Wyoming News Briefs

Trial for Cody couple delayed to August for possible plea agreement

CODY (WNE) – The jury trials for the Cody couple charged with abusing their 15-year-old child by putting her in cruel confinement have been delayed until Aug. 7 due to possible plea agreements.

Jacob Wayne Guyer, 38, and Christine Philbrook, 48, were charged separately in 2021, each with one count of child abuse after they allegedly locked the child in a room for several hours a day, under poor living conditions and with little food.

Both Guyer, the child’s father, and Philbrook, her stepmother, pleaded not guilty to the charges on Dec. 21 during their arraignments in Park County District Court. They  were initially scheduled to appear for separate jury trials in April, but both waived their right to a speedy trial in March.

Park County Law Enforcement was dispatched to the home in July of 2021 on a report of property damage, after Guyer said his daughter had knocked a hole in an adjoining wall in order to escape her locked room and find food, the affidavit said.

Park County Patrol Sgt. Phil Johnson described the child’s room as 10 feet by 15 feet. He said the only objects in the room were a sleeping bag, pillow, bag of chips, water bottle, security camera, television and a five-gallon bucket in the corner with a roll of toilet paper, the affidavit said.

According to the affidavit, Johnson said the child looked “emaciated” and  worse than she did several months before when he first met her after she had run away from home. The child told police that after going to school and doing house chores, she was locked in her bedroom until the next morning.

Doctors at Cody Regional Health were concerned that she weighed only 93 pounds, the affidavit said.

Husky shot, killed Sunday for mauling mule deer

JACKSON (WNE) — A Teton County Sheriff’s Office deputy shot and killed a dog that was chasing and mauling deer Sunday afternoon, a first in nearly 20 years for Teton County law enforcement officials.

While Wyoming statute allows law enforcement officers to kill dogs when they injure or threaten big game animals “with immediate injury,” it’s rarely done.

Law enforcement officials who responded Sunday afternoon said the dog’s owner, Alexander Rubin, wasn’t able to regain control of his 2-year-old husky female, Nova, after she started chasing mule deer on High School Butte. Over the course of an hour-and-a-half, the dog mauled two animals before deputies shot her.

Rubin was fined $85 for having an “at- large” dog and cited for allowing his dog to injure wildlife, which can come with a fine of up to $1,000 and up to six months of jail time.

Deputies fined Rubin $150 for that citation.

“It was a really tough position for our deputies to be in,” Teton County Sheriff Matt Carr said. “They did what they had to do and I’m 100% behind the actions that were taken.

Rubin did not return a request for comment before press time Monday.

“We support the decision that was made,” said Mark Gocke, spokesman for the Wyoming Game and Fish Department.

Both Gocke and Carr said Teton County has issues with dogs being out of control.

Gocke said that game wardens have received at least 10 reports of dogs chasing wildlife in the past two weeks. In Wyoming, dog owners can be fined up to $1,000 and sentenced to six months in jail if their dogs harass, chase or injure big game. 

Colorado man allegedly steals taxi from outside Irma Hotel

CODY (WNE) — A Colorado man allegedly stole a taxi cab outside of the Irma Hotel on March 18 around 2 a.m.

Charles Zachary Crandall, 45, of Loveland, Colo., was charged with the theft of property valued at over $1,000 and a DWUI.

Cody Police officers were dispatched to the Irma Hotel around 1:45 a.m. on March 18 after an Explorer Taxi employee reported her cab had been stolen when she went inside the Irma to make contact with a group that had requested a ride, the affidavit said.

At the time of the dispatch report, Cody Sgt. Beau Egger was patrolling, heading westbound on Yellowstone Avenue when he noticed a vehicle matching the description of the stolen taxi cab, the affidavit said.

The cab eventually pulled into a space near the exit/entrance area of the hotel.

Egger illuminated the vehicle with his spotlight and saw the vehicle door open as a male — later identified as Crandall —  got out and hid behind the hotel sign, the affidavit said.

While Egger attempted to ask Crandall a series of questions, “the response was unintelligible.” Crandall also stumbled and appeared unsteady on his feet, the affidavit said.

“I asked where he got the vehicle from, and he responded, ‘I don’t know,’” the affidavit said. “At this time, I observed the subject’s speech was slow and slurred, and his eyes were bloodshot.”

Crandall was placed in handcuffs and subsequently stated, “I don’t know where I got this car,” the affidavit said.

During his arraignment in Park County Circuit Court March 20, Crandall was given a $7,000 cash or surety bond, which he posted.

If convicted on all charges, Crandall faces up to 10-and-a-half years in prison and a fine of up to $10,750.

One, maybe two more mountain lions seen in Gillette

GILLETTE (WNE) – At least one more mountain lion was spotted in Gillette Thursday morning, a day after a mountain lion was captured outside a home near downtown Gillette.

Photos from a home near the Bell Nob golf course showed the mountain lion and possibly another younger mountain lion with it, according to a game and fish press release. Police and Erika Peckham, a wildlife biologist, responded to the home and mountain lion tracks were found, but it’s unknown which way the lion, or possibly lions, traveled.

“The photos are grainy and it is hard to distinguish clearly, but there might be two mountain lions in the photos,” Peckham said in the press release. “If there are two, this would suggest it is an adult female traveling with her sub-adult offspring.”

On Wednesday evening, an adult male mountain lion was sedated and relocated outside of Gillette. The lion was captured downtown after being seen in the Chara Hills neighborhood and near Sixth Street and Highway 59.

Since the lion seen Thursday was a female, it’s absolutely not the same one that was taken outside of Gillette earlier this week, said Deputy Chief of Police Brent Wasson.

He added that the department has not received any more calls or reports of mountain lions in the area, as of noon Friday.

Officials recommended keeping outside lights on, keeping a close watch on children playing outside and keeping pets inside at night. If a lion attacks, people should fight back and try to appear as large as possible without turning their backs to the lion.

Cheyenne man arrested following high-speed pursuit

CHEYENNE (WNE) — A man is in custody after allegedly leading Cheyenne police officers on a high-speed pursuit and causing multiple disturbances in different locations.

According to a news release from Cheyenne police, officers were dispatched at approximately 9:58 a.m. Thursday to a verbal disturbance involving Joseph Hernandez, 33, of Cheyenne, at a residence near the 200 block of West Eighth Street. 

On the scene, officers observed Hernandez in the driver’s seat of a red Ford F-150 pickup parked in the driveway. Officers attempted to communicate with Hernandez, but he backed out of the driveway and fled. The truck traveled east on West Fifth Street, crossing Interstate 180 at a high rate of speed and running a red light through moderate traffic. The officer then lost sight of Hernandez.

At approximately 11:20 a.m., an officer spotted the truck and a driver matching Hernandez’s description while responding to another call. According to the release, Hernandez fled in the truck as the officer approached, leading to a pursuit through south Cheyenne in which he drove recklessly and, at times, into oncoming traffic and through stop signs. Due to safety concerns, the pursuit was terminated.

At approximately 1:17 p.m., officers were dispatched to a disturbance at a residence in the 300 block of Bocage Drive, where Hernandez was seen jumping a fence into the backyard of the residence. He fled from an officer and was arrested after attempting to gain entry to the home.

Hernandez was booked into the Laramie County Detention Center on charges of fleeing and eluding, two counts of driving without a valid license, running a red light, two counts of reckless driving, interference with a peace officer, two counts of speeding in a residential area and assault and battery.

Many Sheridanites are buying chickens for the first time

SHERIDAN (WNE) — High egg prices are causing Sheridanites to purchase chicks at a higher rate than previous years.

According to data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, national egg prices rose from about $2.90 per dozen in September 2022 to about $4.82 per dozen in January. Prices fell to about $4.21 per dozen in February.

Current egg prices in Sheridan are much higher than the February national average. The average price of one dozen non-organic eggs at Ridley’s Family Markets and Albertsons is $5.94, according to prices on the stores’ websites.

Shipton’s Big R Sheridan and Tractor Supply Co. have both seen an influx of first-time chick buyers and chicks selling faster as a result of increased egg prices.

“A lot of people have been saying how the price of eggs has been going sky high and they don’t want to have to deal with them anymore,” said Alexis Morgareidge, chick days captain at Tractor Supply Co. in Sheridan. “We have had a major turnaround for people buying chicks and being first time chick owners.”

Chicks are a long-term investment; chickens generally don’t begin to lay eggs until they are six to eight months old. Depew said a do-it-yourself coop is an option, but costs associated with a new chicken coop can be more than $1,500 and feed costs can be up to $100 per month for 10 chickens.

“...So really, it’s almost cost prohibitive to buy them right now and hope you’re gonna get eggs this year,” Depew said. “Next year, you’re gonna have a bunch of eggs.”

Sheridan County Airport snow removal leads to long weeks

SHERIDAN (WNE) — Snow this winter has led to multiple 80-hour weeks for the Sheridan County Airport snow removal crew.

Airport manager Robert Gill said the crew is approaching 800 cumulative hours of overtime since September. February had the most overtime hours accumulated at 235 among the seven people who assist with snow removal.

Gill said despite the long hours, the airport handles snow well.

He said snow storage is a process in itself.

“It’s not a matter of just plowing and pushing snow off the pavement, because we have lighting up on the edge of the pavement,” he said.

Plows push snow near the edge of the pavement, at which point a snowblower, much larger than one found in homes, blows snow over the lights and signs to ensure they are not covered.

There are two shifts: the morning shift has a scheduled start time of 4:30 a.m. so the crew can arrive ahead of early morning departures. Gill said even a dusting of snow can push the start time to 2 a.m. or earlier. He also said snow will generally cause people to be called in on their days off.

“It’s early mornings and sometimes really late days added onto those early mornings,” said employee Isaiah Bothamley. “If the snow keeps falling we [need] to hang out [at the airport] and do what it takes to keep it clear. I think that’s something people don’t realize. The whole town can be covered in snow at two o’clock in the morning, but the airport’s usually the clearest spot in all of town.”

Sublette County prepares for possible flooding

PINEDALE (WNE) — Temperatures in Sublette County will eventually rise, melting the heavy blanket of snow covering communities across the region and creating the potential for flooding. 

The Upper Green River drainage is currently sitting at 108 percent of normal, according to the SNOTEL map published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on March 29. 

Preparations are already underway in Sublette County in case significant flooding does take place later this spring or summer, said Jim Mitchell, Sublette County Emergency Management coordinator. 

Sublette County Emergency Management and its partners at the local, state and federal levels actively monitor changing weather conditions and how they might affect flooding each year. 

Sublette County Emergency Management and other agencies are watching snowmelt at both low elevations and in the high country. The county acquired a “considerable amount of sandbags” and sand this year to “protect public infrastructure” and to help alleviate “nuisance flooding” at residences and businesses, said Mitchell. 

The county is also training specific employees to operate the three-chute, multi-bagger sandbag machine, he said.

Mitchell encouraged home and business owners to get out ahead of the problem and do what they can to mitigate nuisance flooding on their property. This includes moving snow away from structures, like garages, and routing snowmelt away from buildings by creating alternative drainages. 

He also urged property owners to review their flood insurance policies, paying close attention to what is and is not covered by the policy. 

Cheyenne woman pleads guilty to stealing over $200K

CHEYENNE (WNE) – A Cheyenne woman pleaded guilty Friday morning in federal court to stealing more than $200,000 from a local theater company over the span of two years.

Late last November, Carissa J. Dunn-Pollard, 45, was accused of defrauding Cheyenne Little Theatre Players during her employment as a part-time bookkeeper from roughly September 2020 to May 2022. At the time, the charges against Dunn-Pollard carried a maximum sentence of 100 years in prison.

On March 6, Dunn-Pollard filed a plea agreement in her case, which was accepted by the prosecution, reducing her charges from five counts of wire fraud and one count of tax evasion to one count of wire fraud and one count of tax evasion.

Assistant United States Attorney Margaret M. Vierbuchen said that with Dunn-Pollard’s guilty plea, the prosecution would seek the “low end” of the guidelines, if they’re accepted, or a 27- to 33-month sentence.

Dunn-Pollard now faces a maximum prison sentence of 21 years and up to $275,000 in fines. She has also agreed to pay $220,000 in restitution to the Cheyenne Little Theatre Players, as well as a penalty to the Internal Revenue Service, though they have not yet settled on an appropriate figure.

As a bookkeeper for Cheyenne Little Theatre Players, Dunn-Pollard was the sole person responsible for keeping financial records, “including paying bills, managing payroll, and submitting financial reports to the (theater’s) management,” according to the affidavit of probable cause.

Over the span of the two years during which she admitted to stealing from the theater, Dunn-Pollard had transferred $53,819 into her bank account through 54 different “payroll deposits. ”Theater management was suspicious after discovering these “unusual transfers of funds.”

Wyoming senators introduce bill to help rural airports

CHEYENNE (WNE) – U.S. Sens. John Barrasso and Cynthia Lummis, both R-Wyo., recently introduced legislation to help small, rural airports “unfairly affected by burdensome regulations from the Federal Aviation Administration that put their federal funding at risk,” according to a news release from Barrasso’s office.

Many small, rural airports across the country have been forced to reduce air service and have not been able to meet federal mandates to continue receiving grants from the FAA, according to the release.

These airports use these funds for safety enhancements, efficiency improvements, facility upgrades and infrastructure projects.

This legislation would create a temporary exemption for small airports that previously qualified for funding but have now lost eligibility due to the lingering effects of COVID-19 lockdowns, pilot shortages and regional airline closures.

“This bill will ensure rural airports across Wyoming — from Evanston to Gillette and Cheyenne to Cody — continue to receive the resources they need to improve air service,” Barrasso said in the release.