Sheridan High School assistant principal charged with sexual assault
SHERIDAN—Sheridan High School virtual learning assistant principal Jacob Meyer has been charged with second degree sexual assault, according to an affidavit of probable cause obtained by The Sheridan Press.
Sexual assault in the second degree is a felony punishable by imprisonment of between two and 20 years and/or a fine of $10,000.
Meyer was arrested by the Sheridan Police Department on Monday, May 6.
According to Meyer’s criminal warrant, the 33-year-old allegedly “had interaction with a victim who is a student or participant in the activities of the school and … did unlawfully inflict sexual intrusion on that victim.”
Meyer is approximately 15 years older than the victim in the case.
According to the affidavit, a text-based relationship between Meyer and the victim began in November 2023. At that time, the victim said she discovered Meyer had photographed illicit images she had of herself on his personal phone and requested she send additional illicit images to his personal cellphone number.
Both the affidavit and warrant are heavily redacted to protect the identity of the victim.
According to the affidavit, the police department was notified of the alleged sexual relationship by Sheridan High School principal Scott Cleland on May 4.
In a statement to the Sheridan Press, Sheridan County School District 2 Superintendent Scott Stults said the district acted immediately once it became aware of the alleged sexual assault.
According to the affidavit, police officer Meagan Phillips reviewed text messages between the victim and Meyer. The text messages showed Meyer allegedly invited the victim to his residence, offering her a beer before committing the alleged sexual assault.
Wyoming files 2nd lawsuit challenging EPA rules targeting power plants
CHEYENNE—Gov. Mark Gordon announced that Wyoming has filed two lawsuits challenging new rules from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that target Wyoming’s coal and natural-gas fired power plants.
On Thursday, Wyoming joined a coalition of 24 states challenging the Biden administration’s recently released power plant regulations. The states argue that the new rule exceeds EPA’s authority and ignores the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision vacating Obama-era greenhouse gas limits for power plants. The suit asks the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to review and declare the regulations unlawful. On May 8, Wyoming and 22 other states filed a lawsuit challenging another EPA rule that would require certain air emissions from coal-fired plants to be reduced drastically.
“The Biden administration’s EPA seems determined to use unlawful rulemaking to continue its attacks on Wyoming’s core industries,” Gordon said in the release. “The only goal appears to be destroying Wyoming’s fossil fuel industry by further burdening our power plants, increasing costs to consumers, and threatening the stability of our nation’s electrical grid.”
Teton Pass sees brutal May
JACKSON—A Wyoming Highway patrol officer is calling the first week of May the worst he has seen on Teton Pass, with multiple closures, gridlocked traffic, ice-induced collisions and slide-offs.
A meteorologist and towing company, however, say the precipitation and heartburn are nothing new.
“In the six years I’ve been stationed in Jackson, this is probably the worst May I’ve seen,” Trooper Todd Baxter said. “We’ve had to close the pass the most.”
Since May 1, the pass has closed five times as elevations above 8,000 feet in the Tetons have accumulated 2 to 3 feet of snow. Two days this month, May 1 and May 7, have seen multiple closures in one night.
Mountain Weather meteorologist Jim Woodmencey said the month of May is on average the wettest month of the year in Jackson historically. The May 3 storm, however, was “unusual,” depositing 4 inches of snow in town, he said.
“For the month of May in one 24-hour period, that’s a significant amount of snow,” Woodmencey said. “The record is 8 inches in 24 hours in 1973. That’s the record for the month of May.”
Baxter said drivers are not equipped for the variance in spring temperatures. He said “hundreds” violated the chain law this week alone.
Even Wyoming Department of Transportation plows have been getting stuck — twice on Monday and twice the week before.
On Tuesday, Baxter said, he turned 15-plus cars around, sending them back down the mountain.
“We have a lot more traffic over the pass than we used to have,” Baxter said. “It’s always been crowded, but it seems to me that it’s gotten a lot more crowded. A lot of the vehicles we’re seeing up there are just not equipped or not designed to be in that kind of environment.”
E. coli outbreak reported in walnuts
SUNDANCE—An outbreak of E. coli has been reported in a brand of organic walnuts known to be sold in stores in this area.
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), 12 people have so far been infected, seven of whom were hospitalized and two developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a rare disease that affects the kidneys and blood clotting functions and can lead to kidney failure.
The walnuts in question are bulk organic walnuts from Gibson Farms, Inc. with expiration dates between May 21 and June 7, 2025.
They are known to have been sold within Wyoming in Newcastle, Riverton and Sheridan.
The CDC recommends asking the store where you purchased walnuts if any recalled items were sold there.
Some stores may repackage bulk walnut halves and pieces into bags or plastic clamshells.
The CDC recommends checking your kitchen stores for walnuts to see if they may have been part of the FDA recall and washing any items or surfaces that may have touched the walnuts.
If you develop symptoms of E. coli, contact your healthcare provider.
Symptoms generally begin within three or four days from swallowing the bacteria and can include stomach cramps, diarrhea (often bloody) and vomiting.
Most people recover without treatment after five to seven days, but some may develop serious kidney problems.
