Daily Smile

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Smile 11 10 24

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

<title>Daily Smile: Sunday, November 10, 2024 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

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Daily Smile: Sunday, November 10, 2024

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

Greg Johnson

Crime & Courts

Courts

 in two court cases has waived her right to jury trials, instead choosing to have a judge decide her fate.

She’ll also have to do that facing the full force of evidence investigators found on her cellphone and two laptops after a judge denied her attempt to throw it out on technicalities in the law.

April Marie Morganroth, known in Wyoming as a news reporter by the name of Marie Hamilton, filed her motions to waive her jury trial this week.

Her attempt to quash the electronic evidence that allegedly ties her to forging exhibits presented to the Wyoming Industrial Siting Council and lying to the board in an environmental case dealing with wind farms in her first case was denied Wednesday.

The evidence also relates to allegedly forged documents related to the purchase of property she claimed was bought with money from a U.S. Department of Agriculture loan, according to court documents.

[{"type":"text","text":"In each case, she faces 10 criminal charges."}]

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

Hamilton argued that all three search warrants — one each for her cellphone and laptops — were invalid because they were approved by a judge in another jurisdiction and for “technical irregularities.”

“Ms. Morganroth asserts that all three warrants are ‘invalid’ because they were signed by Judge Clark C. Allen, a Circuit Court Judge for the Eighth Judicial District and captioned in the Circuit Court of Converse County, as opposed to Platte County,” wrote Platte County District Court Judge Edward Buchanan in his Wednesday denial.

He also dismissed her claim that investigators exceeded the scope of the warrants and accessed more information from her devices than they were legally allowed to.

They did this by copying “bit-for-bit” her hard drives to then doing deep-dive searches of them, according to her motion to quash.

“Nowhere on any warrant does it state that an entire hard drive can be seized and copied,” it says.

Buchanan wrote that “courts have routinely upheld the seizure or copying of hard drives and other storage devices in order to effectuate a proper search for the categories of documents or files listed in a warrant.”

He continued to cite legal precedent that “a computer search may be as extensive as reasonably required to locate the items described in the warrant.

“There is no evidence before this Court to suggest that law enforcement improperly seized property or searched items beyond the scope of the warrant,” Buchanan concluded. “There are no grounds to exclude the evidence obtained during the searches.”

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

 in early March on suspicion of submitting forged documents and lying about her credentials during state permitting hearings in which she opposed a controversial wind farm project, according to an affidavit of probable cause filed in that case.

Hamilton was the publisher of the short-lived Wyoming Sentinel, a startup publication that has been inactive since late last year that covered Platte, Goshen and Laramie counties. She also has worked as a freelance writer for Wyoming outlets. 

The case against her alleges Hamilton submitted forged documents meant to sway public officials, including letters purporting to be from a doctor and teacher.

Investigators also said Hamilton lied about her credentials and that she was a property owner near the project, the affidavit says.

The doctor and teacher later denied writing the documents Hamilton claimed were from them, the affidavit says.

Hamilton also claimed to own a property on JJ Road in Chugwater, making her a concerned landowner potentially impacted by the wind project, the affidavit says. However, the land actually belongs to somebody else.

The charges for her first case tally as three counts of possession of forged writings, three of forgery, and four counts of perjury.

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

About a month after hit with her first 10 forgery- and perjury-related charges, Hamilton was in court again, 

Those charges relate to an attempted home purchase, according to court documents, and include five counts each of possession of forged writings and forgery.

When Converse County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Benjamin Peech investigated Hamilton’s claim that she bought property with a federal loan, he uncovered more irregularities, he wrote in an affidavit.

The property is registered under Platte County’s mapping system to another couple with a different surname, Peech wrote. 

His investigation found that the other couple were willing to sell the property, and Hamilton told them that she and her husband wanted to buy and it and were prequalified for a USDA loan through Neighbor’s Bank.

Because the property didn’t meet loan standards, Hamilton told the couple she had been approved for a USDA grant to work on issues and bring the property up to standards, the affidavit states.

Hamilton and her husband made a deal with the homeowners in July 2025 to lease the property and use “sweat equity” to bring it up to the standards required for the loan, the affidavit states.

Documents provided to the couple and their Realtor included initial letters with USDA letterhead showing pre-approval from the “USDA Rural Development and Neighbor’s Bank” for a $365,000 loan dated June 10, 2025.

A letter provided by Hamilton to the property owners also showed USDA grant approvals for $35,000 dated Nov. 6, 2025, the affidavit says.

When Hamilton started to become late on rent payments earlier this year and had not provided work logs to the couple, they “began to be concerned and press Hamilton about her progress with improvements on the property,” the affidavit states.

Hamilton provided another letter dated Jan. 28, 2026, stating it represented USDA “Rural Development — Rural Communities Home Buyer Program Notice of Nearing Completion and Continued Work,” the affidavit states.

Page one of the letter states that the work was nearly “80%” complete, Peech wrote.

Other paperwork allegedly submitted to the property owners by Hamilton included invoices from “Cowgirl Demolition and Excavation LLC” showing she had paid $3,075 for repairs on the property’s home and “Pete’s Builders Roofing and Restoration” showing an invoice of $7,890 that was “paid in full.”

However, when contacted by Peech, the USDA and two contractors all said that they never sent any of those letters.

Hamilton is next set to see a courtroom on Oct. 8 for a conference ahead of a trial scheduled for Nov. 2-5.

She posted a $5,000 cash bond in her first case and remains free on a $20,000 signature-only bond in the second.

If convicted and given the maximum penalties and concurrent sentences, she could get up to 140 years in prison, 65 years in the first case and 75 for the second.

Marie Hamilton and courthouse 4 15 26

<title>Judge Denies Reporter's Request To Throw Out Evidence On Laptop & Cellphones | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A Platte County judge has denied a former reporter's request to throw out all evidence on her laptop and two cell phones. The woman is facing 20 forgery and perjury-related charges in two court case. She also waived her right to jury trials.

Judge Denies Reporter's Request To Throw Out Evidence On Laptop & Cellphones

The prosecution of a former Gillette Little League board member and youth sports coach on suspicion of 13 felony charges relating to possession of child pornography has come as more than a shock for Brooke Deaton.

Not only is she the president of the Little League Board of Trustees, but two of her children were coached by 41-year-old Lawrence Spradlin prior to his June 22 arrest.

“He personally coached my son in soccer, so I was shocked,” Deaton told Cowboy State Daily, adding that he also coached her daughter’s softball team.

“I never had any indications about this,” she said, adding that neither did the rest of the Little League board. “He never hugged anybody, never got close. At best, he was annoying, but he was also the first to jump in and help people.”

She also said Spradlin could be “obnoxious” at times and “was socially awkward and would say things off the wall, but never inappropriate.”

When the Gillette Little League got word of Spradlin’s arrest, he was immediately removed from the board, Deaton said, adding that he was there when she came on the board and estimates his tenure at about five or six years.

The organization also never had any complaints about him relating to inappropriateness with players.

Deaton also said that the Little League is getting a lot of people questioning if it does background checks on its board members and coaches.

“The answer to that is yes, we do background checks,” she said. In Spradlin’s case “there was nothing in there that was of concern to trigger that a crime like this was possible.”

Although Spradlin’s alleged crimes have no connection to the league, Deaton said she and other board members have been fielding questions. Most have been supportive, but others not so much.

“I wish it would’ve been money or drugs or anything,” she said. “This is the worst thing that can happen to us as a league. Some of us have five or six kids of our own that play here.”

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

The local investigation into Spradlin began June 22 when the Gillette Police Department received information from the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation’s Internet Crimes Against Children Unit (ICAC).

Acting on two tips to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children through Yahoo!, DCI reported that Spradlin had allegedly been receiving sexually explicit material of children, including emailing it to himself, GPD Officer Julianne Koloski wrote in an affidavit of probable cause filed in Spradlin’s case.

The Yahoo! Tips were connected to Spradlin’s account, the affidavit says, which led investigators to find he allegedly emailed four explicit videos to himself on Feb. 20, 2026, and accessed another on March 15.

They all appeared to depict prepubescent females performing sex acts, with one that indicated it was “consensual blackmail,” the affidavit said.

Another video “showed a nude prepubescent female lying on her back,” Koloski wrote. “The girl had some sort of black strap attached around her chest, stomach and neck area.

“The girl’s legs were spread, and her knees were pulled up near her chest.”

A sexually aroused male also was in the video, penetrating the girl, the affidavit says.

A DCI agent also noted that access to the account with the alleged child sex material was from a Gillette internet service provider and accessed by a local cellphone that traced to Spradlin, the affidavit says.

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

Gillette police then acted on a request from DCI to contact Spradlin and execute a search warrant at his home on the morning of June 24.

“Lawrence was contacted at the door … (and) confirmed his phone number, email address, phone carrier and device all matched the information matching the investigation,” the affidavit says.

“Lawrence also confirmed his device has been in his control for the entire time period in question,” the document adds.

What investigators found on his phone’s “hidden folder” would lead to more charges, Koloski wrote.

That includes nine other videos of underage girls having sex with men, along with performing other acts with themselves and with objects, the affidavit says.

“The bedrooms appeared to belong to juveniles, with bright colors and very youthful bedding and décor,” Koloski wrote.

The videos all were tagged as coming from Telegram, which “is a well-known hub for the distribution of child pornography through various chat rooms,” the affidavit said.

Overall, Spradlin faces 13 felony charges of sexual exploitation of children, each carrying a possible maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.

If convicted and given consecutive max sentences, he faces up to 130 years in prison and fines up to $130,000.

He waived his preliminary hearing in Campbell County Circuit Court, and was bound over to District Court this week.

His next court appearance is an arraignment set for July 30, at which time he’ll be asked to plead to the charges.

Lawrence Spradlin mug 7 10 26

<title>Former Gillette Little League Coach And Board Member Faces 13 Child Porn Charges | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A former Gillette Little League coach and board member could get up to 130 years in prison if convicted of 13 child pornography charges. “He personally coached my son in soccer, so I was shocked,” said the league’s president.

Former Gillette Little League Coach And Board Member Faces 13 Child Porn Charges

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's Feature Reporter, Andrew Rossi.

Andrew Rossi

Wyoming Life

Four-year-old Charlee Lacey wants more “hero patches,” and her mother is on a mission to collect as many as she can from around the world. 

Charlee has been through more in four years than many people endure in a lifetime. That’s why she’s so eager to add the patches of law-enforcement officers, firefighters and first responders to her growing collection.

“Charlee recognizes first responders,” her mother, Stephaney, told Cowboy State Daily. “She will point to them and say, ‘They saved mine and my mommy’s life.’ She’s asked for more ‘hero patches,’ and she would love to continue adding to her collection.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Rough From The Start"}]

Charlee’s short life has been an inspiring story of survival. According to Stephaney, her daughter was the result of “eight years of struggle” to start a family with her husband, Brian.

“I went into labor with Charlee at just 24 weeks,” she said. “We were life-flighted to the University of Utah Hospital.”

The doctors “guaranteed” Stephaney and Brian that their baby would be born alive, but “nothing beyond that.” Their hearts were shattered.

“We were expected to say goodbye to our little girl before we got to say hello,” Stephaney said.

The doctors managed to stop Lacey’s labor. Charlee was born at 39 weeks and 3 days, but her struggle was far from over.

“She was incredibly sick as a baby,” Stephaney said. “She would scream from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m., and vomited pretty much every time she ate. She spent her first Christmas at Primary Children’s Hospital because she would stop breathing to the point where she would turn blue.”

An ear, nose and throat specialist soon diagnosed Charlee with laryngomalacia, or extra skin on her larynx, which was collapsing on itself and slowly suffocating her. That explained her serious breathing issues.

The cause of Charlee’s sickness was the formula she had been given. That was a hard blow for Stephaney, as she hadn’t been able to breastfeed her infant.

“I suffered from severe Postpartum Depression, and the medication that I was prescribed was not safe for breastfeeding,” she said. “Being able to give my baby the love and care she deserved was a struggle.”

When Charlee was 2, her grandfather, Anthony Wackler, passed away from renal failure. Lacey said her daughter and father were “two peas in a pod” until his sudden death.

In June 2025, Stephaney had an ischemic stroke while driving, resulting in a car accident. Charlee was in the vehicle with her, but neither mother nor daughter was seriously injured.

In September 2025, Stephaney needed emergency surgery after doctors discovered that gallstones were causing some of her organs to shut down. Charlee was right by her side as she recovered.

“The ICU in Colorado had to bend the rules to allow Charlee in there to prevent me from leaving,” Stephaney said. “My little girl and I have always been inseparable.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Then came a tragedy that all families dread."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"“Mom’s Baby Ran Away”"}]

In September 2025, the Laceys learned they were expecting another baby. Stephaney said Charlee was “over the moon” about becoming a big sister.

Two months later, Frankie Lynn Lacey died in utero. The Laceys brought their daughter home “in an urn that fit in our palm.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Charlee, only 4 and autistic, blamed herself."}]

“She told us she was mean to the baby and the baby ran away,” Lacey said. “It destroyed me when another little boy at the library asked her if her mom was pregnant, and she told him, ‘No, my mom’s baby ran away.’

Stephaney and Brian constantly reassure Charlee that she did nothing wrong, hoping to soothe her grief as they grapple with their own.

“As much as I wanted to blame myself, how could I convince my innocent little girl that she did nothing wrong if I couldn’t even tell myself that I did nothing wrong? Sometimes these things happen, and nobody knows why,” Stephaney said.

Despite all she’s been through, Stephaney says her daughter “has the brightest outlook on life” and “everyone she hasn’t met is a friend.”

That’s where patches have helped stitch together the emotional threads of tragedy and loss.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"The Joy Of Something Simple"}]

Charlee’s patch-collecting journey started with a visit to the Rock Springs Police Department in June 2024. Chief Bill Erspaumer gave Charlee and her 15-year-old cousin, Mario Tuck, patches as they were leaving.

“They have cherished those patches and memories since that day,” Stephaney said. “Something as simple as a patch brought so much joy to my little girl.”

When Deputy Casey Watkins with the Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Office learned how much Charlee loved her patch from the Rock Springs Police Department, he personally delivered one of his patches to her.

Charlee knows what she wants, as any discerning collector should. She specifically asks for patches from first responders, recognizing how they’ve saved her and her family’s lives in the past.

“First-responder patches are her favorites because she sees them as superheroes,” she said. “She points to them as says how they took us on an airplane, so she wasn’t born too early (and) they helped when mommy was sick.”

The scope of Charlee’s collection suddenly expanded when she received two new patches from Mike Conners and Caleb Proctor with the Clinton Police Department in Maine.

When Stephaney started sharing Charlee’s patch-collecting journey on social media, more patches arrived.

Steven Michael with the Wyoming Highway Patrol showed up to give Charlee one of his patches, along with a few he picked up from the New York Police Department and New York Highway Patrol.

Earlier this week, Charlee received a letter from “Matt,” who sent her an assortment of unique patches from North Dakota, Alaska and Hawaii.

“One of the Hawaii Life Flight patches is very special, and not many people have (it),” Matt wrote. “(One patch) is in remembrance of three of our fallen heroes. Please take good care of them, and best wishes and luck to you.”

Stephaney continues to spread the word, hoping to find more patches for Charlee. She affectionately calls them “Charlee’s patch buddies.”

“We're looking for patches from all over the world,” she said. “We've had quite a few replies, and some people have sent photos of patches they’re going to send her. The hunt keeps getting more exciting.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Patching Things Up"}]

Stephaney knows Charlee is trying to comprehend everything that’s happened in her short life. She’s not old enough to fully grasp it, but she recognizes the people who’ve helped her when she needed it.

“We are a close family with nothing but love to give and appreciation for the men and women who put their lives on the line to protect ours,” she said. “Some people collect knives and coffee cups, but my little girl took an interest in first-responder patches.”

More than anything, Stephaney feels her daughter’s growing patch collection has helped her overcome the pain and grief that she still feels but can't understand. It’s given her something to enjoy amid a life of struggle and survival.

“We hope to bless our Charlee girl in the future with a sibling,” Stephaney said. “If it doesn’t happen, at least we have our Charlee in our arms, and our Frankie watching over all of us.”

Anyone with patches they’d like to contribute to Charlee’s collection can deliver them to this address:

[{"type":"text","text":"443 Valley View Lane #36"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Rock Springs, WY. 82901"}]

“Everything Charlee receives will be loved and taken care of,” Stephaney said. “I promise.”

Charlee 7 11 26

<title>Rock Springs Girl Saved By First Responders Collecting "Hero Patches" To Honor Them | Cowboy State Daily</title>

4-year-old Charlee Lacey knows she and her mother owe their lives to first responders, so the Rock Springs girl is on a mission to honor them by collecting "hero patches” from around the world. "She sees them as superheroes,” her mother said.

Rock Springs Girl Saved By First Responders Collecting "Hero Patches" To Honor Them

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

Clair McFarland

A Mexican national sentenced Tuesday to 180 days in jail for charging toward a Teton County Sheriff’s deputy with his box truck is trying to remain in the United States, his defense attorney said in court.

Ramon Gabriel Chavez Cruz, 46, pleaded no contest Tuesday in Teton County District Court Judge Melissa Owens’ court to one count of aggravated assault.

He was arrested the night of June 4, 2024, after waging what court documents describe as repeated attempts to ram his truck into multiple vehicles in the Snake River Canyon on U.S. Highway 89 between Alpine and Jackson.

The case affidavit, by then-Wyoming Highway Patrol trooper Mike Merritt, compiles statements by drivers and their families, who said they maneuvered in reverse and swerved into barrow ditches to escape Chavez Cruz’s head-on chases.

“The individual in the vehicle that attempted to collide with us deliberately crossed the centerline at a high rate of speed, targeted our vehicle, and attempted to kill my family,” the affidavit relates from the account of Roy Walters, who said he’d been in the back seat of a family vehicle that night while his son Eamonn drove, and Roy’s wife, Kate, sat in the front passenger seat. “By the grace of God and my son’s quick reactions the collision was barely avoided.”

The prosecutor, Teton County Deputy Attorney Claire Fuller, emphasized at Chavez Cruz’s sentencing hearing that only one of Chavez Cruz’s many, alleged head-on charges happened in Teton County.

The rest happened in Lincoln County, where County Attorney Spencer Allred is waiting to prosecute Chavez Cruz “to the full extent of the law,” Allred told Cowboy State Daily on Thursday.

Chavez Cruz struck a plea agreement with the Teton County Attorney’s Office, under which he pleaded no contest to one count of aggravated assault. That’s a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison and $10,000 in fines. Fuller agreed to drop three more misdemeanors, including DUI.

And Owens, who accepted the agreement, sentenced Chavez Cruz to a split sentence: 180 days in jail followed by three years’ probation – with the threat of a two-and-a-half to four-and-a-half-year prison sentence remaining if he fails probation.

The 222 days Chavez Cruz has already spent in jail awaiting Tuesday’s hearing eclipsed his sentence and he’s to be released from Teton County. The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office expects to take him into custody soon, a jail deputy confirmed to Cowboy State Daily Thursday.

[{"type":"text","text":"That’s Allred’s understanding as well."}]

Chavez Cruz faces potentially much harsher consequences in Lincoln County, where Allred has filed eight counts of aggravated assault against him – one for each person he allegedly charged with his truck. Allred also filed a ninth count, misdemeanor reckless driving, which is punishable by up to six months in jail and $750 in fines.  

It’s unclear what role, if any, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) plays in this case. The agency declined to discuss Chavez Cruz’s immigration status, writing in a Friday email, “ICE cannot provide any information on this individual.”

Chavez Cruz has a special kind of immigration visa indicating he’s been a crime victim, Trefonas told the court.

“He’s a victim of some incredibly severe, traumatic physical crimes. And so were his wife and children,” said Trefonas. “That all led up to these events: working 24/7; having terror, trauma in his life – and some drug use.”

Trefonas said Chavez Cruz has accepted responsibility in the Teton County case. He’s from Oaxaca, Mexico, and “he’s in a legal process to remain in the United States lawfully, irrespective of these charges,” said Trefonas.

Chavez Cruz told Owens, “For every impacted person in my case, I feel really, really sorry for what happened. I’m willing to take every step to fix the situation – here and Lincoln County.”

While nearly all the drivers Chavez Cruz is accused of chasing with his box truck evaded and escaped, Eric Leonard did not.

Merritt responded to the canyon area at about 10:42 p.m. the night of June 4, 2024, while the two counties’ dispatchers received at least a dozen 911 calls about a violent driver, the affidavit says.

Vehicle descriptions ranged from RV to “semi-type truck” and the culprit vehicle was identified as a box truck registered to Chavez Cruz.

He’d incorporated a transport business called “Your Freight Guys” in Aurora, Colorado, two months before his arrest.

The 911 calls kept coming. Merritt “was advised the large truck had continued northbound toward Jackson after running a car off the road,” so the trooper asked Teton County Sheriff’s deputies to track the truck down while he pulled off to investigate a white BMW, in the ditch with its front end smashed and its air bags deployed.

Two men, Brian and Nolan Potts, app were on scene. Brian was “visibly shaken up,” wrote Merritt.

Merritt found Brian’s friend Leonard in the BMW’s driver’s seat, emergency personnel “being careful” about pulling him out because they suspected a back injury.

Leonard said the truck crossed from its northbound lane into his southbound lane to hit them.

“I swerved hard because he was coming directly at me, head-on,” Leonard recalled in a Friday interview with Cowboy State Daily. “When we went into the ditch we went airborne. I don’t know how long we were in the air, but I know we crashed down very hard, and I felt my back immediately.”

He broke his L2 vertebra, Leonard said. As of this week, he still struggles to load the dishwasher, he added.

The three friends had been hiking in Yellowstone that day and were headed back to a cabin Leonard rented in Alpine, using the BMW – which was also rented.

“Had I been on the other side of the road, I would have driven down in the Snake River,” Leonard said. “And then I’d be – probably not talking to you.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Witnesses, More Witnesses"}]

Merritt interviewed a man and woman “hanging around” and trying to help. They were Michael and Kym Arian.

When they first spotted the box truck they saw another vehicle speeding backwards away from it as it chased to ram it “front to front,” wrote Merritt from the Arians’ statements. That backward driver was later identified as Josh Petrey, and his passenger as Kara Petrey, the affidavit says.

The box truck halted in the middle of the road. The driver got out of the vehicle and ran toward the vehicle it had blocked onto the road, screaming, “Why are you following me!” says the document.

The driver got back into the truck and “took off,” then “made it a point to drive at the Arians in an aggressive manner, trying to ram their vehicle off the road,” Merritt recounted from the alleged victims’ statements.

Michael Arian was able to dodge. Then he followed the box truck while calling law enforcement. And that was when he and Kym saw the crashed BMW and stopped to help, reportedly.

[{"type":"text","text":"Why Are You Following Me?"}]

Another set of witnesses, Brian, Jodi and Colten Cook, wrote a later email to investigators saying they were halfway through the canyon that night “when a big cargo truck pulled sideways on the road, blocking both lanes.”

They thought the driver was attempting a turn in a “terrible place to try and turn around, because he was blocking both lanes of traffic,” the account says.

Then the man got out of the truck and ran toward them shouting “why are you following me?” and the driver of the Cooks’ car threw it into reverse to escape him, says the affidavit. The Cooks said the driver got back in his truck and tried to “run over” a car headed south toward Alpine.

The Cooks kept driving, flashing their headlights at other cars. They watched other cars swerve into the barrow pit, as the cargo truck kept “chasing us,” the account says, adding,  “This happened at least 12-15 times.”

“At one point he was chasing us and trying to run us over from behind,” the account says. “As soon as we were able to get cell coverage, we called 911.”

Josh Petrey’s email to investigators says he and Kara saw the truck parked across both lanes of the canyon and waited for it to move, but it was empty. Then the owner got into the truck, and Josh backed up to give him room.

“He then (started) trying to ram us,” the account says. “I reversed going between 20 and 30 mph. I zigzagged from one side to the other so he could not get any momentum.”

Josh Petrey assumed the driver got upset with this tactic. The driver slammed on his brakes in the middle of the road and got out of the truck, reportedly.

Josh Petrey rolled down his window to find out if the man was all right, he recalled.

“Have you had enough?!” yelled the driver, while charging the Petreys’ car on foot, says the account.

Josh Petrey sped past him and around his truck, where two other vehicles sat waiting. Josh rolled down his window and told the driver of a white truck to leave the area.

“We sped off and warned two different vehicles not to head that way, because the guy was unhinged,” wrote Josh Petrey.

He and his wife made it to Alpine, and within cellphone signal range, and called 911.

Merritt’s affidavit includes also an account from Marcus Loefverstrom, who recalled driving down the road with his wife and 11-month old son.

A Mexican national who faces eight felonies is attempting to stay in the country after he allegedly chased down and tried to ram travelers off the road in Snake River Canyon. He "deliberately crossed the centerline and targeted our vehicle," one victim said.

Daily Smile: Sunday, November 10, 2024

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