Episode Details

It's time to take a look at what's happening around Wyoming for Friday, February 27th. I'm Mac Watson.

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At the first CheckGate hearing in the Capitol on Thursday, the four members who received checks on the House floor said they never felt it was an act of bribery. Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland reports Rebecca Bextel, who delivered the checks, said she just "wafted toward the House floor."

"So there were four people who received checks on the floor, Bextel testified. Other testimonies confirmed, and the two people who are standing near Representative Knapp, when he got his check, two of those people were on the investigative panel, and that's Majority Floor Leader, Scott Heiner, and Representative Ruben Tarver. And Tarver addressed this saying, 'Yeah, I saw something get handed to him, but I had no idea what it was.' Nina Weber was also called to testify, and did and said that there was an arrangement for her to escort Bextel onto the floor. Since you need an escort if you're a guest. The women that were in that cluster, testified that they weren't involved in any sort of check passing scheme and Bextel herself said it was kind of spontaneous. The committee descended into a private, administrative segments. They said the next part of our work is administrative. So under the rules, it doesn't have to be public, and everyone was dismissed."

There were no rules against giving campaign donations on the floor at the time, though the House, Senate, and governor have enacted rules banning the practice since this controversy, which Capitol regulars deemed "CheckGate", erupted.

Read the full story HERE.

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The now-17-year-old who held 14-year-old Bobby Maher down while a friend stabbed him was sentenced Thursday to 30-75 years in prison. Cowboy State Daily's Dale Killingbeck reports that Bobby Maher's father told Cowboy State Daily that justice has been served.

"He was charged with conspiracy to commit second degree murder, and what came out in the police affidavit, and today, again in the sentencing hearing was that he was the one that grabbed the 14 year old at the mall in Casper and threw him down on the ground and held him down while his accomplice, Jarreth Plunkett stuck a knife into Bobby Maher two times. And in court today, he apologized to both the Mahar family and to the court."

Emotions exploded Thursday into tears and a cry to allow a hug from the supporters of the 17-year-old after being sentenced for his role in the April 7, 2024, stabbing death of a 14-year-old at a local mall.

Read the full story HERE.

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Under a cloud of public questioning, Gillette Police Chief Chuck Deaton abruptly retired from the department on Thursday. Cowboy State Daily's Greg Johnson reports that Deaton said in a statement that it was time to move on.

"I had left a message for the mayor. I called all the city council people, talked to the city administrator, and basically got the same, got the same response for the ones who got back to me or answered phones, and it was personnel matter. Two hours later, the announcement from the city comes out that he is, that he is retired. Apparently, there's a personnel matter involved

that we don't know about."

Cowboy State Daily reached out to city officials after being contacted by local residents inquiring about rumors regarding Deaton's status as chief.

Read the full story

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