It’s time to take a look at what’s happening around Wyoming for Tuesday, June 16th. I’m Mac Watson
–
Wyoming’s coal sector is startled at Republican candidates who oppose data centers. Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports that industry leaders say the revival of coal is largely due to projected demand for energy from data centers.
“It's an interesting issue in Republican politics, because you have a lot of Republicans in Wyoming that are saying, ‘Whoa, slow down or stop the data centers, particularly on agricultural land.’ So, we're an energy state and we're an ag state, so that's I think we find a little the divergence, because you have people, Republicans in ranch country in particular, who have concerns about water pollution, other things, and yeah, that's that's the divide is usually Republicans are pro energy, but if it's an issue for ranch owners, then all of a sudden you're going to see those fractures.”
President Donald Trump has touted the sector’s expansion as part of a coal industry revival, and part of beating China in a technology advancement race.
Read the full story HERE.
–
A Wyoming man named Aron Snyder confirms he’s the person seen tossing, kicking and stabbing a coyote in a video. Cowboy State Daily’s Mark Heinz reports that Snyder admits the video is “a very bad optic,” and apologized in a weekend social media post.
“He said, as he recalls, somewhere around 2019-2020 they were hunting coyotes on a Texas ranch, or somewhere thereabouts, and and that's when the when the events in that video transpired, and you know, in a video statement that he put up on social media, he said he understood that it was a bad optic, and he also said he found no fault or had no quarrel with the company that he'd worked for, which is a primitive outdoors, it's a clothing and gear company, but they, they announced that they had terminated him.”
Cowboy State Daily reached out to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, asking if the department is investigating the incident depicted in the coyote-killing video. TPWD law enforcement spokeswoman Maggie Berger promptly responded with an email saying the department would check into it.
Read the full story HERE.
–
Despite calls to delay or deny a 3,500-acre annexation for Microsoft data centers, Cheyenne’s Public Services Committee narrowly recommended approval Monday. Cowboy State Daily’s Renee Jean reports that a councilman urged them to postpone to give the city time to negotiate a $50 million agreement.
“The most notable thing today was Councilman Larry Wolf's proposal to create a community benefit agreement. He called for the public service committee to postpone or even recommend denial of the annexation of Microsoft until the city has a chance to negotiate a $50 million community benefit agreement, his idea would be that money would be used for permanent improvements to Cheyenne, the city would consult with Microsoft, but would ultimately be the sole decider of what to do with that money.”
Despite Wolfe’s push, the PSC voted 2-1 to recommend annexation of the 3,500-acre property to the full council, along with zoning changes and future land-use map changes. Councilman Pete Laybourn cast the lone “no” vote on these measures, which will be before the Cheyenne City Council at its next meeting June 22.
Read the full story HERE.
–
A group of young men is suing the Wyoming Boys’ School claiming they were attacked, confined in a chair, and made to wear a mask. Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports one security guard is alleged to have said, “The best part of the chair is watching the kids cry and scream.”
“What you have right now are two very different accounts of what's going on. You have the logs from the Wyoming Boys School, where staffers are saying these boys were attacking people, destroying property, being threatening, causing this problem. That's why he was restrained. That's why he was placed in detainment. That's why he was placed under a special status. And you have the boys coming back and saying here are areas where this restraint or detainment was completely excessive. Here's where the cameras don't support the video, doesn't support what the state is saying, and so where what you have is kind of a factual clash, and the federal judge needs to decide whether it's enough of a factual clash to send this case to trial.”
Three men — Blaise Chivers-King, Charles “Rees” Karn, and Dylan Tolar — sued the Wyoming Department of Family Services, the Wyoming Boys’ School in Worland, and 10 former and current employees in 2024.
Read the full story HERE.
–
I’ll have more news from Cowboy State Daily right after this.
Cowboy State Daily News continues now….
–
A Minnesota man says a stranger spent years building a life in Wyoming using his identity, earning more than $500,000, fathering a child and leaving Martin Almendarez owing child support. Cowboy State Daily’s Kolby Fedore reports that Almendarez says “I don't even know him nor have I ever been to Wyoming.”
“For years Martin Almendarez has been struggling with someone using his identity to earn income that they don't pay taxes on, and last week he learned from the IRS that they were going to start garnishing his wages for income that he didn't receive. Also, he learned that he owes child support for a child that he never had. Almendarez was finally able to get a hold of police in Gillette, and they were able to make an arrest, which gave him great relief last week when 45-year-old Jose Reyes was taken into custody.”
According to Gillette PD, Reyes faces four counts of unauthorized use of someone's personal identity. He’s currently being held at the Campbell County Detention Center on a $500,000 cash-only bond.
Read the full story HERE.
–
A pair of young bighorn sheep rams that wandered into Cheyenne were killed by Wyoming wildlife officials. However, one biologist and wildlife researcher says it's not necessary. Outdoors Reporter Mark Heinz reports that Jack States says they should be quarantined instead.
“Game and Fish made the decision to go ahead and euthanize those rams, and they donated the meat. I think it went to the First Lady's kind of food pantry program, but the reason those sheep were killed was because of disease risk. Anytime sheep wander into a settled area like that, there's the chance they might interact with domestic sheep or goats, and they can pick up a lot of pathogens, the chief of which is pneumonia, which can be really hard on wild sheep herds.”
While bighorn sheep are hardy enough to survive Wyoming’s worst weather in its roughest terrain, they are highly susceptible to disease. Pneumonia outbreaks, sometimes transmitted from domestic sheep, can be bighorn conservationists’ worst nightmare. In some cases, entire herds are nearly wiped out.
Read the full story HERE.
–
A first-of-its-kind renewable natural gas facility under construction in central Nebraska will convert cattle manure into pipeline-quality natural gas from the cow waste produced by a huge feedlot. Cowboy State Daily’s Kate Meadows reports that leaders are saying this project could benefit Wyoming ranchers and farmers.
“There's a lot of excitement over this agricultural renewable energy project in Nebraska with Neogenics and the partner with this feed lot. It's a newer project for them. Jim Magagna with the Wyoming Stock Growers Association said a project like this will probably be more beneficial for the ranchers and farmers who use the land, who have the land for this, than the actual production of energy. We have lots of natural gas, but this could create an additional revenue source for ranchers and farmers who are struggling in a very tight cattle market.”
The project will capture methane produced by decomposing livestock manure and convert it into renewable natural gas, or RNG, that can be injected directly into existing natural gas pipelines.
Read the full story HERE.
–
So far, nobody’s claimed a renegade Russian tortoise found wandering around in Thermopolis's Riverside Cemetery. Cowboy State Daily’s Andrew Rossi reports that the cemetery worker who found it says “I’m hoping someone didn’t abandon it, because that’s not cool.”
“Tortoises are common pets in Wyoming, even though there are no tortoises native to Wyoming. So, in this instance, it seems a Russian tortoise was found in Riverside Cemetery in Thermopolis. Nobody knows how it got there, and more intriguingly, nobody's claimed it. There are a lot of people who want to claim it, who want to take care of it, and it has found a good foster home that could become its forever home.”
The last native Wyoming tortoise died millions of years ago, so the cemetery worker who found the tortoise knew he was dealing with a tortoise on the lam. He picked up the tiny tortoise, which was less than six inches long, and gave it a safe space to munch on some lettuce.
Read the full story HERE.
—
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 watching - I’m Mac Watson, for Cowboy State Daily.
