By AP

By Kristin Espeland

Cheyenne, Wy – Governor Dave Freudenthal reiterated during a news conference that a May first deadline for reaching a compromise on a wolf management plan with the federal government is not possible. Federal officials are urging a quick response by Wyoming to a proposed compromise on what the plan should look like. That is so Wyoming can be included in plans to delist the Wolf. But Governor Freudenthal says he still has some concerns about parts of the federal government's proposal. That includes some changes in temporary wolf management rules.

Cheyenne, Wy – An analysis from Men's Health magazine
says Cheyenne has some of the worst drivers in the country.
But that's not news to Dick Lennox, who owns Lennox Body Shop.
He says drivers in Cheyenne run stop lights all the time.
While Lennox's experiences are anecdotal, the magazine crunched
numbers on traffic fatalities, accident rates and speeding. And in
the end, it ranked Cheyenne 96th out of 100 cities when it came to
safety.
Cheyenne was one of eight cities to earn an "F" in the report.

Casper, Wy – A Circuit Court judge in Casper has set bail at one (m) million dollars cash for a Casper man charged with
first-degree murder.
Edward O. Taylor appeared in court yesterday (Tuesday), when
Judge Michael Patchen set bond.
Assistant District Attorney Michael Schafer asked that no bond
be set, saying Taylor should be held because he's a danger to
himself. Schafer says the 42-year-old Taylor had threatened to kill
his wife, Beth Taylor, and to provoke police into killing him.

Pinedale, Wy – The Bureau of Land Management will soon make its final decision soon on how much natural gas development to allow on the Pinedale Anticline. And one group is calling for a total review of the current plan. ill All-dredge is a wildlife biologist who has studied the area. He says the idea that habitat can be found elsewhere for the animals is shaky.
A BLM spokesman says the development will have an impact on the land, but his agency has to balance both economic and environmental interests.

Cheyenne, Wy – The American Civil Liberties Union says
staffing problems at the state penitentiary in Rawlins may pose a
danger to staff and prisoners.
More than one-third of the authorized security positions at the
Wyoming State Penitentiary in Rawlins are currently vacant.
Melinda Brazzale is spokeswoman for the Department of
Corrections. Brazzale says the Rawlins prison is authorized to have
322 employees in security positions but has 116 vacancies - more
than 36 percent of authorized positions.

Rock Springs, Wy – The future of community colleges will be part of a study conducted by a special commission set up by the Governor. One task the group will undertake is how Community Colleges might provide more work force training in the state. Former State Senator Tex Boggs,who is also the President of Western Wyoming College is the chairman group. He thinks the Colleges can provide the training and still meet the needs of students looking for degrees. He does not support trading one for the other and instead sees an expansion of services.

Laramie, Wy – The Cheyenne City Council has agreed to spend 50 thousand dollars for part of a feasibility study of what is being called the Rocky Mountain High Speed Rail Corridor. The hope is that high speed rail service will come to the area. Earlier this year the legislature contributed 300 thousand dollars towards the study. Tom Mason is the Director of Cheyenne's Metropolitan Transportation Planning Organization. He says with traffic volumes already clogging up the Front Range, the need for the rail service is great.

Laramie, Wy – Conservation groups today challenged the federal government's plan to remove Yellowstone-area grizzly bears from protection under the Endangered Species Act.
Last month, the U-S Fish and Wildlife Serivce said it planned to remove the Yellowstone grizzlies from the list of "threatened" animals by the end of April. They said a three-decade effort to rescue the grizzlies from near-extinction was successful.
Today, eight groups notified the Fish and Wildlife Service that they intend to file a lawsuit, if the delisting is not reversed within 60 days.