The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office cited outgoing Shoshoni Mayor Joel Highsmith with unlawful contact Tuesday following a heated confrontation with mayoral candidate and councilmember Jordan Whitener over an electioneering allegation, according to Shoshoni Police Chief Christopher Konija. 

Whitener allegedly confronted Highsmith in his office at the Shoshoni Town Hall Tuesday morning after Highsmith accused him of electioneering at the Shoshoni Senior Center polling place earlier in the day, Konija told WyoFile, adding that the allegation was “unfounded.” Highsmith, however, said in a call with WyoFile that he had “never accused” Whitener of electioneering. “There was a concern, but he wasn’t,” Highsmith said, declining to elaborate. “I’m satisfied he was not.” 

Whitener didn’t respond to WyoFile’s inquiry before publishing time. 

Konija said the election-related concern apparently stemmed from Whitener talking to voters across the street from the Shoshoni Senior Center polling place after they had already voted, although he emphasized that he didn’t witness this first-hand.

After Whitener appeared at his office, Highsmith said he called police to get the council member “removed.” “I felt that Councilman Whitener was disrupting the town business, and I wanted him to leave,” Highsmith said. 

Konija and two other officers responded, according to the police chief. Before they arrived, Konija said the mayor allegedly “made physical contact several times,” including alleged “chest-bumping.” 

Shoshoni police chief Chris Konija, who doubles as the town clerk, takes a call from a local resident who had some questions about the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s rental housing assistance (Section 8) program. (Mike Koshmrl/WyoFile)

Because the incident involved the mayor and a city council member, creating a conflict of interest for the police department, the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office “immediately” took over the investigation, according to Konija. (WyoFile called the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office for comment but was transferred to Konija.) The police chief said he and the other officers kept the men separated until a sheriff’s deputy arrived. 

Following the incident, the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office cited Highsmith for unlawful contact, a misdemeanor offense punishable by a $750 fine and up to six months in jail. Highsmith said he was asked if he wanted to press charges against Whitener. 

“Other charges could have been brought. I chose not to,” the outgoing mayor said. 

Highsmith said he didn’t “knowingly touch” Whitener. “My stomach might have touched him,” the mayor said. “I’m a little overweight, so that’s the thing that sticks out the most … I’m a short, fat man.” 

The mayor added later in a text message that Whitener “came into town hall as the aggressor.” Noting his age and various physical ailments, Highsmith asserted that he poses “no physical threat” to the council member. 

Highsmith, who ran for an at-large Fremont County School District 24 seat after losing his primary reelection bid for mayor, said his court date is in early December. (Konija also ran for one of four school board seats in that district.) 

Maya Shimizu Harris covers public safety for WyoFile. She was previously a freelance writer and the state politics reporter for the Casper Star-Tribune.

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