The library board member ousted last week by a surprise re-vote of the Fremont County Commission asked a court Wednesday to reinstate him.
David Mossburg was appointed to the Fremont County Library Board by a public vote of the Fremont County Commission on June 24.
But before calling out their public vote of approval for Mossburg and fellow appointee Karen Wetzel, commissioners ranked their favorite library candidates on secret ballots.
The local newspaper, whose ownership includes The Ranger and the Lander Journal, urged the commission in a Sept. 24 letter to hold a re-vote, saying state law “required” it, according to a copy of the letter Mossburg sent Tuesday to Cowboy State Daily.
Whether the June 24 vote is illegal is not a settled matter of law. Prominent Wyoming attorneys disagree on that, and the Wyoming Supreme Court has not spoken to the specific issue.
Following weeks of pressure from the paper and some community members, the commission on Oct. 21 held an unscheduled re-vote.
Wetzel survived the Oct. 21 re-vote, keeping her seat.
Mossburg did not. Commissioners appointed instead Julie LeFevre of Lander.
If the June 24 vote was lawful, then the Oct. 21 vote was not lawful, Wyoming case law indicates.
Two days after the re-vote, Commission Chair Larry Allen sent Mossburg a letter on behalf of the commission, apologizing for not informing Mossburg of his ousting immediately.
The commission held the revote “because of concerns about violations of the open meetings act,” wrote Allen, who attached a copy of a letter The Ranger had sent the commission accusing it of violating the law.
Allen did not immediately respond to a late-day voicemail on Wednesday.
Fremont County Attorney Micah Wyatt declined Wednesday to comment.
Stop This
Mossburg on Wednesday asked the Fremont County District Court to consider that question.
Filing on his own behalf without an attorney, Mossburg filed a motion asking the court to block the Oct. 21 revote while a case against it is ongoing, declare him a member of the library board, and award him his costs in bringing the case to the court.
“Irreparable harm will result if (Mossburg) is unlawfully excluded from the Library Board’s November 6, 2025 meeting,” the motion says.
Mossburg said in a Wednesday interview that he hopes the court will schedule a hearing soon to block the revote.
In These Four Months
In the roughly four months he served as a Fremont County Library Board member, Mossburg participated in discussions on new legislation and filtering inappropriate content from children’s library computers. He was elected the panel’s treasurer in August.
In September, he cast a non-final vote in favor of cutting the library’s dependence on the American Library Association. That matter is pending in the public comment phase.
His wife, Marta Mossburg, also serves on the board.
Mossburg told Cowboy State Daily on Wednesday that his key priorities on the board are dealing with the vagrancy issues at the Riverton branch of the library system.
The Riverton branch has been a hangout for vagrants and occasionally a site for crimes, for years.
He said he also seeks two years’ analysis on the materials the library is acquiring, and he’d like to know more about the books the library is weeding for sale through a separate funding foundation.
He opposes the ALA because of its permissive stance toward children accessing materials many locals deem inappropriate, he said.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
