Daily Darwin

[{"type":"text","text":"Thankfully the log is there to break their fall...."}]

Darwin 6 20 24

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

<title>Daily Darwin: Thursday, June 20, 2024 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Thankfully the log is there to break their fall....

Daily Darwin: Thursday, June 20, 2024

 Thankfully the log is there to break their fall....

Heinz mark

Mark Heinz

Agriculture

Wyoming ranchers must accept that electronic ear tags for cattle are here to stay, Wyoming Livestock Board Director Steve True told lawmakers Tuesday. 

A hoped-for executive order from President Donald Trump rescinding the electronic tag requirement “didn’t happen,” he said.

The requirement for certain cattle to have electronic tags before they cross state lines out of Wyoming is still in place, True told legislators in Casper. 

He spoke before the Legislature’s Joint Agriculture, State and Public Lands, and Water Resources Committee. The committee took no action on the matter.

The electronic ID tag requirement for interstate cattle transport was finalized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Nov. 4, 2024, the day before Trump was elected to his second term.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Trump Rumor Squelched"}]

In recent years, there’s been pushback against the transition from metal ear tags for cattle to electronic ID tags, which can be instantly read with a scanner.

Some ranchers argue electronic tags are too expensive, at about $3 each. Metal ear tags cost 10 to 15 cents apiece.

Others worry data collected through the tags could lead to government intrusion.

There’s no indication the electronic ID tag (EID) rule will change, True said.

“I do want to nip one story in the bud that I’ve heard quite a bit, that President Trump was writing some executive orders that would repeal the EID rule,” he said. "Didn’t happen.

“So, you all can let that go, if you’re thinking that happened. Because it didn’t, and it’s probably not gonna, with the screwworm problem we’ve got going on.”

At least five cases of New World screwworm infections were confirmed earlier this year in domestic animals in Texas and New Mexico.

There are concern that infestations could spread to other states, including Wyoming.

And hunters worry that screwworm infestations could jump to deer and other wildlife.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Rule Requirements"}]

Electronic ID tags are required for several classes of cattle before they can be transported out of Wyoming, True said.

Some of those include breeding cattle, sexually intact cattle 18 months or older, exhibition cattle and dairy cattle.

It’s hoped that electronic tags can streamline the detection, tracking and containment of livestock diseases, such as brucellosis.

A tag signifies, for instance, that an animal has been vaccinated against brucellosis.

Wyoming got clearance from the USDA to carve out an exception, allowing ranchers to use metal ear tags to certify vaccination for brucellosis.

Ranchers can use either new yellow ear tags or leftover orange vaccination certification tags, True said.

Yellow tags can be purchased from manufacturers. The orange tags should be available until supplies run out, as production ceased after Nov. 4, 2024, he said.

However, those metal tags are good only within Wyoming state lines. Electronic tags will still be mandatory for animals within the required categories that cross state lines, he said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Still Seems Unfair"}]

Marta Mossburg of Riverton told Cowboy State Daily she’s opposed to mandating electronic cattle tags.

She is a research fellow at the Mountain States Policy Center and in November 2024 published a guest column in Cowboy State Daily expressing her hope that then-President-elect Trump would scrap the electronic ID requirement.

Among other things, she expressed concern over government intrusion.

“With the heightened surveillance of tags will come the ability for the federal government to expand its reach into ranchers’ operations,” Mossburg wrote. "Knowing exactly how many cattle ranchers own means the ability to tax cows based on their greenhouse gas emissions, as has been enacted in Denmark, to start in 2030. It could also mean forced slaughter if, for example, the USDA decided that the number of head in a particular operation was adversely impacting federal lands or violating climate policy.” 

On Tuesday, she said electronic ear tags would be expensive and unnecessary for small ranches in Wyoming.

Larger ranches might find electronic tags more efficient than old-style metal tags, Mossburg said, but they should have the option of using them voluntarily, not through a government mandate,.

RFID tag 7 28 26

<title>No Trump Executive Order: Livestock Director Says Electronic Cattle Tags Here To Stay | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Wyoming Livestock Board Director Steve True told state lawmakers in Casper on Tuesday that electronic ear tags for cattle are here to stay. A hoped-for executive order from President Trump rescinding the electronic tag requirement didn’t happen, he said.

No Trump Executive Order: Livestock Director Says Electronic Cattle Tags Here To Stay

Kolby fedore

Kolby Fedore

Crime & Courts

Prosecutors say a man repeatedly shot two of his roommates with BB guns, beat one with a wooden walking cane, and even coerced a child into participating in one of the assaults before continuing the attack himself.

The criminal case against Pancho Villa Flores, born in 1971, is now moving forward with an arraignment scheduled for Aug. 5. 

He faces one felony count of aggravated assault and battery, one felony count of child abuse and two misdemeanor counts of reckless endangerment. 

The allegations, detailed in affidavits filed by the Cheyenne Police Department, describe two  victims who investigators say were assaulted days apart.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Multiple BB Wounds"}]

Police first became involved after officers responded to Cheyenne Regional Medical Center to speak with a man who arrived by ambulance.

Investigators documented puncture wounds across his back, buttocks, knees and right calf. Both knees were red and swollen, and hospital staff told police several BBs remained embedded in his body.

The man told officers Flores shot him repeatedly over several days using BB rifles.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"It hurt like a sonofabitch,\" he told investigators."}]

He said the shots to his knees were the worst and left him unable to walk for a time.

The man also told police he was afraid to report the shootings because he feared Flores would "beat him up or kill him in retaliation."

The affidavit says the man had been living with Flores for about seven months. He told investigators Flores held power of attorney over him, received his Social Security benefits and deducted rent and other expenses before giving him what remained.

He said he was "lucky" if Flores gave him between $50 and $100 each month from those benefits and complained he had received only $20 that month.

When officers later went to Flores' residence, they reported seeing two rifles that appeared to be BB guns through the open front door. Police photographed the weapons from outside the home, then returned to the hospital, where the man identified them as the guns Flores used.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"'Blow A Cap In His Ass' "}]

[{"type":"text","text":"According to court documents, Flores denied shooting anyone."}]

Instead, he told investigators a juvenile identified only as L.R. had shot both him and his roommate.

But the child's account was dramatically different. L.R. told investigators Flores had bought him fishing and camping gear and recently took him camping.

After returning home June 21, the child said he was lying in the front yard when Flores came outside and claimed the man had failed to complete chores.

Flores then told the child he needed to "blow a cap in his ass," shows the affidavit. 

L.R. told police he refused, but said Flores responded by threatening to shoot him instead. 

The child told investigators Flores then fired the air rifle into his back, striking him just left of his spine and above his left buttock.

Afraid of being shot again, L.R. said he took the rifle and went into the basement, where Flores again instructed him to shoot the man.

[{"type":"text","text":"The child told investigators he was crying as Flores laughed."}]

Not wanting to seriously injure the man, the child said he intentionally shot him in the buttocks and calf.

Flores then took back  the rifle and allegedly continued shooting the man in the knees and back. 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Second Roommate Hospitalized"}]

Less than a week later, detectives contacted another roommate at Cheyenne Regional Medical Center.

He told investigators Flores assaulted him several days earlier after accusing him of stealing whiskey.

Flores allegedly forced his way into the second roommate's bedroom and struck him on the head with a wooden walking cane.

[{"type":"text","text":"The man said his head \"bled a lot,\" but he did not lose consciousness."}]

The next day, he told investigators Flores returned, entered his bedroom without saying anything and shot him in the lower back with a BB rifle while he was in bed.

[{"type":"text","text":"At first, the man did not seek treatment."}]

Over the next several days, the wound allegedly became red, swollen and increasingly painful.

He eventually went to the hospital June 25, where he was admitted for treatment of the infection. He remained hospitalized when detectives interviewed him June 29.

Investigators observed a healing cut on the man's head they said was consistent with his account of being struck by the cane.

They also documented a circular wound on his right flank where he told police doctors removed a BB.

He told them another BB remained lodged in his muscle and would require surgery to remove.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Case Moves Forward"}]

After the July 17 preliminary hearing, a judge found sufficient evidence to bind Flores' case over to district court.

He is charged with aggravated assault and battery, child abuse and two counts of reckless endangerment.

The two felony charges each carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison under Wyoming law. The reckless endangerment charges are misdemeanors punishable by up to one year in jail.

Flores is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday, Aug. 5 in Laramie County District Court.

Cheyenne police 7 28 26

<title>Police: Cheyenne Man Shot Child With BB Rifle After Forcing Him To Shoot Roommate | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Police say a Cheyenne man forced a child to shoot his roommate, telling him to "blow a cap in his ass," before threatening and then turning a BB rifle on the boy. Pancho Villa Flores is now facing felony counts of assault and battery and child abuse.

Police: Cheyenne Man Shot Child With BB Rifle After Forcing Him To Shoot Roommate

Employee kate meadows cropped

Kate Meadows

Energy

Two significant workforce housing projects are likely to take shape in neighboring southwest Wyoming counties, but despite their proximity the developments are moving on separate tracks to serve two entirely different energy projects.

In Kemmerer, city leaders on Monday cleared another hurdle that could allow a temporary workforce housing hub for workers constructing TerraPower's advanced nuclear power plant. Meanwhile, about 120 miles to the southwest, Uinta County officials are considering a proposal for a much larger workforce camp to serve construction of a planned hyperscale data center near Evanston.

While both projects have drawn attention because of their size and potential economic impacts, Kemmerer Mayor Robert Bowen said the timing is largely coincidental.

"The whole point of a workforce hub is to keep people who work on the project close to the project," Bowen told Cowboy State Daily.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Kemmerer Clears Zoning Hurdle"}]

The Kemmerer City Council on Monday approved the third and final reading of a zoning change for approximately 60 acres of private land known as the Fox King property, changing its designation from heavy industrial to light industrial.

The zoning change makes the property eligible to be considered as one possible location for temporary housing tied to TerraPower's Natrium reactor project.

Bowen said the property is included in a request for proposals being evaluated by Bechtel, the Virginia-based engineering and construction company considering a temporary workforce hub for the TerraPower project.

Bechtel will ultimately decide whether to move forward with the Fox King property or another proposed site, Bowen said.

"The city has no influence, no say," he said. "All of it is in their (Bechtel's) court."

If selected, the 60-acre site would help house up to 1,600 workers expected to descend on Kemmerer during the peak years of construction on the first commercial Natrium nuclear reactor in the United States.

The city of about 2,400 people is bracing for explosive growth with the first-of-its-kind sodium-cooled nuclear power plant under construction, 

Cowboy State Daily has previously reported

The property also offers an alternative to an undeveloped city-owned piece of land between the justice center and the Antelope Ridge subdivision. Residents of the subdivision have pushed back at recent city council meetings about a man camp on land adjacent to their neighborhood.

Multiple companies have been eyeing properties to house workers when the plant comes online around 2030.

[{"type":"text","text":"Bechtel did not return Cowboy State Daily's messages before publication."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Uinta County Proposal Advances"}]

At nearly the same time, officials in neighboring Uinta County took a significant step toward approving a workforce housing hub for a different project.

Last week, the Uinta County Planning and Zoning Commission approved a conditional use permit allowing Target Hospitality to move forward with plans for a temporary workforce housing community on county-owned land east of Evanston, adjacent to Bear River State Park.

The proposal now heads to the Uinta County Commission for final consideration.

If approved, the camp would house as many as 3,400 workers during construction of a nearby hyperscale data center. Under the permit, the housing complex could remain in place for up to five years during the project's primary construction phase.

Target Hospitality CEO Troy Schrenk has said the approximately 150-acre site was selected because of its access to Interstate 80 and its location about eight miles from the construction site.

The company estimates construction of the workforce housing hub would take about one year, with completion targeted for October 2027 if approvals continue on schedule.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Different Projects, Similar Challenges"}]

Although both proposals involve temporary housing for large construction workforces, they reflect a broader challenge facing Wyoming communities as billion-dollar industrial projects move forward in rural areas with limited housing inventories.

Purpose-built workforce housing can reduce pressure on local rental markets, hotels and other housing while keeping workers close to job sites. At the same time, such projects often generate debate over traffic, infrastructure demands, public safety and the eventual removal of the temporary facilities once construction winds down.

[{"type":"text","text":"For now, both southwest Wyoming projects remain works in progress."}]

Kemmerer's zoning action simply keeps one potential housing site in contention as Bechtel evaluates proposals, Bowen said. Meanwhile Uinta County's proposal still requires approval from county commissioners before construction can begin.

Terra Power construction 1 5 29 26 1

<title>Man Camps Moving Forward As Uinta And Lincoln Counties Build, Build, Build | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Potential man camps in neighboring Uinta and Lincoln counties are moving forward. Kemmerer cleared zoning for a workforce housing site for a nuclear power plant, while Uinta County is a step closer to a 3,400-bed camp for a hyperscale data center.

Man Camps Moving Forward As Uinta And Lincoln Counties Build, Build, Build

Public Safety

Families had gathered to watch Fourth of July fireworks at F.E. Warren Air Force Base when the celebration turned into a nightmare.

Just after 10 p.m. July 4, a 5-year-old girl watching the fireworks from the Trails End parking lot suddenly suffered what appeared to be a head injury. She was rushed to Cheyenne Regional Medical Center, where doctors discovered a bullet lodged in one of her sinus cavities.

The girl, the daughter of an airman stationed at F.E. Warren, was later flown to Children's Hospital Colorado in Aurora, where physicians confirmed the object was indeed a bullet. Surgeons removed it, and she has since been discharged and is recovering with her family.

Now, nearly four weeks later, military and local investigators are asking the public for help in identifying who fired the shot.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact the Air Force Office of Special Investigations at 307-432-2114.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Public Asked To Think Back"}]

Cheyenne Mayor Patrick Collins said investigators initially chose not to publicize the shooting because they believed doing so could jeopardize the investigation.

"We wanted to talk about it right away," Collins told Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday. But after consulting with investigators, city officials agreed to wait.

"They felt like if we could wait till a week or two, that would give them time to run down a bunch of leads before we made it public," Collins said. "They were worried maybe the gun might disappear or something along those lines, and so in order to be able to get justice for the family, we thought it was prudent to give law enforcement opportunity to do their investigation before we made a public announcement."

Collins said he first learned about the shooting from the commander of the 90th Missile Wing, likely the morning after the incident.

Because the shooting occurred outside Cheyenne city limits, neither the city nor the Cheyenne Police Department participated in the investigation, he said.

F.E. Warren Air Force Base Public Affairs did not respond to Cowboy State Daily's requests for additional information before publication.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Residents Urged To Think Back "}]

Officials urged anyone who discharged a firearm that night — or anyone who witnessed unsafe gunfire — to consider the consequences and contact investigators.

Collins echoed that message, saying responsible firearm ownership carries an obligation to use guns safely.

"Wyoming is a Second Amendment state, and we take pride in our guns," he said. "But along with that comes the responsibility to handle them properly.

"There is no time where celebrating and shooting a gun or a weapon into the sky is safe or appropriate."

He also urged residents to think back to the Fourth of July celebration, saying even seemingly insignificant observations — a vehicle parked near the base, unusual activity or someone firing a weapon — could help investigators piece together what happened.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"'I Was Heartsick'"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"The case struck Collins personally."}]

"I have grandchildren about that same age, and I was heartsick," he said.

He said he was relieved the little girl appears to be recovering but couldn't believe a holiday celebration ended with a child wounded by gunfire.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"It was devastating,\" he said."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Collins said the family deserves answers."}]

"We're just asking for help," he said. "We really hope that we'll be able to find the gun and maybe try to understand what happened. I think the family deserves that, and I hope we can make it happen."

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Other Recent Shooting Cases"}]

Tuesday's appeal comes after several unrelated shooting incidents involving F.E. Warren Air Force Base personnel that have drawn public attention over the past year.

In September 2025, Fort Collins police identified a Wyoming-based airman assigned to F.E. Warren as the gunman in a murder-suicide tied to a domestic violence incident. The airman died at the scene, and the woman who was wounded died the next day.

In March 2025, Air Force personnel target shooting on private land in Platte County accidentally struck and seriously injured a Verizon contractor working atop a nearby cell tower. The worker survived, and Cowboy State Daily has requested the final investigative report in that case.

In July 2025, another F.E. Warren airman was fatally shot inside a military dormitory. The death initially drew scrutiny because the weapon involved was a military-issued Sig Sauer M18 pistol, but investigators later arrested another airman on suspicion of manslaughter after concluding the shooting was not accidental.

Then, in August 2025, another fatal shooting involving two F.E. Warren airmen resulted in a manslaughter charge in Laramie County. That criminal case remains pending.

Authorities have not indicated any connection between those cases and the investigation into the July 4 shooting. They remain separate incidents involving personnel assigned to F.E. Warren Air Force Base.

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<title>Cheyenne Mayor: Help Us Find Shooter Who Hit 5-Year-Old In Head At Fireworks Show | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Cheyenne Mayor Patrick Collins is asking for the public's help in finding the shooter responsible for a 5-year-old getting struck in the head by a bullet. She was watching the July 4 fireworks show at F.E. Warren Air Force Base when hit by the stray bullet.

Cheyenne Mayor: Help Us Find Shooter Who Hit 5-Year-Old In Head At Fireworks Show

Outdoors

Several side roads at a popular recreation area north of Evanston have been closed by state and federal officials after landowners complained about their land being “torn up” by unauthorized motorized use.

Some recreationists balked at the Wyoming Game and Fish Department posting "road closed" signs on several roads and two-tracks in the Woodruff Narrows/Bear River Divide area.

It includes a Game and Fish public access area.

However, agency personnel told Cowboy State Daily the roads in question cross private property, and landowners were fed up.

"The landowners are sick of having their land torn up," Bureau of Land Namangement Wyoming spokeswoman Courtney Whiteman told Cowboy State Daily.

The episode encapsulates the complexities of public recreation areas set on easements across private land.

The 16.3-acre Woodruff Narrows Public Access Area offers fishing, hunting, camping, hiking, boating, and wildlife viewing, according to Game and Fish. Just to the northeast is the roughly 12-acre Bear River PAA, which offers camping, fishing and hunting.

Game and Fish works with landowners to establish PAAs at similar places, such as walk-in hunting and angling areas and hunter management areas.

In exchange for public access, Game and Fish establishes and enforces conditions set by landowners, including dates of use, access points, limits on motorized travel, and the like.

Phil Pierson of Wichita, Kansas, stated in a social media post that Woodruff Narrows is one of his favorite places to visit. So, he was taken aback when he went there recently and discovered several roads he likes to use were posted as "closed" by Game and Fish.

He said that it wasn't right to be denied access to "public lands."

Pierson could not be reached for further comment.

Local outdoorsman Landon McGuire told Cowboy State Daily he hunts mule deer at Woodruff Narrows.

He added that the reservoir also draws anglers, who fish either from boats or along the shoreline.

He noted that the jurisdiction of the land can be confusing because it's in an area of "checkerboard" public and private land parcels, with square parcels of BLM and private land.

In much of the area, hunting is allowed only on foot, he said.

"Those (road closed) signs go up every fall" to remind hunters where they can and cannot drive, he said.

The "actual designated routes" for public travel are clearly marked on hunting GPS apps, such as onX, McGuire said.

He added that he understands why Game and Fish must regulate travel as part of its agreement with private landowners.

It's Game and Fish's duty to manage both the wildlife and human activity in the area, he said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Complex Management"}]

Landowners' rights and concerns must be respected in public access areas, Game and Fish spokeswoman Anne Hodnett stated in an email to Cowboy State Daily.

"The Bear River Divide is unique compared to most PAAs in our state due to its scale and complex, 'checkerboard' landownership pattern, which includes a mix of private, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and state lands," she said. "When private landowners opened access and enrolled their lands into our access program, they requested specific protections to prevent motorized damage and unauthorized access on their specific parts of their property." 

Game and Fish "worked directly with these landowners" to decide which roads to close to the public, Hodnett added.

She said protecting private property rights helps ensure that landowners continue to allow public access to the recreation area.

"Standard PAA regulations prohibit off-road travel and ATV/ORV use throughout the area to protect habitat and prevent property damage," Hodnett added.

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<title>State Closes Popular Evanston Recreation Roads After Private Lands 'Torn Up' | Cowboy State Daily</title>

After angry landowners near a recreation area north of Evanston complained of their property being "torn up," state officials closed the roads. "The landowners are sick of having their land torn up," BLM spokeswoman Courtney Whiteman said.

State Closes Popular Evanston Recreation Roads After Private Lands 'Torn Up'

Mac Watson

Tuesday's headlines include:
* Retiree Medical Benefits Cancelled
* Brand Inspector Fired For Moose Torture
* Former Candidate Says Gray, Friess Unimpressive

Daily Darwin: Thursday, June 20, 2024

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