Episode Details

It's time to take a look at what's happening around Wyoming, for Wednesday, February 12th. I'm Wendy Corr, bringing you headlines from the Cowboy State Daily newsroom - Brought to you by the Wyoming Senior Olympics! Experience the excitement of the Winter Games, February 20–22 in Pinedale, and support the SAFE Initiative. For event details and the full schedule, visit wyoming senior olympics dot com.

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A Byron woman who shot her four children — killing three of them — and then shot herself Monday, has died.

Neighbors identified the woman as Tranyelle Harshman, who with her husband Cliff and their four young daughters, had moved to Byron a year ago.

The Bighorn County Sheriff's Department received a 911 call at 1:30 p.m. from a woman who reported that her four daughters had been shot, and she believed the girls were dead. Then the woman told dispatchers that she was going to shoot herself, and could be found in her upstairs bedroom.

Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland traveled to the town of less than 600 people in rural Bighorn County on Tuesday. She spoke to neighbors, and to law enforcement agents who responded to the tragic scene.

"I had an exclusive with the sheriff, and he also allowed me to speak to a deputy and a sergeant who were early on scene. The sergeant was first into the home, and it was very tense at that point, because they didn't know whether there was going to be, you know, possible, a dangerous situation they were walking into. It turned out that the mother had shot herself moments before they entered, but they didn't know that at the time… the next door neighbor, his name is Larry Foster, he was having a hard time coping on Tuesday. He was emotional and tearful, and even though he didn't know this family very well, he said everything looked great from the outside, and he said that the little girls would come and pet his dogs… I was interested to find that Tranyelle… wasn't very close with the neighbors I talked to. So there was this idea like, well, we've seen her. They've been here about a year, but we don't know her very well."

A 7-year-old girl was still in critical condition Tuesday after having pulled through a surgery, and her family was cautiously optimistic. The 2, 3, and 9 year old children died of gunshot wounds on scene.

Read the full story HERE.

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If Wyoming taxpayers are going to put $90 million toward rebuilding the failing LaPrele Dam near Douglas, some legislators are arguing they should get something in return – perhaps recreational access and hydroelectric power.

The LaPrele Dam is 115 years old and was built with an expected lifespan of 50 years. Huge new cracks were discovered in the dam late last year, and the current plan is to start construction on a new dam by 2026, possibly completing it by 2029.

Cowboy State Daily's Mark Heinz reports that much of the land surrounding the LaPrele Reservoir is private. However, the House rejected an amendment including a guarantee of public access in House Bill 143, which funds the dam project.

"What was brought up today on the House floor is okay, if the public is putting that much money into this project… we, as the public, should get something out of it, probably definitely more public access to the reservoir as well as perhaps, the idea was floated, maybe the … new dam could be used to generate some hydroelectric power."

Because the bill was on its second reading before the House, legislators say there's still time to work in language regarding public access during its third and final reading.

Read the full story

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