Wyoming Supreme Court Decisions 2024

Justia Opinion Summary: Matthew Justin Olson was convicted by a jury of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder. Olson was incarcerated in the Platte County Detention Center on federal charges and had pending state charges for domestic…

Justia Opinion Summary: Appellee filed a complaint against Appellant alleging breach of written agreements for the lease of oil storage tanks. During the bench trial, the district court amended the complaint to include an oral guarantee to pay…

Justia Opinion Summary: Joseph Lyle Fredrick was charged with multiple counts of possession of controlled substances and misdemeanor theft in June 2021. He pled guilty to felony possession of marijuana and misdemeanor possession of heroin,…

Justia Opinion Summary: Everett Bray was convicted of felony stalking his ex-wife, MS, in violation of Wyoming Statute § 6-2-506(b)(iv) and (e)(iv). After being released from prison for a prior domestic violence offense against MS, Bray went to…

Justia Opinion Summary: Marco Cardenas filed a negligence lawsuit against Rajean Fossen following a motor vehicle accident near Hudson, Wyoming. During the trial, Cardenas moved for judgment as a matter of law on Fossen’s liability, which the…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, Four Thirteen, LLC filed a complaint against three corporate entities and several individuals, including Joshua Wearmouth, Larry Stephens, Edmond X. Moriniere, Ronald G. Meyers, and David C. Norton. The…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Wade Bloedow (Husband) and Nicole Maes-Bloedow (Wife), who married in 2017 and filed for divorce in 2022. The district court granted the divorce, divided the marital property, and ordered Husband to pay…

Justia Opinion Summary: Stage Stop, Inc. purchased a lot in the Rafter J Ranch Subdivision in Teton County, Wyoming, intending to convert an existing building into workforce housing apartments. The Rafter J Ranch Homeowner’s Association (HOA)…

Justia Opinion Summary: Casey and Janae Ruppert entered into a contract to purchase ranch property from Judith Merrill. Before closing, Merrill indicated she would not proceed with the sale. The Rupperts filed a complaint seeking specific…

Justia Opinion Summary: Donald Floyd Detimore was convicted of sexually abusing his step-granddaughter, MD, when she was between seven and nine years old. MD disclosed the abuse during a medical checkup at age sixteen, leading to an…

Justia Opinion Summary: Elijah Dante Dobbins was convicted by a jury of third-degree sexual abuse of a minor, strangulation of a household member, unlawful contact, and permitting a house party. The incident occurred during a party at Dobbins's…

Justia Opinion Summary: The State of Wyoming owns a 3.37-acre parcel in Uinta County, leased to Pilot Corporation for operating a truck stop. The property, held for the benefit of the Wyoming State Hospital, generates revenue for the hospital…

Justia Opinion Summary: Phoenix Capital Group Holdings, LLC (Phoenix Capital) sought to recover mineral royalties as a life tenant and alternatively to reform the deed that established its life estate. The dispute arose from a series of…

Justia Opinion Summary: A police officer responded to a hotel where a mother, RN, was intoxicated and with her six-year-old son, JN. Due to her intoxication and the presence of a violent boyfriend at home, JN was taken into protective custody.…

Justia Opinion Summary: A group of property owners and entities challenged the Albany County Board of County Commissioners' amendments to zoning regulations known as the Aquifer Protection Overlay Zone (APOZ). The amendments aimed to protect…

Justia Opinion Summary: William R. Durkin, III, pled guilty to felony theft and felony property destruction and was sentenced to concurrent terms of five to eight years in prison, which were suspended in favor of a split sentence of one year in…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the early morning of July 8, 2022, Officer Luke Thorp of the Mills Police Department responded to a report of an unconscious male in a truck with syringes on the ground nearby. Upon arrival, Officer Thorp found Travis…

Justia Opinion Summary: On January 12, 2023, Officer Kevin Valentine of the Buffalo Police Department responded to a report of a suspicious vehicle at a gas station. The vehicle, a white Toyota Camry with Montana plates, had been parked at a…

Justia Opinion Summary: Kerry and Jeanie Cooper entered into a five-year lease agreement with James and Melisa Crouch to lease farmland for pasturing cattle and growing crops. The lease was set to expire in February 2022, but the Crouches…

Justia Opinion Summary: On March 4, 2023, Officer Brandon LaPointe stopped Antonio Kaye Lee's vehicle for illegally tinted windows. After confirming the tint violation, Officer LaPointe called for a canine unit, which alerted to narcotics. A…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a divorce between Guy Morrison, III (Husband) and Tami Hinson-Morrison (Wife), who married in 2007. Before the marriage, they signed a premarital agreement stating that each party would retain their…

Justia Opinion Summary: High Plains Power, a cooperatively owned utility in central Wyoming, proposed a tariff revision to the Wyoming Public Service Commission (PSC) in August 2022. The revision aimed to change the compensation rate for…

Justia Opinion Summary: Jarrett Gage Vargas was convicted of aggravated child abuse after his three-month-old foster child, RW, suffered severe injuries while in his care. On October 15, 2021, RW began seizing, prompting Vargas to call 911.…

Justia Opinion Summary: Rickey Dean Keefe was sentenced to three to six years in prison in 2020 for possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver. While on parole in 2022, he was arrested and pled guilty to two new felony drug charges.…

Justia Opinion Summary: Darren J. Gray suffered a heart attack while working on a road construction project and applied for workers' compensation benefits. The Wyoming Workers’ Safety and Compensation Division denied his request. After a…

Justia Opinion Summary: In 2014, a woman and her two children from a previous relationship moved in with a man. They had a child together in 2018 and married in 2019. The man ran a trucking business, and the woman assisted with bookkeeping. She…

Justia Opinion Summary: Megan Vassilopoulos (Mother) and Kyle Vassilopoulos (Father) were granted a divorce by the District Court of Fremont County. The court awarded Father primary physical custody and decision-making authority over their…

Justia Opinion Summary: In two separate cases, employees Terry J. Leal and Dustin Kopp sought workers' compensation benefits for injuries they claimed were work-related. Ms. Leal's claim involved a right shoulder injury, while Mr. Kopp's claim…

Justia Opinion Summary: Anne G. McNair experienced a perforated esophagus and infection following cervical fusion surgery performed by Dr. Joshua D. Beck at North Lincoln County Hospital District, d/b/a Star Valley Health. Dr. Beck, employed by…

Justia Opinion Summary: Amy Romero was arrested for driving while under the influence of alcohol (DWUI) after being found stuck in a snowbank. Officer George Phillips of the Rawlins Police Department noticed the vehicle and, upon investigation,…

Justia Opinion Summary: Bradley M. Schofield (Husband) and Debbie S. Schofield (Wife) were married in 1979 and separated in May 2016. In June 2021, Wife filed for divorce, and in September 2022, the district court entered a stipulated decree of…

Justia Opinion Summary: A father, involved in a custody dispute in Montana, subpoenaed his child's therapy records from a therapist in Wyoming. The therapist filed a motion to quash the subpoena, arguing that the records were privileged and…

Justia Opinion Summary: Donald A. Whitmore was convicted of vehicular homicide and four misdemeanors following a car accident that resulted in the death of Antonio Jurado, III. The accident occurred after Whitmore and his coworkers completed an…

Justia Opinion Summary: In early fall 2021, JM, a student at Cody High School, disclosed to her counselor that her biological father, Dustin M. Sanchez, had inappropriately touched her during a visit in June 2021. JM reported that while…

Justia Opinion Summary: Jennifer Lynch pled guilty to one count of misdemeanor endangering children and one count of felony child abuse. She appealed her child abuse conviction, arguing that there was no factual basis to support the charge and…

Justia Opinion Summary: Ming Zheng, a drilling field engineer, suffered a work-related injury to her right ankle while attempting to disassemble a tool string. She reported the injury and received workers' compensation benefits. Approximately a…

Justia Opinion Summary: Rick James Little was found guilty by a jury of one count of sexual abuse of a minor in the third degree and one misdemeanor count of attempted sexual battery. He filed a motion for a new trial, claiming ineffective…

Justia Opinion Summary: A mother challenged the juvenile court's finding that she neglected her four-year-old child, RTB. The case began when the mother tested positive for methamphetamine, amphetamines, and marijuana during a medical…

Justia Opinion Summary: Chadwick R. Traylor challenged the testamentary trust of his father, Donald R. Traylor, alleging undue influence by the defendants, who were beneficiaries under the trust. Traylor claimed that the defendants manipulated…

Justia Opinion Summary: Donald and Mary Fuger own forty acres of land in Wyoming. Larry Wagoner began using a five-acre section of this land for his oilfield business around 2008. The Fugers and Wagoner agreed to construct two buildings on the…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Andrew James Keller, who pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to deliver methamphetamine. Keller, representing himself, argued that the district court erred by denying his motion to withdraw his…

Justia Opinion Summary: Mitchell Rataiczak and Gwendolyn Parker, who were never married, are the biological parents of two minor children. After their relationship ended, Parker moved to Wyoming with the children, while Rataiczak remained in…

Justia Opinion Summary: This case involves a dispute over a parcel of land between two neighboring property owners in Park County, Wyoming. The appellants, Michael and Michelle Sellers, purchased a 12-acre property that was adjacent to a 4-acre…

Justia Opinion Summary: Summit Construction filed a lawsuit against Jay Koontz and Jennie L. Kennette for breach of contract and unjust enrichment, alleging nonpayment for work performed on Mr. Koontz’s home based on an oral agreement. The work…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves American Collection Systems, Inc. (ACS), a Wyoming corporation, and Lacy D. Judkins. ACS had obtained a default judgment against Judkins in 2010. However, ACS failed to execute the judgment for over…

Justia Opinion Summary: This case involves a divorce dispute between Randall Thomas Bailey and Sara Elizabeth Bailey, now known as Ms. Larson. The couple married in 2005 and have three minor children. Ms. Larson filed for divorce in December…

Justia Opinion Summary: This case involves a legal malpractice claim brought by Victoria Loepp against her former attorneys and their law firm. The dispute originated from an inheritance issue involving a house that Loepp was supposed to sell…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Camilo Jesus Alarcon-Bustos, who was convicted of felony property destruction and misdemeanor reckless driving and possessing an open container of an alcoholic beverage. Alarcon-Bustos lost control of…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case revolves around Audrey Mae Lessner, who was convicted of felony child abuse under Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 6-2-503(b)(i) (2023) after a bench trial. The charges stemmed from an incident where Lessner, while babysitting…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case revolves around Kamie Hultberg, who was convicted for felony child abuse under Wyoming Statute § 6-2-503(b)(i). The incident occurred when Hultberg, after a night of drinking, discovered her children were not at…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case revolves around Hassan Ahmed Said, who was sentenced to two to four years in prison for three separate counts in three different dockets. The district court awarded credit for time served as follows: 115 days…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Russell Patrick Benedict, who was convicted of sexually abusing his sixteen-year-old daughter, AB. During the investigation, Benedict's cellphone was seized, and a warrant was obtained to search its…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Lucia Guh-Siesel, who filed for divorce from Brian Allan Siesel in Wyoming. Guh-Siesel claimed that she had been a resident of Teton County, Wyoming, for more than 60 days prior to filing the complaint.…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case revolves around Kenya H. Bindner, who was convicted of possession of marijuana and possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver. The authorities executed a search warrant at Bindner's residence, where…

Justia Opinion Summary: James Corley, as the representative of his deceased son's beneficiaries, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Wyoming Rents, LLC. His son had died in a work-related accident while operating a manlift rented from…

Justia Opinion Summary: Solomon Bolen was convicted of multiple offenses, including attempted second-degree murder and aggravated assault and battery. Bolen appealed, arguing that the district court violated his due process rights by not…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Katrina Danforth and Ryan Hansen, who share a child, SLD. Hansen filed a petition to terminate Danforth's parental rights to SLD, which Danforth answered pro se, requesting the appointment of a guardian…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves Travis No'Mana Gonsalves, who was convicted of second-degree sexual abuse of a minor, third-degree sexual abuse of a minor, and sexual exploitation of children. The charges stemmed from an incident…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case revolves around Gracie and Jeff Richardson, the legal guardians of their adult son, JMR, who suffers from severe developmental and intellectual disabilities. JMR requires full-time care and receives the highest…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a legal malpractice claim brought by Patricia Kappes against Diana Rhodes and Rhodes Law Firm, LLC. Kappes alleges that Rhodes' negligence resulted in the loss of a legal action against a defendant. The…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case revolves around a dispute between Sharon Ann Koch, a member of the Buffalo Trail Ranch subdivision, and Melissa R. Gray, who was purchasing a tract in the subdivision. Koch, along with other members and the…

Justia Opinion Summary: Forrest “Timber” Tuckness filed a quiet title action against the Town of Meeteetse, claiming adverse possession of Lot 5, a property adjacent to his own. Tuckness had been storing personal items on Lot 5 without…

Justia Opinion Summary: A group of residents from the Rafter J Ranch Subdivision in Teton County, Wyoming, appealed the Teton County Board of County Commissioners' approval of a petition by Stage Stop, Inc. to amend the Rafter J Planned Unit…

Justia Opinion Summary: Wesley de Sousa Soares, a Brazilian national and professional jiu jitsu fighter, was charged with four counts of first-degree sexual assault. The charges stemmed from an encounter with a woman, KB, whom he met through an…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this appeal, John Gustke (Father) contests a decision by the District Court of Natrona County, Wyoming, which partially denied several motions to set aside the forfeiture of a $100,000 surety bond. The bond was linked…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case in question concerns the termination of parental rights and involves Chelsey Marie Smith (the Mother) who appealed the decision of the district court granting the Wyoming Department of Family Services’ (the…

Justia Opinion Summary: An automobile accident in Idaho resulted in Emily Fairbanks receiving severe injuries while a passenger in a vehicle driven by Holly Galbraith. Fairbanks filed two lawsuits: one against the Idaho Transportation…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case heard by the Supreme Court of Wyoming, the appellant, Benjamin David Wilson, was charged with second-degree sexual abuse of a minor and third-degree sexual abuse of a minor, following allegations involving…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, the Supreme Court of Wyoming heard an appeal by Rodger William Dillard, who contested the termination of his parental rights to his three minor children. Dillard had initially adopted his grandchildren…

Justia Opinion Summary: In a case certified by the United States District Court for the District of Wyoming, the Supreme Court of Wyoming was tasked with two questions regarding the duty of care owed by law enforcement officers to suspects…

Justia Opinion Summary: During her employment as an administrative assistant, Judy Valencia suffered a right knee injury, which was covered by workers' compensation. Following the knee injury, she altered her gait and started experiencing pain…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a dispute between the Teton County Assessor and Aspen S, LLC along with the Kelvin and Nancy Stirn Trusts. The landowners in Teton County contested the reclassification of their property from…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case involves a mother appealing against a juvenile court's ruling that she neglected her infant son, AE. The infant was born prematurely and consistently underweight. Despite numerous hospitalizations and health…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the Supreme Court of Wyoming, a case involving minor children was brought forward by their parents, MK and JP-W, against the State of Wyoming. The parents challenged the juvenile court's decision to change the…

Justia Opinion Summary: In Wyoming, Jerry Peterson brought a case against the Laramie City Council, alleging that the council violated the Wyoming Public Meetings Act by holding its meetings remotely during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the State of Wyoming, Jonathon Tyson Blair, representing himself, appealed the denial of his motion for sentence reduction by the District Court of Sweetwater County. Blair had been sentenced to a term of eight to ten…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case revolves around the defendant, Daniel A. Chace, who appealed the denial of his motion to suppress evidence obtained through a search warrant executed after 10:00 p.m. The incident began when law enforcement…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court of Wyoming reversed a lower court's decision, finding that David Spurlock's lawsuit to remove the Wyoming Trust Company as the trustee of the C.E. Spurlock Revocable Trust did not trigger the trust's…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the Supreme Court of Wyoming, an appeal by Ronald Pinther, a former insurance agent, was dismissed. Pinther had worked for American National Property and Casualty Insurance Company (ANPAC) and American National…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court of Wyoming upheld the conviction of Charles Anthony "Tony" Santistevan for multiple counts of sexual assault and one count of voyeurism. The court found that the district court did not abuse its…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the case before the Supreme Court of Wyoming, State Representatives Rachel Rodriguez-Williams and Chip Neiman, and Right to Life of Wyoming, Inc., attempted to intervene in a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, the appellant, Bjay Nagel, who was employed as a caretaker by Sand Creek Country Club, broke his ankle while working. He had been drinking alcohol prior to the accident. The Wyoming Department of Workforce…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, the City of Laramie, Wyoming, sued the University of Wyoming and its Board of Trustees, challenging the drilling and operation of certain water wells. The city argued that the university was in violation of…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case from the Supreme Court of Wyoming, LFP Consulting, LLC (LFP), a financial advisory company, sued former employee David Edward Leighton for breach of contract and various torts after his resignation. The key…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the case before the Supreme Court, State of Wyoming, the Petitioners, Kenneth Carson and Anna Leigh Anderson, parents of two children living in a remote family ranch in Wyoming, sought to compel the Albany County…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, Shaun T. Kobielusz appealed his convictions of three counts of voyeurism. Kobielusz contended that there was insufficient evidence of the element of “looking” for the jury to convict him of voyeurism, that…

Justia Opinion Summary: In Wyoming, Darrell R. Turcato and Robbin D. Wilkins (Appellants) and Jan Frady and Larry Turcato (Petitioners) were beneficiaries of two trusts created by their parents. The Appellants sought to appeal the district…

Justia Opinion Summary: The case revolves around Leopoldo Alvarado, who sought to terminate his duty to register as a sex offender after having registered for at least ten years, pursuant to Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 7-19-304 of the Wyoming Sex…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the Supreme Court of the State of Wyoming, the appellant, Rachel E. Bennett, appealed a district court decision that held her in contempt of court for failing to adhere to several provisions of a divorce decree. The…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the State of Wyoming, the Supreme Court examined a dispute between Tony R. Testolin, Tim Karlberg, and Thirty-One Bar Ranch Company about the use of an access easement. The defendants (Testolin and Karlberg) owned an…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, the Supreme Court of Wyoming affirmed the lower court's decision to grant Mrs. Tokowitz the right to a spousal election against her late husband's will. The late Mr. Tokowitz had left his estate to a…

Justia Opinion Summary: In Wyoming, Remi Larsen was facing a misdemeanor charge for possession of a controlled substance. Larsen moved to suppress evidence obtained during a warrantless search of her apartment. The trial court granted Larsen's…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case heard by the Supreme Court of the State of Wyoming, the plaintiff, Scherri Hacker, made a conversion claim against Hacker Oil, Inc., which had paid premiums on a whole life insurance policy on her husband,…

Justia Opinion Summary: In the case before the Supreme Court of Wyoming, Todd Andrew Domenico and Josie Daniel, formerly married, were in a dispute over custody of their two children. The couple divorced in 2018, with the court awarding joint…