Wyoming News Briefs

After DUI arrest, man out as county Homeland Security director

POWELL (WNE) — Less than a week after being arrested on allegations that he drove his work truck while drunk, Jack Tatum is out as Park County’s director of Homeland Security. 

Tatum’s last day on the job was Friday, said Park County Sheriff Scott Steward, who oversees the county’s Homeland Security office. 

Tatum had served as director since June 2019 and had previously received praise from the sheriff and others for his work in the role. However, on the night of Oct. 24, a citizen reported that a Park County Homeland Security truck was swerving all over U.S. Highway 20/26 west of Casper. 

Trooper Eric Sandstead of the Wyoming Highway Patrol found Tatum at the wheel and an open bottle of Smirnoff vodka near the driver’s seat. Tatum reportedly failed sobriety tests and two breath tests administered about an hour after the traffic stop pegged the 33-year-old’s blood alcohol content at 0.272% and 0.267%. That’s more than three times the 0.08% legal limit for driving. 

Tatum pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor charge of driving while under the influence of alcohol in Natrona County Circuit Court on Oct. 25 and was released on bond pending further proceedings. 

He was subsequently suspended from his job. 

“Once we found out [about the arrest], he was immediately put on administrative leave and then we had to deal with it,” Steward said Monday. 

Arch reports show strong market for PRB coal

GILLETTE (WNE) — Nine months into the year, the third quarter reports for Peabody Energy Corp. and Arch Resources Inc. suggest a strong market for thermal coal in the Powder River Basin as the rest of the year rounds out.

A significant increase in revenues in third quarter 2021 performance for Arch Resources Inc. over the same three-month window last year in part spurred a $89.1 million net income for the quarter. Last year, the company ended its third quarter 2020 with a net loss of $191.5 million, according to its third quarter earnings report released last week.

Arch continued with the acceleration of its Powder River Basin reclamation plan while continuing to “harvest cash” from its existing thermal assets in the area. The $58 million grossed from its third quarter thermal operations is a greater than 40% increase from the second quarter, according to the report.

“We continue to maintain tight capital discipline in our legacy thermal segment and to work to reduce our long-term closure obligations in a systematic and measured way,” said Paul Lang, Arch’s chief executive officer and president. “While we do that, we are simultaneously continuing to move aggressively to capture the still-significant value of these high-quality assets in an increasingly tight market environment.”

The 19 million tons of thermal coal Arch sold from July through September is about a 25% increase from its second quarter haul, as well as a 25% increase from its third quarter results in 2020.

Peabody saw a similarly strong quarter of production in its Powder River Basin operations.

Big Piney school sexual harassment, abuse case moves forward

PINEDALE (WNE) — Having worked through Wyoming’s U.S. District Court to the pretrial stage, Jane Doe and her parents’ federal-rights lawsuit against Big Piney school officials is at the point of scheduling an initial conference.

Former Big Piney student Jane Doe, her father James Doe and stepmother Mary Doe filed the suit seeking judgments against officials and restitution for what they allege as sexual harassment with a former teacher’s sexual abuse of Jane Doe and later retaliation that harmed her

Their lawsuit claims Sublette County School District No. 9 officials ignored the situation, violating Jane Doe’s Title IX rights to an education. The district’s response denies all allegations.

U.S. District Judge Alan B. Johnson’s order states that the parties must “meet and confer to discuss and prepare a joint report and proposed joint discovery and case management plan” before the initial pretrial conference.

He set the hearing for Thursday, Nov. 18, at 9:30 a.m. with all parties calling in. The joint reports and plans must be submitted to him seven days earlier.

Johnson’s order stated that all parties must “be prepared to discuss scheduling and all of those matters addressed in the joint report of meeting and proposed joint discovery and case management plan” and commit to the deadlines to be established at the Nov. 18 hearing.