Wheatland shooting top story of the year [Wyoming Tribune-Eagle, Cheyenne]

Dec. 31--CHEYENNE n Last summer's shooting in Wheatland, which left four people dead and one injured, topped this year's list of the 10 most important local stories, as voted by the Wyoming Tribune Eagle newsroom staff.

The shooting rocked the small community about 90 miles north of Cheyenne, and police eventually charged Everett E. Conant III, 35, with four counts of first-degree murder.

Conant allegedly shot and killed his three sons, who ranged in age from 12 to 18, as well as his brother. Conant also allegedly shot and injured his wife on the night of July 7.

He also was charged with attempted first-degree murder, aggravated battery and possession of a deadly weapon with unlawful intent.

Conant underwent extensive psychiatric evaluations after the shooting, though during his latest court appearance, his attorneys indicated they are not contesting that he's competent to stand trial.

The case was bound over to the Platte County District Court on Nov. 21.

This was the second homicide case in Wheatland in 2011. Christopher C. Walker, 22, was fatally shot outside the Landmark Bar on June 18. Before that shooting, the most recent homicide was in 2002.

2. Two hailstorms

Two separate and equally powerful hailstorms hit Cheyenne in July, causing millions in damage to homes and cars.

The first storm hit July 13, bringing 2.5 inches of rain to the city in a very short amount of time, forcing the National Weather Service to release a flash-flood warning. The total rainfall for the day broke the record for a 24-hour period in July, which had held at 1.69 inches since 1981.

The storm also brought golf ball-sized hail in the downtown area of Cheyenne, though sizes varied in other parts of the city and even missed some areas completely.

The second storm hit the city on July 24, bringing golf ball-sized hail once again, this time onto rodeo fans during Cheyenne Frontier Days. In all, the storm was slightly smaller n 1.3 inches of rain fell n but there was still significant flooding due to clogged drains.

Hail damage to cars and homes varied in severity, but was so prevalent that many auto body shops and roofers are still experiencing full workloads well into the winter.

The Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association estimated damages might total up to $25 million overall and said many insurance companies were labeling the event a catastrophe.

One roofing company expected to see repairs from these two storms stretch over the next two years.

3. Niobrara oil play

Local business owners and government officials were optimistic about the Niobrara oil play in Laramie County, but interest cooled after slow early returns.

Much of the excitement came from the ability to drill horizontally to reach oil originally thought unreachable, opening up fields of oil in the area once deemed unavailable.

This method had been used to great success in northern Colorado, and companies flooded the area, hoping for another strike in southeast Wyoming.

There were six oil rigs in operation in southeast Wyoming in May, but as July came around, all of them had been shut down. More recent reports show only about three to six operating in the region.

In November, Wyoming Oil and Gas Conservation Commission Supervisor Tom Doll said 32 wells had been completed in the area in 2011. He said 14 of those were in Converse County, 11 in Laramie County and four in Goshen County.

None of those wells matched the productivity of ones in Weld County, Colo., which produced up to 3,000 barrels of oil per day; the ones in Wyoming were producing only 400 to 700 barrels a day. Production from those wells also tended to drop off after the first few months, according to Doll.

Despite the slow start, experts are still predicting drilling will continue, especially as infrastructure and seismic data comes in. As of November, the state had approved 400 horizontal drilling permits for the Niobrara formation, including 155 in Laramie County.

4. Double homicide

While no date has been set for his trial to start, Nathaniel Castellanos is facing serious allegations after an Aug. 23 shooting claimed two lives and injured another person.

Castellanos, 32, plead not guilty to two counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted first-degree murder related to the shooting. Castellanos could face the death penalty if found guilty, though the prosecution has yet to announce if it will seek the death penalty.

Castellanos claims the incident was the result of a drug deal gone bad and that the dealer who shot Castellanos' friends fled the residence after the shooting. Police reports show that Castellanos made no effort to call 911 or help the wounded victims, and instead took time to wash the gun he said he wrestled from the unidentified shooter.

The reports also show that Castellanos' companions that night thought he was acting strangely, and they had called the drug deal off entirely through text messages.

5. Death at East

The body of Andrea Battle, a student at Cheyenne's East High, was found outside the school on Dec. 1 after she apparently died from exposure to the elements.

Battle had crashed her car into the nearby Mary Godfrey Playhouse at about 2 a.m. and fled the scene on foot, apparently hiding near the school's tennis courts, according to the Cheyenne Police Department. Officers searched the area for about an hour, with no luck, apparently expanding their search farther and farther away from her as they came to suspect she might have fled the area completely.

The police department said they had surveillance video from the school, which showed Battle attempting to get into the school for some time, without a jacket, before freezing to death in 10-degree temperatures with wind chill.

Battle's cell phone was in her car, which the police officers towed after the accident.

The toxicology report has not been released, though the police department said a friend of Battle's had confirmed that she had asked him to go drinking with her that night. No alcohol was found in her car.

6. Salas dies

After an inspiring recovery from a paralyzing neck injury, Cheyenne South wrestler Isaac Salas died at his home Sept. 3.

Salas was injured during an accident in wrestling practice, which left him paralyzed, on Nov. 17, 2010. He received treatment and physical therapy at Children's Hospital Colorado and Craig Hospital before returning home Aug. 4 and to school Aug. 23.

Salas was released from Cheyenne Regional Medical CenterSept. 3 after a simple procedure to pulverize urinary tract stones plugging his catheter. But by that afternoon, he had a faint pulse and was unresponsive before his death.

His funeral at St. Mary's Cathedral in Cheyenne was attended by more than 800 students, family members and those in the community who he touched during his recovery.

7. Land for Menards

Twenty-four acres of property were at the heart of a protracted negotiation between the city of Cheyenne and the Menards home improvement company.

The property, located at the southeast corner of Dell Range Boulevard and Windmill Road, was eventually sold by the city to the company for $5.35 million after six months of political wrangling, including negotiations over a fair price for the property.

The city had voted not to sell the property in September.

Proceeds from the sale will go into the city's parks system.

Representatives from Menards said when it is completed, the store will employ 200 to 250 people, and could lead to a $40 million to $60 million regional distribution and manufacturing facility being built here.

Construction on the store will start sometime in the spring.

8. Police shooting

A Cheyenne Police officer shot Matthew Jacoby Carabajal, 21, on Sept. 19, but was later found not at fault by the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation.

The report and accompanying video from the patrol cars shows that officers tried to pull Carabajal's vehicle over for several blocks before he finally responded to their sirens and lights. Other officers eventually arrived on scene, and when Carabajal apparently restarted the engine of the car and began moving toward a late-arriving officer, that officer fired his shotgun into the car's front windshield, incapacitating Carabajal.

The officer was placed on administrative leave following the incident but has since returned to active duty.

Carabajal was in critical condition at University Hospital in Denver in late September. His family has since declined to provide updated information on his condition to the Wyoming Tribune Eagle.

Laramie County District Attorney Scott Homar announced that his office would not file charges against the officer and that he believed criminal charges against that officer could not be sustained.

9. New power plant

After originally proposing a new simple-cycle power plant that would cost $158 million, Cheyenne Light, Fuel and Power officials announced in November their intent to build a larger facility in Cheyenne.

The new facility will cost $237 million and be natural-gas-fired. The facility will be dual-use, meaning Black Hills Power, a subsidiary of the same parent company as Cheyenne Light, will use some of the power produced as well.

Cheyenne Light's total capacity from the plant would be 77 megawatts, smaller than the 120 originally proposed, but more versatile and efficient, according to Cheyenne Light officials.

The facility will create 150 construction jobs and employ 10 to 15 full-time staffers. With the approval of the Wyoming Public Service Commission, construction could begin in 2012, and the plant could be operational by 2014.

Cheyenne Light officials said they could not talk about possible rate increases from the facility until it was operational.

10. Roundabout

The Cheyenne City Council voted 6-4 on Dec. 12 to use eminent domain to take private property that formerly housed a Hollywood Video store for use in a roundabout project.

The roundabout would be installed at the intersection of Pershing Boulevard, 19th Street and Converse Avenue, and would be two lanes wide.

The decision was made after months of disputes wherein the city and the property's owner could not agree on what was an adequate value for a third of the business' parking lot.

Work on the roundabout, or associated construction projects, could start after Cheyenne Frontier Days in 2012.

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(c)2011 Wyoming Tribune-Eagle (Cheyenne, Wyo.)

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