It’s time to take a look at what’s happening around Wyoming for Friday, July 25th. I’m Wendy Corr, bringing you headlines from the Cowboy State Daily newsroom - Brought to you by Cheyenne Frontier Days! The 129th Cheyenne Frontier Days ends with a bang for Frontier Nights: Friday, July 25 we’ve got Cody Johnson with Randy Houser, and Saturday, July 26 , Megan Moroney with Waylon Wyatt. When the sun goes down, the stars come out. Only at Cheyenne Frontier Days.
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In October of 2023, 33-year-old Katie Ferguson vanished while traveling home to Wyoming with her on-and-off boyfriend Adam Aviles Jr., who was 26 at the time.
Now hikers and other outdoorsmen and women in Park County are asked to be on the lookout for two objects that could advance the murder investigation into the 2023 disappearance of the Cody woman. Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland spoke to the Park County Sheriff, and Ferguson’s mother, about how the public can help in the investigation.
“Katie Ferguson's mother, Mona Hartling, reached out to me like, there are still some objects that are believed to be out there potentially in Park County, can we let people know to keep an eye out?... a pink tote with DNA in it, which an investigator at Adam Aviles’ sentencing described in much more graphic terms than that, and the front seat to a Dodge Durango… possibly charred or damaged… these are things that just the compilation of interviews and evidence indicates could still be out there somewhere, and if they are, could be opportunities for a breakthrough in the case.”
Though long a suspect in what authorities believe to be Ferguson’s murder, Aviles has not been charged with murder. He was, however, sentenced in September of last year to seven years and three months in prison, for the charge of being a felon in possession of ammunition.
Read the full story HERE.
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25 years ago, legendary Wyoming spaghetti Westerner Gap Pucci befriended two nuns after they walked in sandals with no socks in knee-deep snow to see his collection of lighted crosses.
Now the nuns say they will buy Pucci’s estate, promising it won’t be cleared to make way for any luxury mansions. Cowboy State Daily’s Renee Jean spoke to Mother Marie Wendy McMenamy and Sister Mary Augustine, who said their decision to buy the estate through their foundation came after months of prayer and reflection.
“Gap Pucci, he was a very religious man. He wore his faith on his sleeve, and he was a Catholic. He met McMenamy 25 years ago, much tamer story than some of his stories, like, you know, the time the horse ran him off a cliff and they plunged down into an icy river below, or the time he fought off bears. Those are the kind of stories that are in his books… just a wonderful, beautiful little friendship. And now, who knows what's going to happen here, but I bet it's going to be equally beautiful and
wonderful.”
In the end, the nuns’ decision came down to the sense that the world would lose something special if bulldozers came for Pucci’s historic cabin and replaced it with a mansion.
Read the full story HERE.
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There’s nothing like the dusty atmosphere of a summer rodeo. Historically, though, that hasn’t been the atmosphere at Cheyenne Frontier Days.
As thousands of people filled the stands at Frontier Park Wednesday, Mother Nature decided to celebrate with more than an inch of rain. And Cowboy State Daily’s Andrew Rossi reports that the last week of July is notoriously stormy in southeast Wyoming.
“Cheyenne Frontier Days has been held the last week of July since 1897 but they probably didn't consult any meteorologists on that, even if that information was available at the time, because that is one of the wettest weeks of the summer for Cheyenne… according to Cowboy State daily meteorologist Don day, a dry, dusty Frontier Days, that's the exception, rather than the rule. The rule is generally that at least on two or three of those days, there are going to be afternoon showers and thunderstorms that are going to make things cooler, make things muddier and make things just a little more unpleasant for people who are sitting in the stands. But the daddy of them all has been going for this long, and it hasn't been stopped by any kind of thunderstorms or weather or flash floods. So I imagine sacrilegious to change it at this point.
So when Cheyenne residents are selecting their favorite hats, buckles, and boots to wear to Cheyenne Frontier Days, they should also pair the perfect poncho to complement their ensemble. If history’s any guide, they’re going to need it.
Read the full story HERE.
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A 50-year-old woman working at a Casper nursing care facility is accused of tying a resident’s head to a bed to keep her from moving overnight.
Court records show an arrest warrant has been issued for Julie Ann Cross, on charges of abuse of a vulnerable adult and false imprisonment. Cowboy State Daily’s Dale Killingbeck reports that the incident took place in the early morning hours of July 14 at the NOWCAP Services facility.
“It was found by co workers that came in in the morning, and they were trying to turn this resident over, and they they couldn't do it, and then they looked and saw that her hair had been tied to the bed with a scarf… she told an officer, according to court documents, that she tied up her hair in a scarf, you know, but it wasn't tied to the bed, but that the patient probably was just throwing her head back and forth and somehow it got tied to the bed.”
The intentional abuse, neglect or abandonment of a vulnerable adult charge is a felony that carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Read the full story HERE.
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I’ll be back with more news, right after this.
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The airman who died in an on-duty incident with a gun Sunday at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne has been identified as a 21-year-old from Kentucky.
21-year-old Brayden Lovan was a defender assigned to the 90th Security Forces Squadron, 90th Security Forces Group. Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports that the Air Force wing overseeing the base confirmed that the man’s death involved a gunshot.
“Earlier this week, they were like, an airman died. It's a tragedy. And then Thursday, they were like, Okay, this is was this 21 year old from Kentucky… we are now publicly acknowledging that this had to do with a gunshot, and it was at this time that division of the Air Force that oversees the bases said, Yeah, we are grounding this particular gun, the M 18, and using a rifle, of all things in its place, until we know what to do.”
Lovan entered active duty in November of 2023, and F. E. Warren Air Force Base was his first assignment.
Read the full story HERE.
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As President Donald Trump’s mission to do away with the U.S. Department of Education progresses, Wyoming is eager to exercise more control over how education happens here.
That’s what Governor Mark Gordon said Thursday on the Cowboy State Daily Show With Jake Nichols. Cowboy State Daily’s Greg Johnson reports that, in Gordon’s view, Wyoming and the other states in America need to change a bit of the conversation about education.
“He has just recently been named Chairman of the Education Commission of the States… it's a bipartisan group that helps out with policy and helps individual states do things with education… he also talked a lot about having the states Wyoming in particular,... having more control over education… the states know what they're doing better than the feds do. And he called the Feds a bunch of talking heads who try to put everything in a one size fits all box.”
Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder also has been vocal about states having more autonomy, saying they know their children better than bureaucrats back East.
Read the full story HERE.
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Campbell County Commissioner Jerry Means said he would not have signed off on the letter his county sent this week to the U.S. Department of the Interior given a chance to review it again.
The expansive letter was approved as a consent agenda item without detailed review by commissioners, but Means told Cowboy State Daily’s David Madison that he now has concerns about language in it regarding public land sales.
“He had some issues with some language around the disposal or sale of public land, as we know, is a really hot button issue… in talking to these folks, they made it clear that this is a case by case basis, and so yes, they want to have the flexibility to possibly purchase federal land, trade federal land, sell federal land for the benefit of the county. But the language was sensitive enough that at least one county commissioner would like to revise it, and said he wouldn't have signed the letter had he actually read it.”
Though not explicitly mentioned in the letter, Means also worried the document might inadvertently open the door to the possibility for nuclear waste to make its way to Campbell County.
Read the full story HERE.
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Those at or near the Casper/Natrona International Airport on Wednesday afternoon saw something that would have scrambled U.S. fighter pilots during the Cold War — a Russian fighter jet flying over and landing on American soil.
But it’s not the Cold War anymore, and Cowboy State Daily’s Dale Killingbeck reports that the twin-engine Russian-made Mikoyan MiG-29 fighter that landed in central Wyoming was unarmed - and just there for some fuel.
“That MiG is the only one in the United States. It's privately owned by a billionaire who was the Trump administration's initial nominee for NASA, but then he was withdrawn… they said he flew in from Oshkosh… and he stopped in, got some fuel, talked to some people for a while, and then he took off to Montana, where he lives.”
That pilot is Jared Isaacman, according to Oshkosh air show organizers. He’s the billionaire owner of the plane and an astronaut who has flown missions for SpaceX. Isaacman is also the founder of Draken International, a provider of tactical fighter aircraft that is available for training the military.
Read the full story HERE.
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And that’s today’s news! For a deeper dive into the people and issues that affect Wyoming, check out The Roundup, conversations with the most interesting people in the Cowboy State. This week, my guest is chef, author and Cowboy State Daily marketing strategist Piper Fennimore. You can find the link to this inspiring conversation on our website, on our YouTubechannel, and wherever you get your podcasts. And of course, you'll find it in our FREE daily email newsletter! Thanks for tuning in - I’m Wendy Corr, for Cowboy State Daily.
