The Natrona County District Attorney’s Office has charged Weston County Clerk Becky Hadlock for failing to appear at a legislative committee meeting in Casper after she was subpoenaed by state lawmakers, court filings show. 

The subpoena, issued by Rep. Chris Knapp, R-Gillette, in his capacity as co-chair of the Joint Management Audit Committee, required Hadlock to appear at a September hearing, where lawmakers were expected to question her about her office’s actions in the November 2024 election. 

Hadlock, however, did not attend the meeting, prompting lawmakers to pursue criminal charges. The violation is a misdemeanor, according to state law. If convicted, Hadlock could face up to six months in jail and a $100 fine. 

The subpoena stemmed from Hadlock’s role in an initial ballot miscount and subsequent false post-election audit in Weston County’s 2024 general election. In July, lawmakers formed the Weston County Clerk Subcommittee to investigate what occurred and to compel testimony. 

“This is a big violation,” Sen. Dan Laursen, R-Powell, said at the September meeting when Hadlock failed to appear. 

It was initially unclear to lawmakers and staff attorneys whether charges should be pursued in Casper, where the meeting was held, or elsewhere. However, the Natrona County Sheriff’s Office began an investigation in late September, according to an affidavit signed by Sgt. Ken Jividen. 

The investigation involved interviews with multiple lawmakers including Reps. Knapp and Rachel Rodriguez-Williams, R-Cody, and Sen. Laursen. 

Knapp told Jividen that Hadlock had indicated ahead of the meeting that she would not be present, according to the affidavit.

“Although she provided documentation to the committee indicating she would not be present, she did not provide any specific details as to why she would not be available to attend,” the affidavit states. 

In her own interview with Sgt. Jividen, Hadlock said she had a doctor’s appointment in Newcastle on Sept. 29, the day of the meeting. Hadlock also said she had to drive her mother to Gillette for a doctor’s appointment that same day. 

“Ultimately, Hadlock again said she did receive a subpoena, she knew she was commanded to appear, and that she was not excused from the subpoena,” the affidavit states. 

Hadlock also provided documentation following the interview that indicated the Sept. 29 medical appointments in Newcastle and Gillette. 

Ryan Semerad, Hadlock’s attorney, declined to comment for this story. 

A hearing in the case is set for Nov. 14 in Natrona County Circuit Court in Casper, according to a criminal summons. 

Background

For the November 2024 election, Hadlock printed three versions of the ballot due to errors on the first two. It’s not unusual for clerks to reprint ballots to correct misprintings and other errors ahead of an election, but problems arose when some voters were given the erroneous first and second versions. 

As a result, tabulators miscounted votes in a county commission race and the contest for House District 1, where House Speaker Rep. Chip Neiman (R-Hulett) was running unopposed. 

Speaker of the House Chip Neiman, center, listens to the Wyoming Legislature’s Weston County Clerk 2024 General Election Subcommittee in Casper on Sept. 29, 2025. (Maggie Mullen/WyoFile)

The initial results for Weston County showed Neiman received 166 votes while 1,289 voters left that part of the ballot blank, also known as an undervote. 

That count caught Secretary of State Chuck Gray’s attention on election night, he told the state canvassing board last year. When Hadlock didn’t answer his calls, he sent the sheriff’s office to her home. 

Hadlock initially denied there was an issue, but ultimately agreed to Gray’s request that her office complete a hand tabulation of the ballots, which confirmed her mistake. The recount showed that Neiman received 1,269 votes, and the results were certified by the county canvassing board.

Gray recommended that Hadlock be removed from office, but Gov. Mark Gordon came to a different conclusion, saying her mistakes did not rise to the level of malfeasance. Gordon is now weighing new complaints against Hadlock, including for her failure to comply with the subpoena.

Maggie Mullen reports on state government and politics. Before joining WyoFile in 2022, she spent five years at Wyoming Public Radio.

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  1. For Pete’s sake…….the woman had other obligations which had already been scheduled. Why couldn’t they set up a Zoom call? Let the voters of Weston County decide Hadlock’s fate. Enough already!

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