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Laramie County jail sees drop in suicide attempts alongside increased attention to mental illness
Wyoming Tribune Eagle
In the last quarter of 2025, the Laramie County jail saw no suicide attempts. This milestone coincided with the opening of two pods dedicated to housing inmates suffering from severe mental illnesses. Over the last year and a half, the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office detention staff, medical personnel and mental health providers have reviewed inmate records and assessed performance quarterly. In 2025, the jail saw 14 suicide attempts, down from 30 in 2024, the Wyoming Tribune Eagle reports. Read the full story.
If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, call or text the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988.
Read WyoFile’s investigative series examining why people die in jail, why the public knows so little about these deaths and how they might be avoided in the future.
School board upholds firing of former Cody teacher, coach
Cody Enterprise
The Park County School District 6 Board voted this week to uphold the termination of a Cody High School teacher and basketball coach. The board cited evidence gathered by an independent investigator and presented in October at a three-day hearing alongside a report from an attorney specializing in Title IX and education law, the Cody Enterprise reports. The teacher and coach, Sam Buck, represented himself at the hearing and requested that the hearing be public. Read the full story.
Grizzly 399 exonerated in 2024 mauling in Grand Teton National Park
Jackson Hole News&Guide
When a grizzly bear attacked Shayne Burke in May 2024 near Signal Mountain, he reported being attacked by a larger bear and seeing a smaller bear running away. The situation was assumed to be the classic set-up: A mother protecting her cubs. Some community members even believed the bear to be Grizzly 399, the world-famous bruin who died in October 2024. But DNA evidence indicates Burke was actually attacked by Grizzly 794, a male likely mating with Grizzly 610. “Unfortunately, I encountered bears in their most intimate moment,” Burke told the Jackson Hole News&Guide. Read the full story.
Two new accessible yurts to open soon in the Uintas
Uinta County Herald
Two new yurts designed for campers with limited mobility will open soon on the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest. The yurts will be open to the general public, with the last full weekend of each month designated for people with Americans with Disabilities Act needs. The new yurts, close to the highway, are accessible by snowmobile in winter or car in summer. Funding for the project came from the nonprofit Bear River Outdoor Recreation Alliance and a 50% matching Utah Outdoor Recreation grant. Alliance board members volunteered their time to help build the yurts using kits, the Uinta County Herald reports. Read the full story.