The deputy director of the Wyoming Department of Corrections has been appointed as the acting director of the department effective Saturday, Gov. Mark Gordon said in a news release Friday.

Dan Shannon replaces Bob Lampert, who announced his retirement this week after serving as director since 2003.

“I want to thank Director Lampert for his excellent stewardship of the Department. He has left a legacy that will be long-remembered,” Gordon said in the news release.

“I also would like to thank Dan Shannon for stepping in to serve in this vital role," he said. "His years of experience and steady hand will be essential to guide the Department of Corrections through the interim period.”

Shannon has 34 years of experience in corrections and has been with the department since 2007.

Before that he was the prison division administrator and the warden of the Wyoming Women's Center in Lusk for three years. He holds a Bachelors of Science degree from the University of Pittsburgh.

Lampert retired after a 46-year career in corrections, starting in 1974 in the Marine Corps in military police corrections, serving with the Texas Department Criminal Justice as a correctional officer, and retiring 20 years later as a senior warden, according to a news release earlier this week.

He worked as a superintendent and assistant superintendent in Oregon before coming to Wyoming.

Lampert has earned multiple degrees in criminology, corrections, business and law.

During his tenure, he worked with the Legislature to improve laws that aid offender success and employee safety; achieved full compliance and accreditation with the American Correctional Association and the Federal Prison Rape Elimination Act; worked with state and national government agencies to alternatives to incarceration; and enhanced interventions in a trauma-informed and gender-specific format.

The department has been performing well despite the challenges of COVID-19 and looming budget reductions, he said. "Offenders are succeeding at higher rates than in most jurisdictions in the nation due in large part to the often underappreciated work of corrections staff and contractors in creating a success-oriented approach to incarceration and supervision."

The Wyoming Department of Corrections manages the Wyoming Honor Conservation Camp in Newcastle, the Wyoming Honor Farm in Riverton, the Wyoming State Penitentiary in Rawlins, the Wyoming Medium Correctional Institution in Torrington and the Wyoming Women’s Center in Lusk. It also oversees the adult offender supervision program through the Probation and Parole division.

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