State investigating trash, livestock loss on state leased property

GILLETTE – All John McClelland wants to do is complete his daily ranching chores, but he recently had to deal with unexpected losses of livestock as well as clean up a growing amount of trash on land he uses.

In early October, McClelland found one of his cows lying dead near a target practice shooting site on a parcel of state trust land he leases northwest of Gillette.

“There’s another loss,” McClelland said, adding that two cows and a calf of his were shot a year ago on the same section of land.

On Oct. 6, the Campbell County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of the dead 4-...