It’s time to take a look at what’s happening around Wyoming, for Wednesday, October 23rd. I’m Wendy Corr, bringing you headlines from the Cowboy State Daily newsroom - brought to you by 4 Wyoming Pack. 4 Wyoming Pack says, “This November, Wyoming will vote to allow residential homes to be taxed at a lower, fairer rate, even the playing field, and give families a much-needed break.” 4 Wyoming Pack wants you to Vote Yes on Amendment A.
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Weston County Commissioner Chair Don Taylor made it clear at a special commission meeting Tuesday he expects the county will be sued.
That’s because the majority of the County commissioners attending the meeting voted to install two appointees to serve the county in the state Legislature, one in the House and one in the Senate.
Cowboy State Daily’s Leo Wolfson reports that the vote was the latest move in an aggressive effort by the county to create its own legislative districts.
“The effort is part of a push by some in Weston county that that believe the county is being unconstitutionally represented in the state legislature. The Wyoming constitution says that each county should have their own representative and Senator, however, Weston is currently represented by a handful of senators, representatives that represent their county, in addition to other counties.”
The commissioners selected Newcastle resident Karl Lacey and former county attorney Bill Curley to fill the state House and Senate seats, respectively.
Read the full story HERE.
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Jason and Ben Koperski of Cody didn’t expect to run into anyone while elk hunting near Encampment last week. But their hunting trip took a sudden turn into a rescue mission after spotting a brown cowboy boot being waved along the side of the road.
They told Cowboy State Daily’s Andrew Rossi that Phil Bollinger could have died after crashing his motorcycle to avoid a deer on Highway 70, but everything aligned to ensure he was rescued in time to get the medical care he urgently needed.
“Jason Koperski and his dad are driving by. They see this boot waving because it's the only thing that Phil could move. They noticed it. They pulled over, and it's like, it's no hyperbole, they saved his life. He had serious internal bleeding from the injury that they weren't aware of until they got him down to a hospital in Fort Collins… It was just sort of a fluke thing, as Jason described it to me. It was a bunch of small decisions that they made, let's go hunting this way instead of that way. Let's meet up at this time that led to them passing by at the moment that Phil needed them.”
The Koperskis have received an outpouring of relief and gratitude from Bollinger’s family. Jason said the families formed an “instantaneous bond” after the accident.
Read the full story HERE.
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A Utah woman who lured her ex-boyfriend to a Rock Springs parking lot and ran him down with her SUV, killing him, was sentenced Tuesday to between 45 years and life in prison.
48-year-old Rene Daniels was convicted of second-degree murder June 20 after a trial in Sweetwater County District Court for killing Emiliano “Chico” Morales in 2021. Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports that the two had broken up prior to the incident, and Daniels had been sending expletive- and insult-laden texts to Morales.
“It culminates to where she's arranged to meet him at the parking lot of the gas station to get his things, and at some point, he's trying to get. Things from the ground, and she runs over him with her Tahoe. And the you know, the witnesses, the evidence, bore this out… Chico Morales mother said, Well, he was 43 when he died, so she should have between 43 years in life. And the judge took it just a little bit further.”
Morales’ family members remembered him as a playful uncle, a good friend and a man trying to rebuild a relationship with his grown son.
Read the full story HERE.
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Despite last week’s blast of winter that cooled down the Elk and Pack Trail fires that have burned a combined 185,000 acres in northern Wyoming, firefighters are warning people not to jump the gun and think the fires are safe.
The rain and snow last week were crucial in getting control of both volatile fires.
However, Cowboy State Daily’s Greg Johnson reports that this precipitation was not a fire season-ending event - and the flames could flare up again.
“Officials for both management teams of these fires are urging people not to get too complacent and not think that, okay, everything is fine now that they've had a couple days of rain and snow, although it has helped greatly, the fires are less hot. They're being managed very well. The Elk fire is now 51% contained. The pack trail fire is 64% complete, so they are getting a heads up on it. However, there are still some pretty hot spots in them.”
Read the full story HERE.
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Although the Elk Fire is not fully contained, the staff and volunteers at the nonprofit Antelope Butte Ski Resort are gearing up for another ski season on the Bighorn Mountains in Wyoming.
Highway 14 over the Bighorns, which is the main route to Antelope Butte, has been closed until today, and the guardrails along the highway have been compromised by the Elk Fire. However, resort staff told Cowboy State Daily’s Jackie Dorothy that the highway will be open in time for the ski season, which is scheduled to kick off in less than two months - and will feature a few upgrades.
“Antelope Butte ski resort is on full alert as they prepare for the ski season… they're continuing to do the maintenance just to get things up and running, and they are expecting a record year… they are doing one thing that would come as a surprise to many, they're going to speed up the ski lifts about 20% so the wait at the bottom of the hill will be a little shorter, and your ride up will be a little bit shorter as well.”
To date, the Elk Fire has charred over 96,000 acres and is roughly 10 to 12 miles from the ski resort.
Read the full story HERE.
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People driving on the highway in and out of Kemmerer can see construction work underway at the site of TerraPower’s new Natrium reactor.
But what they’re seeing is not the nuclear plant itself. Instead, what’s under construction is a sodium test and fill facility for the future plant - the first step of many to come before the nuclear plant will come online sometime around 2030, according to business reporter Renee Jean.
“It's actually a test and fill facility that has nothing nuclear about it. This is the sodium coolant system that this novel approach to nuclear power is going to use. And they're actually building this facility to just test out all their ideas in the real world and make sure that everything works exactly as they expect it to before they work the nuclear element into this plant… the interesting thing here is we're, we're starting from scratch with this technology. It's all brand new. It's the first of its kind, and it's happening right here in Kemmerer, Wyoming.”
Bill Gates founded TerraPower and was in Kemmerer in June for a ceremonial groundbreaking for the plant.
Read the full story HERE.
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A racist post shared by the Sheridan County Repulican Party on Facebook was up for about 35 minutes Tuesday before it was deleted.
The county party shared a post made by someone else featuring a photo of former President Donald Trump during a Sunday campaign event working at a Pennsylvania McDonald’s restaurant. Under the photo was a racial slur and a number of stereotypes comparing Trump to African Americans.
Cowboy State Daily’s Leo Wolfson spoke to the chairman of the county party, Brian Miller, who acknowledged that the post crossed a line.
“he says the post was regrettable and made in bad taste. He said, As soon as he found out about the post that he did not himself make, he ordered it to be taken down and said it was only live for about 35 minutes. Miller also, though, defended the party's right to free speech, and said members of the media are making too big a deal about the post and blowing out of proportion.”
The party chairman said that the county party intentionally makes and shares posts that push the envelope in order to get greater engagement on social media.
Read the full story HERE.
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A Thermopolis man is suing the local police department and sheriff’s office in federal court on claims law enforcement agents broke into his home without a warrant, then fought and tased him in 2021.
53-year-old Douglas Edwards filed his civil lawsuit Monday. Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports that he allegations date back to October of 2021, when a member of Edwards’ family called for a Sheriff’s deputy to help them get Edwards out of his mother’s home.
“This deputy, you know, on just first glance, he he had some reasons to believe that the guy was trespassing… like, oh, wow, there's a power of attorney contract, and the person who holds power of attorney over the man's elderly mother doesn't want him at the house, right?... so he goes to the house and he the deputy jets is his foot in the door, and there's this fight inside the house, and then the defendant ends up getting tased a few times… on closer scrutiny, it turns out that the power of attorney was not yet active… now the the man who was arrested is suing, saying, You guys held me for two months. That was false imprisonment, and you guys violated my fourth amendment rights.”
Edwards is asking for money damages for his expenses, pain and distress, and what he deems an “unwarranted period of incarceration.”
Read the full story HERE.
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Although it's been a bumper year for aurora activity, astrophotographers and climatologists aren't bored with the activity, by any means.
Cowboy State Daily’s Andrew Rossi spoke to several astronomical experts, who all say they still get thrilled by the northern lights - and they add that the best is yet to come, because the sun is experiencing a period of what’s called solar maximum, putting out a lot of extra energy.
“For the next year, possibly two, there's going to be that increased chance of seeing auroras in the night sky, just because the sun's outputting that much energy. But you've got to enjoy it while the getting is good, because there's a solar maximum, there's also a solar minimum, where the sun's not generating that kind of energy, so Wyoming can go years without seeing any traces of the Northern Lights.”
When the sun reaches solar minimum, Wyoming’s night skies will be much less colorful, as only powerful auroras reach this far south from the North Pole. So experts encourage everyone to enjoy them while they’re here.
Read the full story HERE.
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And that’s today’s news. Get your free digital subscription to Wyoming's only statewide newspaper by hitting the Daily Newsletter button on Cowboy State Daily Dot Com - and you can watch this newscast every day by clicking Subscribe on our YouTube channel! And don’t forget to drop in on the Cowboy State Daily morning show with Jake Nichols, Monday through Friday from 6 to 10 a.m.! Thanks for tuning in - I’m Wendy Corr, for Cowboy State Daily.
