It’s time to take a look at what’s happening around Wyoming, for Wednesday, March 19th. I’m Wendy Corr, bringing you headlines from the Cowboy State Daily newsroom - Brought to you by the Cowboy State Daily Morning Show With Jake! From 6 to 10 a.m., Monday through Friday, host Jake Nichols brings you news, weather, sports AND in-depth interviews with news-makers from across Wyoming - presented with Jake’s unique humor and lively commentary. Just click on the Cowboy State Daily homepage and join the conversation!
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Riverton police say they have caught a 28-year-old man accused of stealing a vehicle with a 3-month-old baby in it, then abandoning both the car and baby west of the town last month.
Patrick Brown was charged Tuesday with an enhanced kidnapping charge, based on the allegation that he didn’t leave the baby in a safe place after stealing the baby. Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports that police were tipped off to Brown’s location at a local motel.
“It's been more than a month since a person stole a vehicle from a Riverton apartment complex area and left the vehicle and the baby abandoned west of town and fled on foot, and I was actually on scene when the mother got there and was screaming, my baby, my baby and I watched her reunite... and then I remember listening to the police scanner that night, like, are they gonna catch the guy they never did at that time? And so the Riverton Police Department says that they got an identification on the suspect, and a tip yesterday that he was going to be at a motel in town, and so he is now in custody.”
Fremont County Chief Deputy Attorney Tim Hancock also charged Brown with one count of child abuse based on the theory that he cruelly confined the baby by leaving it in the car.
Read the full story HERE.
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Gov. Mark Gordon often holds public ceremonies to celebrate signing bills into law, but he had never, until Tuesday, held a public ceremony to veto a bill.
That’s what happened at the state Capitol when Gordon held an event to publicly veto a bill that would have allowed people to sue state law enforcement agencies for up to $50,000 if they enforce federal gun laws that contradict with Wyoming laws. Cowboy State Daily’s Leo Wolfson reports that the governor was joined by law enforcement officers who say the bill would have made it harder to do their jobs.
“Law enforcement officers are very nervous about this bill because they believe it will hinder or prevent them from doing their duties, out of fear that they could be sued for doing them. The bill basically adds and expands and creates a civil mechanism for people to also sue law enforcement agencies for up to $50,000 that infringe on local gun laws by enforcing federal laws, it also would have prevented law enforcement agents from hiring people who previously worked for federal agencies and enforced federal firearms laws that contradicted these Wyoming laws.”
Gordon has now made nine vetoes this session, by far the most of any legislative session throughout his tenure. Of those vetoes, five were overridden by the Legislature.
Read the full story HERE.
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A federal court’s ruling in favor of four out-of-state elk hunters who “corner crossed” to access public land in Carbon County could have implications for the controversial practice of crossing corners at property boundaries across Wyoming and the West.
The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver issued a 49-page decision Tuesday, concluding that the hunters did not trespass on Iron Bar Holdings property in September of 2021. Cowboy State Daily’s Mark Heinz reports that the federal court’s decision has huge implications, insofar as it could affirm that corner-crossing - crossing the pinpoint where two corners of public land parcels meet - is legal.
“The 10th Circuit Federal Court ruled in favor of the hunters, basically saying that they did not trespass when they crossed over that corner between the two parcels of BLM land, they did not trespass onto the private ranch land… it's a big deal because there's a lot of places in Wyoming and throughout the west where you have these checkerboard patterns of square parcels, and where two corners meet up between those checkerboard patterns, is it okay to cross over that pinpoint, or are you technically trespassing? In this case, seems to imply that the answer is, No, you're not trespassing.”
Proponents of corner crossing argue that it's sometimes the only way for the public to get to vast expanses of federal land in Wyoming - while opponents claim that the practice violates private airspace, disrupts landowners’ ability to fully enjoy their property, and can drive down property values.
Read the full story HERE.
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When law enforcement investigators followed allegations that a former Jackson Hole fire chief was viewing child pornography, they learned that he also had a sexual relationship with a judge in his new home of Utah.
The Utah Attorney General’s Office charged 54-year-old Ned Hansen last week with eight counts of aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor. Crime and courts reporter Clair McFarland reveals that the former Jackson Hole Fire Department chief also had a sexual relationship, and shared pornographic images, with a judge in Box Elder County in Utah - a judge who had allowed Hansen to go free following his arrest in January.
“There was an arrest made of Hanson in late January, where the court document says that they wanted to hold him because they were worried he was a danger to the community, and the judge let him go. So as they continue to investigate this case, police say that they found that the judge and the fire chief were exchanging texts fantasizing about molesting toddlers, sharing children, and that they knew each other in person and had some kind of intimate encounter.”
Both men’s felony-level cases are ongoing.
Read the full story HERE.
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Being a business owner and elected official in Wyoming can often intersect. Sometimes, though, supporting certain legislation can lead to boycotts of your business, or prompt name changes.
Cowboy State Daily’s Leo Wolfson spoke to several legislators who own businesses, and most say the benefits far outweigh the challenges.
“We've seen this happen a few times this year in a few different instances. One of the most blatant examples of it occurring was for 307 cleaners in Gillette, which was previously owned by State Representative John Bear, chairman emeritus of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus. The new owner of the business, who I spoke to today, Caden reading, said they were feeling like they were missing out on business and having people not do business with them strictly because of the connotation with bear’s name. The business used to be called bears naturally clean dry cleaners, so they changed the name, and he said they've seen a tremendous growth in their business ever since they took that action… I also spoke to Senator Mike Gureau, a Democrat from Jackson, and he's had a similar experience… he said he's absolutely received boycott threats from certain customers before, but he actually believes his political involvement has been more of a positive for his business and resulted in a positive growth that, our way, outweighs the negativity.”
The Wyoming Legislature only meets for a few months each year and does not pay enough for most people to live off as a single income.
Read the full story HERE.
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Cheyenne Frontier Days will again feature professional bull riding this summer, but organizers say they are bringing in a different set of riders, and focusing less on pro bull riding as a televised broadcast event.
The Professional Bull Riders circuit, or PBR, will not return to Frontier Days. Cowboy State Daily’s David Madison reports that in its place, the Daddy of ’em All will feature the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association’s Xtreme Bulls Tour on July 21 and 22 - and the PBR will move its event over the border to Fort Collins, Colorado, on the same dates.
“Frontier Days characterize it as returning to rodeo's roots, because the PRCA has the broader approach to the whole sport of rodeo, and the PBR… they're the NFL of professional bull riding, and have exclusive athletes who exclusively bull ride. And it will be a more rigorous event down in Fort Collins, whereas the pro riders at Cheyenne Frontier Days will get two rides, and the best combined score wins. The event down in Fort Collins is a last cowboy standing style, where … the winner could ride up to seven times, which is a lot if you've watched one of these events.”
Together, more than 80 professional bull riders will gather for the two simultaneous events the third week of July, unofficially creating a first of its kind Border War of bull riding this summer.
Read the full story HERE.
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A 77-year-old Gillette man who is accused of soliciting a 15-year-old boy for sex could face between five and 12 years in prison.
Jack Forgar is charged with one count of attempted sexual exploitation of a child. Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports that this isn’t the first time a complaint has been made about Forgar.
“Police officers had heard a report months or years prior where a witness said, Oh, he did this to a 19 year old. He was soliciting a 19 year old. Well, that's not, I mean, as long as you're not soliciting prostitution, that's not illegal. Just to be like, Hey, do you want to that's not illegal… that report just sat and then this allegedly happens where he's accused of soliciting a 15 year old. And police were like, Okay, so we're going to pull in this other report to demonstrate a pattern to to back up what the 15 year old is saying here.”
Forgar denied soliciting the teenager, and noted it’s not illegal for a 77-year-old man to talk to a 15-year-old.
Read the full story HERE.
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Grief over the death of Wyoming’s Grizzly 399 was tempered by hope that her cub, Spirit, might survive on his own – but even if he did, would anybody still recognize him?
Outdoors reporter Mark Heinz spoke with Wyoming bear experts, who say it might be impossible to distinguish Spirit from any other 2-year-old grizzly.
“A two year old grizzly bear is going to look like a two year old grizzly bear, and spirit doesn't really seem to have any distinguishing marks. I mean, he was born with what they call a tuxedo collar, but like most bears that are born with that, he outgrew that a long time ago, so he's just going to have pretty much a uniform color to his coat… Tom mangelson, who's the photographer who probably knows 399, and all her cubs better than anybody. He said, Yeah, there's a chance that he could come out and stump me. I wouldn't recognize him.”
Spirit was thought to have been with Grizzly 399 when she was struck and killed by a vehicle in October of 2024. The cub apparently fled the scene unharmed.
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, or listen to us on your favorite podcast app. Thanks for tuning in - I’m Wendy Corr, for Cowboy State Daily.
