Cowboy State Daily Video News: Wednesday, June 3, 2026

Cowboy State Daily Video News: Friday, June 19, 2026

It's time to take a look at what's happening around Wyoming for Friday, June 19th. I'm Mac Watson – Data centers with huge power needs are lining up to plug into Wyoming's power grid. Cowboy State Daily's Renee Jean reports that regulators, utilities and lawmakers are wrestling with how to serve massive electric loads without spiking rates for regular consumers. "As Senator Case put it to me, it's like comparing Earth to Jupiter, the kind of loads that we used to deal with versus what we're looking at, it's Earth to Jupiter, orders of magnitude different. so into all that matrix comes Senator Lummis. She is pushing a federal fix to, you know, ensure that data centers can connect in a reasonable timeframe to the grid and get the transmission that they need. Does this kind of federalize the grid when it comes to data centers, so is that bypassing local control? Senator Case told me, well, that has implications, you know." Wyoming exports roughly 12 times more power than it uses, a fact regularly touted by data centers planning to build in the Cowboy State, who suggest their projects will help keep more of that power at home. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/18/wyoming-wrestles-with-unprecedented-power-demand-from-massive-data-centers/]. – The Drug Enforcement Administration has installed license plate cameras on or around the Wind River Reservation, authorities confirmed Thursday. Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland reports that Sen. Cale Case calls it "somewhat '1984'-ish." "The BIA finally confirms, 'Look, it wasn't us.' The DA, the Drug Enforcement Administration, has an agreement with the tribes, and so my efforts over the past several months to get the tribes to comment have been futile, but Senator Cale Case, at a committee meeting on Tuesday, said this is the growing surveillance state. In an interview Thursday, he said, 'This is 1984 ish.' that doesn't mean everyone within the tribe agrees, but the statements, the public statements, have been that the tribal governments entered into an agreement with the DEA to put these up." Sen. Case added that the installation of the camera is "a big step in our surveillance society." Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/18/license-plate-readers-at-entrances-to-wind-river-reservation-spark-controversy/] – John Bear, one of the most powerful members of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus, has a GOP challenger for his Gillette House district. Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland reports challenger Doug Moore says the difference between him and his opponent is he doesn't see himself "being a career politician." "So you got Doug Moore, who works in the coal sector, who's a business owner, longtime resident of Gillette, and you've got John Baer, who also has has backed the coal industry and has been a budget hawk in the legislature. So, looking at these two men, I asked Doug, like, 'What's the differences? Are you going to join the Freedom Caucus?' Because John Baer is a big Freedom Caucus, a big voice for the Freedom Caucus, and Doug Moore said, 'No.' He feels that the Freedom Caucus derives too much direction from its national umbrella entity, and he said he wants to represent the people." Bear countered Moore's statement with "I am the only conservative in this race." Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/18/john-bear-one-of-the-freedom-caucus-most-powerful-members-has-a-challenger/] – A man in Yellowstone who was caught stepping illegally onto a fragile hot spring could get jail time and a hefty fine when park rangers catch up to him. Cowboy State Daily's Andrew Rossi reports that a visitor who posted a photo of the trespasser said, "Don't be this guy." "When Yellowstone catches someone in the act of thermal trespass, they impose fines and even jail time as a way to deter people from repeating the behavior, from straying off the boardwalk, from stepping on the fragile thermal features, because it protects themselves from serious injury or even potentially death, and it protects the fragile landscape, so everyone can enjoy it, but apparently all the fines and jail time and signs and boardwalks aren't enough to stop people, as was evidenced by this person who was caught stepping onto the very fragile terraces at Mammoth Hot Spring, looking for what I can only assume to be a better selfie." Earlier this year, 50-year-old Eric Bedient was sentenced to five days in jail [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/04/10/texas-man-gets-jail-for-leaving-trail-of-footprints-on-yellowstone-hot-springs/] for walking directly across Canary Spring, Mound Terrace, Palette Hot Spring, and Jupiter Terrace at Mammoth Hot Springs in November 2025. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/18/dont-be-this-guy-yellowstone-selfie-seeker-steps-illegally-onto-hot-spring/] – I'll have more news from Cowboy State Daily right after this. Cowboy State Daily News continues now…. – A long-awaited speed test to see whether Wyoming pronghorn are faster than Africa's cheetahs was a bust. Cowboy State Daily's Mark Heinz reports that a buck and a doe antelope were captured this spring near Pinedale by Wyoming Game and Fish researchers, with the animals outfitted with high-tech speed tracking collars and set loose. "They went through all this and everybody was excited, and the darned antelope never got the, I think, the buck that his fastest speed was 27 miles an hour, and it's, it is because what they were hoping for is after they were captured and messed with and set free, they take off running really fast, they didn't, I mean, they went like 20 miles an hour, which, you know, it's probably like a trot for an antelope. for the rest of the two or three hour testing period, they were just wandering around." Officials are hoping to do another test in the winter with the challenge being how to nudge the pronghorn into an all-out sprint, without unnecessarily harassing or stressing them. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/18/ultimate-test-wyoming-antelope-vs-african-cheetah-to-see-which-animal-is-faster/]. – George Mocsary, a firearms law expert, says the U.S. Supreme Court's Thursday opinion upholding a marijuana user's right to keep a gun is important for Wyoming. Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland reports that Mocsary says "the case is ultimately about whether government can take away a constitutional right." "I was asking him about this law, and he's like, this is bigger than marijuana, or I was asking him about this case, you know, and he said, this is bigger than marijuana. Firstly, guns are part of our everyday life here in Wyoming, but secondly, if the government can just kind of create a broad category untethered from specific showings of danger for that person in that category, then who's next? I mean, I'm paraphrasing, but that's kind of the indication he gave." A federal law bars habitual users of unlawful drugs from knowingly possessing guns. People convicted under that law can face 15 years in prison and lose their carry rights for life. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/18/firearms-expert-says-supreme-court-marijuana-case-important-for-wyoming-gun-owners/]. – Wyoming's congressional delegation says they don't support a Democrat bill that bans the sale of large swaths of federal lands. Cowboy State Daily's Mark Heinz reports that Rep. Harriet Hageman says she opposes any effort that threatens our Western way of life. "Senator Cynthia Lummis, Senator John Barrasso, and Representative Harriet Hagman, all oppose this. They say it's, it's kind of a devil in disguise bill that they see it just causing more problems and causing more federal control and less public access to Wyoming's public lands. I also talked to some Wyoming conservationists who are at least from what they can tell kind of like what they know of the bill so far." The lead bill is H.R. 9176, the Public Lands Integrity Act, introduced to the House earlier this month by Rep. Gabe Vasquez, D-New Mexico. A mirror bill was introduced in the Senate by Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colorado. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/18/hageman-barrasso-wont-support-democrat-bill-to-stop-federal-land-sales/] – For 15 years, Steve Braithwaite has driven a 23-foot banana across the country. Cowboy State Daily's Kolby Fedore reports that on Wednesday, just like hundreds of times before, he was pulled over by law enforcement. "Steve Braithwaite was pulled over in Billings, Montana by a highway patrol trooper. The trooper said that his luggage on the back was covering up his license plate, but Braithwaite claims this happens all the time. He says he is one of the most pulled over men in America. He believes that law enforcement officers are just, just trying to get a closer look at his banana car. He's been driving this car for over 12 years. He got started because he was an antique car collector, and he says that he got bored going to the old car shows. When he was standing in the gas station line, he noticed a banana, and it wasn't curved like a regular banana, it was straight, and that got the wheels turning, and he began to think about how he would make an automobile out of a piece of fruit." Braithwaite tells Cowboy State Daily that he's driving from his native Michigan to Seattle, Washington with his goal to reach all 50 states in his banana car. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/18/giant-banana-pulled-over-in-montana-driver-says-cops-have-stopped-him-100s-of-times/] — And that's today's news. Get your free digital subscription to Wyoming's only statewide newspaper by hitting the Daily Newsletter button on Cowboy State Daily Dot Com [https://cowboystatedaily.com/] - and you can watch this newscast every day by clicking Subscribe on our YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMZ6-7-Nv-0ycvqgTIttIFQ] channel, or listen to us on your favorite podcast app. Thanks for watching - I'm Mac Watson, for Cowboy State Daily.

Cowboy State Daily Video News: Wednesday, June 17, 2026

It's time to take a look at what's happening around Wyoming for Wednesday, June 17th. I'm Mac Watson – A federal judge in Montana has thrown out more than 1.5 million acres of Wyoming oil and gas leases sold under the Trump administration. Cowboy State Daily's Renee Jean reports that's forced the state to return $50 million in payments. "Why is this case involving one and a half million acres of Wyoming oil and gas leases being heard in Montana and the and the answer, according to the oil and gas industry here in Wyoming, that I talked to, is these environmentalists have discovered a friendly judge in Montana who has ruled against oil and gas now three times on this issue, and so they're venue shopping. So, this group waited like years before bringing this suit, and finally they bring this suit. Well, some of these oil and gas leases have already been developed and are producing oil. They waited that long that some of these are already producing oil. It's enormously destructive to the industry." The decision, issued by Chief Judge Brian Morris out of the U.S. District Court of Montana on June 12th, is sparking outrage in the oil and gas community. It's the third time the Obama appointee has ruled against the U.S. Department of the Interior over the protection of sage-grouse habitat. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/16/montana-judge-tosses-1-5m-acres-of-wyoming-oil-and-gas-leases-costs-state-50m/] – Gov. Mark Gordon on Tuesday sued his tax board for refusing to recognize a 4% limit on property tax increases. Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland reports that the governor says the board exceeded its law-given authority, and the executive branch's job is just to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed." "The Wyoming Board of Equalization last week told they issued a public report that was also kind of notice to assessors, like, hey, this 4% cap on property tax increases from year to year looks unconstitutional. It's got these crazy results, and we're not going to certify your tax values if that's in the calculation. and so assessors were scrambling last week, like, how do we deal with this? Whom do we obey, state law or the board that has the duty to certify the taxes? And so Governor Gordon on Tuesday was like, let's just ask a court to settle this, so he filed a motion in court for the court to block the board's non-certification, and for the court to settle the issue. The constitutional dispute." Gov. Gordon also asked the court to block the actions of the State Board of Equalization. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/16/gordon-sues-his-tax-board-to-stop-it-from-blocking-property-tax-cap/]. – With its stark white feathers and red eyes, what Audubon Rockies says looks like a rare 1-in-30,000 albino robin has been hanging out in the yard of a Cheyenne-area couple. Cowboy State Daily's Kolby Fedore reports that the homeowner says "It's following its mother around and begging for food." "Heather Wiseman lives outside of Cheyenne. She says by day she's an X-ray technician, and at night she's become something of an amateur bird watcher, so she was really excited when she came home and she found a white robin, which has since been confirmed to be an albino bird. According to Zach Hutchinson, the community science director with Audubon of the Rockies, when albinism shows up in birds like robins, they will be all white or partially white, but the key is that you'll notice they have pink eyes, and in this Robins case, it does have those signs." Heather and Eric Wiseman tell Cowboy State Daily that they've been keeping tabs on a snow-white fledgling robin with pink-red eyes since it first appeared in their yard June 6th. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/16/rare-1-in-30-000-albino-robin-hangs-out-in-yard-of-cheyenne-area-couple/]. – Wyoming's attorney general on Tuesday said he appointed two prosecutors to investigate whether Secretary of State Chuck Gray violated any laws by releasing sensitive voter data to the federal government. But Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland reports that neither decided to charge Gray with a crime. "George Powers filed a writ of mandamus, telling the court, hey, I don't think the AG is doing what he's supposed to be doing here. Can you make him, can you get a special prosecutor, High Court, and get this investigation going? Well, the AG fired back Tuesday, saying we already got two special prosecutors, and neither of them wants to charge Chuck Gray. So the high court now can decide whether George Power's writ of mandamus petition is moot, meaning irrelevant, and I suppose George Powers can look at his options." In April, George Powers, a semi-retired attorney based in Cheyenne, filed an official complaint with the AG's office accusing Gray of violating a state election law. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/16/ag-says-prosecutors-declined-to-charge-chuck-gray-with-a-crime/] – I'll have more news from Cowboy State Daily right after this. Cowboy State Daily News continues now…. – Rail Tie, one of Wyoming's most controversial wind projects, got a new five-year extension from Albany County on Tuesday. Cowboy State Daily's Kate Meadows reports that the lone commissioner who voted against the extension says the company is "fishing to keep the project alive." "The Albany County commissioners voted two to one today to extend a permit for work on the Rail Tie wind project south of Laramie. The project has been controversial, it's on 26,000 acres and would generate 504 megawatts of wind energy. However, it's another big wind project. There are opponents arguing that it would play into this wind wall that we've been hearing about, the Wyoming wind wall, where all these big wind projects are connecting to each other in southeastern Wyoming, and kind of creating this massive wind farm." The vote allows developers to continue work on the 504-megawatt facility proposed on roughly 26,000 acres about 15 miles south of Laramie. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/16/albany-county-extends-permit-for-rail-tie-wind-project-despite-opposition/] – Hundreds of swallows are swarming and nesting in Angie Pitts' lean-to in Mountain View. Cowboy State Daily's Andrew Rossi reports that she didn't mind until she saw the bird droppings covering her vehicles, which she describes as "gross." "In two weeks, it looks like all of her vehicles have been painted with white polka dots, and she's not particularly happy about it. Unfortunately, there's not a lot you can do. One thing she has been told to do, but has refused to – which is wise – because it's illegal, is to pull out the .22 and deal with the swallows that way. And while that's a very Wyoming solution to the problem, it is illegal to shoot swallows or do anything to disturb them while they're nesting, both by state and federal law." When Pitts pulled out her GMC pickup, she was "disgusted" by the number of bird droppings. Her red truck was so thoroughly covered, from hood to tailgate, that it looked as if she had painted it with white polka dots, but was quickly cleaned up with soap, water, and a pressure washer. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/16/cody-fire-department-back-in-stampede-parade-allowed-to-throw-water-balloons/] – After years of watching lawn chairs and coolers appear earlier and earlier along the Rodeo parade route, the Sheridan City Council on Monday banned people claiming spots too early. Cowboy State Daily's Kate Meadows reports the police chief says this has been a problem for years. "Police Chief Travis Kultiska has been asking residents for years to please set up just one day before the parade, rather than, you know, three or four days before, and he said rather than people complying, the problem seemed to get worse, where people were showing up earlier to claim their spots, and more people were showing up, so he felt like he had no choice but to approach the city council and ask for a resolution." The new rule prohibits anyone from placing personal property on public sidewalks, streets or alleyways along the parade route before 5 p.m. the day before the parade unless they receive authorization from the city. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/15/wyoming-game-and-fish-kills-bighorns-that-wandered-into-cheyenne/]. – A nonprofit in Mills is training dogs to interrupt military veterans' PTSD attacks. Cowboy State Daily's Dale Killingbeck reports that veteran Carol Salveson says after she lost her Green Beret son to suicide, she poured herself into a new mission. "She's a former Air Force, a veteran Air Force weather person, but when her son, a Green Beret, committed suicide, she decided she was going to train dogs. She just felt like I'm going to do this, and she started doing it on her own to help veterans. And then she found this organization, Project Kenny, which was started on the West Coast, and now it's centered in Casper, and she is their dog trainer, certified dog trainer." Salveson, who has always been a dog person, said her son also loved dogs and even when deployed to Afghanistan would find a feral dog to adopt. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/16/wyoming-group-trains-dogs-to-interrupt-veterans-ptsd-attacks/] — And that's today's news. Get your free digital subscription to Wyoming's only statewide newspaper by hitting the Daily Newsletter button on Cowboy State Daily Dot Com [https://cowboystatedaily.com/] - and you can watch this newscast every day by clicking Subscribe on our YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMZ6-7-Nv-0ycvqgTIttIFQ] channel, or listen to us on your favorite podcast app. Thanks for watching - I'm Mac Watson, for Cowboy State Daily.

Cowboy State Daily Radio News: Tuesday, June 16, 2026

It's time to take a look at what's happening around Wyoming for Tuesday, June 16th. I'm Mac Watson – Wyoming's coal sector is startled at Republican candidates who oppose data centers. Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland reports that industry leaders say the revival of coal is largely due to projected demand for energy from data centers. "It's an interesting issue in Republican politics, because you have a lot of Republicans in Wyoming that are saying, 'Whoa, slow down or stop the data centers, particularly on agricultural land.' So, we're an energy state and we're an ag state, so that's I think we find a little the divergence, because you have people, Republicans in ranch country in particular, who have concerns about water pollution, other things, and yeah, that's that's the divide is usually Republicans are pro energy, but if it's an issue for ranch owners, then all of a sudden you're going to see those fractures." President Donald Trump has touted the sector's expansion as part of a coal industry revival [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/04/trump-sending-700-million-to-coal-industry-including-wyoming-coal-plant/], and part of beating China in a technology advancement race. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/15/coal-industry-frustrated-with-gop-candidates-who-want-to-kill-data-centers/]. – A Wyoming man named Aron Snyder confirms he's the person seen tossing, kicking and stabbing a coyote in a video. Cowboy State Daily's Mark Heinz reports that Snyder admits the video is "a very bad optic," and apologized in a weekend social media post. "He said, as he recalls, somewhere around 2019-2020 they were hunting coyotes on a Texas ranch, or somewhere thereabouts, and and that's when the when the events in that video transpired, and you know, in a video statement that he put up on social media, he said he understood that it was a bad optic, and he also said he found no fault or had no quarrel with the company that he'd worked for, which is a primitive outdoors, it's a clothing and gear company, but they, they announced that they had terminated him." Cowboy State Daily reached out to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, asking if the department is investigating the incident depicted in the coyote-killing video. TPWD law enforcement spokeswoman Maggie Berger promptly responded with an email saying the department would check into it. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/15/a-very-bad-optic-wyoming-man-apologizes-for-controversial-coyote-killing-video/] – Despite calls to delay or deny a 3,500-acre annexation for Microsoft data centers, Cheyenne's Public Services Committee narrowly recommended approval Monday. Cowboy State Daily's Renee Jean reports that a councilman urged them to postpone to give the city time to negotiate a $50 million agreement. "The most notable thing today was Councilman Larry Wolf's proposal to create a community benefit agreement. He called for the public service committee to postpone or even recommend denial of the annexation of Microsoft until the city has a chance to negotiate a $50 million community benefit agreement, his idea would be that money would be used for permanent improvements to Cheyenne, the city would consult with Microsoft, but would ultimately be the sole decider of what to do with that money." Despite Wolfe's push, the PSC voted 2-1 to recommend annexation of the 3,500-acre property to the full council, along with zoning changes and future land-use map changes. Councilman Pete Laybourn cast the lone "no" vote on these measures, which will be before the Cheyenne City Council at its next meeting June 22. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/15/cheyenne-committee-backs-microsoft-annexation-while-councilman-pushes-50m-deal/] – A group of young men is suing the Wyoming Boys' School claiming they were attacked, confined in a chair, and made to wear a mask. Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland reports one security guard is alleged to have said, "The best part of the chair is watching the kids cry and scream." "What you have right now are two very different accounts of what's going on. You have the logs from the Wyoming Boys School, where staffers are saying these boys were attacking people, destroying property, being threatening, causing this problem. That's why he was restrained. That's why he was placed in detainment. That's why he was placed under a special status. And you have the boys coming back and saying here are areas where this restraint or detainment was completely excessive. Here's where the cameras don't support the video, doesn't support what the state is saying, and so where what you have is kind of a factual clash, and the federal judge needs to decide whether it's enough of a factual clash to send this case to trial." Three men — Blaise Chivers-King, Charles "Rees" Karn, and Dylan Tolar — sued the Wyoming Department of Family Services [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2024/04/30/wyoming-boys-school-denies-it-beats-humiliates-and-confines-teens/], the Wyoming Boys' School in Worland, and 10 former and current employees in 2024. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/15/court-filings-say-wyoming-boys-school-staffers-restrained-attacked-boys/] – I'll have more news from Cowboy State Daily right after this. Cowboy State Daily News continues now…. – A Minnesota man says a stranger spent years building a life in Wyoming using his identity, earning more than $500,000, fathering a child and leaving Martin Almendarez owing child support. Cowboy State Daily's Kolby Fedore reports that Almendarez says "I don't even know him nor have I ever been to Wyoming." "For years Martin Almendarez has been struggling with someone using his identity to earn income that they don't pay taxes on, and last week he learned from the IRS that they were going to start garnishing his wages for income that he didn't receive. Also, he learned that he owes child support for a child that he never had. Almendarez was finally able to get a hold of police in Gillette, and they were able to make an arrest, which gave him great relief last week when 45-year-old Jose Reyes was taken into custody." According to Gillette PD, Reyes faces four counts of unauthorized use of someone's personal identity. He's currently being held at the Campbell County Detention Center on a $500,000 cash-only bond. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/12/investigation-launched-in-graphic-coyote-torture-video-allegedly-shot-in-wyoming/]. – A pair of young bighorn sheep rams that wandered into Cheyenne were killed by Wyoming wildlife officials. However, one biologist and wildlife researcher says it's not necessary. Outdoors Reporter Mark Heinz reports that Jack States says they should be quarantined instead. "Game and Fish made the decision to go ahead and euthanize those rams, and they donated the meat. I think it went to the First Lady's kind of food pantry program, but the reason those sheep were killed was because of disease risk. Anytime sheep wander into a settled area like that, there's the chance they might interact with domestic sheep or goats, and they can pick up a lot of pathogens, the chief of which is pneumonia, which can be really hard on wild sheep herds." While bighorn sheep are hardy enough to survive Wyoming's worst weather in its roughest terrain, they are highly susceptible to disease. Pneumonia outbreaks, sometimes transmitted from domestic sheep, can be bighorn conservationists' worst nightmare. In some cases, entire herds are nearly wiped out. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/15/wyoming-game-and-fish-kills-bighorns-that-wandered-into-cheyenne/]. – A first-of-its-kind renewable natural gas facility under construction in central Nebraska will convert cattle manure into pipeline-quality natural gas from the cow waste produced by a huge feedlot. Cowboy State Daily's Kate Meadows reports that leaders are saying this project could benefit Wyoming ranchers and farmers. "There's a lot of excitement over this agricultural renewable energy project in Nebraska with Neogenics and the partner with this feed lot. It's a newer project for them. Jim Magagna with the Wyoming Stock Growers Association said a project like this will probably be more beneficial for the ranchers and farmers who use the land, who have the land for this, than the actual production of energy. We have lots of natural gas, but this could create an additional revenue source for ranchers and farmers who are struggling in a very tight cattle market." The project will capture methane produced by decomposing livestock manure and convert it into renewable natural gas, or RNG, that can be injected directly into existing natural gas pipelines. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/15/nothing-goes-to-waste-nebraska-builds-plant-to-turn-cow-manure-into-natural-gas/] – So far, nobody's claimed a renegade Russian tortoise found wandering around in Thermopolis's Riverside Cemetery. Cowboy State Daily's Andrew Rossi reports that the cemetery worker who found it says "I'm hoping someone didn't abandon it, because that's not cool." "Tortoises are common pets in Wyoming, even though there are no tortoises native to Wyoming. So, in this instance, it seems a Russian tortoise was found in Riverside Cemetery in Thermopolis. Nobody knows how it got there, and more intriguingly, nobody's claimed it. There are a lot of people who want to claim it, who want to take care of it, and it has found a good foster home that could become its forever home." The last native Wyoming tortoise died millions of years ago, so the cemetery worker who found the tortoise knew he was dealing with a tortoise on the lam. He picked up the tiny tortoise, which was less than six inches long, and gave it a safe space to munch on some lettuce. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/15/i-saw-something-moving-renegade-russian-tortoise-found-in-thermopolis-cemetery/] — And that's today's news. Get your free digital subscription to Wyoming's only statewide newspaper by hitting the Daily Newsletter button on Cowboy State Daily Dot Com [https://cowboystatedaily.com/] - and you can watch this newscast every day by clicking Subscribe on our YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMZ6-7-Nv-0ycvqgTIttIFQ] channel, or listen to us on your favorite podcast app. Thanks for watching - I'm Mac Watson, for Cowboy State Daily.

Cowboy State Daily Radio News: Monday, June 15, 2026

It's time to take a look at what's happening around Wyoming for Monday, June 15th. I'm Mac Watson – Wyoming lawmakers Friday vowed to rework the Food Freedom Act after months of controversy at small-time food producers and family-owned shops. Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland reports that business owner Mark Nelson who owns the Hippy Cow Creamery says he was ordered to stop selling raw milk lattes. "He was describing these Catch-22's, where he could get a commercial food license, but then he'd still have to pasteurize milk, and he can create raw milk lattes in his home kitchen, which is a few feet away from what they consider his commercial kitchen, because it's a professional grade latte machine, and so he was talking about all these just weird little catches in the law were with some inconvenience and some trouble, you could sell these lattes under very similar circumstances. Several lawmakers talked about wanting to perfect and discuss and develop bills that Representative Steve Johnson brought to expand the Food Freedom Act." Nelson tells Cowboy State Daily that to survive the huge setback in business from losing the latte sales include installing a $20,000 ADA-compliant bathroom at the shop even though there's another ADA-complaint bathroom "literally 65 feet away." Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/14/legislators-take-aim-at-closing-wyoming-food-freedom-loopholes-to-help-sellers/] – Wyoming business owners say they are leaving a lot of money on the table because they can't fill open jobs, forcing them to turn away customers and reduce hours. Cowboy State Daily's Renee Jean reports that one owner says he keeps banging his head against the wall, trying to come up with a solution. "The labor crunch is so tight in Wyoming, people are doing things that are unheard of, you know. This guy with Ranch Eats, he's not only got health insurance for his employees, that's 100% employer paid, but he's also offering a 401 k plan with a 4% match on top of that, and then you know he has an employee of the quarter program, you get a $250 bonus, plus a limousine trip. Wyoming loses 70% of its of the people who are in their 30s. They've lost 70% of those by then. By the time people reach 30, 70% will leave the state and go somewhere else. That's the highest, pretty much in the country." With too few workers to go around, businesses have been quietly curtailing their hours on what seem like odd days — Tuesday and Wednesday — and billing that as "new summer hours." Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/13/from-cafes-to-clinics-wyomings-labor-crunch-is-holding-the-economy-back/] – The Wyoming Game and Fish Department is investigating a graphic video where an alleged Wyoming man tortures a seemingly wounded coyote. Outdoors Reporter Mark Heinz reports that the video was sent to Cowboy State Daily by a private investigator who says he also sent it to Game and Fish. "There's allegations that a person who is reportedly from Wyoming was videoed grabbing what appears to be a wounded coyote by a tail, pulling it out from underneath a bush, throwing it, the thing tries to run, but can't really run, because apparently it's been wounded. Guy runs up to it, kicks it in the head, pulls out a knife, stabs it. A private investigator sent this information out to Cowboy State Daily, to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, to agencies and animal rights groups. Game and Fish did confirm that they are investigating something in connection to that incident, because it's an active investigation, they can't offer any information." Game and Fish Spokeswoman Amanda Fry confirms that the department is investigating the alleged incident. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/12/investigation-launched-in-graphic-coyote-torture-video-allegedly-shot-in-wyoming/]. – A detective was about to fly to Wisconsin to arrest the lead suspect in the 32-year cold case of a woman whose nude body was dumped along I-80 when he got the news the suspect was dead. Cowboy State Daily's Jen Kocher reports that authorities zeroed in on Roger L. Dirkey as the alleged killer, but they were too late. "Investigators believe that Roger L Durkee is responsible for murdering the former Jane Doe Shafter Jane Doe, who has since been ID as Marion Alexander. so the investigators from the Elko County, Nevada Sheriff's Office were a week or so away from flying out to Milwaukee to actually arrest Dirkey. While they're making their travel plans to go out there, they learned that he had died. For all practical purposes, they thought he was alive because he wasn't showing up dead in the databases, so there was some glitch between when he died and his getting entered in the Wisconsin Vital Services, so as they're making these plans, they learned that he actually had died, and they got it confirmed. His DNA was the likely match of DNA found on her body. And then they had other evidence too." Authorities say during the investigation, they found that he had searched nearly 90 Google searches for Shafter Jane Doe, that was one strong piece of evidence in the investigators' minds. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/14/after-32-years-suspected-shafter-jane-doe-killer-avoided-justice-by-dying/]. – I'll have more news from Cowboy State Daily right after this. Cowboy State Daily News continues now…. – Steer wrestlers raised money last week for the Montana woman who lost her hand in a rodeo accident. Cowboy State Daily's Kate Meadows reports that the woman's husband, who is the Montana State rodeo coach, says, "It's pretty neat that a college kid could organize something like that." "Jaden Whitman and his older brother were driving home from a rodeo in Washington state when they started talking about what they could possibly do to help the Whitaker family. So he texted his coach to see if that would be okay, and Coach Kyle Whitaker responded and said yes. He told Cowboy State Daily that he was just almost choked up that he couldn't believe that a college student would come up with an idea like that." The Presley Whitaker Benefit Steer Wrestling Jackpot happened last weekend in Whitehall, Montana, raising nearly $40,000, mostly to help cover Presley's mounting medical bills. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/14/steer-wrestlers-rally-to-raise-40-000-for-woman-who-lost-hand-in-rodeo-accident/] – Sgt. Zach Burns remains in critical condition after being shot multiple times by a gunman in Baggs on Monday. Cowboy State Daily's Greg Johnson reports that the mayor says people reacted immediately and like heroes. "This deputy was already around town, so as soon as the call came in. He was there and got shot several times, and it seems that he probably owes his life to a couple of local business owners who have businesses right close. They rushed over, and from what the mayor was telling me, there was a lot of blood, and that they acted quickly to try to stop that, to slow that down until EMS got there, and EMS also got there very, very quickly." A deputy being shot, coupled with a high-speed chase and shootout with the suspect, is enough to make Monday one of the darkest days in the 116-year history of the tiny town of 411 people. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/12/deputy-shot-in-baggs-saved-by-quick-acting-residents/]. – Divers who plunge the depths of the Colorado River and Flaming Gorge Reservoir find all kinds of treasure, from antique six-shooters to cellphones. Cowboy State Daily's Dale Killingbeck reports that one woman burst into tears when given her phone back that had her grandchild's birth video on it. "He found this part of a two-mile stretch on the Colorado River below the Hoover Dam. He said that he just happened to dive one time, and he started finding wallets and different things, and so he said, 'Hey, this is great, you know? It makes diving exciting.' So he started talking it up with others, and now every Saturday, pretty much they go and dive that stretch of the river. And like three years ago, he found a six shooter that was in its holster, rusted, and he believes it was down there for at least 10 years." Tony "Gunner" Pierce of Provo, Utah and his diving partner, Ken Wige, who is from Las Vegas, are advocates for diving in the West and enjoy rallying people to different spots from Wyoming to Utah and Idaho year-round to explore what is going on underneath the surface of reservoirs, rivers, and lakes. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/13/six-shooters-and-cellphones-divers-find-all-kids-of-treasure-in-colorado-river/] – Longtime Yellowstone RV travelers David and Jennifer Sinclair were leaving a gas station in Canada when the front bumper of their truck tore off while being towed. Cowboy State Daily's Andrew Rossi reports that a video of them dragging the bumper down the road has been viewed millions of times. "They were driving the RV when the incident happened. No one was in the pickup truck, but someone else spotted them going down the highway, and it went viral based on that, because they were dragging a bumper down the highway and nothing else. But they said that they were aware of what happened. Within a minute, someone flagged them. I think the same person who took the video flagged them, they pulled off, they recognized what happened, they recovered their pickup truck, and nobody was harmed, and thankfully they were at a stoplight when the whole thing happened." Fortunately for the couple, the motorhome was stopped at an intersection when the tow base broke off. Sinclair said it "could have been much worse if it failed in motion." Unfortunately, they didn't notice and kept driving, leaving their front bumper-less truck sitting in the middle of the road. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/13/oh-no-full-time-rv-couple-lose-truck-when-front-bumper-tears-off-while-towed/] — And that's today's news. Get your free digital subscription to Wyoming's only statewide newspaper by hitting the Daily Newsletter button on Cowboy State Daily Dot Com [https://cowboystatedaily.com/] - and you can watch this newscast every day by clicking Subscribe on our YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMZ6-7-Nv-0ycvqgTIttIFQ] channel, or listen to us on your favorite podcast app. Thanks for watching - I'm Mac Watson, for Cowboy State Daily.

Cowboy State Daily Radio News: Friday, June 12, 2026

It's time to take a look at what's happening around Wyoming for Friday, June 12th. I'm Mac Watson – A Denver man was found dead near a capsized kayak on Yellowstone Lake, park officials announced Thursday. Cowboy State Daily's Kolby Fedore reports that a former park ranger, who patrolled the lake, says certain factors make the lake dangerous year round. "Former Yellowstone park ranger Tara Ross said that what makes this lake extremely dangerous is very cold temperatures and wild winds. Ross said the water hovers between 40 and 50 degrees, even in the summertime, so if someone does go in the water, and they're unable to self-rescue, as in get back into the kayak and out of the water. They may only have 10 minutes, generously up to 20 minutes, before rescuers will be recovering a body. Park officials say that the man recovered was from Denver, and he was 41 years old." According to Yellowstone National Park officials, occupants of another vessel on the lake discovered the body of Brandon Rhea on Monday floating near Rock Point on the lake's northwest shore near Bridge Bay. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/11/body-of-denver-man-recovered-from-yellowstone-lake-near-capsized-kayak/] – Wyoming's state-level property tax board told counties on Thursday that a 4% cap on yearly increases in residential property taxes is unconstitutional. Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland reports it will also refuse to certify this year's property tax assessment figures if the cap remains. "So, they're saying, 'Whoa, we've got homes in sluggish market areas that are being taxed way less of a rate than homes that look exactly the same that are in faster growing areas.' And so, according to the board, this violates the women constitutions call for equal and uniform taxation, and so they're saying, 'Hey, if you county assessors keep allowing this 4% cap, we're gonna not certify the tax values this year,' which would mean you couldn't collect on property taxes. Dixie Huxtable, who's the Converse County Assessor, and speaks out for the Assessors Association often said, 'I don't think anyone's getting a tax holiday. We're gonna figure out what our legal options here are and decide what to do.'" The board's two-person majority — Chair Jayne Mockler and Vice-Chair Marty Hardscog — wrote in the Thursday report that the 4% increase cap for residential property taxes has arbitrary impacts across the state. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/11/wyoming-tax-board-says-it-wont-accept-4-limit-on-property-tax-increases/] – The Clinton-era Roadless Rule on U.S. Forest Service lands will be erased if Wyoming Republicans U.S. Sen. John Barrasso and Rep. Harriet Hageman get their way. Cowboy State Daily's Mark Heinz reports Rep. Harriet Hageman says, "I have been fighting the Roadless Rule since the day it was handed down." "The Trump administration has already been pushing for this. Now Congress has stepped in. Senator Mike Lee of Utah added an amendment to a wildfire prevention bill that Senator Barrasso was already sponsoring, and that that amendment would just nullify the roadless rule, like Trump is trying to rescind it now. Congress is essentially trying to nullify it, and Congresswoman Hagman has a mirror bill to nullify it coming out of the House, so, so basically the roadless rule is facing a double threat from both the the the administration and the legislative branch, which, if you're if you're against it and you want to see it gone, that's good news. If you want to see it preserved, that's bad news." The Roadless Rule has forbidden new road construction on national forests across Wyoming's high country. It also similarly prevented new road construction on 45 million acres of national forest lands across the West, and up to 60 million acres nationwide. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/11/amended-barrasso-bill-would-erase-clinton-era-roadless-rule/]. – A letter to Republican candidates for Park County partisan offices, has a warning for candidates. Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland reports that the letter states that if a potential candidate won't commit to back at least 80% of the state GOP platform, they won't receive an endorsement or support from the party. "People have been saying that the party is developing a purity test. The proponents of this questionnaire, which basically asks if you agree with each party platform playing, the proponents are saying this is not a purity test, you know, organizations have standards, and the opponents are saying it absolutely is a purity test, and it's just the organization trying to perpetuate its ideals onto the next leaders of it. But, like, Sandy Newsom said, they can't take me off the ballot, she's running for precinct committee woman there in the Park County Republican Party, just like they can't take us off the ballot, so the people in my precinct are going to be the judge of how Republican I am." The state GOP passed a set of new bylaws in April which requires county and state committee iterations of the party to vet candidates for office on their commitment to the platform and "demonstrated loyalty to the Party's principles." Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/11/park-county-republican-party-sends-platform-loyalty-tests-to-gop-candidates/]. – I'll have more news from Cowboy State Daily right after this. Cowboy State Daily News continues now…. – The first job for Union Pacific's new Trump-themed locomotive No. 4547 took it through Wyoming carrying the Artemis III rocket. Cowboy State Daily's Renee Jean reports that nobody except railroad watchers noticed. "Stan Blake, who is a retired railroad guy, tells me what they're doing there is they're buffering the rail, the rocket pieces by separating them with a car that will have been loaded with inert material. So, those weren't empty, they were loaded with something, and then they are there to kind of buffer in between each of those rocket cars, and the rings around the first car, those are the size of the rocket cars, the tanks, you know, the pieces of the rocket, so that you know it's clear that I guess to make sure that the clearances are all in order. Wyoming is a particularly good state for crossing because there's plenty of Wyoming with the wide open spaces." In late 2027, four members of the crew for Artemis III will launch aboard an Orion spacecraft. It's a demonstration flight in a low Earth orbit that will test rendezvous and docking operations between Orion and test versions of the Human Landing System being developed by Blue Origin and SpaceX. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/11/new-trump-locomotive-no-4547-rolls-through-wyoming-carrying-artemis-iii-rocket/] – Public backlash against a reported kill order may have saved a bison that killed a woman in Custer State Park last month. Cowboy State Daily's Kate Meadows reports that advocates for the Bison say he was acting within his wild nature on his home turf when he killed the 70-year-old Canadian tourist. "The Bison who killed a 70 year old woman last month got a stay of execution this week after public backlash. People were acting on rumors that the state had planned to put this bison down or euthanize it because of the of the bison's actions with this woman and a lot of people were saying, you know, this this animal, he's it's wild and it acted, you know, appropriately given that it was really roaming on its own turf. But the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Game Fish and Parks confirmed that they are taking custody of this bison and that the bison will live out the rest of his days on the Rosebud Reservation, which is outside of Custer State Park." The South Dakota Governor's Office did not confirm whether a kill order had been placed on the bison, nor did the South Dakota Game, Fish, and Parks Department. Read the full story HERE [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/11/bison-escapes-possible-death-sentence-after-killing-woman-in-custer-state-park/]. – Crusoe, a founding partner in the huge 2.7-gigawatt Project Jade data center near Cheyenne, quietly pulled out months ago. Cowboy State Daily's Renee Jean reports that hasn't slowed the project, which is going "full steam ahead," according to remaining partner Tallgrass Energy. "Project Jade never missed a beat, they didn't pause for a minute, they just kept right on going. They're now working directly with the data center client, which it hasn't been officially announced yet, and so there's been no pause, there's no lost time, they're still on track for what they're planning to do there, and you know it's a massive, massive project. 2.7 gigawatts, that's almost three times the energy that Wyoming, as a state, uses." Crusoe, the company that was constructing the buildings for the massive data center, packed up its stuff and left. The exit happened quickly and quietly, without the fanfare of press releases and company statements that had preceded the project. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/11/partner-pulling-out-doesnt-slow-huge-2-7gw-cheyenne-project-jade-data-center/] – Canada's favorite grizzly, called The Boss, has lived a storied life, brawling with other males and surviving getting hit by a train. Cowboy State Daily's Mark Heinz reports that his latest stunt was removing an electronic tracking collar that wildlife agents had just put on him. "We've reported previously on that huge grizzly bear, 700 pound grizzly bear that lives up in Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. They call him 'The Boss.' His latest antic is they collared him on May 13th, and he ditched that collar within a week, and I talked to a photographer that follows the boss very closely, and said, 'Yeah, he did that in true boss fashion. That sounds like that bear.'" The Boss is formally known to researchers as Grizzly 122. His chief rival in Banff is Grizzly 136, called Split Lip. Read the full story HERE. [https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/06/11/police-say-sheridan-couple-accused-of-stealing-fundraiser-donations-from-church/] — And that's today's news. Get your free digital subscription to Wyoming's only statewide newspaper by hitting the Daily Newsletter button on Cowboy State Daily Dot Com [https://cowboystatedaily.com/] - and you can watch this newscast every day by clicking Subscribe on our YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMZ6-7-Nv-0ycvqgTIttIFQ] channel, or listen to us on your favorite podcast app. Thanks for watching - I'm Mac Watson, for Cowboy State Daily.