Cody may ban feeding deer

CODY - A proposal by the City Council to ban feeding deer in the city is drawing a heated response from residents on both sides of the issue.

Mayor Nancy Tia Brown said the city thought the proposed ban would be innocuous. But she said the city has received a lot of responses on the proposal.

Warden Craig Sax of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department said feeding deer can keep the population artificially high, leading to disease. He said a high deer population could also lure large predators into the city.

The council recently delayed action on the proposed ban on feeding deer to get more information from the Game and Fish department.

Treatment center may reopen

SHERIDAN - A coalition of American Indian tribes plans to reopen an addiction treatment center in Sheridan.

The Montana-Wyoming Tribal Leaders Council said the Inter-Tribal Wellness Center would also offer health counseling.

Organizers said treatment programs could incorporate traditional ceremonies such as sweats and vision quests for "spiritual development."

The council says it will raise $100,000 for repairs to open the treatment facility at the former Thunder Child Treatment Center. Thunder Child was a residential drug- and alcohol-addiction treatment center that opened in 1994. It has stood vacant since 2006.

Man mistakenly kills grizzly bear

CODY - The Wyoming Game and Fish Department says a Powell man has killed a grizzly bear that he mistook for a black bear.

Warden Craig Sax said the hunter killed the bear on the North Fork of the Shoshone River on May 24. The hunter mistook the grizzly bear for a black bear because its hair was darker and matted from searching for fish in the river.

The hunter contacted the game department after realizing his mistake and faces a possible fine.

Sax said three hunters in Park County illegally shot grizzlies last year thinking they were black bears.

Quake rattles Carbon County

RAWLINS - A 3.7-magnitude earthquake rattled a remote part of Carbon County early Friday, but the sheriff's department said no damage or injuries were reported.

The U.S. Geological Survey in Golden, Colo., said the quake hit at 1:24 a.m. The epicenter was 14 miles southwest of Rawlins.

Diane Sagan of Rawlins said the earthquake rattled her house but caused no damage.

City considers new radio system

GILLETTE - The City Council is scheduled to vote Monday on whether to fund a new police radio system.

City officials say Gillette's share of the $1.6 million radio system would be $925,000. The remaining $675,000 would come from federal grants.

The police department wants to replace its existing portable radios with a new 800-megahertz system. If it's approved, the city would put up a new radio tower and add an antenna onto a water tank.

Officials say the current system doesn't provide complete coverage in the city.