The Star Valley Independent is part of the Wyoming News Exchange.

These stories courtesy of the WNE

Police recommend charges in animal shelter incident

CHEYENNE (WNE) — Cheyenne Police announced Wednesday morning they are recommending charges of misdemeanor animal abuse for Cheyenne Animal Shelter CEO Bob Fecht and two animal control officers in connection with the pepper spraying of a young dog earlier this month.

In a news release, police confirmed previously stated accounts from the shelter and a former employee that on Sept. 4, a dog in the shelter’s care bit an employee, and on Sept. 5, when it posed no further immediate threat, it was pepper sprayed.

The investigation also confirmed that the dog, an 8-month-old pit bull mix named Tanner, was being held by Animal Control Officer Ryan Johnson when it was sprayed by Animal Control Officer Eric Smale at Fecht’s direction.
The release further notes the dog was lawfully euthanized Sept. 6.
Affidavits have been forwarded for Johnson, Smale and Fecht to the Laramie County District Attorney’s Office, where officials will determine whether formal charges will be filed. If charged and convicted, Fecht, Smale and Johnson would face a maximum of six months in jail and/or a $750 fine.

Fecht, a former Cheyenne Police chief, is currently serving a 60-day unpaid suspension imposed by the Cheyenne Animal Shelter Board last week. Cheyenne Police Public Information Officer Kevin Malatesta said Fecht declined to speak to police during the investigation.

City Councilman Rocky Case, the city’s liaison to the shelter board, was pleased with the announcement and said it raised questions about last week’s punishment, which he saw as too lenient.
City leadership cannot directly discipline Fecht because the shelter is an independent nonprofit governed by its board.

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August unemployment climbs slightly

RAWLINS (WNE) — August figures provided by the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services, in cooperation with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, show that the state’s unemployment rate increased to 3.9 percent from last month’s 3.8.

According to the report, the changing of the seasons influenced the numbers
“Most county unemployment rates are higher in the winter months because of seasonal job losses in construction, leisure and hospitality, and many other sectors,” the report states. “Similarly, most county unemployment rates are lower in the summer months as employment increases across the economy.”
The unemployment rate has fluctuate between 3.7-4.2 percent over the past 17 months, according to the WDWS. This leaves an estimated 6,869 decrease in individuals in the labor force – a 2.3 percent drop – since the same time last year.

Albany County, according to the report, saw the largest increase in the unemployment rate, from last August’s 2.8 percent to a current 3.5. Niobara and Goshen counties also saw increases in their rates, from 2.4 to 3 percent and 2.9 to3.4 percent respectively.

Four Wyoming counties caught breaks, seeing slight drops.
“Unemployment rates fell in Converse (down from 4.1 percent to 3.6 percent), Campbell (down from 4.4% to 4.0 percent), Weston (down from 3.5 percent to 3.2 percent), and Hot Springs (down from 3.3 percent to 3.0 percent) counties,” the report states.

According to the report, Teton County posted the lowest August unemployment rate – 1.9 percent. Behind Teton is Crook (2.9 percent), Niobara (3 percent) and Hot Springs (3 percent) counties.

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UW restarts search for dean

LARAMIE (WNE) — The University of Wyoming is restarting a search for the dean of College of Health Sciences, more than a year after former dean Joe Steiner retired after accepting voluntary separation incentives.

Since then, the college has been helmed on an interim basis by professor David Jones.
Ray Reutzel, dean of the College of Education, is chairing the search committee and told the Laramie Boomerang he hopes to complete the search by Dec. 31.

“We are looking for the same types of candidates we brought who were successful at the campus interview level,” he says in an email.
The university originally announced in April 2017 it would conduct a nationwide search to replace Steiner, who took over the position in 2009.

In April, two finalists for the position visited campus and gave public presentations.
Those candidates included Stanley Brown, head of the Department of Kinesiology at Mississippi State University, and Russell Mumper, vice provost for academic affairs at the University of Georgia.
Board of Trustees member Michelle Sullivan said at this month’s board meeting the search committee selected a finalist before determining it “wasn’t a good fit.”

Sullivan said that first search process should help inform the search committee in its second attempt to fill a “pretty complicated” job.
“Because of their wide search last time, they have a very clear idea of what they want in this dean,” she said.

The position profile being advertised by search firm Storbeck/Pimentel & Associates states “the next dean will be a distinguished researcher and academic leader capable of inspiring and supporting the faculty toward increasing the college’s research productivity while balancing its commitment to preparing health care professionals for successful careers and service in the field.”

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Man reportedly fires shots at wolves in Yellowstone

POWELL (WNE) — Yellowstone National Park officials are investigating a report that a man shot at some wolves in the park on Saturday morning.

Witnesses said the incident occurred near Sedge Bay along Yellowstone Lake, after the man’s dog chased a deer and after wolves began chasing the dog.

The unidentified man reportedly told fellow park visitors that he’d shot at the wolves because they were chasing his pet, according to accounts those visitors gave to Yellowstone rangers.

Neither of the two visitors witnessed the man firing the shots, but one visitor, from California, spoke with the man shortly after the incident and called Yellowstone law enforcement. The other visitor found shotgun shells at the scene and turned them over to park rangers.

Rangers found no evidence that any wolves had been wounded, said Morgan Warthin, a Yellowstone spokeswoman.

The gunman reportedly left the scene in a gray SUV, heading toward the interior of the park. Warthin noted that, not only is firing a weapon in the park against the law, pets must be controlled at all times.