The Gentry IMG 6857 7 15 26

<title>U.S. House Hopefuls Biteman, Balow Grilled By Riverton's Political Old Guard | Cowboy State Daily</title>

U.S. House hopefuls Bo Biteman and Jillian Balow became the latest candidates to face a grilling Wednesday, by Riverton's political old-guard coffee group "The Gentry." Balow said the race has people of good character, and some "of suspect character."

U.S. House Hopefuls Biteman, Balow Grilled By Riverton's Political Old Guard

Wyoming U.S. House Rep. Harriet Hageman was one of 22 Republicans to vote against making daylight saving time permanent as the House passed the Sunshine Protection Act on Tuesday.

For Wyomingites tired of changing their clocks every spring and fall, the vote was a big step toward ending the twice-yearly ritual that has been a divisive issue in the Cowboy State and across the nation.

The 308-117 vote advances the act to the Senate, which if approved would make daylight saving time permanent.

Most Americans would stop changing their clocks twice a year and instead remain on daylight saving time year-round, although states could choose to observe permanent standard time instead.

Hageman told Cowboy State Daily in a statement that her vote was made with Wyoming in mind.

"The Sunshine Protection Act robs Wyoming farmers and ranchers of precious sunlight and ensures the first hours of a student's day is in darkness,” she said. "The government isn't funded, our elections aren't secure, and Wyoming's legacy industries need help. 

"I will not vote for a time-wasting bill that puts Wyoming in the dark."

If enacted, the legislation would mean later winter sunsets but also later winter sunrises, giving people more daylight in the evening while making mornings darker.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Another Opportunity "}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Wyoming has been preparing for this possibility for years."}]

In 2020, the Wyoming Legislature approved a trigger law authorizing the state to adopt permanent daylight saving time if Congress first changes federal law and neighboring Mountain Time states enact similar laws.

As a result, Tuesday's House vote alone would not change anything for Wyoming.

Even if the bill ultimately becomes law, Wyoming would continue changing its clocks until the conditions outlined in state law are met.

Former state Rep. Dan Laursen, R-Powell, sponsored Wyoming's trigger law and spent years advocating for permanent daylight saving time.

When the U.S. Senate unanimously passed a similar version of the Sunshine Protection Act in 2022, Laursen

he hoped Americans had changed their clocks for the last time that November.

Instead, the proposal stalled in the House before reaching then-President Joe Biden.

[{"type":"text","text":"Now, four years later, Laursen believes Congress has another opportunity."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"\"It's fantastic news,\" he said Tuesday. \"I'm feeling hopeful.\""}]

Laursen said he hopes the Senate can "get something figured out" after unanimously approving a similar bill four years ago.

Asked what message he would send senators, Laursen said, "Let's do it," he said. "Trump wants it. I want it."

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Long-Running Debate"}]

Supporters of the legislation argue ending the twice-yearly clock changes would eliminate an unnecessary disruption while giving Americans more usable daylight after work and school.

House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie, R-Kentucky, said permanent daylight saving time would improve traffic safety, strengthen the economy and give people "more time to exercise outside, visit family, attend concerts and sporting events."

"It also means more sunlight at the end of the day so Americans can return safely from work and children can return safely from school," Guthrie said.

[{"type":"text","text":"Not everyone agrees."}]

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine supports ending the twice-yearly clock changes but argues that Congress should instead adopt permanent standard time, saying it better aligns with the body's natural circadian rhythms and promotes healthier sleep.

If daylight saving time became permanent, Wyoming would experience later winter sunrises and later sunsets, leaving many children and commuters traveling before sunrise while extending daylight later into the evening.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Senate Faces Familiar Decision"}]

The legislation now heads to the Senate, which unanimously approved a similar version of the Sunshine Protection Act in 2022 before it stalled in the House.

[{"type":"text","text":"Its prospects this time are uncertain."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Wyoming's congressional delegation is split on the issue."}]

While Hageman voted against the House bill, Sen. Cynthia Lummis has 

backed making daylight saving time permanent, calling the twice-yearly clock changes "an unnecessary disruption" and saying advances in technology have made the original reasons for changing clocks obsolete.

[{"type":"text","text":"Sen. John Barrasso has taken a more cautious position."}]

Last spring he told Cowboy State Daily, "Every time we have to change the clocks, I hear about this issue at home in Wyoming. 

"While it would certainly be easier to not have to change our clocks, there are some real concerns with sending our kids to school in the dark. Congress must thoroughly debate all of the potential impacts before taking any action to change daylight saving time on the national level."

Asked Tuesday about the bill's chances in the Senate, Barrasso 

, "We'll see. You know, we had passed something like that once before, and then the House hit the snooze alarm on it, and we'll see what happens when it gets here."

Even if the Senate approves the bill and Trump signs it into law, Wyoming would not immediately stop changing its clocks. 

The state's trigger law requires not only congressional approval, but also neighboring Mountain Time states to adopt permanent daylight saving time before Wyoming could make the switch.

Cowboy State Daily reached out to Barrasso's office Tuesday for additional comment on the House-passed legislation but did not receive a response before publication.

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<title>House Passes Permanent Daylight Saving Time Bill, Hageman Votes Against | Cowboy State Daily</title>

The U.S. House passed a bill Tuesday to make daylight saving time permanent, but Rep. Harriet Hageman was one of only 22 Republicans who voted against it, arguing it would put schoolchildren in the dark and take morning sunlight from farmers and ranchers.

House Passes Permanent Daylight Saving Time Bill, Hageman Votes Against

Putting an employee housing complex on top of a morgue makes sense because of how dire Teton County’s housing shortage is, some commissioners say.

The Teton County Commission voted last week to incorporate employee housing units into the build plan of the new coroner’s facility. That advances, but doesn’t finalize the move, Commissioner Luther Propst told Cowboy State Daily.

Coroner Brent Blue, who’s running against five other Democrats for the party’s nomination in three open Commission seats, spoke against the plan.

“I vehemently opposed it,” Blue said in a Tuesday phone interview with Cowboy State Daily. “Who wants to live in an apartment above a morgue in an industrial area? That’s just a pipe dream.”

Noting that the measure passed, Blue said the complex might work better as a bunkhouse or dorm for summertime or part-time workers who aren’t planning on settling above the morgue.   

The morgue maneuver reflects that “certainly housing is one of our critical problems for employees,” Blue said.

Chief Deputy Coroner Russell Nelson, who’s running to lead the office, was less subtle.

Blue sent Cowboy State Daily a letter that Nelson had sent the local newspaper after the vote in which Nelson referenced his past work for the Arizona State Museum’s Human Identification Laboratory. 

There, he said, he’d encountered undocumented migrants who’d died in the heat while trying to cross the Southern border, many amid a “brisk drug trade.”

“The bodies that came through our laboratory had been beaten with a variety of tools, shot, burned, dismembered or just left out on the desert floor,” wrote Nelson.

He said lab workers used an enzymatic detergent solution to loosen soft tissue for examining bone features, wrote Nelson.

“All this cooking — even under a fume hood — produced a significant aroma of decomposition in the surrounding areas,” the letter says. 

Nelson compared it to being “downwind of the carcass disposal pit at the Transfer Station.”

Nelson referenced “several” process-heavy cases, and “one rather high-profile, complete with paparazzi.”

Travel vlogger Gabby Petito was killed by her boyfriend in Teton County in the summer of 2021. 

Propst presented the motion at last week's commission meeting to include the housing  plans in the new morgue construction. The aye votes sounded, and no nay votes were audible on the 

Propst told Cowboy State Daily in a phone interview Tuesday that the vote was unanimous. 

He also believes Blue softened to the idea of temporary rather than “executive” housing during that meeting.

Blue said that he conceded the temporary housing idea as a compromise “if (they’re) going to force the issue.”

Propst noted, as Deputy County Attorney Keith Gingery did during the meeting, that housing has occupied that neighborhood. Blue had protested, however, that it’s an industrial area.

Commission Vice-Chair Wes Gardner told Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday that he voted for the addition. 

The county’s dire need, the thrift of building housing on an already-planned building, and the potential to mitigate some of the coroner’s concerns factored into his aye vote, he said.

The cost estimate for the potential two housing units is roughly $1 million of the approximately $ 5 million project, the 

Paying $1 million for two housing units is nearly unheard-of in Teton County, said Gardner.

Teton regularly ranks as the nation’s wealthiest county. Wealthy people drive up home values and with them, property taxes and other costs of living.

Many of the local workers commute from other towns, and workforce housing shortage problems have recurred for years. 

County and Jackson city governments have tried over the years to handle those pressures by subsidizing housing, charging mitigation fees of homebuilders, price-capping homes, among other strategies.

“I completely understand and appreciate where the coroner’s coming from,” said Gardner. “I wish I weren’t in a position where I feel the need to put housing on top of the morgue. Unfortunately, I am in that position.”

Gardner said that on the one hand, he’s faced with an “awkward” living situation and the potential for people to feel uncomfortable. 

“On the other hand, I’m looking at the stark reality facing Teton County and our housing shortage,” he said.

The plan is for the employees to pay a low rent to stay in county housing, he said. 

Gardner said the county government is short by fewer than a dozen employees right now — which is “pretty good” for it. But it has around 26 employee units and nearly 340 employees, he said.

Commission Chair Mark Newcomb told the board last Tuesday that “we also thought” that adding the homes to the new morgue could make the project eligible for a special purpose excise tax, which is slated in part for employee housing.

“(That) might give a little boost to helping with the whole project cost,” said Newcomb in the meeting, adding that he recognized the coroner’s concern.

Propst said he agrees with Blue about making it temporary housing. He called the plot “not where someone might want to live for their career,” but a “great opportunity to provide housing.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Newcomb did not return a voicemail request for comment by publication."}]

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<title>Teton County Is So Desperate For Housing It Wants To Build It On A Morgue | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Some county commissioners say putting an employee housing complex on top of a morgue makes sense due to the housing shortage but the coroner's office is strongly against it. They say the smell is like being “downwind of the carcass disposal pit."

One More For The Road: Monday, February 26, 2024

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