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
State Gives $10 Million For New Hospital In Riverton
Proponents of building a new hospital in Riverton say their existing facility, SageWest Health Care, provides subpar services to Fremont County and the Wind River Indian Reservation.
Clair McFarlandNovember 17, 2022
Mystery Of Floating Foot In Yellowstone Solved
The mystery of the foot found floating in a hot pool in Yellowstone is now linked officially to a man who went missing this summer.
Clair McFarlandNovember 17, 2022
Bill Would Punish Wyoming Teachers, School Staffers Who Bully Students
Stating that adults are just as capable of bullying as students, Rep. Steve Harshman said his son, a high school football player, received a phone call from an adult who told him, "You should kill yourself; you're the worst quarterback I've ever seen."
Clair McFarlandNovember 16, 2022
Wyoming Could Soon Outlaw Spankings In Schools
If the repeal passes the entire Legislature in the upcoming session, school staffers who physically discipline children could face criminal charges.
Clair McFarlandNovember 16, 2022
Natrona School Board Hears Draft Policy On Sexually-Graphic Books, Vote In Two Weeks
The Natrona County School Board met on Monday evening to discuss new policy options for sexually graphic books in school libraries. One school board member said the goal is to "ban sexually explicit images from school library materials"
Clair McFarlandNovember 15, 2022
Bills Allow Wyoming Community Colleges To Charge More For Virtual Classes, Adjust For Inflation
Wyoming lawmakers on Monday advanced two bills designed to increase funding for the states community colleges by categorizing internet classes in higher funding brackets and letting colleges make inflation adjustment requests.
Clair McFarlandNovember 15, 2022
Campbell County Has Wyoming’s Highest Prison Rate, Teton County The Lowest
Defendants in Campbell Countys courts are about six times more likely to go to a Wyoming prison than those in Teton County.
Clair McFarlandNovember 15, 2022
Colorado Deputy Retired In Sheridan Sentenced For Accessing Child Porn
A former Colorado sheriffs deputy who was caught in Sheridan, Wyoming, with child pornography has been sentenced to 41 months in prison.
Clair McFarlandNovember 15, 2022
California Towns Starting to Ban Rodeo; “Threatens Western Way Of Life” Says Frontier Days CEO
The CEO of Cheyenne Frontier Days told Cowboy State Daily that the banning of rodeos in California threatens the western way of life and he hoped the movement doesn't spread eastward.
Clair McFarlandNovember 14, 2022
Federal Judge Rules Against Biden’s $400 Billion Student Loan Forgiveness Program
A federal judge ruled that President Biden overstepped his authority in forgiving $400 billion in student loan debt, stating, In this country, we are not ruled by an all-powerful executive with a pen and a phone.
Clair McFarlandNovember 11, 2022
Dimwitted Gillette Bank Robber Steals $2,000 Then Stops To Buy Gas In Getaway Car, Then Arrested
A bank robber was successful in stealing $2,000 from a bank in Gillette. But his getaway was hampered when he stopped to buy gas immediately after the theft. Shortly thereafter, he was arrested.
Clair McFarlandNovember 11, 2022
Voters Oust Wyoming School Board Members In Wake Of Debate Over Sexually Graphic Books
Two of the newly-elected members of the Natrona County School Board said they specifically ran to remove the Casper high schools of the books Trans Bodies, Trans Selves and Gender Queer."
Clair McFarlandNovember 10, 2022
Fed Judge Strikes Down Vax & Mask Mandates For Preschoolers & Workers, Calls It “Tyranny”
A U.S. District Court judge has struck down a vaccine mandate for federally-employed preschool workers, and a masking requirement for the preschoolers, in 24 states, including Wyoming. The judge called the mandate "the very definition of tyranny."
Clair McFarlandNovember 10, 2022
Teton County Mostly Blue, One Independent, As Voters Reelect Housing-Control Commissioners
The Teton County Commission went full blue in Tuesdays general election which could mean slower, tightly controlled housing development in the region.
Clair McFarlandNovember 09, 2022
Republican House Speaker Eric Barlow Wins Gillette State Senate Seat
State Rep. Eric Barlow glided from the Wyoming House of Representatives to the Senate in Tuesdays general election.
Clair McFarlandNovember 09, 2022
Republican Sarah Penn Upsets Incumbent Andi LeBeau For House District 33
Republican Sarah Penn is the next Wyoming House of Representatives delegate for the Wind River Indian Reservation defeating incumbent Andi LeBeau (D-Ethete).
Clair McFarlandNovember 09, 2022
Ember Oakley (R-Riverton) Wins Second Term For House District 55
Ember Oakley (R-Riverton) has won reelection to a second term in the Wyoming House of Representatives.
Clair McFarlandNovember 09, 2022
Lloyd Larsen (R-Lander) Beats Jeff Martin To Retain House District 54 Seat
Rep. Lloyd Larsen (R-Lander) has won a sixth term in the Wyoming House of Representatives, beating Independent challenger Jeff Martin by roughly 20% of the vote as preliminary results for his district arrived late Tuesday.
Clair McFarlandNovember 09, 2022
Megan Degenfelder Wins Race for Wyoming Superintendent Of Public Instruction
A sixth-generation Wyomingite and the states Republican nominee, Megan Degenfelder beat Democratic opponent Sergio Maldonado in Tuesdays general election for the seat.
Clair McFarlandNovember 09, 2022
Chuck Gray Wins Election, Is Wyoming’s Next Secretary Of State
Chuck Gray, a state representative from Casper, is Wyoming's next Secretary of State. He ran unopposed in the general election after defeating state Sen. Tara Nethercott for the Republican nomination in August.
Clair McFarlandNovember 09, 2022
After Wife Died In House Fire, Wyoming Man Sues Power Company, Tree Trimmer
A Wyoming man is suing a power company and its tree-maintenance contractor in the death of his wife, who died after an electrical fire reached her home in Clark
Clair McFarlandNovember 08, 2022