Jackson, Wyoming Wednesday, January 30, 2019 One dollar

Case closed in fatal griz attack Survival

Investigation concludes
slope in the Teton Wilderness.
Wyoming Game and Fish Depart-
bear spray worked, but ment investigators later found evi-
dence that supported his suspicion:
was deployed too late.
dubious,
Uptain deployed the bear spray, it
stopped the aggression, giving him
time to escape,” Game and Fish in-
vestigators detailed in a just-released

By Mike Koshmrl
A Florida hunter who fled from a
that outfitter Mark Uptain was fa-
tally wounded during an initial at-
tack and likely died within minutes,
even though he managed to halt the
brutal mauling with a blast of bear
boarder
report. “However, this appears to be
after the fatal injuries were inflicted.”
Those conclusions, and descrip-
tions of events that played out,
come from a 34-page investigation

grizzly bear that was trying to ap-
propriate an elk carcass thought his
Jackson Hole guide was already dead
when he first rang 911 from a high
hiked on
spray and stagger 50 yards before
report Game and Fish provided the
succumbing to massive trauma and
News&Guide following a public
blood loss.
“Evidence suggests that when See UPTAIn on 12A

Wet and cold in the dark,

he dug snowpits during
breaks to warm himself,
then walked some more.
By Emily Mieure

After taking a wrong turn on his

snowboard in a whiteout, Pierre
Bergman ended up stranded alone
in the backcountry where the only
way out was up.
“When I realized how lost I was I
thought I should start hiking back up
toward the tram,” Bergman said.
Losing his way Thursday afternoon,
the 26-year-old Jackson man weathered
the winter elements for 19 hours before
rescuers reached him Friday morning.
He had no injuries to speak of.
“I just kept moving to keep warm,”
Bergman said.
The temperature fell to about 7 de-
grees in the hours before he was found.
Bergman, who works in lift oper-
ations for Jackson Hole Mountain
Resort, was following two friends
out gate two at the top of Rendez-
vous Bowl around 2 p.m. for a sec-
ond lap in Rock Springs Bowl. But
he became disoriented.
BRADLY J. BONER / NEWS&GUIDE
Facing 40 mph winds the snow-
Freshman Rep. Mike Yin, D-Teton, chats with colleagues in the Wyoming State House of Representatives during the boarder couldn’t keep up on the
legislative session earlier this month in Cheyenne. Veteran lawmakers are already taking notice of Yin, who is now traverse with his two buddies, who
three weeks into his first session. were in front of him, so he told them
to go ahead.

Yin hits the ground running in House

Freshman lawmaker earns respect
among elder legislators in Cheyenne.
By Cody Cottier
These days Mike Yin spends most of his time in “the
ghetto.”
That’s what his peers affectionately call the corner
where they, the thoroughly outnumbered Democrats of
the Wyoming House of Representatives, cluster for each
legislative session.
When the 2019 Legislature opened Jan. 8 Teton Coun-
ty’s newest lawmaker took his seat to the right of Mi-
nority Leader Cathy Connolly, of Albany County, and in
front of fellow Jackson Rep. Andy Schwartz. For the next
month, until final adjournment, that’s where he’ll stay.
But if it were up to some Republicans, his place would
be at their elbow, outside the nine-strong liberal nook.
As Yin strolled into the House chamber on a recent
morning, Rep. Charles Pelkey, a fellow Democrat who
represents Albany County, stopped him at the door to
praise him for catching an obscure oversight in a bill
“I kept going down and I thought
I was in Rock Springs, but I was on
the backside,” he said.
Bergman didn’t realize he was
passing through a committee he wasn’t even on.
“Greear came up to me this morning and goes ‘We got
lost until he reached the bottom
near Granite Creek.
to move Michael over to our side,’ ” Pelkey said, referring “For the first few hours my goal was
to Republican Rep. Mike Greear, who for eight years has to just keep going down, but I got to this
represented Big Horn and Washakie counties. drainage and there were mountains all
“We’re going to trade you like a future draft pick,” around me,” he said.
Pelkey went on. “You impressed the s--t out of them.”
Bergman pulled out his phone but
Yin grinned and let out a hearty laugh. didn’t have any service. He was sending
“Oh, nice. Good to hear,” he said, before continuing
out messages on his two-way radio but
into the chamber. couldn’t pick up anything despite click-
He wore a drab, tri-toned gray ensemble, his coat,
ing through channels.
shirt and tie all different shades. But modest dress aside, “There was a snow bridge I tried
it’s hard to miss Yin at the Capitol: The young software
to cross, but it collapsed on me and
developer defies the garden-variety image of a Wyoming I fell into the creek,” he said. “So my
politician.
feet got wet.”
As the state’s first Chinese-American legislator he’s Bergman had to abandon his snow-
often the only person of color in the room, and at 32 he’s
board to walk in the creek to a point
almost as often the only unweathered face. Most of his where the snow walls were short enough
colleagues on the Labor, Health and Social Services Com-
for him to climb out.
mittee and the Travel, Recreation, Wildlife and Cultural When Bergman tried to get his
Resources Committee earned their degrees a decade or snowboard, the sun was setting and he
more before Yin was born.
See snOWBOARdeR on 26A
See YIn on 15A

InsIde 2A
3A
Meanwhile, back at snow King
se habla trivia
9A
11A
This might hurt a little bit
sex ed, tests get new support
19A
21A
A plan: more trash, more cash
Mental health care adds people
© 2019 Teton Media Works 8A day care parents still not happy 15A still legal to ’bile coyotes to death 27A Blotter: ski day goes downhill
12A - JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, January 30, 2019
After a grizzly’s initial attack on Mark Uptain and Corey Chubon on a north-facing slope of Terrace Mountain, Chubon rode on horseback to the top of a high ridge
to call 911. He was located by helicopter and picked up by Teton County Search and Rescue and Wyoming Game and Fish Department personnel two hours later.
Uptain
Continued from cover
records request. The document doesn’t
settle all debates, but it clarifies a pre-
viously murky series of events, doing
so with an analysis, photos, schemat-
ics, and statements and eyewitness
reports from first responders, a coro-
ner and hunting client Corey Chubon.
Some of the details that follow in
this story are gory and graphic but
are being included to give readers a
sense of the true hazard that’s an in-
herent part of recreating and hunting
in grizzly bear habitat.
The sudden Sept. 14 attack that
killed 37-year-old Uptain and left five
Jackson Hole children without a fa-
ther is an outlier in several ways.
Hunter conflicts with grizzly bears
in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem,
and the Teton Wilderness specifically,
are routine — there are dozens of en-
counters annually, including many
caused by carcasses. But according to
bear conflict expert Steve Primm, the
Uptain fatality marks the first time
an attacking grizzly in North America
has been doused with bear spray but
killed a person anyway. Scouring the
records, he said, it’s also only the third
occasion of a grizzly having aggres-
sively appropriated a carcass from a
hunter and killed the person or people
present in the process.
Elk carcass trigger
The tragedy that pulled heart-
strings and stoked emotions in Jack-
son Hole and well beyond stemmed
from a raghorn bull elk that Chubon’s
crossbow hit with a “poor shot” on a
Thursday afternoon in mid-Septem-
ber. Uptain, an experienced guide for
Martin Outfitters, was with his hunt-
er on Terrace Mountain, a broad peak
that’s 6 air miles from the Turpin
Meadow trailhead. Uptain and Chu-
bon couldn’t find the elk, but they re-
turned the next afternoon to where it
was hit and then found a large blood
trail. They followed it into a patch of
timber and around 1 p.m. discovered
the undisturbed carcass.
It was a warm day — peaking at
73 degrees in nearby Moran — and
while field dressing the elk Uptain
removed his shirt and left it and his
black nylon shoulder strap holding
a Glock 10-millimeter handgun 5 or
10 yards uphill of the carcass. A can-
Hunting guide Mark Uptain was fatally mauled by a grizzly bear
Sept. 14 on Terrace Mountain in the Teton Wilderness, about 44 miles northeast
of Jackson. The Wyoming Game and Fish Department recently released its
findings from an investigation of the attack.
ister of bear spray was slung from a
hip holster on Uptain’s left side, but
Chubon’s bear spray was left in his
pack because it had “become cumber-
some carrying it on the horse,” he
told investigators.
Uptain was removing the bull’s
head, with Chubon nearby, when they
heard a sound of rocks tumbling, pre-
saging the attack.
“Mr. Chubon stated he looked up
and saw two grizzly bears running
full speed directly toward them,”
Game Warden Jon Stephens wrote af-
ter interviewing the surviving client.
Uptain’s first reaction, Chubon re-
called, was “waving his arms and yell-
ing” in the fleeting moment before he
was struck and repeatedly bitten. The
larger of the two bruins, an adult sow,
was the aggressor, while its grown
cub was initially “just moving around
in the background.”
Chubon’s first reaction was to re-
trieve Uptain’s Glock from the nearby
gear pile, but he didn’t know how to
function the slide on the top of the
firearm that chambers a bullet.
“Chubon stated that he could not
fire the handgun initially because of
the bears’ close proximity to Uptain,”
the report analysis says, “fearing he
WYOMING GAME AND FISH DEPARTMENT / COURTESY MAP
would unintentionally shoot Uptain.”
The Floridian client also told inves-
tigators he could “not remember if he
attempted to pull the trigger.”
When the sow diverted its attack to
Chubon he tried to throw the gun to
the man who knew how to use it. But
the firearm fell short of Uptain and no
longer contained the 15-round maga-
zine of 10-millimeter full-metal-jacket-
ed bullets that Chubon “inadvertently
ejected” while trying to disengage the
safety. The handgun was otherwise
functional, Teton County Sheriff ’s Of-
fice determined after an analysis.
Chubon reported that he was able
to sidestep the grizzly, but that it
grabbed his right boot with its mouth.
In a brief tussle Chubon sustained
abrasions to his right arm, fingers
and left knee and a puncture wound
on his ankle. Later he refused medi-
cal treatment and quickly flew out
of Jackson Hole Airport, hours be-
fore his guide’s body was discovered.
Although the outfitted crossbow
hunter has been unresponsive to the
News&Guide’s requests for an inter-
view, he told Orlando, Florida, tele-
vision station WESH he thought he
was about to die.
“Somehow, the grizzly let me go
WYOMING GAME AND FISH DEPARTMENT / COURTESY PHOTO
and charged Mark again, and that’s
when I made the decision just to run
for my life,” Chubon told the TV news
station.
Chubon told Game and Fish his
last view of Uptain was “on his feet,
fighting with the bear.” A Teton Coun-
ty Sheriff ’s Office report appended to
the investigation, however, contra-
dicts that, stating that Chubon’s last
view was of Uptain “bleeding severely
and being dragged” and “screaming as
the grizzly tore into him.”
It was windy, Chubon reported,
and after leaving the attack sight
and running to two horses 300 or 400
yards uphill, he never heard more
yells or gunshots.
Reaching Terrace Mountain’s crest
on horse around 4:30 p.m., Chubon
found a cell signal, alerted authori-
ties and waited two hours to be flown
out of the wilderness. He told dis-
patch during his first 911 call that he
thought the “guide is dead.”
Daylight soon ran out after a brief
aerial sweep looking for Uptain.
Reconstructing the scene
After Chubon fled, precisely what
happened is guesswork, and Game
and Fish investigation states its re-
constitution of the events “does not
include speculation about details not
supported by evidence.”
The healthy 250-pound sow griz-
zly Game and Fish employees later
shot and killed inflicted substantial,
traumatic damage on Uptain. Based
on the spacing of bite marks, investi-
gators determined that the yearling
male bear was also involved in the at-
tack, a factor in the decision to eutha-
nize the young grizzly.
All told, Uptain sustained 38 punc-
ture wounds and 14 ripping or tear-
ing wounds, but the “chief injuries”
incurred in the fight for his life were
to upper thighs on both legs, which
had been deeply torn and ripped
and endured “massive blood loss.” A
“crushing wound” impacted the hunt-
ing guide’s forehead, exposing bone
and cartilage, and his scalp had been
peeled off from his forehead to his
neck, though his skull in the exposed
area was intact.
There is a lasting division between
Game and Fish investigators and
Teton County Coroner Brent Blue
over what specific wound killed Up-
See attack on 17A
 JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, January 30, 2019 - 17A

AttAck
Continued from 12A
tain, and whether he could have moved at all after
he sustained it.
Blue, who did not visit the scene, said a bite that
penetrated Uptain’s skull would have instanta-
neously caused death.
“I don’t believe that he would have moved af-
terwards,” Blue said Tuesday in an interview.
“That’s my opinion, but my opinion, of course,
can be argued.”
The fatal cranial injury Blue alludes to is not in-
cluded in a post-mortem examination report that
Teton County Deputy Coroner Dave Hodges au-
thored. Because of state statute the actual autopsy
is also not included in the investigation report.
In talking to Hodges, Game and Fish officials
were told Uptain’s death was “rapid but not in-
stant,” according to the investigation report.
That point was emphasized in the investigation’s
analysis of the attack, which concludes that Up-
tain stopped the mauling with bear spray at the
initial attack site and then left under his power
before collapsing.
Several pieces of evidence found at the scene
back that theory. There was dried blood found on
the bear spray canister, and also blood dripping
down Uptain’s neck, shoulders and boots, which
suggests he was upright after the bites to his head
and thighs. When Teton County Sheriff ’s Sgt. Chett
Hooper found Uptain’s body at approximately
1:30 p.m. Saturday afternoon, there was no evi-
dence of a struggle or bear tracks near where he lay.
Three leg-hold traps baited with elk meat from
the scene were left out in the overnight hours after
Uptain’s death was confirmed.
Aboard a helicopter that overflew Terrace
Mountain on Sunday morning, five biologists
and wardens could not see if it worked. But once
on the ground Game and Fish’s Dan Thompson,
Kyle Lash, Jon Stephens, Brian Baker and Mike
Boyce heard bawls that indicated the cub had
been captured.
The sow, however, was running free, and ini-
tially charged the men as they approached before
pausing. A split-second call was made to take the
grizzly’s life, and Lash and Baker did so with
gunfire.
The cub was tranquilized, examined and then
killed. The adult bruin’s head had a “noticeable
odor of bear spray,” and forensic and DNA analy-
sis later confirmed that the two bears that had
fatally mauled Mark Uptain were dead.
Abnormal behavior
Both the grizzly sow and cub were determined
to be healthy, with ample fat and no obvious in-
juries.
While aggression toward humans in close WYOMING GAME AND FISH DEPARTMENT / COURTESY PHOTO
quarters is in the nature of grizzlies, Game and This sketch from the report on Mark Uptain’s death outlines the scene where the hunting guide was
Fish officials say this zero-hesitation attack does attacked by two grizzly bears.
not fall neatly into typical predatory or defen-
sive-aggressive behavior. Grizzlies on rare occa- land east of Missoula. Writing for the online “evaluate its training policy on bear spray use,”
sion attack people with the intent of eating them, news site Mountain Journal, Primm recited a but that guidance is now moot, Stockton said.
but usually it’s in defense of food, cubs, personal statement that former U.S. Fish and Wildlife “The recommendations have changed,” Stockton
space or a combination of all three, according to Service grizzly bear recovery coordinator Chris said. “I don’t know if they’ve changed because the
the investigation report’s analysis. Servheen told the Missoulian at the time of the recommendations are more severe or less severe.”
The Terrace Mountain attack was not food- Montana attack. Martin Outfitters’ owner, Dan Martin, has not
guarding, state officials’ reasoning goes, because “This type of aggression by a bear is very un- responded to the News&Guide’s interview requests.
Uptain and Chubon were there first. Secondly, common,” Servheen told the Montana newspaper Game and Fish’s Hovinga says he sees no ob-
the bears approached the men and not vice versa, at the time. “Knowledgeable people will put this vious, reckless decisions that led to the death of
which suggests the typical defense of offspring or event into context. ... It is most unfortunate that Mark Uptain. The agency’s guidance about us-
space “does not apply,” says the report. this happened, but also very unlikely that it will ing bear spray has not changed in the wake of
“The evidence suggests that the desire of the happen again anytime soon.” the tragedy. The nonlethal deterrent might have
bears to feed on the elk carcass was the motivating The next occasion, evidently, came 18 years later. worked “perfectly,” he said, but just wasn’t de-
factor in the incident,” the report’s analysis says. Primm’s take is that there are not always neat ployed in time to save Uptain’s life.
Wyoming Game and Fish Jackson Regional behavioral boxes explaining grizzly bear attacks. “If you have a really strong crosswind, bear
Supervisor Brad Hovinga told the News&Guide The attack could have been deliberate tactic spray may not be the best tool you’ve got at pre-
this is aberrant behavior. that the sow grizzly learned could displace other venting an attack,” Hovinga said, “but it’s cer-
“Every bear encounter I can think of that our bears or humans from a meal, but it also could tainly a very important tool, and we highly rec-
department has dealt with can typically be clas- have been less intentional. ommend for folks to keep it readily accessible
sified into either predatory behavior or defen- “She may have been smelling the elk, got into and available at all times.”
sive-aggressive behavior,” Hovinga said. “This close range and realized that there’s two people Primm did not fault Uptain for taking only a
fits the bill on none of them. That’s what makes and felt that it’s too late to back out,” Primm single inexperienced client into the backcountry
it so abnormal. It’s not a behavior that we see said. “Even though she’s the one that put herself to search for an elk in an area where grizzlies are
from grizzly bears.” into that close proximity we could describe it as easy to come by. While going to retrieve that elk
But on a broader geographic scale looking a close-range encounter, where she felt the need was an inherently risky activity, the duo might
back decades, there have been similar fatal at- to protect herself aggressively. not have found the elk at all, or they could have
tacks before, said Primm, a recently departed “We’ll never know that,” he said. “We’ll never discovered that the elk was already claimed by
employee of People and Carnivores who’s now know her motivation.” grizzlies and had to retreat. But once Uptain and
doing wildlife conflict consulting work. Chubon eyed the animal and were field dressing,
“In both the other instances I know of there OSHA probe incomplete more manpower or vigilance could have made a
were hunters processing elk,” Primm said. Wyoming Occupational Safety and Health Ad- major difference, he said.
Both other fatal attacks in which grizzlies have ministration regulators whose job is to enforce “Having another person there who was more
approached hunters on carcasses, he said, also in- workplace safety in the Equality State have not experienced and at the ready to help them get
volved females with cubs, although based on the reached any conclusions about whether Martin that elk out of there would have changed the out-
small sample size that may be pure coincidence. Outfitters will be faulted or fined. An investi- come dramatically,” Primm said.
The first fatality he pointed to dated to 1995 gation is ongoing, spokesman Ty Stockton said. Failing that, he said, if Chubon had been prepared
and involved two hunters who were killed while State statute requires the investigation to be and in possession of a defense mechanism, the story
packing out a bull elk near Radium Hot Springs, completed within 180 days — so by mid-March. would have probably turned out much differently.
British Columbia. In fall 2001 it happened again, The state agency in November released “rec-
when Timothy Hilston, of Great Falls, Montana, ommendations” that Martin Outfitters “evaluate Contact Mike Koshmrl at 732-7067, env@
was killed while field dressing his elk on state its operating procedures for bear country” and jhnewsandguide.com or @JHNGenviro.
2A - JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, April 17, 2019

Wolf shooter in park

walked right by sign
/UTlTTERANDAVID
WOLFHUNTERRETAINS
STANDINGONSTATEWIDE
New Spring OUTlTTERSBOARD
'19 Chaco’s By Mike Koshmrl

are here! ! +ELLY BIG GAME OUTlTTER AND AVID

WOLFHUNTERTRUDGEDTHROUGHTHESNOW
RIGHTPASTABOUNDARYSIGNONHISWAY
TOILLEGALLYSHOOTINGAFEMALEWOLFINSIDE
'RAND4ETON.ATIONAL0ARK
'ROS 6ENTRE 7ILDERNESS /UTlT
TERS OWNER "RIAN 4AYLOR WAS PURSU
ING WOLVES ON CLOSING DAY OF THE 
HUNTING SEASON DURING A PERIOD WHEN
THEFEDERALGOVERNMENTWASSHUTDOWN
AND SOME RANGERS WERE FURLOUGHED )T
WASABITTERLYCOLDLATEAFTERNOONINTHE
3PREAD#REEKDRAINAGE4AYLORTOLDIN MIKE KOSHMRL / NEWS&GUIDE

VESTIGATINGPARKRANGER.ICK!RMITAGE A National Park Service boundary

WHENHELEDTWOHUNTINGPARTNERSPAST sign near the site of a bison kill,
where hunting guide Brian Taylor
ONEOFTHEBOUNDARYSIGNPOSTSWHILEFOL
crossed into Grand Teton National
LOWINGWOLFTRACKSTHATASCENDEDFROMA Park while tracking a wolf pack on
BISONHUNTERSLEFT BEHINDGUTPILE Dec. 31.
h)LOOKEDATTHEMvHETOLD!RMITAGE
ATHIS+ELLYHOMETHEMORNINGOF*AN INGTHEKILLSITETHREE QUARTERSOFAMILE
h)ACTUALLYPOINTEDTHEMOUTTO;REDACT INSIDETHEPARKBOUNDARYANDTHEDRAG
ED=)SAID@4HERESTHEPARKBOUNDARY v TRAILCLEARLYSPELLEDOUTINTHESNOW

New colors and styles!

4AYLORWHODIDNOTRESPONDTOSEVERAL 4HEABOVEEXCHANGEWASTRANSCRIBED
INTERVIEWREQUESTSFORTHISSTORYTOLDIN ANDINCLUDEDINANINVESTIGATIONREPORT

by ! VESTIGATINGRANGERSTHATHECOMPLETELY THE.EWS'UIDEACQUIREDTHROUGHTHE

S t o p MISJUDGED HIS LOCATION (E BELIEVED HE

WASTWOSTRAIGHT LINEMILESTOTHEEAST
&REEDOMOF)NFORMATION!CT
7HEN4ETONPARKOFlCIALSPUBLICIZED
ˆ THE EXACT DISTANCE BETWEEN +MART THE &EB  POACHING THE CASE HAD AL
AND2EDMOND3TREETˆANDWASEXITING READY BEEN ADJUDICATED )NITIALLY THE
THEPARKINTOTHE"RIDGER 4ETON.ATION 0ARK 3ERVICE WITHHELD 4AYLORS NAME
AL&ORESTACCORDINGTOTHEACCOUNT ANNOUNCING ONLY THAT A  YEAR OLD
h)FELT)WASINSIDE;THEFOREST=BYHALFTO 7YOMINGMANPLEADEDGUILTYTOKILLING
THREE QUARTERSOFAMILEEASTv4AYLORTOLD THEWOLFINTHEPARKWHICHRESULTEDIN
Open Daily 170 North Cache Jackson 733-3595 !RMITAGEADDINGTHATHEDOESNOTUSEA A  lNE AND ONE YEAR SUSPENSION
362085
'03ANDCARRIESAmIP STYLECELLPHONE OF WOLF HUNTING PRIVILEGES 7HEN THE
"UT 4AYLOR WAS CROSSING INTO THE .EWS'UIDE ASKED FOR THE SHOOTERS
PARKWHICHISOFF LIMITSTOWOLFHUNT NAMETHE0ARK3ERVICEDECLINEDTOPRO
ING WHEN HE PASSED A SINGLE SIDED VIDEIT4AYLORWASIDENTIlEDBYCONTACT
E X P E R I E N C E P AY S VERTICALSIGNPOSTTHATREADSINSLIGHT INGAFEDERALCOURTCLERKIN-AMMOTH
LY FADED BUT CLEARLY LEGIBLE TEXT h53 4AYLORS PAST PROCLAMATIONS OF BE
L E T U S P R OV E IT BOUNDARY.03v
$AYS EARLIER!RMITAGE HAD FOLLOWED
ING A PROUD WOLF HATER HAVE FUELED
DOUBTABOUTWHETHERHEMADEANHON
4AYLORS BOOT TRACKS CROSSING A NORTH ESTMISTAKE
TO SOUTH BOUNDARY LINE AND LATER VISIT See Shooter on 14A
KARNS HILLSIDE
HOME
Ideally located in the sought after Karns
Hillside Addition, a rare mixture of Carson, 71, dies in accident
privacy and central convenience to town, Bryan Boley Carson, a Victor, Idaho, resident, died Thursday in a single-vehicle accident on
pathways, and bus stops. With 3 living
I-15 while driving home from visiting his sister in Sandy, Utah. He was 71.
areas, 5 bedrooms, 2 offices, and 2 full
kitchens, this home is suited for a large
Carson was raised in Moran and started Jackson Hole Log Homes with his brother, Rod
family, entertaining, and guests. The large Carson, and family. Condolences may be shared with the family at SerenityFHS.com. Carson’s
elevated deck is the perfect place to enjoy obituary is scheduled to appear in a future edition of the News&Guide.
the afternoon sun and mountain views. With
an abundance of large windows, this home
is light and bright throughout, even in
the full walkout basement. This home was
extensively remodeled in 2014 with a new Gailey, 69, dies in Idaho
kitchen, hardwood floors throughout, paint,
doors, trim, light fixtures and much more. Jackson Hole native John Gailey died Monday morning at Eastern Idaho Regional Medical
MLS 18-1561, $2,500,000 Center in Idaho Falls. He was 69.
Gailey is survived by two sons, John Christopher and Kevin Rex; brother Tim Gailey; and his
beloved dog, Captain. Details on a celebration of life will be announced at a later date. Gailey’s
GRAND TETON obituary is scheduled to appear in a future News&Guide.
MEADOWS
Enjoy Grand Teton and Teton
range vistas from this peaceful
location on the western boundary
of Ponderosa Drive. Bordering Corrections and Clarifications
the 250 acre Trinity Ranch to sThe caption of a photo that ran with the article “Courage to Run spurs female pols” in
the West provides for pastoral the April 10 Scene section incorrectly stated Michele Weber’s post at the Jackson Hole Police
views both West and Southwest. Department. She is a sergeant.
A seasonal water feature enhances
the ambiance of the property.
sThe number for PAWS is 734-2441. It was wrong in the April 10 Valley Volunteers poop
MLS 18-2505, $750,000 fairy story. Also in the Valley Volunteer section, the Rotary Club that helped fund water filters
and tanks was the Rotary Lunch Club.
s The photo caption on page 10 of this week’s Valley section scrambles the name of a
DIANNE BUDGE CHAD BUDGE Jackson native who recently piloted the first Southwest Airlines flight to Hawaii. The pilot’s
Associate Broker Associate Broker name is Kevin Vaughan.
307.413.1362 307.413.1364
s Lucky’s Bags for Change program was referred to by a different name in the April 10
MICHAEL PRUETT
Associate Broker
REBEKKAH KELLEY
Associate Broker
Business section.
307.413.2700 307.413.5294 sAfter the April 10 edition of the News&Guide hit the streets, town of Jackson officials
informed Smith’s that the town’s new bag ordinance requires it to charge the full 20-cent fee
BUDGEREALESTATE.COM per paper bag. Smith’s originally planned to charge 10 cents.
budgerealtygroup@jhrea.com
80 W. Broadway, Jackson, WY Our news reporting mission is to be objective and accurate. Readers are encouraged to alert the editor to an error by
email, editor@jhnewsandguide.com, or by calling 732-7071. We commit to correcting errors fully and promptly in the next
published edition.
361396
14A - JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, April 17, 2019

Shooter
Continued from 2A
The third-generation Jackson Hole
rancher traveled to Cody last spring to
implore the Wyoming Game and Fish
Commission to change the regulations
to target more wolves where he runs
cattle and hunts elk in the Gros Ventre.
Game and Fish’s Deputy Chief of Wild-
life Doug Brimeyer echoed the request,
which was granted.
Along with his wife, Amy, Taylor
killed two Gros Ventre wolves last year,
but it took 30 to 40 days to punch the
tags, he told commissioners at the time.
“We were hunting those wolves, and
the more I was hunting those wolves
the madder I got,” Taylor said. “I am
well recognized as a wolf hater. I’ll cut
right to the chase.”
Game and Fish revised its regula-
tions so that hunters this season could
target two wolves, instead of the one
permitted in all previous seasons. Tay-
lor appeared to take advantage of the
rule change. He killed a wolf up the
Gros Ventre, he told Armitage, and was
COURTESY MAP
planning to give one of the two pelts to Grand Teton National Park Ranger Nick Armitage assembled this schematic of Brian Taylor’s travels into the park the
one of his hunting clients. The Park Ser- day he illegally shot a wolf last year.
vice later confiscated the poached wolf.
Along with two hunting partners ing day, saying that it had been killed in we talk about with anybody else. If some- agency that permits outfitters.
whose identities the Park Service has a township just east of the park bound- body was to ever FOIA a report, all the per- “Brian’s a super stand-up guy, and he
withheld, Taylor followed the wolf ary, 2 miles from the true location. sonal information would be redacted.” did not do this on purpose,” Gilliland said.
tracks through patchy aspen to within Upon being confronted by Armitage Because Taylor had been convicted of “It was a total accident, a mistake. He
approximately 200 yards of where he about the mistake, Taylor quickly ad- a crime, his name could not be legally owned up to it and took ownership for it.”
first glimpsed some animals from the mitted his guilt and worried about re- withheld. Bill Beres, an investigator for
Lower Gros Ventre Pack moving on the percussions for his guiding career and When the News&Guide reached Tay- Wyoming Board of Outfitters and
Eynon Draw ridgeline. Using backpacks reputation. lor for an earlier story, he was contrite. Professional Guides, was unaware
as a gun rest for a .30-06, he fired a sin- “I feel like I’m killing myself,” he told “The truth is, I misjudged the bound- of Taylor’s legal situation when
gle shot at a gray female wolf, hitting Armitage. “At 56 years old, I didn’t plan ary and I made an honest mistake,” he reached Tuesday. The standard pro-
her lethally through the ribs. Knowing on changing my life. said in February. “I’m accountable for my tocol, he said, is that the infraction
the 14 wolves had already been killed in “As vocal as I’ve been [about] try- actions. The park acknowledged my coop- would be assigned to a “review com-
a zone where 15 was the cap, the party ing to do something right about these eration and handled it professionally.” mittee” that would be randomly as-
refrained from firing again. wolves and get things balanced out,” Taylor to date has retained his signed by a member of the board.
“We knew we were done hunting,” he said, “the media will have a heyday standing as a board member on the That body will determine whether
Taylor told Armitage. “So, you know, I with me.” Wyoming Outfitters and Guides As- Taylor’s permit to guide hunters,
potentially could have shot more wolves The law enforcement ranger showed sociation, President Sy Gilliland said. including wolf hunters, would be
if we hadn’t had a dead wolf.” Taylor empathy, suggesting that his The outfitting advocacy group, he said, temporarily revoked.
That night Taylor phoned a Game name would be kept quiet. would not pass judgment ahead of the
and Fish warden to report the kill. He “You’re doing the right thing, and it was Wyoming Board of Outfitters and Pro- Contact Mike Koshmrl at 732-7067 or
registered the wolf in person the follow- a mistake,” Armitage said. “This is nothing fessional Guides, which is the state env@jhnewsandguide.com.

347149
 LOOK INSIDE FUR PEAK PETS

Jackson, Wyoming Wednesday, June 12, 2019 One dollar

Wildlife
SWEET MOMENT
s

backers
flood
hearing
Dozens urge electeds
to allot $15M in SPET
funds for safe crossings
for moose, elk and deer.
By Cody Cottier

Antlers poked out above the crowd

at Town Hall on Tuesday as wild-
life crossing advocates emulated the
megafauna they came to defend.
Some 50 of them — not all horned
— packed the room and lined up
out the door, stealing the show with
emotional appeals to elected officials REBECCA NOBLE / NEWS&GUIDE

to fund structures that would offer Jasmin Zarate-Cervantes is hugged after receiving her diploma during Jackson Hole High School’s 2019
commencement on Saturday. See graduation coverage in Valley.
animals safe passage across Jackson
Hole’s deadliest thoroughfares.

Boss sued in 2 trench deaths

Voice quavering and antlers jutting
from her head, Melissa Wandursky
recalled sitting with a doe as it died in
her yard near Hoback Junction after
colliding with a vehicle.
“To see the fear in that animal’s eyes
as it was suffering was probably one of
the toughest things I’ve ever had to
do,” she said. “They were here first. ...
We have the means to protect them.”
Others echoed her story, including
several people who live near the inter-
section of Highways 22 and 390 — the
top priority site in the wildlife cross-
ings master plan. They urged the
Town Council and Board of County
Commissioners to approve a request
for $15 million, raised through the
specific purpose excise tax.
With an election for the voter-ap-
proved 1 percent sales tax looming
in November, wildlife crossings have
See WILdLIFe on 17A
Wrongful death lawsuit cites
text messages in claim that Mackay
knew of the danger but ordered
workers to dig deadly ditch.
By Emily Mieure
Representatives for two men who suffocated after a
trench collapsed on top of them in September say in a
suit filed Tuesday that Fireside Resort owner and Wilson
developer Jamie Mackay is to blame.
“Their deaths were entirely preventable and caused
by dangerous work conditions and a complete and abject
failure to provide reasonably safe methods and reason-
ably safe protection for the kind of work they were hired
to perform,” the complaint states.
Juan Baez Sanchez, 42, and Victoriano Garcia Perez,
56, died while working in a 12-foot-deep trench at a con-
struction site at 120 S. Indian Springs Drive, a property
owned by Mackay.
“Defendant Mackay’s failures and negligence caused
these deaths,” the plaintiffs’ complaint states.
The wrongful death complaint includes a photo of the
trench where the men’s bodies were found and text mes-
sages reportedly from Mackay to the deceased giving job-
related orders and containing information indicating the
work site was in violation of local and state regulations.
“There was no trench box and no safe means of egress
from the 12-foot-deep and 41-foot-long trench,” it states.
“Had any appropriately trained person inspected the job
site, the fatal cave-in could have been avoided.”
In March, Wyoming’s Occupational Safety and Health
Administration proposed penalizing Mackay up to
$10,532 for “serious” violations.
See TRenCh on 26A

Y’stone lion poachers left obvious social media trail

Montana houndsmen Photos shared via Instagram,
Snapchat and Facebook, including
told investigators GPS publicly accessible images, were delet-
ed, but not before other hunters recog-
malfunctioned before nized the landscape and alerted game
admitting to killing. wardens. While pressing 19-year-old
hunter Corbin Simmons about the
By Mike Koshmrl incident during a Jan. 10 interview,
Yellowstone special agent Jake Olson
Celebratory social media posts explained what led him to the case.
tipped off authorities to a trio of Mon- “You know, we ended up getting a
tana mountain lion hunters who il- lot of this information from a guy in
legally killed a tomcat in Yellowstone Bozeman off of Facebook,” Olson said,
National Park. “’cause you guys put a bunch of stuff
on social media.”
The law enforcement ranger lec-
tured the young hunter, explaining
that free-running hound dogs giving
chase to lions accidentally cross into
Yellowstone with some regularity and
the right thing to do when that hap-
pens is to report the incursion and
leave the treed cat unscathed.
“Obviously, that’s where the major
error occurred here,” Olson said. “You
guys have to police yourself out there.
You gotta do this right.”
He scolded Simmons for fueling
anti-hunting sentiments and feed-
ing calls for a no-hunting buffer zone
around Yellowstone, where National
Park Service policies prohibit killing
terrestrial wildlife.
The above exchange comes from a
transcript included in an investiga-
tion report that led to the conviction
of Austin Peterson, Trey Junhke and
Simmons, all either 19 or 20 years old
and from Livingston, Montana.
Yellowstone officials publicized the
case after it had been adjudicated in
See PoACheRs on 12A

InsIde 2A
3A
County courthouse: It’s a mess
Touch-a-Truck raises cash
7A
8A
Connector’s wildlife harm feared
sage Living price is going higher
10A
12A
Assaulter takes plea in 2nd case
elk Refuge loses popular boss
© 2019 Teton Media Works 6A doing nothing while earth heats up 9A Bad roofs are bad news 27A Blotter: Freeze! drop the pansies!
12A - JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 12, 2019

Boxes unchecked, Elk Refuge boss moves on

Brian Glaspell’s
‘huge promotion’
will take him back
home to Alaska.
By Mike Koshmrl
Learning of a prospective
promotion, Brian Glaspell’s
first instinct was to take
himself out of the running
for a gig that would have
brought him home to over-
see vast swaths of Alaska
set aside for wildlife.
Since coming on as the Na-
tional Elk Refuge manager 2
1/2 years ago, he’s been open
about his “10-year plan.” One
part of that vision was to see
through construction of a new
multiagency visitor center on
refuge property. But the cen-
terpiece was to realize a long-
promised goal to reduce elk
numbers and curb the winter-
time feeding that the Jackson
herd depends on today.
“I’m leaving a whole bunch
of things hanging that keep
me up at night,” Glaspell
told the News&Guide on
Tuesday. “I didn’t intend to
do that.
“I felt really strongly that
there was a whole bunch of
important work left undone
here,” he said, “but I talked
to my current boss in Den-
ver and my future boss in
Alaska, and they said you’ll
never have a job where there
won’t be a lot of important
things left undone.”
He took the advice to heart.
In late July he will take over
as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service’s assistant regional
director for Alaska, where
he was born and raised. The
job, he said, is a “huge pro-
motion” that will make him
second in command of tens of
millions of acres of national
wildlife refuge that includes
the Arctic National Wildlife
Brian Glaspell is departing as National Elk Refuge manager after 2 1/2 years.
Refuge, which he managed
for four years before coming
to Jackson Hole.
“I’m leaving
a whole bunch
of things hanging
that keep me up
at night.
I didn’t intend
to do that.”
— Brian Glaspell
OUTGOING ELK REFUGE MANAGER
“There are about 100 mil-
lion acres of refuge on the
continent, and 77 million
acres of them are in Alas-
ka,” Glaspell said. “In terms
of significance to the overall
refuge system, Alaska is a
big part of it.”
Glaspell replaces Mitch El-
lis, who is taking over as Fish
and Wildlife’s chief of natural
resources out of Washington,
D.C. Cris Dippel, the refuge’s
deputy manager, will step in
as the refuge manager on an
acting basis.
The post that Glaspell
is sliding into falls short of
the upper-echelon “senior
executive service,” but it
ranks high on the federal
pay scale and is classified
as “GS-15.” His predecessor,
Ellis, made $158,000 in
2017, the last year detailed
by the accountability
website FederalPay.org.
Glaspell stressed that
his departure was entirely
voluntary. One hurdle was
OK’ing the move with his
12- and 15-year-old chil-
dren, who live in Bozeman,
Montana, and are part of
the reason he took the job in
the Lower 48 in 2017.
wasting disease,” he told an
audience this winter at the
Jackson Hole Wildlife Sympo-
sium. “Feeding only occurs in
a handful of counties in North-
west Wyoming. Everybody
else thinks it’s a bad idea. Let’s
just be honest about that.”
The refuge has struggled
for a decade to reduce elk
numbers in pursuit of a
federally mandated popula-
tion target of 5,000 animals,
which in theory would al-
low for a reduction in sup-
plementary feeding. A plan
aimed at achieving the goal
has been held up for years,
and decisions about its con-
tents and release are being
made outside Jackson Hole
at Fish and Wildlife’s re-
gional office in Denver.
“The really big issues rise
above the local level, and
that’s something you sign
BRADLY J. BONER / NEWS&GUIDE FILE up for,” Glaspell said. “I
expected that the big deci-
sions would be above my pay
“They were both born in grade, but, like anybody else
Alaska,” he said, “and when who’s ever come to Jackson,
I told them I was considering I didn’t realize how high-
this job they were very excited level those things would be.”
about it because they missed Frustrations aside,
having that connection. I was Glaspell said he will look
really sheepish about telling back fondly on his time in
them, and they said, ‘Hell no, the valley, which he likened
we’d love that.’” to the “crucible of conserva-
During his brief tenure tion.” One story that’s not
as manager Glaspell was told often enough, he said, is
known to bluntly critique the Alaska-Jackson connec-
elk feeding, a century-old tion that is immortalized by
western Wyoming practice the legacies of Moose resi-
that’s been sharply criti-
cized by scientists, wildlife
dents Mardy and Olaus Mu-
rie, who successfully plotted
managers and even neigh-
boring states like Montana,
the preservation of much of
the Last Frontier.
largely because of its poten- “So many big ideas get
tial to spread disease. hatched and decisions get
“The preponderance of sci- made here,” Glaspell said.
ence, every major wildlife or- “I respect it and value it and
ganization in the nation and am proud to be a part of it.
our neighboring states in the I wasn’t ready to leave and
Greater Yellowstone Ecosys- give it up, at all.”
tem have all come out, if not
outright condemning feeding, Contact Mike Koshmrl
saying that it’s likely to exac- at 732-7067 or env@
erbate the effects of chronic jhnewsandguide.com.

Poachers
Continued from cover
May, but park officials declined to make law enforce-
ment officers available for an interview or answer
follow-up questions about details in their press re-
lease. The News&Guide obtained investigation doc-
uments, which are public records, through a Free-
dom of Information Act request.
During separate interviews about a month af-
ter their hunt, the three men repeatedly got their
stories crossways. They confused details like when
they saw boundary posts, who shot at the lion and
what color Peterson’s GPS screen displayed when
the device supposedly malfunctioned.
Peterson told Montana warden Drew Scott that
a faulty GPS showed “all white,” while Junhke
claimed that it was “just pure black.” Another ac-
count passed to authorities claimed the screen went
purple, and Junhke later amended his recollection
to “purplish black.”
Accounts also differed over who shot at the ma-
ture male lion, with Junhke initially denying dis-
charging a firearm. State and federal law enforce-
ment officers eventually ascertained that all three
men fired at the tom, which was hit a total of eight
times, according to the investigation.
After hounds initially treed the cougar, one of
the men reportedly climbed the tree to “knock it
out” so that the dogs could continue to give chase.
Treed a second time on a hillside overlooking the
Yellowstone River, the lion was shot in the chest
with a Glock .45-caliber pistol. The animal jumped
and was fired at again, but managed to run an esti-
mated 80 yards before being shot and killed where
it took refuge under a rock.
The hunters again told conflicting stories when
asked where they killed the cat.
Initially, Peterson told warden Helms that they
left the carcass at the kill site after skinning the an-
COURTESY PHOTO
In this photo taken by Austin Peterson included in
a National Park Service investigation report, Trey
Juhnke and Corbin Simmons pose with a mountain
lion illegally killed in Yellowstone National Park.
imal and taking some meat and its skull. But Sim-
mons told warden Drew Scott that they “took it,”
leaving the remains in the Gallatin National Forest
about 2 miles north of where the cat was killed.
While registering the lion with state wildlife of-
ficials in Bozeman, Simmons provided a township
and range that was 2 1/2 miles away from the true
location of the kill.
A Facebook picture Peterson posted looking
down into the Black Canyon of the Yellowstone con-
vinced another mountain lion hunter that the trio
illegally killed the tomcat in the park. After hearing
from people who suspected that Peterson was in the
park, the photo was deleted.
Peterson wrote in a statement that a “few days”
after the lion was shot he looked at his onX hunting
app, which shows land ownership jurisdictions and
realized there was a “good chance” the animal was
poached in the park.
“I was extremely worried,” he stated in writing,
“but decided to just see what happened.”
On May 3 a federal judge sentenced Peterson,
Junhke and Simmons to uniform sentences for vio-
lating the Lacey Act. They all pleaded guilty and
were ordered to pay $1,666 each in restitution,
sentenced to three years of unsupervised probation
and stripped of their hunting and fishing privileges
for three years.
In Yellowstone’s announcement about the
poached lion, Chief Ranger Pete Webster thanked
law enforcement.
“Their thorough work spotlighted this egregious
act,” Webster said, “and the consequences incurred
for hunting illegally in Yellowstone National Park.”
Special agent Olson tried to impart some lessons
during his interview with Simmons, too. The viola-
tion, he told the young hunter, is a “huge, huge crime.”
“It has huge penalties, and it can have fallout
that can last your whole life,” Olson said. “I want
you to understand how close you were to [a] com-
pletely life-altering mistake in that regard. And it
doesn’t matter that you necessarily didn’t realize
you were in the park.”
Contact Mike Koshmrl at 732-7067 or env@
jhnewsandguide.com.
 HEADWATERS TACKLES COEXISTENCE

Jackson, Wyoming Wednesday, September 25, 2019 One dollar

Skiers
heritage on display
s

are open
to temp
closings
Survey respondents say
they can self-regulate
on Teton Pass and want
more pass ambassadors.
By Tom Hallberg

The results are in from a commu-

nity survey on Teton Pass winter rec-
reation, and respondents overwhelm-
ingly said they would pay a fee for
parking and expand the Teton Pass
ambassador program.
KATHRYN ZIESIG / NEWS&GUIDE But a full-season closure of Twin
Members of various regional tribes dance together in traditional regalia Saturday to begin the first-ever Teton Slides and Glory Bowl? Hard pass,
Pow Wow at the Teton County Fairgrounds. See the Valley section for a story on the five-hour free event hosted by they said.
Central Wyoming College’s United Tribes Club. More than 1,000 people — 88% liv-
ing in the greater Teton area — re-
sponded to the Teton Backcountry

State blames boss for deaths

Investigation alleges evidence
was destroyed after workers were killed
when dangerous trench collapsed.
By Emily Mieure
A state investigation of a fatal trench collapse concluded
that Wilson developer Jamie Mackay violated county per-
mits and failed to properly report employee wages.
The 119-page report by the Wyoming Department of
Workforce Services Quality Assurance Manager and In-
vestigator Chad Seidel includes interviews with current
and past Fireside Resorts employees, text messages from
Alliance’s online survey in mid-April.
The questions covered demographic
information, asked what respondents
saw as the predominant issues on the
pass and also asked about solutions.
Mackay and allegations of a Fireside employee destroy-
ing evidence after the men’s deaths. “It was nice to see that people rec-
The report doesn’t include an interview with Mackay, ognize there’s a problem,” said Kim
Havell, a guide who sits on the steer-
who did not return Seidel’s calls and emails, according to
the report.
ing committee for the Alliance.
Respondents mentioned three ma-
The News&Guide obtained the state report through a jor concerns: avalanches, user behav-
Wyoming Public Records Act request. ior — including lack of experience,
Juan Baez Sanchez, 42, and Victoriano Garcia Perez, irresponsible activities and hubris —
56, died Sept. 28, 2018, while working in a 12-foot-deep and highway safety. Several high-pro-
trench at a construction site at 120 S. Indian Springs file slides in the past few winters, like
Drive. The property is owned by Mackay. the December 2016 one that buried
“This investigation supports that Jamie Mackay was a car, have brought skier impacts on
giving direction and control to both Juan and Victoriano the highway to the fore and rekindled
See Trench on 15A See Pass Survey on 14A

400 friends say ‘so long’ to rancher Bill Saunders

Wyoming born and raised,
a cowboy, a skier, an icon.
By Mark Huffman
Bill Saunders rode rodeo broncs,
schussed down mountains on wooden
skis and served two years in the Ma-
rines as they fought their way from is-
land to island toward Japan.
When he wasn’t doing those things
he survived 93 years of just plain day-
in, day-out Wyoming. He married, he
ranched, and he raised five kids who
gave him 14 grandchildren who gave
him 13 great-grandchildren.
Saunders died Sept. 13 after a crash
the day before near his home in Bon-
durant. Riding an ATV, he drove onto
Highway 191 and was hit by a woman
driving a Subaru. He was on his way to
take a look at the cattle.
Family had suggested he give up the
ATV, said his daughter-in-law Stacy
Saunders. Bill Saunders was mostly re-
tired and had stopped driving a pickup
on account of his age, she said, but still
liked to ride the four-wheeler around
the River Bend Ranch, run in recent
years by his son Tony. Bill liked to
check things on the land where he had
ranched on leased range since 1971,
where he and his wife, Martha, raised
five kids.
But Saunders wasn’t a man to give
anything up easily, said his friend
Steve James, always advising that the
only way to go about life, in skiing or
in rodeo, was “to take the line and you
win the race.”
“He carried that right on into life,”
James said. “When the opportunity
came he took it.”
The River Bend Ranch is in Bondu-
rant, where some ranches and homes
are scattered along several miles of
Highway 191, about 35 miles southeast
of Jackson. The Highway Department
sign up the road reads “Population: 100.”
But at a memorial held Saturday
for Saunders nearly 400 people showed
up, people he’d known and helped over
the decades, people he’d impressed and
befriended, those who rode with him,
worked with, who sat to play cards and
checkers, who listened to a lot of jokes.
“It’s overwhelming to see all the peo-
ple he touched,” daughter Laurie Han-
son said. “These are people he’s known
for 40 years, 50 years, and it’s a good
feeling to see that they remembered.”
Stacy Saunders said the family was
gratified but not surprised by the turn-
out at the memorial.
“There’s not a lot of old-timers left,”
she said. “It’s sad that they eventually
go, but they do.”
Hanson’s daughter, Bailee Burgess,
said she was “in awe at his ability to
touch so many lives.” But she also told
See Saunders on 17A

Inside 3A
7A
Gill family honored by state
Twice as many metalheads sought
© 2019 Teton Media Works 8A Will we send hired guns to Cheyenne?
10A
12A
The high cost of being rescued
West Kelly neighbors have ideas
18A Riprap for river gets bad rap
20A Same news again
15A Hucking the highway — not good 27A Blotter: We have your meth
 JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, September 25, 2019 - 15A

Hucking the highway? Not cool, officials warn

Video of aerial stunts
over Teton Pass highway
gets attention from
prosecutor, police.
By Emily Mieure

Jumping state highways on skis

prompted a meeting — to discuss the
legality of such a stunt — between the
Wyoming Highway Patrol and Teton
County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
Is it reckless endangerment or
completely legal? The answer isn’t
black and white.
Lt. Matt Brackin and Prosecuting
Attorney Erin Weisman decided to
tackle that question last week after
the ski film “The Warmest Moments”
popped up online and showed skiers
doing aerial stunts over Highway 22
on Teton Pass.
“Obviously we don’t condone that
activity,” Brackin said. “There is po-
tential for reckless disregard from a
skier’s standpoint and even reckless
endangerment if they damaged some-
thing while they’re doing the stunts.”
“Road gaps,” as industry folks
call them, aren’t new to daredevil
freeskiers who build big jumps in
order to clear major highways in
mountainous areas.
“If we see a road gap we are go-
ing to discourage it,” Brackin said.
“These guys are willing to accept the
danger, but the people on the high-
way are not.”
Brackin said filmmakers who want
to use state highways for shoots are
encouraged to apply for a special
event permit through the Wyoming
Department of Transportation.
“There is an opportunity to do
this legally,” he said.
Permits are approved all the time
for car commercials and movies,
A skier hucks over Highway 22 on Teton Pass from a man-made jump in this still from the film “The Warmest Moments,”
uploaded to YouTube. “Obviously we don’t condone that activity,” said Lt. Matt Brackin of Wyoming Highway Patrol.
WYDOT District 3 Traffic Engineer
Darin Kaufman said.
“I have a stack of applications
I go through on a weekly basis,”
Kaufman said. “GMC was here re-
cently. And Jeep.”
The permits are free, he said, and
he approves or denies them on a
case-by-case basis.
“Whether we would allow it in this
case I don’t know,” he said. “We have
done similar commercial shoots for
other companies.”
Kaufman considers traffic im-
pacts before approving permits, he
said. He approved a permit for the
movie “Rampage,” starring Dwayne
“The Rock” Johnson.
“The Warmest Moments” is gain-
ing popularity on YouTube and Red-
dit and shows skiers flipping and
twisting over Teton Pass.
The description says it was filmed
last winter. Photographer Gar-
ret Weintrob said several freelance
photographers and videographers
filmed the road gap scene.
Weisman has seen the movie.
“From my position, we would
not want to condone the type of ski
jumping that’s seen in the videos I
watched,” Weisman said. “When you
are launching yourself on skis over
an active highway, that could cer-
tainly be deemed as reckless disre-
gard. When you are putting others
at risk that’s an issue that could
put you in liability or come back to
haunt you in criminal court.”
When such issues come up, Weis-
man has two state statutes to rely
on: reckless endangerment and ski-
er safety, both misdemeanors.
But when it comes to actually pros-
ecuting skiers for various backcoun-
try behaviors on Teton Pass, she said
every case is going to be different.
“We have a huge population who
uses that area as their playground,”
Weisman said. “Skiers need to be
careful and know their own abilities.”
Similar stunts have been cap-
See the video at
JHNewsAndGuide.com
tured on the Beartooth Highway
near Yellowstone National Park,
Donner Pass in California and a sec-
tion of highway near Mount Baker
Ski Area in Washington.
Possibilities of reckless endanger-
ment charges are more often brought
up when skiers cause avalanches on
Teton Pass, Lt. Brackin said. Skier-
caused avalanches are more com-
mon than road gaps, he said.
“People jumping over the pass is
very similar to what we’re trying to
accomplish with avalanche issues,”
Brackin said. “But it’s a crapshoot.
If something bad were to happen,
there are potential consequences.”
Contact Emily Mieure at 732-7066
or courts@jhnewsandguide.com.

Trench
Continued from cover
to perform the excavation and trench work for the con-
struction project at 120 S. Indian Springs,” the report
states.
“Mackay failed to provide safety measures or appro-
priate training to the men for the work they were per-
forming, a gross deviation from the standard of care
that a reasonable person would exercise,” the report
continues. “Mackay failed to perceive the substantial
and unjustifiable risk that he exposed Victoriano and
Juan to, for the excavation and trench work they were
tasked to perform.”
Despite Seidel’s conclusion, Teton County Pros-
ecuting Attorney Erin Weisman decided in July to
not pursue criminal charges against Mackay, citing
a lack of evidence.
“At this time, I have completed my review of all
of the evidence in the above-mentioned case, as set
forth in the investigative reports from the sheriff’s of-
fice and the Department of Workforce Services, and
I do not find sufficient evidence to support the filing
of criminal charges against Jamie Mackay,” Weisman
wrote in a letter to the Teton County Sheriff’s Office
and Wyoming Department of Workforce Services.
Representatives for the men are suing Mackay for
wrongful death. The civil case is slowly making its
way through the courts. COURTESY PHOTO
“Victor is believed to have been in the trench as- A photo from Juan Baez-Sanchez’s cellphone shows a man believed to be Victoriano Garcia-Perez in an
sembling a French drain designed to drain ground wa- 8-foot-deep trench on Mackay’s Indian Springs Ranch property.
ter away from the home that was under construction
on the property,” Seidel wrote in the report. “The men dent. She said she called the Occupational Safety mately 10 years,” Seidel’s report states. “Fireside RV
were buried in a 12-feet to 15-feet-deep trench, absent and Health Administration after seeing a manager Resort failed to fully report employee earnings which
all required safety precautions.” shredding time cards. resulted in a reduction of the Workers’ Compensation
Mackay had some of the required permits, but the “[Employee] told me that following the trench and Unemployment Insurance employer premiums
excavation work being performed that day was with- accident, Brandy Larson had advised [her] to keep due, a felony violation of W.S. 27-14-510 (b) (ii). Jamie
out a required Teton County Grading and Erosion quiet about it,” Seidel wrote. “[Employee] said Mackay also failed to report the domestic wages he
Control permit, the report stated. when Larson approached her, Larson said, ‘This is paid to Juan Baez-Sanchez.”
“During my review of this permit application, I About six months after the fatalities, Wyo-
a small town, you know, it’s best that, you know,
spoke with Jamie Mackay and informed him that
you not talk about this incident.’” ming’s OSHA penalized Fireside Resort for five
trenching in a new waterline from his well would not
be allowed because he is required to connect to the Larson reportedly followed up with the employee, “serious” violations.
HOA’s community water system,” Ted Van Holland of saying the hush request was out of respect for the men “No support systems, shield systems or other
the Teton County Engineering Department told Teton and their families. protective systems were being used,” an OSHA
County Sheriff’s Detective Dave Hodges in an email. “[Employee] also told me after the fatalities, Bran- citation read.
“He told me he understood. I marked all the official dy ‘was shredding a bunch of documents.’ [Employee] OSHA also cited Mackay for a lack of oversight.
sets of the drawings with red pen deleting the water saw that as a red flag,” Seidel said. Seidel’s investigation was separate from OSHA’s. A
line and issued the permit. During a subsequent site In Seidel’s interview with Larson, she denied shred- copy of the report is attached to the online version of
visit I found that the well water line had been in- ding time cards. this article at JHNewsAndGuide.com.
stalled, contrary to my explicit conditions of approval.” “Investigation finds Victoriano was an unreported
Seidel also interviewed a former Fireside em- employee of another of Mackay’s business, Fireside Contact Emily Mieure at 732-7066 or courts@
ployee who was working the day of the fatal inci- RV Resort, where Victoriano has worked for approxi- jhnewsandguide.com.
10A - JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, September 25, 2019

PUBLIC OPEN HOUSE!

COURTESY PHOTO

Grand Teton National Park Rangers lead two skiers out of Granite Canyon
during an overnight rescue March 1. The skiers became stuck after ducking
the ropes at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort during an emergency closure. The
rescue was due to “judgment error” and “insufficient preparation,” a report says.

WEDNESDAY,
SEPTEMBER 25,
10AM-12PM
Investigative report
1294 MELODY
details Teton rescue
CREEK LANE, $5,000 operation aids
See the full report at
JACKSON skiers who left resort
$2,275,000 boundary during high JHNewsAndGuide.com
avalanche danger.
Lift without a definitive plan other
By Emily Mieure than a generally agreed upon senti-
370711 ment that they were heading toward
The overnight search and rescue of Saratoga Bowl,” Schuster wrote in the
Jocelyn Emery two skiers who illegally crossed outside report. “Richards was leading and the
a ski area boundary during dangerous party followed. Richards skied a short
307.690.7138 conditions in February cost more than way down the Crags run before duck-
$5,000 to pull off, a federal investiga- ing the double rope line that marks the
tion revealed. JHMR/GTNP boundary.”
The rescue was due to “judgment er- Schuster based his report off of in-
JHRealEstateSearch.com ror” and “insufficient preparation” and terviewing the skiers and rescuers
involved two Jackson Hole Mountain and studying their ski tracks.

FUNDRAISER
Resort employees and two of their out-
of-town friends, Grand Teton National
Park Ranger Ryan Schuster wrote in
the report.
The News&Guide obtained the 94-
page investigative report through a
Freedom of Information Act request.
FOR THE In the report Schuster details how
skiers Andrew Richards, Joseph Hig-
gins, Natalie Burns and Ruth Schwiet-
ert made a split-second decision that put
two of them in a life-or-death situation.
“The party of four got on the Teton
“Richards stated that he physically
lifted the rope in order to pass by it and
continued his descent,” Schuster wrote.
“Richards claims he was only outside
the boundary for 20 seconds before he
reentered the ski area. This stated time-
frame seems unlikely given the fact that
three other people subsequently ducked
the rope and proceeded to follow him
down outside the boundary.”
Schwietert and Richards, the Jack-
son Hole Mountain Resort employees,
returned to the resort boundary while
See Rescue on 24A

Preventing Elder Financial Exploitation:

Risk and Protective Factors within Families

Preventing Elder Financial

Exploitation: Risk and
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 Protective Factors within
WILSON, WYOMING | 4:00PM-7:00PM
370211

Families
Sept 30th at UW Extension Office at 3:30pm
HOSTED BY Piper & Heath Travel welcomes Great Plains
Oct 1 @ UW Extension Office at 3:30
Conservation founders and wildlife defenders Dereck
& Beverly Joubert to the home of Julie Bratspis in
As people age, they often put trust in others to make financial decisions for them. Sometimes
it doesn’t work out: an elder may give power of attorney to someone to help with their
finances, but then the person (often a family member) takes advantage of the power. About a
As people age, they o.en put trust in others to make financial decisions for them. Some;mes it doesn’t work
Wilson, Wyoming, for an evening of education quarter of Wyomingites 65+ will fall victim to some sort of abuse like this by 2040. We’ll talk
out: an elder may give power of a@orney to someone to help with their finances, but then the person (o.en
and fundraising. Join us for wine, hors d’oeuvres, about recognizing it, what to do if you see it, and how to avoid it. This is a good presentation
a family member) takes advantage of the power. About a quarter of Wyomingites 65+ will fall vic;m to some
conversation, and a live auction to raise money for for middle-age and older persons, their families, and professionals who work with them.
sort of abuse like this by 2040. We’ll talk about recognizing it, what to do if you see it, and how to avoid it.
Rhinos Without Borders and the Maasai Olympics.
This is a good presenta;on for middle-age and older persons, their families, and professionals who work with
Approved for 1.25 general and 0.75 ethics CLE credits.
them. Approved for 1.25 general and 0.75 ethics CLE credits.

Piperandheath.eventbrite.com Teton Co. Extension

Presenter: Dr. Virginia Vincenti Teton Co. Extension
For details, contact mmmartin@uwyo.edu 255 West Deloney
369944
or (307) 733-3087 255 West Deloney FREE
Presenter: Dr. Virginia Vincen;
For details, contact mmmar;n@uwyo.edu or (307) 733-3087
FREE
24A - JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, September 25, 2019
SHERVIN’S Rescue
Continued from 10A
Higgins and Burns became lost in the
FALL TIRE SALE
backcountry.
“It appears that they ducked the
boundary rope line approximately 250
feet below the top of the Teton Chair
Lift. They skied .2 miles and 350-500
vertical feet outside the boundary be-
fore Richards and Schwietert re-en-
tered the ski area and Burns and Hig-
gins began their unintended descent
into Granite Canyon,” Schuster wrote.
The backcountry areas surround-
ing the ski resort had been closed due
to serious avalanche conditions.
“An emergency closure of the en-
tire boundary between GTNP and the
JHMR was in effect due to multiple fac-
tors, including limited available rescue
personnel, high avalanche hazard and
potential exposure of rescue personnel to
extreme personal risk,” Schuster stated.
Burns and Higgins “became lost
and unintentionally descended into
Preseason
Granite Canyon and triggered a small
BUY NOW avalanche and became stuck.”
SAVE
When Richards and Schwietert
couldn’t find their other two ski part-
ners, they alerted ski patrol. Schuster,
BIG!
incident commander for the event,
eventually made the call to attempt an
on sale now
overnight “high risk rescue operation.”
“I met with rangers Chris Bellino,
Nick Armitage and Rich Baerwald to
discuss the situation and determine a
course of action,” he stated. “We deter-
BEST PRICE - BEST AVAILA
mined that a ground response was pos-
sible given the abundance and density
WE WILL HOLD THEM UNTIL YOU’R
E READY TO
BILITY of trees in this area. Although the ava-
lanche hazard and exposure was high,
as was rated by the day’s forecast issued
INSTA
NEW LL THE by the Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center,
M! we thought it was worth taking a look
from the ridgetop and assessing further
before making a final go/no-go decision.”
Teton County Search and Rescue
made a flyover to see if an exact location
of the skiers could be determined.
Rangers reached them around mid-
night by using ropes to descend into the
DESTINATION XT DESTINATION AT2 Spock Chutes in Granite Canyon.
Thank you for 55 years!
THE RANCH SHOP
Thank you for 55 years!
BUILT TOUGH FOR DEPENDABILITY
ON OR OFF-ROAD From then…until now...
ALL TIRES ON SALE!
BRIDGESTONE BRIDGESTONE BRIDGESTONE
REVO 3 ECOPIA ALENZA
No reasonable offers will be refused!
Thank you for 55 years!
SALE SALE SALE SALE SALE SALE SALE SALE SALE
FIRESTONE FIRESTONE FIRESTONE
TRANS AT2 TRANS HT2 DESTINATION AT
Thank you for 55 years!
SALE SALE SALE SALE SALE SALE SALE SALE SALE
FREE MOUNT & BALANCE
DISPLAYS,
GLASS CASES,
EVERY
W/ NEW TIRE PURCHASE • FREE Rotation and Rebalance. BUSINESS
ASSET You can’t afford to miss this Sale,
FREE Air and Pressure Check. MUST GO! our doors are closing forever!
SHERVIN’S
400 S. HWY 89 • 733-3793
8-5:30 Mon - Fri, 8-2 Sat Open Everyday | 9am-9pm | 307-733-3333 | 80 S. Cache
6 MONTHS NO INTEREST WITH MINIMUM MONTHLY PAYMENT
Thanks for 55 years!
370413
Oil Changes • Brakes • Shocks • Struts • Front End Alignments • Full Automotive Repair
Thank you for 55 years!
“Bellino’s team made slow and cau-
tious progress toward the lost party,
anchoring to trees and utilizing roped
belays to protect themselves to the ex-
tent possible as they went,” the report
stated. “They made voice contact with
the lost party at approximately 2153
hours and reached them about one hour
later, arriving on scene at 2306 hours.”
The skiers were escorted back up the
steep mountainside.
“The subsequent rescue of Burns
and Higgins, directly resulting from the
actions of this party, was a high risk
operation that involved a helicopter
reconnaissance flight in poor weather
conditions and required three rangers
to enter steep avalanche terrain during
an existing high hazard rating,” Schus-
ter wrote.
After interviewing all four skiers,
Schuster made the decision to give them
federal citations despite their pleas. All
four said they did not realize that all of
the gates were closed.
“They felt it was unfair because they
did not intend to cause a search and
rescue incident and said they were good
people who had never really been in
trouble or broken laws before,” he said.
Schuster said there had been exten-
sive announcements and signage about
the closures at the resort.
“Avalanche forecast at that time was
high at all elevations,” he wrote. “Feb-
ruary 28 marked the third straight day
that the avalanche danger was rated
high at all elevations and the fourth
straight day it was rated high at the
mid and upper elevations. On February
26, GTNP implemented an emergency
closure of the entire shared boundary
between GTNP and the JHMR.”
All four skiers were charged with
violating an emergency closure and dis-
orderly conduct. The cases were adjudi-
cated through various plea agreements.
Each skier was ordered probation, res-
titution and fines, some of which will go
to the Grand Teton Association.
Contact Emily Mieure at 732-7066 or
courts@jhnewsandguide.com.
Thank you for 55 years!
Thank you for 55 years!
Est. in 1964
Last
Thank you for 55 years!
Days
MEN AND WOMENS ALL LEATHER:
BOULET, CINCH, JUSTIN AND CORRAL, ROPER BOOTS
From $300, NOW $99!
MEN'S RYANS INDIAN JEWELRY LADIES’ SHIRTS
MICHAEL SHIRTS & LARIMAR UP TO was $59
Now $49! 80 %
off! now $10!
PRICES AS LOW AS:
MEN/WOMEN: MENS SHIRTS:
Full Quill Ostrich RESISTOL AND
Thank you for 55 years!
& Alligator Boots ROPER
$179 WAS $59 NOW $20!
Gifts and
Belts
Souvenirs
80
% Was $99
off! Now $20!
369562
Thank you for 55 years!