casper

Casper Police arrested a man after he started shooting inside of the radiology department at Wyoming Medical Center early Monday morning.

A section of the North Platte River, between Gray Reef and Casper, may receive new commercial permits for fishing due to increased annual demand. The Bureau of Land Management put out a request for public comment to learn more about how recreationists want to use the stretch between Gray Reef and Casper. 

On Tuesday, Casper became the latest community in Wyoming to pass a non-discrimination resolution for LGBT residents. The resolution passed Casper’s city council with a six to three vote.

It does not hold the same legal teeth as an ordinance, but Reverend Dee Lundberg said it’s a start. She is with Casper’s PFLAG group, an LGBT advocacy organization. During previous city council meetings, there was discussion of drafting another version of the resolution, one that would take out the specific references to LGBT people. Lundberg said she’s glad that version did not move forward.

Newsroom staff at the Casper Star-Tribune are starting the process of forming a union.

When Casper’s City Council members consider a non-discrimination resolution at their next work session in January, it will be the second time they’ve discussed it. They first saw it in November, and Dee Lundberg said it went over well with most council members. Lundberg is with the local chapter of PFLAG, an LGBT advocacy group.

A recently completed outside review of the Casper Police Department reveals morale is up. That’s following controversy that began last year when 30 women accused the department of mishandling their sexual assault cases.

The review, completed by the Center for Public Safety Management, makes 75 specific recommendations for changes at the Casper Police Department, including updating facilities and filling vacancies.
It also recommends more training for officers dealing with crimes like sexual assault, to ensure investigations are not compromised by inexperience.

The Casper Police Department will host the second and final public panel on sexual assault Wednesday, June 21. The series began after 30 women told the Casper City Council they believed the police neglected or mishandled their cases.

Gillette’s city administrator will soon take over the position as city manager in Casper. Carter Napier will replace V.H. McDonald, who announced his retirement in April amidst controversy surrounding his office and the police department. The appointment is subject to city council approval. 

The Casper City Manager's office says Police Chief Jim Wetzel will not be retained. The change in leadership comes in the midst of multiple investigations of the department. 

In April, a third party survey of 84 employees at the Casper Police department revealed a hostile work environment and an ineffective chain of command that prevented officers from proper investigations. The survey also pointed to the city’s administration for ignoring these concerns. Two days after the survey was made public, Casper City Manager V.H. McDonald announced his retirement.

A ballot initiative in Casper is aiming to give residents the ability to choose what form of local government their city operates under. Right now, Casper’s city council hires a city manager to handle employees and daily operations. The council also selects a mayor from within their ranks, but the position has little power. 

If the ballot initiative gets 3,700 signatures, voters could begin a new system where voters would elect the mayor position. The new mayoral role would oversee daily operations in place of a city manager.

Casper City Manager V.H. McDonald has announced he will retire from the position on June 1. 

McDonald’s decision to retire follows the Casper City Council's request on Tuesday for an investigation into leadership at the Casper Police Department and complaints that city management neglected to address problems in that department.  

A press release from the City of Casper says McDonald was hired in November of 2015. 

The Casper Police Department hosted a community panel on sexual assault Thursday night, following the complaints of over 30 women that claim law enforcement mishandled their sexual assault cases.

The panel included representatives from sexual assault related services, including the Self Help Center, the Casper Police Department's Victim Services, the Child Advocacy Project, Wyoming Medical Center, as well as District Attorney Mike Blonigen and Chief of Police Jim Wetzel who discussed how they try to help victims.

At Casper’s City Council meeting on Tuesday, Mayor Kenyne Humphrey requested an investigation of the Casper Police Department. The request follows the results of a survey taken by law enforcement officers that point to potential issues with the agency’s leadership.

Mayor Kenyne Humphrey said Casper’s local branch of the Fraternal Order of Police brought her the results of a survey taken by current and former members of the Casper Police Department. She said what she saw was alarming.

This year marks the 67th season for the Casper-based Wyoming Symphony Orchestra. They’re calling it ‘A Moving Symphonic Season’ because the orchestra has a final concert at Casper College this weekend before returning to a newly renovated auditorium in December. 

Longtime Casper radio morning announcer, Brian Scott Gamroth, known as Brian Scott on the air, died in a motorcycle accident in Montana on Sunday. Gamroth was known for his support of a number of causes including the arts.

Gamroth served on the boards for the Casper College Theatre Program, the Nicolaysen Art Museum, and the Wyoming Symphony Orchestra.

The City Council in Casper voted to cut the city’s budget by more than a third on Tuesday.

While the cuts do not include any layoffs, Casper City Council member, Bob Hopkins, says there will be a reduction in capital spending, elimination of 23 vacant positions and early retirement for some city employees.

Hopkins says the primary goal of the cuts is to keep public services, like street maintenance and snow plowing, going during the economic downturn.

A celebrated concert pianist will offer a public performance at Casper College on Friday. He’s the featured artist at this year’s Wyoming Music Teachers Association conference.

The Wyoming Symphony Orchestra has suspended the contract of a world-renowned French horn player in response to allegations of sexual harassment.

Eric Ruske is teaches horn at Boston University. He was scheduled to perform as a soloist with the Wyoming Symphony this weekend.

In a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Boston, two former students say Ruske used inappropriate language with them and requested they send pictures to him. The plaintiffs also say Boston University failed to take action to stop Ruske’s harassment.

State Forester Bill Crapser said that between 15 to 20 structures have been lost in a grass fire that burned some 15 square miles north of Casper. 

Crapser is blaming warm and dry conditions for the fire that he says is unusual for this time of year.  Hundreds of residents had been evacuated. When they return to their homes Red Cross spokeswoman Pat Kondas said they will need more than food and water.

Hundreds of residents near the Casper suburb of Evansville have been evacuated from their homes due to a grass fire. The blaze started at a landfill Saturday, but high winds have since caused the fire to spread to the surrounding area.

Bob Fawcett is the Fire Marshall for the Natrona County Fire Protection District. He says the department has called up much of its resources, between 80 and 100 people in aerial and ground units, to fight the fire, but the high winds that fanned the flames initially are also making it difficult to fight the fire.