It’s time to take a look at what’s happening around Wyoming, for Tuesday, February 11th. I’m Wendy Corr, bringing you headlines from the Cowboy State Daily newsroom - Brought to you by the Wyoming Senior Olympics! Experience the excitement of the Winter Games, February 20–22 in Pinedale, and support the SAFE Initiative. For event details and the full schedule, visit wyoming senior olympics dot com.
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The small town of Byron in rural Bighorn County was the scene of a tragedy Monday afternoon involving several people, and multiple gunshots.
Although not much information has been released officially, Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports that a 911 call came in to the Sheriff’s Department around 1:30 p.m., with reports of shots fired on the south side of town. Sheriff's personnel responded immediately, along with Wyoming Highway Patrol and Lovell Police Department personnel.
“The sheriff's office wasn't giving numbers. They said multiple people were found dead, multiple people suffered gunshot wounds, multiple were taken to the hospital. So I mean, we know of a gruesome gunshot scene, but we don't have a lot of specifics yet.”
Some people were taken by ambulance to the North Big Horn Hospital in Lovell for emergency care. The sheriff has asked Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation to help process the scene.
Read the full story HERE.
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Rural mail under the Delivering for America Plan will be significantly slower, according to an analysis by the Postal Regulatory Commission.
Cowboy State Daily’s Renee Jean reports that the plan glosses over the difficulties for rural mail, and the commission determined that it is overall unlikely to “lay a foundation for success” for the troubled agency.
“The Postal Regulatory Commission is one of the regulators that oversees the Postal Service, and whenever the Postal Service does a change that's going to affect things nationwide or substantially nationwide, they're supposed to request an advisory opinion from that body, which they did not do when they originally proposed the delivering for America plan… according to their analysis, the delivering for American plan is relying on defective modeling. It is overly optimistic on cost savings, and there's not fully considering the negative impact this plan will have on rural communities like 49.1% of zip codes will have significantly downgraded service as a result of this plan, according to their analysis.”
The analysis, released Jan. 31, was part of a non-binding review of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s Delivering for America Plan, which has attracted criticism from both Democrat and Republican lawmakers.
Read the full story HERE.
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It’s not often a state lawmaker harshly criticizes a fellow colleague publicly, but that’s what happened Monday morning when state Rep. Steve Harshman of Casper, called out fellow lawmaker Rep. John Bear of Gillette, for labeling fellow lawmakers “lobbyists” in an op-ed Bear wrote in Cowboy State Daily last week.
According to politics reporter Leo Wolfson, Harshman called the accusation “reprehensible” and said he believes all legislators make their votes out of consideration for what will best represent their constituents.
“The Wyoming Legislature is a citizens legislature. Really, no one could make an income off the amount of money they make… t is the everyday people that are serving in the legislature… and Harshman believes it kind of adds a negative air to the chamber, and it discourages people to run and want to serve their community. And he basically said, quite simply, that words matter…. bear did not agree with this sentiment, nor did he apologize for his op ed. When I reached out to him, he said that Representative Harshman must really not appreciate the First Amendment and that he would have expected the chairman of the good old boy club to have a thicker skin.”
Harshman is part of a coalition of more moderate Republican legislators who now find themselves in the minority compared to the Freedom Caucus members who hold a majority of seats in the House.
Read the full story HERE.
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U.S. Sen. John Barrasso joined President Donald Trump at the Super Bowl yesterday in New Orleans — and the experience had little to do with football.
That’s what Wyoming’s senior senator told Cowboy State Daily’s Sean Barry. The second-ranking member of the Senate attended the NFL championship with Trump for part of the Philadelphia Eagles’ 40-22 win over the Kansas City Chiefs.
“This was not a day off for the Senate Majority Whip as a second ranking Republican in Congress. This was very much a work session. And frankly, that's what he's about. And when I interviewed him, he certainly talked about some of the lighter moments of the trip, some of the fun parts to it, but he was 100% clear that he viewed this as all about another day at the office.”
Others in the Caesars Superdome luxury suite included other lawmakers, plus Cabinet officials, the president’s family members, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, and New Orleans Saints owner Gayle Benson.
Read the full story HERE.
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A local newspaper announced an immigration arrest operation while it was ongoing Friday in Jackson Hole using information from a local sheriff, prompting some to criticize both entities over safety and security concerns.
Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports that the Jackson Hole News & Guide reported Friday that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials were active in the area that day, trying to execute 17 warrants on specific people in Teton County.
“when we reporters, when we have manhunts and active operations… we weigh the public's need to know, versus, you know, the harm that we could cause by reporting mid operation. And I, you know, I asked the guide what considerations went into that. They basically said, Look, we're going to report the news that's relevant to our area. And I got mixed opinions from former ice officials too. One was like, well, the media is going to report what the media sees fit for its area. So that's that's their call under the First Amendment. And the other one was like, this is a safety breach. This is not okay.”
Teton County Sheriff Matt Carr said he learned about the ICE operation Thursday from an FBI agent who was involved with it, adding that the heads up gave the sheriff’s office time to let its street deputies know armed federal agents would be out in the county. ICE gave Carr just four minutes’ official notice.
Read the full story HERE.
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An incoming cold wave could be the coldest temperatures of the 2024-2025 winter season.
The National Weather Service is tracking a high-pressure system of Arctic air that will envelop the entire state this week, and Cowboy State Daily’s Andrew Rossi reports that daytime highs across Wyoming could drop below minus 20 - that’s before factoring in the wind chill.
“Yellowstone is going to be especially chilly because we've got another one of these arctic air masses that's descending, and it's going to stick around for a bit. But the thing is, Wyoming's not going to warm up anytime soon. We don't have really a spring like pattern in the near future, but it's maybe not going to get this cold again for the rest of the season. There's no guarantees on that, but this, this cold spell, might be the last cold spell that this deep, that we get this season. That's not to say it won't dip below zero again, and it might dip below zero for several days at a time, but where he might not be talking about daytime highs in the minus teens and 20s.”
February has already been a busy month for Wyoming weather, and that pattern will likely continue. Meteorologist Don Day said more snow is already in the forecast once the Arctic air mass moves on.
Read the full story HERE.
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During a Wyoming winter storm, the snow can whirl up in a cloud of white, nearly making the highway invisible. Rather than slowing down, there are those impatient motorists that will drive into this cloud of white at speeds greater than what the conditions call for.
But chances are, that cloud was created by a snowplow. Cowboy State Daily’s Jackie Dorothy reports that the message from snowplow drivers across Wyoming is simple. When you see a snowplow or a giant cloud of white, slow down and back off.
“So there have been nine accidents this year so far… But most of the accidents are preventable because they happen on the interstate when someone runs into that cloud of snow and rear ends right into the back of the snow plow, which does cost a lot of money for the state and definitely for the person that ran into them… it is a very stressful job for these snow plow operators. They not only have to drive down the highway, but they're also in a storm, and they have joysticks where they have to operate the plow in front and the plow on the side and watch for vehicles trying to run past them.”
WYDOT spokesperson Cody Beers reminds motorists that the plow is being operated by a person who also has a family that is counting on them to get home safely.
Read the full story HERE.
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Wyoming and California might be notoriously at odds – but firing guns to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the ‘shot heard ‘round the World’ could bring together those states, and all the others.
Gun enthusiasts told outdoors reporter Mark Heinz that members of the California Rifle and Pistol Association plan to shoot their guns to commemorate the opening shot at the Battle of Lexington-Concord – which kicked off the Revolutionary War on April 19, 1775.
“A gun club in California has organized, and they're going to go out at 8:30 in the morning on April the 19th, and they're going to fire a volley of shots to commemorate that event. And I talked to a gentleman in Utah who got wind of that, so he's organizing one in Utah, and he's passed the word along to me and said, Hey, is this something Wyoming would be interested in, with the hope that eventually it's going to catch on in all 50 states.”
The famous shot heard ‘round the world might not have actually been the first shot fired at Lexington, according to a Revolutionary War historian. He said the first shot was actually fired from a pistol by a British officer on horseback- but there is historical significance of the patriot militiamen’s first shots, because a bunch of farmers and squirrel hunters took on the most powerful military force in the world at the time.
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.
