Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
Sorted by date Results 130 - 154 of 200
Effort also seeks to combat vilification of Wyoming teachers CASPER - Laramie County resident Jen Solis started going to her local district's school board meetings in July of 2021, just around the time when debates at these meetings started shifting from COVID masking to school library books. Such debates - which stem from some parents' fears that their kids are being exposed to explicit content in school books - have cropped up across Wyoming and the country. Many of these books address LGBTQ... Full story
CHEYENNE - State lawmakers have been tasked with studying how to reopen the Wyoming Cowboy Challenge Academy following its closure in September due to sustained staff vacancies and safety concerns. The Wyoming Military Department made it clear Thursday to the Joint Transportation, Highways and Military Affairs Committee that it will be an uphill battle. "The decision to close the WCCA was necessary to assure the safety of cadets, given the inability to meet the National Guard Bureau (NGB)... Full story
Recruitment more difficult as pay gap shrinks, experts say CASPER - Wyoming's neighbors are catching up on teacher salaries and making it more challenging for school districts to recruit educators, researchers and school officials say. The Joint Education Committee heard Wednesday during its first interim meeting in Casper from a handful of researchers and school leaders who pointed to lagging teacher salaries and a narrowing gap with other states as one of the key reasons schools across the sta... Full story
Market declines to explain policy, after kids report meeting an ‘aggressive’ guard. JACKSON — After Avery Ward wrapped up her day at the Teton Literacy Center on May 23, her stomach hurt so she headed to Smith’s with a friend to grab some over-the-counter medicine. Both were barred from entering. “There was a guy in the front with a walkie-talkie who stopped me,” 15-year-old Ward said. “He said, ‘You can’t go in, you’re not old enough.’ Then he asked my friend’s age. He’s 17, and he wasn’t allowed in, either. He was trying to buy mayonnaise.... Full story
SHERIDAN — Final payments from the Wyoming Emergency Rental Assistance Program will come in June. Those helping families with the program in Sheridan County expressed concern about potential impacts of the program’s end. ERAP began April 29, 2021, and was designed to assist people who were unable to make rent or utilities payments as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Through May 25, Wyoming Department of Family Services data shows 17,143 households have received assistance from the program and payments totaled $107 million. Payments were made... Full story
CHEYENNE - A Gold's Gym patron tackled and subdued a local man Friday before he was arrested for allegedly trying to steal a vehicle and rob the establishment. Brandon B. Creel, 37, of 505 Williams St. was taken into custody and charged with two counts of felony robbery (threat of injury), misdemeanor interference with a peace officer and misdemeanor simple assault for attempting to cause bodily injury. He faces up to 11 years in prison and $11,750 in fines if convicted. His preliminary hearing... Full story
A 'big chunk of the mountain' fell off last fall, altering the profile of the Grand's East Ridge so drastically that people can see the difference from the valley floor. A giant rockfall has forever changed what's arguably the world's most famous natural skyline - the iconic Cathedral Group view of the Grand Teton, Teewinot and Mount Owen. What's being called "a big chunk of the mountain" fell off last fall, altering the profile of the Grand's East Ridge so significantly that people can see the... Full story
Parents challenge policy on student names, pronouns CASPER - Lawyers for Sweetwater County School District No. 1 issued a blistering response on Monday to a lawsuit filed by two parents over the district's use of their child's preferred pronouns and name, calling their allegations "nonexistent" and arguing that the parents are trying to force their personal beliefs on the district. Attorneys Kathleen Chaney and Eric Hevenor of the Denver law firm Lambdin & Chaney asked a judge to deny the legal... Full story
CODY - "Maybe a lot of people don't know that most cases are solved by the average citizen," Cody Police Chief Al Vanderpool said in a Nov. 1, 1962, Cody Enterprise article. "That is, by something they have seen or personal knowledge they have of some individual that may be connected to a case." Chief Vanderpool was speaking about the mysterious homicide of 13-year-old Christine Nebel, who was found dead in her home on Bleistein Avenue on Oct. 7, 1962. Over six decades later, Nebel's murder... Full story
JACKSON — Michael Wayne McCollum will be released from a Montana jail where he was held on Yellowstone National Park’s behalf — even though federal prosecutors initially labeled him a flight risk after an accident that apparently led to a woman’s death last Saturday on Craig Pass. “The court does believe release would be appropriate in your case,” Stephanie A. Hambrick, magistrate judge for the U.S. District Court of Wyoming in Mammoth Hot Springs, told McCollum in court Thursday. Hambrick di... Full story
Exotic creatures find care in Laramie LARAMIE - The Laramie Animal Shelter has become something of an ark. The shelter unexpectedly found itself caring for 63 exotic pets following a rollover accident on Interstate 80 on May 12. Although the original ark is said to have held many species,the animals temporarily cared for are mostly reptiles. The shelter is keeping them safe with the food, water and warmth they need to survive. Animal Control Officer Teresa Bingham said the animals are exotic... Full story
Cheyenne population estimates show shift of residents from city to county CHEYENNE (WNE) - Although Wyoming's largest city lost population between 2021 and 2022, rural Laramie County gained nearly as many residents as Cheyenne lost. Cheyenne's population dropped by 456 people between July 1, 2021, and July 1, 2022, according to recent population estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau. However, Laramie County as a whole gained residents, Wenlin Liu, chief economist with the State of... Full story
Powell family first in line welcomed by new entrance supervisor POWELL - When Chris Baltz, East Entrance fee supervisor at Yellowstone National Park, saw a car parked in front of the closed entrance Thursday evening before dark, he thought the visitors were mistaken about the park's opening schedule. This is his first season in the park. He approached the vehicle to advise the occupants, only to find they were well aware of the Friday morning schedule and intended to wait until 8 a.m. to save... Full story
GILLETTE (WNE) — Gillette police investigated and found multiple instances of cheese slices left on vehicles parked outside of homes Tuesday. The first report came in from a 27-year-old woman who said her vehicle in the 1500 block of Ohara Drive had cheese slices on it. There was no damage from the cheese, and it’s unclear what kind of cheese they were. Several other neighbors found similar cheese placements on their cars, said Police Deputy Chief Brent Wasson. While investigating that report, an officer found a 2008 Chevy in the 1400 blo... Full story
CHEYENNE - Two Cheyenne teens involved in a drive-by shooting in Lincoln Park that resulted in the death of a 15-year-old girl will be charged as adults. Julian Espinoza, 16, was driving the vehicle during the time of the April 30 incident and has been charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and aiding and abetting first-degree murder. He faces life in prison alongside Johnny Munoz, the 17-year-old passenger, who was charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit... Full story
JACKSON - A group of individuals and nonprofits that are suing the state in order to keep abortion legal in Wyoming has filed a motion to restrain the enforcement of a chemical abortion ban that's set to take effect July 1. The group filed a five-page motion for a temporary restraining order Wednesday afternoon in Teton County District Court. The document asks for a hearing no later than June 30 to determine whether the chemical abortion ban will be halted. In the motion, the group of women, phy... Full story
After half-century of expansion, bears reach limit of "suitable habitat," federal scientists report. CODY-For nearly five decades the grizzly population emanating from Yellowstone National Park has pulsed farther and farther outward, reclaiming old haunts where humans wiped out their forebears in the early 20th century. No longer. A federal biologist presenting Wednesday to a part of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee for the Yellowstone ecosystem reported that the expansion into new... Full story
Your business is owed a refund of $26,000 per employee: A Laramie citizen reported receiving a voice mail that a refund of the COVID Employee Retention Credit (ERC) was available for each employee. The citizen was to press 1 for more information. Unfortunately it’s a scam to obtain either personally identifiable information for identity theft or to charge for dishonest services. The IRS and the Better Business Bureau have been warning business owners about these scams – see https://www.bbb.org/article/scams/28551-bbb-scam-al... Full story
On May 16th, 2023, Washakie County Sheriff’s Office was notified that two individuals had found a human skull off of the Blue Bank Road between Worland and Ten Sleep while tending to cattle in that area. Sheriff Brookwell and a deputy met with the individuals who had found the skull. They, and one family member of theirs, led Sheriff’s Office personnel to the location where the skull was found. Once on scene, Sheriff’s Office personnel started to document the area. A few yards away from the skull, we were able to locate a large number of human... Full story
POWELL — The grizzly bear found dead along the North Fork Highway last week was killed by a Cody area hunter who said he mistook the animal for a black bear, according to court documents. The hunter, Patrick M. Gogerty, reportedly came forward on May 2 — the day after he reportedly shot the bear, and after the bear’s carcass drew widespread public attention. “Gogerty should have turned himself in immediately,” North Cody Game Warden Travis Crane wrote in an affidavit included in court records. Park County Prosecuting Attorney Bryan Skoric charg... Full story
Fog sealing of highway shoulders is slated for a Monday, May 8, start in northwest Wyoming. Fog sealing uses quick-drying oil to seal highway shoulders, and is part of the Wyoming Department of Transportation's summer chip-sealing maintenance program. Fog sealing is scheduled May 8 between Greybull and Lovell on US310 (mileposts 225.45 to 230.00), May 8 on US310 west of Lovell (mileposts 237.42 to 238.28), May 8 on WY37 (mileposts 0 to 9.0), May 8 on US310 east of Lovell (mileposts 235 to 236),... Full story
CHEYENNE - The Wyoming Freedom Caucus continues to advocate for protection of parental rights in the wake of pending litigation. Five state representatives who are members of the caucus hosted a virtual town hall meeting Monday night to discuss legislation designed to prevent violations of parental rights and actions for residents to take in preparation for the next session. "The attack on the family is only beginning. We're not going to see it let up," said state Rep. Jeremy Haroldson,... Full story
CHEYENNE - Two teen boys have been arrested in connection with the April 30 shooting death of a 15-year-old local girl in a south Cheyenne park. Cheyenne Police Department detectives, working with the U.S. Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force, arrested a 17-year-old boy on charges of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder. A 16-year-old boy was arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and aiding and abetting first-degree murder, according to a CPD... Full story
Company founded by lawmaker expects new sites in four cities CASPER - Electric vehicle drivers are about to have a lot more charging options in Wyoming. OtterSpace, a company founded in 2021 by state Rep. Mike Yin, D-Jackson, announced Monday that it plans to install fast charging stations - also known as level 3 chargers - in Lander, Dubois and Pinedale this year, along with a number of slower level 2 chargers in downtown Laramie. The first of the three fast chargers OtterSpace is building, a... Full story
JACKSON (WNE) — Yellowstone National Park plans to open its south entrance, the most easily accessible from Jackson, at 8 a.m. Friday. If the weather cooperates, all but one of the park’s roads will be open at that time. The road between Canyon Village and Tower Fall that runs over Dunraven Pass, a notoriously treacherous byway in early- and late-season conditions, remains closed. Drivers entering the park from the south will be able to directly access the West Thumb Geyser Basin, Old Faithful and Lake Village. But getting into the Lamar Val... Full story