Free Republic

CHEYENNE — Already facing serious federal charges for allegedly carrying 18,000 rounds of ammunition through Wyoming, Ricardo Paez-Quinones, 35, dug himself into an even deeper hole on Friday. Paez-Quinones was a no-show for his bond hearing on Friday morning in U.S. District Court, leading Judge Alan Johnson to put out a bench warrant for his arrest. Johnson suspected that the topic of his bond was what led Paez-Quinones to avoid coming to court, leading him to engage “in some form of self-help.” “We can receive an explanation for that at a later time,” Johnson remarked. Paez-Quinones is an illegal immigrant...

According to a CBC report, an extensive new project has highlighted just how vast the trade network in obsidian was for Indigenous communities living during the precontact period in current-day Alberta. Obsidian, a type of volcanic glass, was indispensable for many ancient cultures around the world because it can be easily shaped into arrowheads and cutting tools. No volcanoes have ever erupted in Alberta, however, so every sherd of obsidian was transported there from elsewhere. Researchers from the Alberta Obsidian Project analyzed 383 obsidian fragments from 96 sites across the area dating to between 13,000 and 300 years ago. They...

A fox with rare black fur made a brief roadside appearance in Yellowstone National Park last week. The fox’s coloring is probably the result of a condition called melanism. Stacy O’Nell caught photos of this extremely rare black fox in Yellowstone National Park, when it made a brief appearance along the roadside last week. The fox’s unusual coloring is probably the result of a condition called melanism, which can cause black skin, fur or feathers in numerous species. (Courtesy Stacy O'Nell, SO Photograpy) Now in her third season of working at the Yellowstone National Park’s Old Faithful Inn, Stacy O’Nell...

IDAHO FALLS — Stakeholders with the Grand Teton Council and other local community leaders gathered Wednesday to discuss ways of increasing membership for the Scouting program after a massive drop in numbers five years ago. The Grand Teton Council is part of Scouting America, formerly the Boy Scouts of America, and covers eastern Idaho and parts of western Wyoming. Since 2019, the Grand Teton Council and Scouting America have struggled to maintain and grow their membership after The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stopped using the organization in lieu of starting its own youth program. “We lost 95%...

The cut and baled land and the untouched land in this photo represent where survey markers indicate property boundaries exist between Maude private property and USFS property. Charles Maude and Heather Maude were indicted separately for theft of federal property, and each must retain their own attorney — doubling their legal costs. Courtesy photo Screen Shot 2025-04-10 at 10.57.18 AM The Western South Dakota couple indicted for theft of federal property will not go to trial in April. A new court date of July 22, 2025, has been established for Charles and Heather Maude of Caputa, in federal district court...

Today, Congressman Tom Tiffany, R-Wis., and Congresswoman Lauren Boebert’s, R-Colo., legislation to delist the gray wolf from the Endangered Species List and ensure that action is not subject to judicial review passed out of the House Natural Resources Committee. The Pet and Livestock Protection Act will restore authority back to state lawmakers and state wildlife officials to control the gray wolf population. H.R. 845 will now head to the full House of Representatives for a vote. “The damage to pets, livestock and wildlife from an unmanaged wolf population can no longer be ignored. The gray wolf has exceeded federal and...

(The Center Square) – President Donald Trump signed four executive orders Tuesday promoting the deregulation and expansion of the “beautiful, clean coal” industry in the U.S. The first order White House Staff Secretary Will Scharf said might be “one of the most significant executive orders” the president has issued so far. “This directs all departments and agencies of the federal government to end all discriminatory policies against the coal industry. This ends the leasing moratorium that prevents new coal projects on federal land, and it’s going to accelerate all permitting and funding for new coal projects,” Scharf said. The other...

“I appreciate what the President is doing on tariffs...Australia has sold $29 billion worth of beef in the United States, and we haven't been able to sell one hamburger in Australia because of barriers…you look at these numbers, and the ranchers of Wyoming are saying thank you Mr. President, it is about time!” --Sen. John Barrasso✓ @SenJohnBarrasso

Wes Bihn watched his sister slogging her way through six years of university training to enter the psychiatry field, and he knew that path wasn’t for him. “I was raised on a farm,” Bihn told Cowboy State Daily. “And I’ve pretty much worked nonstop my entire life, and I just always hated being in school.” The mere thought of spending six years in a classroom was like torture for Bihn, who is from Indiana, really driving home the realization that he wanted something different. Bihn is like a lot of people in Generation Z, ranging in age from 13 to...

Wyoming has become the first state in the United States to require proof of citizenship for residents to register to vote. This measure, which will take effect in July 2025, will apply to all elections: local, state, and federal.Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon allowed the voter residency bill to become law without his signature.This afternoon, WY Governor Mark Gordon allowed HB 156 to become law without his signature, establishing requirements for Proof of 1 Residency and U.S. Citizenship in order to vote!This is a major win for Election Integrity in Wyoming! pic.twitter.com/0GhziPJ1l7— American Action Fund (@AmericanActFund) March 21, 2025While Gordon did...

U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman walked right into a hornet’s nest Wednesday night. More than 500 people packed into the Gryphon Theatre at the Laramie Civic Center for her town hall, with at least 75% there to oppose her, a startling dynamic in the deeply Republican state of Wyoming. It continued a trend of Democrats and those who oppose President Donald Trump and his policies, and Hageman’s support of them, challenging her during a series of her events over the past week. Things in Laramie turned ugly from the get-go, with some people screaming profanities and flashing the middle finger to...

The mom and dad of an 11-year-old Casper youth player said what happened Sunday was “every hockey parent’s worst nightmare” — their son took a skate to the neck. A new rule mandating players wear neck guards likely saved his life. WARNING!!! GRAPHIC PICS AT SITE!!!........................... CASPER — Taking a razor-sharp skate to the neck is the nightmare fear of every hockey player and their families. But one Wyoming youth hockey family is praising a new rule that saved the life of an 11-year-old Casper player when his hockey nightmare happened. Casper Oilers assistant hockey coach Nick Lein said the...

In two congressional districts and vastly different political environments, two Republicans in the U.S. House were met with far different reactions at public meetings they held late last week. Against the suggestion of their leader, House Speaker Mike Johnson, to refrain from holding public meetings with constituents, second-term Reps. Chuck Edwards and Harriet Hageman went ahead with their evening sessions. In Asheville, North Carolina, chants of opposition greeted Edwards on Thursday as opponents hooted at almost every answer he gave and chanted outside. In Evanston, Wyoming, at the southwestern corner of a sparsely populated and heavily Republican state, it was...

Former U.S. Sen. Alan Simpson died early this morning in Cody surrounded by family and friends, according to a statement from the family. He was 93.

CV NEWS FEED // Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon signed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act into law March 6, expanding protections for individuals seeking to live out their faith without government interference. The law, which takes effect July 1, establishes legal safeguards to ensure that religious practices are not unduly restricted by state or local policies. It prohibits state action from substantially burdening a person’s exercise of religion unless it meets the highest legal standard — proving that the burden is “essential to furthering a compelling governmental interest” and that it is the “least restrictive” means of doing so. Greg Chafuen,...

On February 27, 2025, Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon allowed Wyoming Bill 172, the “Wyoming Repeal Gun Free Zones Act”, to become law without his signature. Governor Gordon objected to the bill but said it would become law. The Wyoming Repeal Gun Free Zones Act does essentially what the name implies. It repeals most of the areas where the legislature has allowed local political entities to infringe on rights protected by the Second Amendment. From a previous AmmoLand article:Section 1 W.S. 6-8-105 is created to read:6-8-105. Exceptions for state issued concealed carry permits; penalty. (a)This section shall be known as and...

Wyoming’s only surgical abortion center will stop killing babies after the governor signed a law that requires proper licensing for abortion businesses. Wellspring Health Access, Wyoming’s only abortion biz with both surgical abortions and the abortion pill, will quit killing babies for now while it files a lawsuit against the law. This decision followed the enactment of a state law mandating that facilities doing surgical abortions be licensed as outpatient surgical centers. Additionally, the law requires abortion businesses to have hospital admitting privileges within a 10-mile radius. Both requirements are necessary for when abortion clinics injure women in botched abortions...

A ban on ballot drop boxes appears to still be slowly moving forward in the Wyoming Legislature. Although they didn’t take a vote on it on Friday, multiple members of the Senate Corporations, Elections and Political Subdivisions Committee told Cowboy State Daily they plan to support a ban on ballot drop boxes in Wyoming but plan to make significant changes to House Bill 131 as written. Specifically, two of the swing votes on the committee, state Sen. Brian Boner, R-Douglas, and Sen. Dan Dockstader, R-Afton, both told Cowboy State Daily they plan to support the bill when it’s heard again...

A fiery pileup turned a quiet Friday morning into a nightmare as an inferno raged inside an Interstate 80 tunnel in southwestern Wyoming claiming at least two lives, and leaving five others seriously injured, forcing a total shutdown of the highway. Anyone trapped in the tunnel would have been forced to escape on foot through the smoke and darkness. Rescuers desperately tried to reach victims, but the tunnel’s structure - now compromised by falling concrete and searing heat - turned into a death trap.

In the Wyoming Legislature, House Bill 172 passed House 50-10 on January 23, 2025. The bill eliminates most gun free zones and strengthens the Wyoming preemption bill for firearms. The bill would allow limited regulation by government entities of government employees’ ability to carry in government buildings and schools.Here are some relevant sections fom the wyoleg.gov:Section 1 W.S. 6-8-105 is created to read:6-8-105. Exceptions for state issued concealed carry permits; penalty. (a)This section shall be known as and may be cited as the “Wyoming Repeal Gun Free Zones Act.” (b) Persons lawfully carrying concealed weapons in Wyoming under W.S. 6‑8-104(a)(ii)...