Clair McFarland
Clair McFarland is a general assignment reporter for Cowboy State Daily and is based in Riverton, Wyoming. She specializes in crime and court reporting and social issues coverage. Clair also writes a twice-monthly column on motherhood and country living.
Previously, Clair wrote for The Ranger, the Lander Journal and the Wind River News. She is an award-winning journalist, columnist and poet, who joined Cowboy State Daily on Valentine's Day, 2022.
Latest from Clair McFarland
Alleged Fentanyl Dealer From Greybull Charged With Delivery In Cody Man’s Overdose Death
During an undercover investigation following the death of Cody man, DCI agents posed as a potential drug buyer and watched as the suspected dealer from Greybull arranged to deliver fentanyl-laced counterfeit oxycodone.
Clair McFarlandJanuary 10, 2023
Kemmerer Babysitter Charged With Beating 5-Year-Old Girl To Death Pleads Not Guilty
Charged with beating a 5-year-old girl to death and abusing both the girl and her little sister, a Kemmerer babysitter pleaded not guilty to all three charges Monday morning.
Clair McFarlandJanuary 09, 2023
Platte County Jail Inmate Demands $2 Million, Says Deputy Touched Him In ‘Sexual’ Way
Claiming a deputy touched his chest in a sexual manner, a male Wyoming jail inmate on Jan. 1 sued Platte County Detention staffers and demanded $2 million in taxpayer funds.
Clair McFarlandJanuary 09, 2023
Wyoming Man Sues For Right To Make His Own M16 Machine Gun
A Wapiti man who wants to make his own machine gun is suing the U.S. government for denying his application to do so, saying a federal anti-machine gun law violates his Second Amendment right.
Clair McFarlandJanuary 09, 2023
Mother Of 5-Year-Old Beaten To Death, Now Arrested On Drug Charges In Kemmerer
Along with her boyfriend, the mother of a 5-year-old girl who was allegedly murdered by a babysitter in November has been arrested on drug charges in Kemmerer.
Clair McFarlandJanuary 06, 2023
Prosecutor: Police & News Reports Were Wrong, Transient Did Not Try To Kidnap Riverton Child
A police report and subsequent news story that a transient in Riverton was trying to kidnap a child were not true, according to the Fremont County attorney. He said the transient was trying to steal a purse instead.
Clair McFarlandJanuary 06, 2023
Wyoming GOP Committeewoman Nina Webber Pleads Not Guilty In Shooting Incident
Accused of nearly shooting a local couple while hunting, Wyoming GOP national committeewoman and two-time state House candidate Nina Webber pleaded not guilty Friday morning to a charge of reckless endangering.
Clair McFarlandJanuary 06, 2023
Wyoming Man Accused Of Gunning Down Two Friends On Casper Highway Pleads Not Guilty
Accused of intentionally murdering his two traveling companions on the side of a Casper highway and pointing a gun at a potential witness, Luke Thomas Young pleaded not guilty Friday morning to all charges against him.
Clair McFarlandJanuary 06, 2023
Wyoming Littles: First-Graders Discuss Their Strategies To Get Rid Of Spiders
From sucking them into a vacuum to smashing them with a hammer, first graders from Tongue River Elementary School in Ranchester, Wyoming told Cowboy State Daily their strategies for getting rid of spiders.
Clair McFarlandJanuary 06, 2023
Wyoming Law Prof: New California Law Banning Doctors From Advising Against COVID Vax Is Unconstitutional
A UW law professor and a retired Riverton doctor told Cowboy State Daily that a new California law that can de-license doctors for advising patients against COVID vaccines is alarming and likely unconstitutional.
Clair McFarlandJanuary 05, 2023
Sledding Death Of 10-Year-Old On Wind River Reservation Ruled Accidental
A report released Wednesday confirms that the incident that killed a 10-year-old boy while sledding on the Wind River Indian Reservation on Nov. 26 was accidental.
Clair McFarlandJanuary 04, 2023
Gillette Teen Who Died Unexpectedly Had Abdominal Infection, Coroner Says
The Campbell County Coroner told Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday that a 17-year-old high school basketball player is suspected to have died of complications from a sports injury.
Clair McFarlandJanuary 03, 2023
Semi-Truck Kills 13 Bison Near Yellowstone, State Vet Says Deadliest Collision He’s Seen
A semi-truck crashed into a herd of bison on Wednesday evening killing 13 of them. Montana's state veterinarian told Cowboy State Daily it's the deadliest crash of its type he's aware of.
Clair McFarlandDecember 30, 2022
Clair McFarland: The Best Gifts Make All Hell Break Loose
Clair McFarland writes: Money was tight in my early childhood years in rural Wyoming. My dad lost his truck-driving job the moment he finished building all the bookshelves for my preschool classroom.
Clair McFarlandDecember 30, 2022
17-Year-Old Gillette Basketball Player Dies Unexpectedly On Monday
17-year-old Max Sorenson suffered a medical event at his home Monday and was pronounced dead at Campbell County Memorial Hospital. Authorities say it's not a suicide, homicide or anything to do with illicit drugs but "more of a medical condition."
Clair McFarlandDecember 29, 2022
National Libertarian Party Opposes Sex Change Surgeries For Minors, Wyoming Branch Disagrees
Although the national Libertarian Party last week said it opposed sex reassignment surgeries for minors and called it "child abuse," the Wyoming Libertarian Party said it would not take a side on the issue saying it's a personal decision.
Clair McFarlandDecember 29, 2022
Colorado Doctor’s Estate Denies He Botched Cody Woman’s Spinal Surgery
After Cody resident Sylvia Hutton claimed in a lawsuit that deceased Dr. Clinton Devin disabled her with a bungled spinal surgery, Devins estate denied her claims this week and said she didnt follow Colorado probate law in filing her lawsuit.
Clair McFarlandDecember 28, 2022
Suspects Roll Car After Leading Law Enforcement On 30-Mile High Speed Chase In Albany/Laramie Counties
Suspects involved in a theft out of Laramie led Wyoming Highway Patrol and the Albany County Sheriff's department on a 30-mile high speed chase before rolling their car because they couldn't handle the exit ramp.
Clair McFarlandDecember 27, 2022
Although Dept Of Corrections Wanted Child Sex Abuser On Probation, Wyo Supreme Court Says No
Although state corrections officials recommended a 22-year-old Riverton man who reportedly coerced a 5-year-old girl into oral sex be released from prison, the Wyoming Supreme Court ruled to keep him in prison.
Clair McFarlandDecember 27, 2022
Top Education Official Out; Hopes Wyomingites Don’t Politicize Schools
Chad Auer, Wyomings outgoing deputy superintendent of Public Instruction, says he's fine with Degenfelder appointing her own Deputy and said warned that "partisan politics" can harm education.
Clair McFarlandDecember 27, 2022
Wyoming Sues Teton County Over Land-Use Argument
The Wyoming Board of Land Commissioners filed a lawsuit against the Teton County Commission, asking a district court to block the county from enforcing land-use restrictions against businesses that have won permits to develop on state trust lands.
Clair McFarlandDecember 24, 2022