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
Cheyenne Residents Worried After Fentanyl, Cocaine Bust In House Across From Elementary School
After a Cheyenne man was arrested for trafficking fentanyl across the street from a Cheyenne elementary school, a resident in the area told Cowboy State Daily the neighborhood was struggling and in steep decline.
Clair McFarlandJune 17, 2022
Rivertonites Spar Over Student Cell Phone Ban
A ban on cell phones in classrooms at a Riverton school is being met with strong objections in the face of a recent rash of school shootings nationwide.
Clair McFarlandJune 17, 2022
Clair McFarland: Love Between Lice
Clair McFarland writes: "This is a love story about two lice. I discovered them whirling heedless and infatuated in a courtship dance so idiotic it was almost beautiful."
Clair McFarlandJune 17, 2022
Wyoming Truckers Warn High Fuel Costs Raise Price Of Everything Else
High fuel prices are forcing an increase in the cost of all other goods in the West, which could lead to a decline in consumer demands for products, Wyoming truckers warned this week.
Clair McFarlandJune 16, 2022
More Than $21 Million In Wrongful Unemployment Benefits Paid To Wyoming Workers During COVID
According to an analysis by the Government Accountability Office, more than $21 million in wrongful unemployment benefits were distributed to Wyoming workers during the Covid pandemic.
Clair McFarlandJune 15, 2022
Wyoming Attorney General Demands USDA Back Down On Gender ID Mandate
Wyoming Attorney General Bridget Hill joined forces with 25 other states Tuesday, demanding President Joe Biden withdraw a federal policy linking school lunch funds to gender ideology provisions.
Clair McFarlandJune 14, 2022
Legislators Disagree On When State Can Say No To Feds On Gender ID Mandates With School Lunches
Rep. Chip Neiman said Wyo should take over school lunch funding now rather than bend to the federal government's "social engineering" where Rep. Landon Brown said the state needs to exercise caution due to budgetary concerns.
Clair McFarlandJune 14, 2022
Schroeder: Wyo To Comply With Fed Gender Mandate Until State Funds School Lunches
Superintendent of Public Instruction Brian Schroeder said until the State of Wyoming pays for federal school lunches, the department has little choice but to comply with gender ideology mandates.
Clair McFarlandJune 08, 2022
Tribal Leader Endorses Cheney Over Fellow Tribal Member
Arapaho tribal official Lee Spoonhunter has endorsed Rep. Liz Cheney for Wyomings lone U.S. House Seat, passing over his fellow tribal member who is also vying for the position.
Clair McFarlandJune 06, 2022
Former Wind River Indian Reservation Police Officer Killed In Gunfight
A former Wind River Indian Reservation police officer was shot and killed in Arizona when a traffic stop became a gunfight. Officer Adrian Lopez served in Wyoming up until last year.
Clair McFarlandJune 06, 2022
Wyo Education Head “Astounded” At Mandate Linking School Lunch Dollars To Gender Identity Policies
Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction Brian Schroeder on Friday said it was "disheartening and astounding" to learn of new federal mandate linking school lunch dollars to gender identity policies.
Clair McFarlandJune 04, 2022
Four Candidates Vying To Win Wyoming’s Only American Indian Legislative District
For the first time in recent memory, Fremont County's House District 33 is registered to more Republicans than Democrats.
Clair McFarlandJune 03, 2022
Wyo Education Officials Unsure About New Federal Gender-Identity & Sexual Orientation Mandates
Wyoming school authorities are consulting with legal counsel in order to determine the states response to new federal gender-identity-friendly policies. The requirements are linked to millions of dollars in school meal funding.
Clair McFarlandJune 03, 2022
Clair McFarland: A Death-Defying Family Forage
Clair McFarland writes: The death camas is the deadliest plant in the West. Poison symptoms include vomiting, excessive salivation, tremors, weakness, loss of muscle control, convulsions, coma, and death. Pretty flowers though.
Clair McFarlandJune 02, 2022
St. Stephen’s Principal, Administrator Not At Lewd Party & Should Not Have Been Canned, Individuals Say
In a federal report alleging sexual misconduct and other wrongful behavior, supporters of a principal and administrator say they were incorrectly implicated and wrongly punished.
Clair McFarlandJune 02, 2022
Wyo Could Lose Millions In Fed Education Money If It Doesn’t Comply With Gender Identity Policies
The federal government last month tied about $90 million per year in Wyoming education funding to gender identity-friendly policies in schools, which, according to a federal judge, would include non-binary bathroom use.
Clair McFarlandJune 01, 2022
Wyoming Legislature Not Ready To Legalize Shooting Down Drones
Currently it is illegal for anyone to shoot down a drone in Wyoming, even if the drone is flying over your property. The legislature says more homework needs to be done before introducing laws.
Clair McFarlandMay 31, 2022
‘We Are The Sheriff’: Residents of Jeffrey City, Wyoming (Pop. 35) Take Care Of Each Other
With its ironic name, the sparse village of Jeffrey City, south of Riverton, is about 60 miles from the nearest hospital, police station or grocery store. Its last sheriffs deputy, J. Dee Darnell, passed away in 2017 at the age of 67.
Clair McFarlandMay 27, 2022
Biologist, Green Energy Proponent Blasts Wind Energy Producers For Golden Eagle Deaths
Despite his advocacy for green energy, a veteran Wyoming biologist is calling for Carbon and Albany Counties to stop wind energy expansion because of large amounts of golden eagle deaths.
Clair McFarlandMay 27, 2022
Wyo Legislative Committee Revives Bill Making Meth Use While Pregnant A Felony
If passed, the bill would make consuming meth a felony punishable by up to five years in prison, but would also provide what Rep. Ember Oakley called a groundbreaking mandate on judges to sentence first-time offenders to treatment rather than prison.
Clair McFarlandMay 25, 2022
Grieving Mother Asks Legislators For Felony Punishment Of Vehicular Homicide
After a grieving mother on Tuesday told lawmakers of her sons tragic death after a crosswalk collision in Cheyenne, a legislative committee started drafting a new vehicular homicide law.
Clair McFarlandMay 24, 2022