Police shoot man after high-speed chase through downtown Cheyenne
CHEYENNE (WNE) — A high-speed chase through downtown Cheyenne that included multiple shots fired at pursuing officers ended Friday evening with the driver being shot and taken to the local hospital.
According to a news release from the Wyoming Highway Patrol, the chase began outside city limits when troopers tried unsuccessfully to stop a stolen vehicle. After winding its way through downtown at speeds close to 65 mph, the chase ended around 6:30 p.m. near the Veterans Affairs Medical Center on East Pershing Boulevard.
No information was available by press time about the suspect or his condition, but police scanner traffic indicated a 20-year-old male had been shot twice by a Cheyenne Police officer.
CPD Sgt. Dan Long confirmed the man had two gunshot wounds and was taken to Cheyenne Regional Medical Center, but he didn’t know the man’s name or his age.
Both Highway Patrol and Long confirmed that no law enforcement officers were injured during the incident.
Long said the chase began on Interstate 25 north of town when Wyoming Highway Patrol troopers tried to stop the vehicle, described on police radio as a black Toyota Camry. Long said it’s unclear exactly which path the chase took, but once the pursuit entered city limits, police were asked to help stop the car.
The Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation has taken the lead over the case, since it includes an officer-involved shooting.
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Jackson man to be nominated to oversee parks, wildlife
JACKSON (WNE) — A Jackson man who started his career as a Grand Teton National Park ranger has been nominated for a high-ranking federal job overseeing the National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
President Trump announced Friday that he had nominated Teton Village resident Rob Wallace to assume the U.S. Department of the Interior post of assistant secretary for fish, wildlife and parks. The U.S. Senate still must confirm the Evanston native, but Wyoming’s congressional delegation and U.S. Interior Secretary David Bernhardt quickly supported the nomination.
“Rob Wallace has a long track record of leadership on National Park Service and Fish and Wildlife Service issues,” Bernhardt said in a statement. “He will be a fantastic asset to the Department of the Interior, and I urge the Senate to confirm him quickly.”
Wallace has resided in the valley since 2014. He worked for the 17 years before as a manager of government relations for the energy division of General Electric. Most recently, he has presided over the Upper Green River Conservancy, a Jackson-based group that describes itself as an “innovative partnership of ranchers, energy companies, conservation stakeholders and impact investors working together to ensure the protection of core sage grouse habitat” in the Upper Green River watershed.
Wallace has also served on the boards of Teton Science Schools, the Jackson Hole Historical Society, the Jackson Hole Land Trust and the University of Wyoming’s School of Energy Resources, according to a biography posted by the Grand Teton National Park Foundation, where he is also a board member.
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No public defense for Campbell Co. misdemeanors
GILLETTE (WNE) — The Wyoming Public Defenders Office notified Circuit Court judges Wednesday that its attorneys will no longer represent people charged with misdemeanors in Campbell County until more attorneys are hired.
The action was effective Wednesday even before a letter of notification was delivered to judges at the end of the business day.
Public defenders represent people who can’t otherwise afford an attorney to represent them in court.
State Public Defender Diane M. Lozano said public defenders in Campbell County can no longer represent those charged with misdemeanors because of the heavy workload those attorneys now carry.
The decision has put local judges and county officials in a quandary because defendants have a constitutional right to an attorney. It means that if a defendant asks for an attorney, judges must now appoint one from among local private attorneys — a cost Lozano warned could be significant.
“I have informed Governor (Mark) Gordon of this possibility as well as the possibility that paying for private attorneys in Campbell County may well ‘bankrupt’ the entire Public Defender budget,” Lozano wrote.
Lozano said it was a decision that she did not take lightly, but that “I do not believe there is another option.”
Lozano said the public defenders in Gillette are overworked and underpaid. The local office employs 4.5 attorneys who handle the workload of 7.5 attorneys.
The Public Defenders Office will accept misdemeanor cases once it has enough staff to handle the workload, Lozano wrote. But the office is having trouble hiring and keeping attorneys.
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Riverton takes first step to reduce deer numbers
RIVERTON (WNE) — The City of Riverton is moving forward with a plan to reduce the urban deer population, beginning with a law against feeding the animals.
Riverton City Council members have directed staff draft an ordinance barring the feeding of certain wild animals in city limits.
Once the ordinance is in place, the city can apply for a permit from the Wyoming Game and Fish Department to allow deer reduction to take place outside of the normal hunting season.
Six residents spoke in favor of the plan initially during a council meeting April 16, detailing their own experiences with nuisance deer in town.
One man mentioned diseases deer carry, while another said traveling on Riverview Road at night is “like driving through a mine field.” Michael Gard, who lives on Monroe Avenue across from Willow Creek Elementary School, said the animals make it difficult to maintain a garden.
“There were 20 deer in my yard two weeks ago,” he said, adding, “What they leave and deposit is substantial.”
Another local gardener, Bart Ringer, who lives on Washington Avenue, said the problem has worsened in the past several years.
“Anything that sticks out of a tomato cage is chewed off,” he said.
Councilman Tim Hancock noted that Ringer’s property is close to downtown Riverton, and in the past deer have mostly been an issue on the outskirts of town.
“They’ve really been moving up,” Hancock said.
“I have them up near my house even, which is very residential. (It’s) gotten, I think, worse lately. … I do think it’s something we need to get moving on.”
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Sheridan man named Wyo ‘Big Brother’ of the year
SHERIDAN (WNE) — Big Brothers Big Sisters recently announced Robert “Bob” Utter, a Big Brother in Sheridan, as the 2019 Wyoming Big Brother of the Year. Utter is a Commercial Specialist for Concept Z Home and Property.
Utter was matched with his Little Brother, Ethan, almost four years ago and Utter hopes to remain his Big until he graduates high school and remain his friend for life. Ethan is 14 years old now and he enrolled in the program when he and his mother moved back to Sheridan. Ethan’s father passed away at an early age. He is being raised by his mother who realized how difficult it is to fill all the roles a child needs. Ethan’s mom had been a Big Sister when she was in high school and loved the Big Brothers Big Sisters program. She hoped Ethan would get as much out of the program as she did.
Utter and Ethan have created a real bond with each other.
“He supports me through everything. He gets me to do stuff that I normally wouldn’t do, and that’s been really good for me to discover and explore my hobbies and passions,” Ethan said.
Utter said he and his Little share a special bond developed through the program.
“I think we both have a better understanding that our life challenges are a part of us, but they don’t define us or restrict us,” Utter said. “I look forward to being a part of his life for years to come.”
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Skate park scene of play, public art project
LARAMIE (WNE)— Laramie residents and visitors will have the chance to see a live reading of a play and mural painting in a unique place this summer: the Laramie Skatepark.
The Laramie Public Art Coalition is partnering with Friends of the Laramie Skatepark and nonprofit, interactive theater group Relative Theatrics for the June 22 event and is currently seeking a mural artist.
Michelle Visser, director of LPAC, said one of the goals of the collaborative, live event is to create a way to combine different forms of art with the skatepark, hoping to simultaneously combine users and viewpoints as well.
“This mural project is a little different than some of the ones that you see downtown in that it is also going to be a live paint, and so an artist (will) be responsive to the reading,” Visser said.
The mural’s canvas is a structure called the File Folder, which has traditionally been used as a public free painting space. Much like the free wall on Kearney Street downtown, anyone can experiment on the File Folder with spray paint without worrying about vandalizing property in town.
Visser said after announcing the RFQ period, she received some feedback from residents concerned they’d be losing their free painting space to the mural project.
“The idea is to sort of renovate it, re-enliven it, get the community’s attention back on its purpose,” Visser said. “It is not intended to take away it as a free wall; it’s intended to just bring something fresh to demonstrate another way that it could be used.”
Visser said, however, the chosen artist will potentially keep an eye on the File Folder going forward to keep the public tagging aesthetically pleasing.
