Episode Details

It's time to take a look at what's happening around Wyoming, for Monday, January 13th. I'm Wendy Corr, bringing you headlines from the Cowboy State Daily newsroom - brought to you by Visit Casper. Visit Casper invites you to come enjoy the Casper International Film Festival, January 31 through February 2. A broad range of films from local and international filmmakers will be shown. Learn more and get your tickets at visitcasper.com.

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Cheyenne firefighters were dispatched to a structure fire at a familiar address Saturday night, just north of the city limits. The corrugated steel three-bay garage is the Laramie County Fire Authority's Station 74, a non-operational facility that's home to the department's mechanic and wildland firefighting team.

Cowboy State Daily's Greg Johnson drove to the firehouse that was completely gutted by the blaze.

"All the doors were off, and it looked like … this nuclear… Apocalypse landscape inside… these trucks were totally burned out. They were ash. They were gray, they were half melting… it's right across the street from a nursery, a popular nursery here in Cheyenne, and the owner of the nursery… described watching it burn and was just worried and concerned that it was going to jump over the road… Luckily, no one was there. It's not a manned station anymore. They use it to store their wildland fire firefighting gear, and the mechanic is based out of there, so they do some work. So there's nothing there that affects day to day responses."

An investigation into what caused the fire is still underway. It's being handled by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the Laramie County Sheriff's Office.

Read the full story HERE.

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In late 2022, a San Diego couple began construction on a three-story mountain getaway on the banks of Lower McDonald Creek just inside Glacier National Park.

Cowboy State Daily's David Madison reports that a federal judge is now weighing arguments in a lawsuit over the house, and her decision could invite more unregulated development inside national park boundaries.

"this couple did not get approval from the state of Montana, which regulates these kinds of things through local conservation districts. So now it's turned into this fight between this couple and the Flathead Conservation District. It's gone all the way up to federal court. We had a hearing on Wednesday, and now a judge has to decide, does the state of Montana have jurisdiction on private land inside Glacier Park, or is that jurisdiction reserved solely for the park?"

If John and Stacy Ambler prevail in this federal case, the court could grant them immunity from a longstanding state law, which is meant to prevent costly damage to Montana's streams caused by developing in the streambed or too close to the water along the banks.

Read the full story HERE.

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The Wyoming Supreme Court is considering whether and when it's appropriate for law enforcement agents to search a criminal defendant's lawyer.

Attorney Jason Gay of Evanston filed a petition last week to the state's highest court, asking it to decide if it's unreasonable for sheriff's deputies to search a lawyer and his office – and potentially his