K2 Radio News: Flash Briefing For January 24th, 2018 – Morning

BY THE END OF THE SECOND DAY OF THE TRIAL OF FORMER CASPER DOCTOR PAUL HARNETTY IN NATRONA COUNTY DISTRICT COURT, AT LEAST TWO OF HIS FOUR ALLEGED VICTIMS CRIED DURING THEIR TESTIMONIES.

HARNETTY, AN OBSTETRICIAN/GYNECOLOGIST, IS CHARGED WITH EIGHT COUNTS OF SECOND-DEGREE SEXUAL ASSAULT AND TWO COUNTS OF THIRD-DEGREE SEXUAL ASSAULT.

IF CONVICTED ON ALL COUNTS HE COULD FACE BETWEEN 16 AND 190 YEARS OF IMPRISONMENT.

MONDAY, THE FIRST ALLEGED VICTIM SAID SHE HAD AN APPOINTMENT WITH HARNETTY FOR JUST A PAP SMEAR AT THE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS OF CENTRAL WYOMING IN SEPTEMBER 2015.

HOWEVER, HE TOUCHED HER INAPPROPRIATELY BUT THOUGHT IT WAS ALL RIGHT BECAUSE HARNETTY WAS A DOCTOR AND KNEW WHAT HE WAS DOING.

TUESDAY, THE SECOND ALLEGED VICTIM SAID SHE UNSUCCESSFULLY TRIED TO FIND ANOTHER OB/GYN, BUT FELT HELPLESS.

THE THIRD ALLEGED VICTIM SPOKE QUIETLY AND HALTINGLY WHEN SHE TOLD THE JURY HARNETTY TOOK TOO LONG TO PERFORM A PELVIC EXAM, DIDN'T WEAR GLOVES AND HIS BREATH SMELLED STRONGLY OF ALCOHOL.

HARNETTY'S DEFENSE ATTORNEY DON FULLER CROSS-EXAMINED THEM ABOUT SOMETIMES DIFFERENT IF NOT CONTRADICTORY REPORTS TO DETECTIVES; WHETHER WHAT THEY EXPERIENCED WAS MEDICALLY NECESSARY COMPARED TO WHAT THEY SAID WAS UNCOMFORTABLE; AND WHETHER THEY HAD BEEN IN CONTACT WITH EACH OTHER.

THE FOURTH ALLEGED VICTIM LEARNED AFTER SHE HAD A CONSENSUAL SEXUAL RELATIONSHIP WITH HARNETTY THAT HE LIED WHEN HE SAID HE DIDN'T HAVE SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASE.

AFTER AN INAPPROPRIATE ACT DURING ONE EXAM, SHE LOOKED AT HIM IN DISGUST AND HE RESPONDED WITH A SMIRK AND SAID HE JUST LIKE WATCHING THE EXPRESSION ON HER FACE.
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FIREARMS MANUFACTURER WEATHERBY, INC. PLANS TO RELOCATE ITS MANUFACTURING OPERATIONS AND CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS FROM CALIFORNIA TO SHERIDAN, COMPANY OFFICIALS AND GOV. MATT MEAD ANNOUNCED TUESDAY.

AN ESTIMATED 70-90 JOBS ARE EXPECTED TO BE CREATED, WITH OVER $5 MILLION ANNUALLY IN PAYROLL IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, ACCORDING TO A NEWS RELEASE FROM THE WYOMING BUSINESS COUNCIL.

THE COUNCIL WORKED WITH THE SHERIDAN ECONOMIC AND EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY JOINT POWERS BOARD TO DEVELOP A GRANT PACKAGE OF $12.6 MILLION. THE AUTHORITY COMMITTED NEARLY $2.3 MILLION IN LOCAL MATCH FUNDS.

THE JOINT POWERS BOARD WILL USE THE MONEY TO BUILD A 100,000 SQUARE-FOOT BUILDING IN THE SHERIDAN HIGH-TECH BUSINESS PARK. THE AUTHORITY WILL OWN THE BUILDING AND LEASE IT TO WEATHERBY.

THE COMPANY IS EXPECTED TO INVEST ROUGHLY $2 MILLION IN RELOCATION EXPENSES AND COVER ALL CAPITAL INVESTMENT IN THE BUILDING AND LOT OVER THE LIFE OF THE 20-YEAR LEASE, WHICH IS EXPECTED TO TOP $4 MILLION.
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ANOTHER WOMAN HAS COME FORWARD TO ACCUSE WYOMING SECRETARY OF STATE ED MURRAY OF SEXUAL MISCONDUCT.

THERESA SULLIVAN TWIFORD, THE DAUGHTER OF FORMER WYOMING GOV. MIKE SULLIVAN, SAYS MURRAY FORCIBLY KISSED HER WHEN SHE WAS 18.

TWIFORD SAYS THE ALLEGED INCIDENT HAPPENED IN FRONT OF MURRAY'S HOUSE, AFTER SHE BABY-SAT FOR HIS FAMILY ON NEW YEAR'S EVE 1988.

MURRAY, WHO ISSUED A STATEMENT TUESDAY, SAYS HE HAS "ABSOLUTELY NO RECOLLECTION OF THE INCIDENT WHATSOEVER."

MURRAY ALSO ANNOUNCED THAT HE "WILL NOT SEEK REELECTION OR RUN FOR HIGHER OFFICE IN 2018." THE 59-YEAR-OLD REPUBLICAN HAD BEEN CONSIDERING RUNNING FOR GOVERNOR.

MURRAY DENIES ANOTHER WOMAN'S RECENT CLAIM THAT HE SEXUALLY ATTACKED HER OVER 35 YEARS AGO.
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WYOMING'S UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FELL SLIGHTLY TO 4.2 PERCENT IN DECEMBER FROM NOVEMBER'S 4.3 PERCENT.

THE WYOMING DEPARTMENT OF WORKFORCE SERVICES SAYS THE STATE'S UNEMPLOYMENT RATE HAS DECREASED SIGNIFICANTLY FROM ITS YEAR-AGO LEVEL OF 4.8 PERCENT MAINLY FROM PEOPLE LEAVING THE WORKFORCE.

THE STATE'S LABOR FORCE FELL BY NEARLY 8,600 PEOPLE FROM DECEMBER 2016 TO DECEMBER 2017, SUGGESTING THAT INDIVIDUALS MAY HAVE MOVED TO OTHER STATES OR DROPPED OUT OF THE LABOR FORCE.

NIOBRARA COUNTY HAD THE STATE'S LOWEST JOBLESS RATE IN DECEMBER AT 2.2 PERCENT, FOLLOWED BY GOSHEN AND ALBANY COUNTIES AT 2.6 PERCENT AND CROOK AT 3.1 PERCENT.

THE HIGHEST UNEMPLOYMENT RATES WERE 5.2 PERCENT IN FREMONT COUNTY, 5.0 PERCENT IN NATRONA, 4.6 IN PARK AND 4.1 IN CAMPBELL AND UINTA COUNTIES.