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
3 Arrested For Ripping Apart Cheyenne ATM With Stolen Truck, 2 Others Get Away
Two unknown characters used a Ford F-250 and a chain to rip apart a Cheyenne ATM and steal more than $25,000 this month. They got away, but two Texas men and a woman in the alleged getaway car were arrested in a flurry of $20 bills.
Clair McFarlandDecember 20, 2023
Wyoming Sheep Shearer Gets 12-17 Years In Prison For Stabbing Fiancé To Death
Saying she’s “ready to face the consequences of my actions,” an Australian with New Zealand ties who was shearing sheep in Wyoming learned Wednesday she'll spend 12 to 17 years in prison for stabbing her fiancé to death last February.
Clair McFarlandDecember 20, 2023
Mexican Man Accused Of Beating Wife With Iron Now Faces Illegal Reentry Charge
Mexican national charged with hitting wife in the head with a clothes iron then choking her was charged Monday for also being in the United States illegally. His record shows a 30-year history of illegal reentry and deportation.
Clair McFarlandDecember 19, 2023
Wyoming Man Suing To Keep Trump Off Ballot OK With Former President Joining Lawsuit
A retired attorney in Wyoming sparred Tuesday with Trump about whether the former president can stay on the state’s ballot - as the Colorado Supreme Court removed Trump from its state ballot.
Clair McFarlandDecember 19, 2023
No New Trial For Cheyenne Day Care Worker Who Swaddled Baby To Death
The Wyoming Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled a Cheyenne day care worker who swaddled a baby to death won’t get a do-over on claims her 2022 jury trial was unfair.
Clair McFarlandDecember 19, 2023
Wyoming Federal Judge: Following Trans Pronouns Policy Part Of Teacher's Duty
A federal judge on Monday said Wyoming teachers don't have a free-speech right to ignore a school's policy of using students' preferred pronouns. “Referring to a student by their chosen or preferred names in a classroom, pursuant to a school district policy, is part of a teacher’s official duties,” the judge wrote.
Clair McFarlandDecember 19, 2023
Pistol Packin' Mama! Casper Home Invaders Flee When Pregnant Mom Pulls Gun
While the dad of a Casper family wrestled with one of two home intruders, the pregnant mom grabbed a pistol, pointed it at both burglars and scared them away last month, according to court documents.
Clair McFarlandDecember 18, 2023
Riverton Man Charged With Killing Wheelchair-Bound Landlord
Accused of shooting his wheelchair-bound former landlord in a crowded home on the Wind River Indian Reservation this summer, Burdick Nelson Seminole Sr. could face life in prison.
Clair McFarlandDecember 18, 2023
Arapahoe Couple Accused Of Torturing, Starving, Locking Boy Up For Weeks
Accused of torturing, starving and confining their son in his room for stealing snacks, two Arapahoe, Wyoming, parents are facing up to life in prison on an enhanced child abuse charge alleging they seriously hurt the boy.
Clair McFarlandDecember 18, 2023
450 Kappa Sorority Sisters Side With UW Women Against Transgender Member
A group of 450 Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority sisters have filed a court argument this week backing six University of Wyoming sisters in their appeal against the sorority for admitting a transgender member at the UW chapter.
Clair McFarlandDecember 15, 2023
Clair McFarland: Winter Starts When Everything Breaks Or Pukes
Clair McFarland writes: “Winter starts when my car breaks down and my kid starts puking."
Clair McFarlandDecember 15, 2023
Rock Springs Teachers Plead ‘We Need Help’ With Students Too Unruly To Handle
Saying the unruly behavior of students in their Rock Springs classrooms is becoming too disruptive to deal with, the Sweetwater County Education Association begged the local school board this week that "we need help."
Clair McFarlandDecember 15, 2023
Jewish History Ph.D. With Wyoming Roots Scoffs At Lander Pro-Palestine Protesters
A group of pro-Palestine protesters in Lander, Wyoming, have refused to condemn the Hamas terrorist attack that started a bloody war with Israel. A Jewish history PhD and longtime Wyomingite now living in Israel scoffs at their claims.
Clair McFarlandDecember 15, 2023
Wyoming Battles Pro-Choicers For Early Judgment In Abortion Lawsuit
An attorney representing Wyoming and three attorneys representing a pro-choice coalition both asked a Teton County Judge on Thursday to resolve the state’s abortion case early in their favor.
Clair McFarlandDecember 15, 2023
Decade-Old Rape Kit Leads To New Charge For Wyoming Man Already In Halfway House
DNA from a 2012 rape kits has linked to a Wyoming man already serving a sentence for sexual assault, who allegedly admitted he had sex with a drunk 13-year-old girl.
Clair McFarlandDecember 14, 2023
Worland Man Accused Of Turning Glock Into Illegal Machine Gun
Accused of modifying his Glock 9 mm pistol with a rapid-fire device, a Worland man has been charged by a Wyoming grand jury with possessing a machine gun, and also for having an unregistered short-barreled rifle.
Clair McFarlandDecember 14, 2023
Facing Possible Murder Charge, Trial Delayed For Ex-Boyfriend Of Missing Cody Woman
Recognizing that a man who made it home from Alabama to Cody in October with a bloody vehicle — but without his girlfriend, who was accompanying him — may need to summon a hefty defense, a federal judge on Tuesday delayed his trial.
Clair McFarlandDecember 14, 2023
Trump Files Motion To Defend Himself In Lawsuit To Keep Him Off Wyoming’s Ballot
Former President Donald Trump filed a motion on Tuesday to intervene and defend himself in a federal lawsuit filed by a retired Laramie attorney aimed at keeping Trump off Wyoming’s election ballot.
Clair McFarlandDecember 13, 2023
Babysitter Accused Of Beating 5-Year-Old To Death Claims Confession Was Coerced
The Kemmerer babysitter accused of beating a 5-year-old girl to death in November 2022 claims her confession can't be used at trial because she was on too many pain medications to voluntarily waive her right to remain silent.
Clair McFarlandDecember 13, 2023
Charges: Casper Man Accused Of Causing Crash That Killed 3; Didn’t Help Victims
Eighteen months after allegedly being drunk and causing a horrific crash that killed three people, a Casper man has been charged with vehicular homicide. According to court documents, he didn’t help the dying victims, saying, “I can’t do that.”
Clair McFarlandDecember 13, 2023
Casper Man Guilty Of Murdering Father-In-Law, Trying To Kill Mother-In-Law
A Casper man who stabbed and beat his mother-in-law nearly to death and killed her husband faces 40 years to life in prison after a jury convicted him Friday of second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder.
Clair McFarlandDecember 12, 2023