Wyoming News Briefs

Solar eclipse will be visible in Western U.S. Saturday morning

GILLETTE (WNE) — When Wyomingites look up at the sky Saturday morning, they should be able to see a partial eclipse.

During an annular solar eclipse, the apparent size of the Moon’s disk is slightly smaller than the apparent size of the Sun’s disk, so that only the outer edge of the Sun remains visible. For those who are inside the path of the eclipse, this will give the appearance of a bright ring of light, hence the name, ring of fire.

The path of annularity, in which 91% of the sun will be covered by the moon, will start in Oregon and move through Utah, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Arizona and Texas.

Wyoming residents can expect to see about 70% of the sun covered, so while they won’t see a ring of fire, they should be able to see a crescent shape at points during the eclipse.

The eclipse will start at 9:05 a.m., Mountain Standard Time, and it will end at 12:38 p.m.

It is never safe to look straight at the sun without protection, and solar filters, such as eclipse glasses or welding glasses, are required to view the eclipse safely.

The last annular solar eclipse to go over the Western U.S. was on May 20, 2012, and there won’t be another one in this part of the country until 2046.

Saturday’s eclipse is six months before the total solar eclipse that will hit the U.S. on April 8, 2024. Unlike the last total solar eclipse in 2017, the path of totality will not go over Wyoming.

Police officer returns to duty

CODY (WNE) — Cody Police Officer Blake Stinson has returned to duty after an investigation into a complaint filed against him in May, according to a press release from the City of Cody.

The complaint was regarding Stinson and another officer attempting to arrest a 17-year-old, after he allegedly failed to yield to a pedestrian at an intersection. Edited body camera footage uploaded to YouTube showed Stinson and the other officer grabbing the 17-year-old driver by the neck and pulling at his arms as they tried to remove him from the vehicle.

The third-party investigation provided several recommendations, which will be reviewed and implemented, according to the release. 

State law and city policies prohibit the disclosure of specific findings or actions when it comes to personnel, but the release said the city has “taken action to address concerns raised by the complaint, and to ensure compliance with Cody PD policies in the future.”

After the complaint was filed, Stinson was placed on paid leave and the Cody Police Department conducted an internal investigation to review his conduct and determine whether he violated the department’s internal policies, including standards of conduct and use of force. Once the internal investigation was completed, the third-party consultant was brought in to review the city’s findings.

A review of the arrest that sparked the complaint saw the charges against the driver dropped due to “procedural reasons,” according to a report published in June by the Cody Enterprise.

Gillette man accused of having child pornography on phone

GILLETTE (WNE) — A Gillette man has been accused of receiving and saving files containing child pornography on his cellphone.

Jose Fernando Martinez, 34, pleaded not guilty to five felony counts of sexual exploitation of children accusing him of possessing files containing child pornography, according to court documents.

The Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation received a tip of several files containing child pornography that were stored in a Google Photos account later connected to Martinez.

The tip came from Google to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in June and was sent to Wyoming DCI in July. It claimed that six files had been found, four of which appearing to contain “newly produced content,” according to court documents.

Through information received about the Google account, agents linked the account to Martinez, who lives in Gillette. The investigation found a link between the Google account in question and an Apple iPhone they suspect was used to receive, view and take screenshots of the files.

During an interview at the Campbell County Sheriff’s Office, Martinez said he received links to videos of child pornography through messages sent to his Facebook account, according to court documents.

He eventually admitted to taking screenshots of some of the images he received, but said he then immediately deleted them. He said his Facebook account had been suspended due to having images of child pornography, according to court documents.

A special agent found recently deleted images of child pornography in Martinez’s phone, which Martinez said he also received via Facebook messages, according to court documents.

Each of the five counts carries up to ten years in prison, a $10,000 fine or both.

Next meeting on utility rate hike set

CASPER (WNE) — Another public meeting on Rocky Mountain Power’s historic rate hike proposals is set for Oct. 12 in Casper. 

Rocky Mountain Power, Wyoming’s largest electric utility, is proposing two rate increases that could bump electricity bills by an average of about 29% for residential customers. One of the increases, which went into effect in July but is still subject to review by the Public Service Commission with a final decision later this year, would bump rates by an average of 7.6%. The other proposed “general rate case” increase would raise rates by another 21.6% on average. 

The two rate hikes, combined, would add $19.72 per month for the typical residential consumer on average, the utility estimates. 

Increased fuel costs, inflation, market volatility, supply chain disruptions, severe weather and drought are some of the factors that are driving the proposed rate hikes, the utility has said.

The historic rate hike proposals are facing considerable opposition across the state. 

At the August rate hike meeting in Casper, community members, lawmakers and organization representatives packed the room at the Thyra Thomson State Office Building and tuned in over Zoom to speak against the increases. 

The Public Service Commission, which is responsible for regulating utilities like Rocky Mountain Power, has held similarly well-attended meetings on the rate hikes in other communities across the state. 

Members of the public can attend the Oct. 12 meeting in person, over Zoom or by telephone. 

The meeting will start at 5:30 p.m. at the Thyra Thomson State Office Building in room 3024. 

People can join the meeting virtually by Zoom at https://us02web.zoom. us/j/9933449233 or by dialing 1-669-900- 9128 or 1-253-215-8782 (Meeting ID: 993 344 9233). Members of the public can also submit written comments at any time to the Public Service Commission by emailing wpsc_comments@ wyo.gov.

Loved ones continue search for missing man

JACKSON (WNE) — A missing 56-year-old man may now be in Fargo, North Dakota. Loved ones last heard from Mike Pursel in late September and are continuing to search.

In an Oct. 4 Facebook post announcing that Pursel was missing, the Jackson Police Department said he had been working at a downtown hotel.

“His last social media post was September 23,” the department wrote. “His phone goes directly to voicemail which, according to our reporting party, is very unusual for him. He has not checked in for about a week now and his family and friends are concerned.”

Pursel’s mother, California resident Linda Goeppinger, said he had been working in Jackson for three months. She said he does not have a fixed residence and preferred camping.

“He loves to camp out,” Goeppinger said. “He’s been homeless the last 20 years. He likes traveling.”

She normally hears from her son every week but last spoke to him Sept. 17, when he sounded distraught over losing his job. The hotel later told Goeppinger that it was a misunderstanding and that Pursel still had a job.

Goeppinger said that after hearing he was given a bus ticket to Fargo on Sept. 28, she thought he returned there to work the beet harvest, as he’s done before. Fargo homeless shelters and friends haven’t seen him, she said.

Anyone who has Pursel or knows his whereabouts is encouraged to contact the Jackson Police Department at 307-733-1430 and reference case 2310-0153.

‘The Laramie Project’ to be performed for 25th anniversary of Shepard’s death

LARAMIE (WNE) — The 25th anniversary of the untimely death of Matthew Shepard is next Thursday.

To honor the occasion, the University of Wyoming will host a staged reading of the groundbreaking play “The Laramie Project” alongside the Tectonic Theater Project, who originally compiled a series of interviews from those involved with and affected by the murder of the 21-year-old UW student.

Cecilia Aragón and Matthew Greenberg, both professors within UW’s Department of Theatre and Dance, produced the show alongside director and co-founder of the Tectonic Theater Project Jeffrey LaHoste. LaHoste was part of the original team who visited Laramie to collect interviews and accounts in 1998 just months after Shepard’s death.

“Like everyone else, we were shocked and appalled,” LaHoste said of the tragedy. “And as theater makers, we began to ask ourselves, ‘Is there anything we can do with this? Is there a story here that can be made into a play?’ We didn’t know. We decided that we would take a risk.”

Now 25 years later, “The Laramie Project” has been performed thousands of times in communities across the world. According to LaHoste, it is the characters and timeless story that evoke emotion to audiences everywhere.

The performance of “The Laramie Project” will take place at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday on the main stage at the Buchanan Center for the Performing Arts.

Casper airport to apply for grant to replace control tower 

CASPER (WNE) — The board of trustees of the Casper-Natrona County International Airport is applying for $14.6 million in federal grant money to replace its nearly-70-year-old air traffic control tower. The tower, which dates back to 1954, doesn’t meet Federal Aviation Administration regulations. 

That’s particularly troublesome because it’s staffed by FAA controllers. 

A written summary of the project provided to the Natrona County Board of County Commissioners also noted that the building’s windows aren’t angled properly — which is crucial in order to ensure controllers have proper visibility. 

“We are concerned that at some point the FAA will no longer staff this facility and we would lose the safety benefits it provides,” the summary said. 

Airport officials think they have found a way to fund a replacement tower: a Federal Aviation Administration grant is making $1 billion available for local airport infrastructure projects for the 2024 fiscal year. 

The program is funded by the Infrastructure and Investment and Jobs Act, the $1.2 trillion infrastructure package signed into law by President Joe Biden in 2021. 

The applicant pool is likely to be competitive, Airport Director Glenn Januska wrote in a Sept. 23 memo to the Natrona County Commissioners. 

The airport board has asked Gov. Mark Gordon’s office, the Wyoming Aeronautics Commission and the Natrona County Commissioners to pitch in for the project. It has already received a $5 million commitment from the governor’s office. 

On Tuesday, the county commissioners earmarked about a million in funding, with the hope that it will be able to provide more by the time the project is shovel-ready. 

The airport board also asked for $2 million from the Wyoming Aeronautics Commission. As of Sept. 23, the state agency had agreed to pay $490,000 of that. 

Three Laramie County on lockdown Thursday morning

CHEYENNE (WNE) — Cheyenne’s South High School was sent into a lockdown for part of Thursday morning. Around the same time, Johnson Junior High and Goins Elementary also had a secure perimeter established around them.

South High went on lockdown after a school resource officer received a tip that a firearm was on the premises. The school was put on lockdown and a Laramie County Sheriff ‘s Office K9 was called to search the premises.

The Cheyenne Police Department said the building is now clear and no firearm was found on the premises.

At the same time, an officer made a “high-risk” stop on a stolen vehicle in the 500 block of Snyder Avenue. CPD made the decision to put up a secure perimeter around Johnson Jr. High and Goins Elementary while the stop was taking place.

After the stop was resolved, officers also lifted the perimeter around the two schools.

The Cheyenne Police Department said the lockdown and perimeters were the result of two separate incidents. CPD told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle the lockdown and perimeters were lifted shortly thereafter and all three schools were considered safe.

Wyoming, Sheridan County capitalize on expanded property tax refunds

SHERIDAN (WNE) — After a 2023 bill made more Wyomingites eligible for the state’s property tax refund program, more than three times as many refunds were approved in Sheridan County in 2022 as compared to 2021.

The state of Wyoming has funded the refund program for three of the last four tax years — it was not funded for the 2020 tax year. 

The program approves applications based on an applicant’s income level, and refund totals are generally half of the median property tax amount in each county. 

Wyoming Department of Revenue Director Brenda Henson provided an overview of the program during a Joint Revenue Committee meeting Monday.

“This was a program that the Legislature expanded last year,” Henson said. “[It] expanded the income criteria to allow more Wyoming homeowners to qualify and also expanded the amount of those refunds.”

House Bill 99 made homeowners earning up to 125% — compared to the original 75% — of the state’s or county’s median income level eligible for the program.

In Sheridan County, the program meant 943 refund program applications were submitted for tax year 2022, 513 more than the number of applications submitted for tax year 2021.

For 2021, 269 of the 425 applications were approved and the average refund was $632.45. In 2022, 862 of the 943 applications were approved and the average refund was $986.30, representing more than three times as many approved refunds. 

Across Wyoming, 9717 refund program applications were submitted, of which 8813 were approved. Refunds totaled $8.26 million for an average of $937.68 — compared to $1.85 million for an average of $601.63 in 2021. 

Laramie County received and approved the most applications — 1457 of 1608 applications were approved — and Teton County had the highest average refund of $3,568.77 to 442 approved applicants.