A former library official is pushing back against the political forces that ended her decades-long career in the Campbell County Public Library system, bringing her second of two federal lawsuits this month, accusing local government and an activist family of discrimination and wrongful termination.
The Campbell County Public Library System Board of Trustees fired Terri Lesley from her job in July 2023, after the director of the county library system resisted calls to censure books dealing with questions of sexuality among teens and young adults, particularly LGBTQ+ youth.
Two months after her firing, Lesley sued members of a family, the Bennetts, who had prominently advocated for her removal as library director. This week, she brought a new federal lawsuit against the county, its board of commissioners, the library board and individual members of both government boards. The new suit accuses local officials of violating the First Amendment’s right to free speech and firing Lesley in a retaliatory and discriminatory way.
Sage Bear, who sits on the library board and is the wife of House Appropriations Chairman and Wyoming Freedom Caucus leader John Bear, is one of the defendants. Lesley’s lawsuit alleges Sage Bear played a key role in driving the librarian from her job.
By text message, Rep. Bear said he believed his wife had been counseled not to comment by her attorneys. WyoFile reached out to the private attorneys on both sides of Lesley’s lawsuits, including her Denver-based law firm, but did not receive responses by day’s end Wednesday.
A representative for the Campbell County Attorney’s office said it was too early for the agency to comment on the lawsuit against the county, which was filed Monday. Court records indicate the county has yet to be served with the lawsuit.
Lesley notched a legal victory in her first lawsuit earlier this month, as U.S. District Court of Wyoming Judge Alan Johnson ruled that half of her claims against the Bennetts can proceed to trial. He also tossed a motion for dismissal.
Both lawsuits come as the Wyoming Freedom Caucus, which controls the House, promises to thrust the Legislature into the debate over library books. The Legislature’s Joint Judiciary Committee has taken on the state’s obscenity laws as a topic to study from now until the 2026 legislative session, and conservative lawmakers will likely push for laws banning books that discuss sexuality from libraries where they can be accessed by minors.
Librarian directors from around the state opposed a bill along those lines during the most recent legislative session. The House Judiciary Committee ultimately tabled that bill, electing to study it between sessions.
Lesley’s firing marked the culmination of two years of fierce political debate in Campbell County, during which Lesley became a target of activists opposed to LGBTQ+ literature for young people in public libraries.
Those activists, namely the Bennett family, called for Lesley to be fired and even pressed the Campbell County District Attorney’s Office to charge her for providing obscene material to minors, according to the longer-running lawsuit, which Lesley filed in September 2023. It names as defendants Kevin, Hugh and Susan Bennett.
Prosecutors declined to bring charges after conducting what they described as an extensive review of state statutes. The county attorney found that the books in question did not meet the statute’s definition of obscene materials, which requires sexual content to also lack “serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.”
WyoFile reached Kevin Bennett by phone on Wednesday, and he declined to comment.
In their response to Lesley’s lawsuit, an attorney for the Bennetts says they were exercising their own free speech rights and were not responsible for firing Lesley.
Policy debate
The Joint Judiciary Committee, which meets next month for the first time since the conclusion of the 2025 legislative session, does not have a set direction when it comes to the obscenity law topic, House chairman Art Washut, R-Casper, told WyoFile. The committee might pursue a change to criminal statutes as outlined in this year’s failed bill, or seek to “compel school districts and library boards to certify compliance in some way,” he wrote in a text message.
“It is wide open at this point, but there was strong support to rein in the idea that open access of all materials to kids is appropriate,” Washut wrote.
Conservatives are trying to outlaw LGBTQ+ material under the guise of protecting children, said Sara Burlingame, executive director of gay-rights advocacy group Wyoming Equality. Library books that describe the experience of LGBTQ+ youth carry immense value to young people grappling with their emerging sexuality, she said, particularly in Wyoming’s rural communities and small towns.
“Wyoming Equality supports the freedom to access books for the public,” she said. “Anything that reinforces that the public is made up of a diverse group of individuals which includes gay, lesbian, Two Spirit and transgender people, that has to be fought for over and over again.”
The drive to create new laws targeting certain books was irreconcilable with American democratic ideals, she said. Any effort to stand up to that, like Lesley’s lawsuit, was cheered by Wyoming Equality, she said.
“People keep waiting for what the line is, and when they’re coming for books, that’s it,” she said. “That’s your cue. That’s the line.”
In the crosshairs after a long career
According to her lawsuit, Lesley spent 27 years working for the library system, and 11 as its director. “In 2021, however, the highly politicized vilification of LGBTQ+ communities and book-banning craze engulfing the country landed on her doorstep, with grave consequences,” her attorneys wrote.
Bigotry, not genuine concern for young people, drove Campbell County activists to push Lesley out of her job, and local officials abetted them instead of standing firm for free speech and equal rights, the lawsuit alleged.
In June, which is Pride Month, of that year, the library system made a Facebook post celebrating Rainbow Book Month — an initiative of the American Library Association, which describes it as a “nationwide celebration” of books reflecting the lives and experiences of LGBTQ+ people. That post caught the attention of two then-county commissioners, Del Shelstad and Colleen Faber, who are both defendants in this week’s lawsuit.
According to the suit, Shelstad said the county commission had not recognized Pride Month, though it is a national celebration and President Joe Biden had recognized it that year. Shelstad and Faber did not respond to WyoFile messages requesting comment.
After that, library books became a topic of frequent discussion at Campbell County Commission meetings. Hugh Bennett suggested promoting Pride Month was “the ground game of an attempt to destroy our culture and our country,” while Kevin Bennett said exposing young people to questions of sexuality was “pedophilic” and would drive increases in drug addiction and suicide, according to the complaint.
“The Bennetts and other activist residents voiced explicit anti-LGBTQ+ rationales for their requests to remove books, virulently vilifying LGBTQ+ individuals,” the lawsuit read.
At another meeting, former lawmaker Scott Clem, who is now on the Campbell County Commission, said the library was “promoting the basest of base things in our society,” the complaint read, and urged the county not to “promote animalistic behaviors.”
In 2021, the library board backed Lesley, supporting her efforts to promote Rainbow Book Month, according to the lawsuit.
Lesley’s hiring of a magician further inflamed Campbell County’s conservatives. The magician, who was hired to perform shows at the Wright and Gillette branches, is transgender, though her gender identity was not part of her planned act, which was instead a simple magic show for children. The show did not touch on LGBTQ+ issues at all, the magician said at the time, and Lesley has said the performer was not hired because she was transgender.
Library staff did not in fact know the magician was transgender until someone in Campbell County dug into her background, according to the lawsuit. But Shelstad, Clem and others fixated on the magician’s gender identity, according to the lawsuit.
Eventually, the magician cancelled the shows, citing safety concerns.
Controversy, then firing
Throughout 2021 and 2022, the Bennetts and others sought to get some books removed from the library or move them into a certain area inaccessible to minors. Lesley and the library board continued to rebuff those efforts, saying it would be illegal censorship.
Over time, however, the county commission replaced the library board with people, like Sage Bear, who were more determined to censor certain books, and who opposed Lesley’s stance. In March 2022, a deputy county attorney sought to warn Shelstad that appointing a board with the goal of removing LGBTQ-friendly books and firing Lesley could expose the county to a lawsuit.
“Litigation regarding censorship — which is waiting in the wings on all sides — would be cripplingly costly, time consuming, and very likely unsuccessful for the County,” the attorney wrote, according to a copy of her email included in the lawsuit.
But by July 2023, the board was dominated by people opposed to Lesley’s actions, and she was fired in a 4-1 vote. At the board’s request, her replacement created a special section in the library for the challenged books, according to the lawsuit.
Lesley’s lawsuits have the support of the Wyoming Library Association, which represents the state’s librarians. “Terri dedicated her career to providing library services to her community,” the group’s president, Lindsey Travis, wrote in a statement to WyoFile.
Wyoming libraries do not hold materials that are legally considered obscene, Travis said, and “we believe that only parents and guardians have the right to decide what materials are best for their own children.”
Travis hopes Lesley’s lawsuit will get the attention of the state’s politicians, she said, and “encourage lawmakers to better understand the purpose of their local libraries, to see how libraries hold essential roles in their communities, and to support the ways libraries and librarians uphold the tenets of the First Amendment.”
If you don’t want your kids to read certain books, it’s up to you as parents to study what they want to read. You don’t have the authority to tell other parents or kids what to read. It’s still a free country and a number one right to freedom of the press. Banning books doesn’t work, it just makes kids more curious to read why they are so “bad.” Calling the librarian depraved is the sign of a small, closed mind. I’m all for Ms. Lesley’s lawsuit and hope she wins.
Sue, I might have to disagree with you as I wonder if this truly is a free country anymore.
Humans tend to choose dogmas that align with their own beliefs and values. The idea that it’s ok to force everyone else to live by those rules, no matter how distasteful or harmful those rules may be to some, is truly evil. To claim the right to do so is the height of arrogance.
I hope she wins her cases.
And that dogma is determined by geography and a genetic tendency towards subservience (if you buy into modern behavioral psychology, which I do).
If the Bennetts or Bears would have slide down the birth canal and landed in New Delhi, they’d be staunch Hindus. Cut the cord in Turkey? Probably Islamic Extremist. Born in Haiti? They would have family cookouts, slaughtering chickens during crazed voodoo rituals. The point being the Bennetts and Bears are not Christians, they are followers. They’ll do what they are told without question.
If they were Christian, they would follow the simple teachings of the New Testament, protecting the vulnerable in our commutes, while caring for the sick and poor. Instead, they are WY conservatives, dictated by geography and genetics, which in 2025 means they spread hate and cruelty.
Good that she was fired. They need a library staff and board that will keep children safe. Wait until they are 18 to make decisions about their sexuality, just like with driving a car, getting a tattoo, voting or joining the military. It’s life changing. If parents want those materials in their homes, then maybe the parents need to seek mental help? So it’s good that this depraved woman was fired.
It’s not the library’s responsibility to keep children safe. That lies with the parents. Where are the parents? Do they not go with their children to the library? Do they not at least take a cursory look at what their children are reading.
Believing that life should only begin at the age of 18 is naive. Youth of today have more access to all levels of information right at their finger tips; it’s call the world wide web. and who gave them this access? Parents when they handed them a smart phone in grade school. So for the child that actually frequents the library, I say hurrah! Reading expands so many horizons in so many different ways. Knowledge is power, and I for one would rather have children growing up reading about a diverse range of topics, instead of sitting in front of the TV listening to Fox news.
Justin. It not library’s job to keep your kids safe. It is YOUR job to do so. Think back to when you went thru puberty and how curious you were about the world and sex. It normal. It is your job to educate your kids about the matter. Now. Would it not be simple for library to have a simple but hard rule. This section off limits to minors under age of say 13. With out adult present no reading. After all these days mom/dad usually drove the kid to library. In the end this will give Kevin Bennet material for his stand up comedy.
Mrs. Lesley has my support in her lawsuits against the fake christian hypocrites.
the christian taliban folks are a cancer to society.
Certaily if parents are insistant that their kids have access to sex or porn info, they should be able to buy it or check it out themselves. Taxpayers and librarians should NOT however be required to provide the kids with sex and porn books.I don’t know if NOT providing such “how to” info would help slow down pregnancy rates, but I seriously doubt providing it will slow them down.
Marion, please define “porn” for those of us who were subjugated to a WY public education. A legal definition is preferred. We’re happy to wait.
Sorry, you will have to look up or find your own sites. I would not know how to even start to find you one. One of the concerns for easily accessed by kids is pat least partly due to the number of babies I have delivered for very young girls. It is tough for the girl, her parents as well as the baby.
Marion, your response about very young girls giving birth kind of strikes me as more an ignorance issue on their part. And, I didn’t see you mention any hardship relating to the baby’s father. There is a responsibility on the part of parents to discuss with their child how babies are made. They aren’t found under cabbage leaves, they aren’t delivered by storks, but instead, in reality, when two people have unprotected sex, there is a really good chance that you will become pregnant. Parents, listen up…it takes two…..so both sons and daughters need to fully comprehend the consequences of a night of passion.
and while I’m on the subject……youth have always been curious about sex…..it happens. So do yourself and your child a favor and have an open and honest conversation about procreation. Who knows, you might just learn something!
I actually agree with the signs the protesters are holding up. Parents – know what your children are reading and YOU decide what YOUR children read…it ends there – problem solved. You don’t get to decide what MY children read and have access to. Your opinion is not my opinion and your opinion is not “fact” or “truth” and shouldn’t be forced on everyone. All families should be represented as that is real life, even if you don’t like it. I don’t all agree with your opinions and lifestyle, but I’m not asking for books about Christian families to be banned because I find them offensive.
I agree 100%. The sign says it all. It is the parents responsibility to monitor and guide their children. Unfortunately parents of today have abdicated their parenting responsibilities to teachers, librarians, day care providers and so on.
Perversion is not a synonym for progress.
And neither is banning books.
Excellent reporting . You can’t stop a person from expressing and finding his or her truth by banning books . I’m hoping and betting the courageous librarian wins her lawsuit.
It’s wrong to ban books. Regardless of content. Raise your kids right and you don’t have to worry about what they read
100% agree, Larry. Great point.
In written history, those who ban or burn books never turned out to be the good guys. Ever. From oppressive and violent religious sects, to the Taliban, Nazi Germany or WY’s Hillbilly ISIS, the worst of humanity seeks to ban knowledge. The WY Bennetts and Bears join a long line of fascists and oppressive regimes.
If the Bennett clan wanted to protect children, they would ban the Bible, there’s some truly vile stuff in that tome. They could also support legislation requiring LE escort for all minors attending Catholic Mass or Bible school; the number of WY children being sexually molested would plummet.
Fair to ask if digital forensics conducted on the Bennett’s home computers would result in criminal charges. What we are clearly seeing from the religious far-right is every accusation is a confession.
In the past month alone, a GQP state senator in Minnesota was forced to resign after soliciting sex from a minor; a popular MAGA influencer in California was taken into custody on charges of sexually assaulting a minor and producing child sexual abuse material; and the felon draft dodger’s former spiritual adviser and Texas megachurch pastor surrendered to Oklahoma authorities, also on charges of child sexual abuse. For the team orange apologists, the current sitting POTUS is a legally recognized sexual abuser and serially accused rapist, with strong ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
If anyone has information on a GoFundMe or legal fund supporting Ms Lesley, please share. We have some spare cash being withheld from businesses that support team orange, and we’d like to donate to this particular effort .
I couldn’t have said it better.
How can we allow the Bible in public schools/libraries? Do people not understand all the writings contained therein? There are many stories which contain all the things they want to protect their children from. Life, I guess.