The last defendant headed for trial in one of Wyoming's most controversial wildlife-abuse cases has changed course.
For months, Justin Martin stood alone as the only man still preparing to fight charges stemming from allegations that a weakened cow moose was roped, ridden, spurred and dragged across a Uinta County ranch.
Now, that trial won't happen.
Martin, who is listed as a Wyoming Livestock Board brand inspector for Uinta County, has entered a conditional guilty plea to one felony count of accessory before the fact to cruelty to animals, abandoning plans for an August trial while preserving his right to appeal a judge's ruling allowing prosecutors to use cellphone videos at the center of the case.
The conditional plea, filed July 22 in Uinta County District Court, is the latest development in a case alleging three men abused the sickly cow moose on the M Arrow Ranch near Evanston during a series of encounters in May 2021.
If Judge James Kaste ultimately accepts the plea agreement, the remaining charges against Martin will be dismissed. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 2.
'Spur That Son Of A Bitch'
The case began after Wyoming Game and Fish Department investigators seized Martin's cellphone during an unrelated investigation in 2022. While searching, investigators discovered videos and screenshots that ultimately launched the moose abuse case.
After obtaining an additional search warrant specific to the wildlife investigation, officers recovered four videos tied to the May 2021 incidents.
Game and Fish Officer Heather Sterling testified the videos showed a cow moose that appeared emaciated, elderly or sick. She told the court one eye appeared sunken, suggesting the animal might have been blind.
One video showed Kylan Platt climbing onto the moose's back and aggressively digging his spurs into the animal while smiling.
"He doesn't seem to have an issue in participating in this activity at all," Sterling said, comparing the scene to someone breaking a horse to ride.
Investigators said ropes were placed around both the moose's neck and one of its hind legs.
Prosecutors further alleged Martin can be heard on the video saying, "Spur that son of a bitch" as he laughed and encouraged Platt.
Sterling testified investigators found Martin had sent the video to more than 20 phone numbers.
'Done For The Sheer Joy'
Another video, prosecutors said, showed Range Martin on horseback dragging the cow moose by a lariat through chest-high sagebrush until it fell while struggling to regain its footing.
At the preliminary hearing, Uinta County Circuit Court Judge Michael Greer ruled prosecutors had presented enough evidence for a jury to decide whether the men intended to torture or torment the animal.
"When I look at the context of what appears in the screenshots of the videos and the comments made by onlookers and the photographer there at the time, this was done for the sheer joy of dominating a wild animal who appeared to be already in poor health and possibly blind," Greer said in binding the case over to district court.
Earlier this month, Range Martin and Platt each accepted plea agreements, pleading guilty to felony cruelty to animals. In exchange, prosecutors dismissed wildlife misdemeanor charges.
As part of those agreements, both men acknowledged Justin Martin was the person filming the videos and making statements heard on the recordings. Their plea agreements recommend deferred felony sentences, three years of supervised probation, a $1,000 fine and a prohibition on hunting, trapping and fishing while on probation, although Judge Kaste will make the final decision at sentencing.
Justin Martin was the lone defendant preparing for trial until filing his conditional guilty plea.
His plea means every defendant charged in the case has now admitted guilt to at least one offense, avoiding what was expected to be a four-day jury trial next month.
Conditional Plea
Martin's attorney, Joseph August Hampton, said the guilty plea does not end the legal fight.
Instead, it preserves a single constitutional issue for appeal: whether Game and Fish investigators exceeded the scope of a search warrant when they discovered the cellphone videos.
Hampton said investigators obtained Martin's phone during an unrelated investigation under a warrant authorizing a search of data created between September 2021 and June 2022. Because the alleged moose abuse occurred in May 2021, he argues investigators should not have been reviewing material outside the warrant's authorized date range.
Under Wyoming law, a conditional guilty plea allows a defendant to admit guilt while preserving a dispositive legal issue for appeal.
"If we're successful in the appeal, then the case would be dismissed, and the conviction would be reversed," Hampton said. "If we're not successful, then the conviction sticks."
Hampton said Martin accepts responsibility for the accessory charge and regrets how the incident unfolded.
"They were just trying to get the moose off their property," Hampton said, explaining ranchers wanted to move cattle into the pasture. "Martin agrees that he didn't do it in the right way and regrets that."
Hampton said Martin has changed how he handles similar situations in the nearly five years since the incident.
He also said the negotiated plea calls for two years of supervised probation and that he does not anticipate prison time, though he acknowledged the judge is free to impose any lawful sentence.
Cowboy State Daily reached out to special prosecutor F. Gaston Gosar for comment but did not receive a response before publication.
Judge James Kaste accepted Martin's guilty plea but reserved ruling on the parties' sentencing recommendation until the Oct. 2 hearing.
Steve True, director of the Wyoming Livestock Board, confirmed Monday that Martin is still a brand inspector for Uinta County. He told Cowboy State Daily he has no further comment.
This story will be updated.
Kolby Fedore can be reached at kolby@cowboystatedaily.com.
