Cheyenne City Council green lights liquor delivery permanently

CHEYENNE –  Residents will be able to continue enjoying liquor delivery to their front doors, thanks to an ordinance passed by the Cheyenne City Council Monday night.

The council originally allowed for alcoholic deliveries in April 2020 because the “COVID-19 virus (was) causing significant economic harm to alcoholic liquor and malt beverage licensees,” the ordinance stated.

Now those rules will permanently go into effect.

During the committee hearings, Susie Dudenkaus of the Laramie County Liquor Association said, “I think it’s great for all of the liquor license holders that want to participate in delivery.”

Businesses with retail liquor licensees, microbrewery permits, winery permits and satellite manufacturing permittees will be permitted to provide delivery service for the delivery of alcohol to customers, so long as they notify the city. Microbreweries and wineries will only be allowed to deliver the products they manufacture, and the delivery drivers need to take an alcohol serving training program.

However, residents will not be able to order booze to be delivered to a park or other public location. The service is also limited right now to city limits, but the Laramie County Board of Commissioners can pass a resolution allowing it county-wide.

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Woman could have probation revoked for defying hospital COVID-19 measures

CODY – A Lovell woman may have her felony probation revoked for allegedly refusing to obey COVID-19 restrictions and letting her daughter kick an automated door off its track in April at Powell Valley Healthcare.

Kimberly Maxwell, 46, is accused of entering the hospital with her daughter Taelor Maxwell, 24, and becoming upset that they would not be granted immediate access due to COVID-19 screening protocols. At PVHC, visitors must use a phone and answer questions posed by staff to ensure they don’t have coronavirus symptoms before they enter the building.

Upon entry to the lobby, the two women swore and loudly yelled at staff when they were told they still needed to be screened. Kim Maxwell referred to COVID-19 as a “made up ... disease,” according to the affidavit.

On social media, Kim Maxwell claimed her daughter was hemorrhaging and pregnant during the incident, ultimately experiencing a miscarriage later on.

When told they must complete the screening before receiving medical assistance, they began “yelling profanities once more” and Kim Maxwell extended her middle finger several inches from a staffer’s face.

The pair yelled a few more profanities at staff before Taelor Maxwell allegedly kicked the door on the way out, causing it to dislodge from its tracks.

In 2017, Kim Maxwell was sentenced to one year in jail and five years supervised probation for spending $2,325 at Walmart on a credit card that was not authorized to her. She was found guilty for theft of property valued $1,000 or more and check fraud and assessed a 4-6 year suspended prison sentence.

Kim Maxwell turned herself in on May 19. During a warrant hearing May 27, Judge Bill Simpson set her bond at $15,000 cash only despite the state only requesting $10,000.

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Full-on Teton Range search underway for Jackson man

JACKSON — Dozens of rangers, dog teams and helicopters swept the Tetons on Monday to try to find a missing 27-year-old Jackson man who set off from the Lupine Meadows trailhead alone almost a week prior.

Cian McLaughlin was last seen around 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 8, hiking up from the Lupine Meadows Trailhead, but it wasn’t until the weekend that authorities learned of his disappearance.

“They didn’t realize that he was missing until missing that [work] shift on Thursday,” Grand Teton National Park spokesman CJ Adams said, “and then reported it a couple days later after that.”

McLaughlin was reportedly ill-prepared to endure cold weather. A local resident who crossed paths with him a half-mile from the trailhead reported that he was wearing shorts, a tank top, bucket hat and sunglasses. He carried no backpack.

Overnight temperatures in Jackson Hole have dipped into the thirties most nights over the past week in the valley, and surely plunged lower in the mountains.

Rangers aren’t focusing the search for McLaughlin in any one area because his hiking plan was unknown. Likely destinations include Garnet Canyon and the Surprise, Amphitheater, Delta or Taggart lakes areas. More than 40 National Park Service rangers are engaged in the search, plus four dog teams and volunteers from Teton County Search and Rescue.

The Park Service is requesting that anybody with information about McLaughlin’s potential whereabouts call or text a tip line at 888-653-0009. 

He’s 6 feet tall, approximately 180 pounds, sometimes wears his collar-length brown hair in a bun and speaks with an Irish accent.

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Wildfire starts near Clark

POWELL — A wildfire north of Clark in the Beartooth Mountain Range blew up on Monday, rapidly growing from about 40 acres in the morning to roughly 230 acres by the late afternoon. 

When it was first reported Sunday, the Robertson Draw Fire was burning mostly in sagebrush and grass. 

However, the fire moved into the timber in the Shoshone and Custer Gallatin National Forests Monday as Clark residents watched flames towering over mature trees and spreading quickly. 

Crews are worried high temperatures and strong winds could push the fire further into Wyoming. 

The fire was near Line Creek, about 2 miles from the nearest structures, as of Monday afternoon. 

Resources at the scene include engines and firefighters from the  Forest Service and Bridger, Belfry and Red Lodge fire departments, Billings Type II veterans and the Pilot Peak Wildland module out of Cody, said Custer Gallatin National Forest public relations officer Marna Daley. 

The initial fire was fairly easy to access in the Custer Gallatin National Forest, Daley said, but has moved into extremely steep terrain. 

“It’s hot, dry and windy. It will continue to burn,” she said. 

Monday afternoon two helicopters took turns dropping water on the Wyoming side of the fire. No structures are threatened at this time, according to Daley, but the Ruby Creek and Gold Creek drainages have been evacuated and the North and South Fork of Grove Creek were in pre-evacuation standby as of 4 p.m. Monday. 

There are area closures for the plateau south of U.S. Highway 212 from Mt. Maurice Trailhead to Greenough Lake. The Eastside campground had yet to be evacuated. 

The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.

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Robinson Fire continues to burn

BUFFALO — A fire continues to burn in Robinson Canyon, with crews working to contain the flames. 

The Robinson Fire is located 20 miles south of Buffalo and started by lightning June 8. On Thursday, high winds pushed the fire further into Robinson Canyon, where it is now burning. 

Additional crews, engines and aerial resources arrived, containing the fire to 25 percent Saturday. On Sunday at 7 p.m. fire crews conducted a strategic burn operation in the canyon on the northwest portion of the fire perimeter to secure the area and mitigate risk. The fire returned to 18 percent containment Monday morning, according to the incident website. 

Because of burning Sunday evening and into Monday, smoke may be visible in the area. 

According to the fire website, 291 personnel are working on the fire, which has grown to engulf 697 acres. The fire remains primarily timber-based with heavy dead and down timber in very steep and rugged terrain, according to the site. High temperatures in the region this week remain a concern for those fighting the fire. 

For updates on the fire, see the incident website at inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7528.