Casper Star-Tribune from Casper, Wyoming • 13

I A TStarTribune Wyoming Index Obituaries B3 Regional news B8-9 Weather B10 FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2008 Managing editor Ron Gullberg an be readied at (307) 2660560, (800) 550560 or statetrib.com SECTION UW plans Shepard bench dedication Laramie mayor takes issue with N.Y. Times article By PHIL WHITE consciousness and died on Oct. 12 at Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins, Colo. The bench bearing a plaque in memory of Shepard has been in place for more than a year at the Arts Sciences Building west of Prexy's Pasture. The dedication will be part of UW Family Weekend, Please see SHEPARD, B2 quiet, personal event with the family," UW President Tom Buchanan said of the Sept.

27 ceremony, which starts at 10 a.m. "Judy Shepard and I will be giving brief remarks." Two Laramie men beat then tied Shepard, 21, to a fence just east of the city on the evening of October 6-7, 1998. Shepard was discovered by a bicyclist on Oct. 7 but never regained Star-Tribune correspondent LARAMIE Matthew Shepard's family members and University of Wyoming officials will dedicate a bench in his honor next week, marking the 10th anniversary of the beating death of the UW student and Casper native. "It has been planned as a Phil White, Star-Tribune correspondent A plaque honoring slain University of Wyoming student Matthew Shepard is part of a bench located near the Arts Sciences building.

Barrasso wants ban on Iranian president By JARED MILLER Star-Tribune capital bureau CHEYENNE Wyoming's junior U.S. senator is calling on the Secretary of State to prohibit Iran's president from IN BRIEF FROM STAFF WIRE REPORTS Cheyenne hospital updates Web site Cheyenne Regional Medical Center has a new Web site at www.crmcwy.org, created to enhance the hospital's presence online and educate patients about the hospital's capabilities. The new Web site features downloadable maps, an expanded virtual photo tour and a detailed event calendar that lists community classes and programs. Cheyenne seeks virtual charter school CHEYENNE The school district in Cheyenne is looking into starting a virtual charter school for students in kindergarten through 12th grade. Students enrolled in the school would take classes online.

District Superintendent Ted Adams says the goal is to serve youngsters in the district who are currently home-schooled. Ten home-schooled students are ready to enroll now. It wouldn't be the first virtual charter school in Wyoming. The school district in Gillette started one a few years ago. Suspect pleads not guilty BOULDER, Colo.

A man linked by DNA evidence to a 1997 rape and beating death in Boulder, has pleaded not guilty to murder, kidnapping and sexual assault. Diego Olmos Alcalde previously served time in Wyoming for kidnapping. Alcalde now is charged in the death of 23-year-old Susannah Chase, a University of Colorado student from Stamford. Conn. The 39- entering the country to attend next week's United Nations General Assembly in New York City.

Sen. John Barrasso, a AHMADINEJAD Dustin Btoeffer, Star-Tribune () year-old Alcaide appeared in 1 nouiaer Vooumy uisinui Court on Thursday. His trial is set for June 8. This well-pad, pictured in 2006, is a fraction of Shell's Mahogany oil shale research project in northwest Colorado, where the company proposed several tests on 15-acre parcels requiring total surface disturbance. Governor urges caution Tells BLM to move methodically on oil shale development News Tracker Last we knew: The U.S.

House passed an energy bill that included a provision to allow Colorado, Utah and Wyoming to decide whether to open up oil shale for development The latest: Gov. Freudenthal urged federal land managers to move carefully on preparing rules for development. What's next: Federal land managers are expected to decide on rules guiding leasing and royalties for oil shale. a moratorium in Wyoming, but he suggested a slow and deliberate approach in his letter to Caswell. "I remain committed to my long held position that continued research and development activities are necessary before large-scale development of oil shale resources are allowed to move forward," Freudenthal wrote.

A recent Mason-Dixon poll suggests 63 percent of voters in Wyoming support lifting the moratorium while 16 percent want to keep it in place, and 21 percent are undecided. Please see OIL SHALE, B2 By DUSTIN BLEIZEFFER Star-Tribune energy reporter Gov. Dave Freudenthal urged federal land managers to proceed cautiously in developing rules for oil shale leasing, even though commercial development is likely many years away in Wyoming, if at all. "While oil shale is a technology that may one day be used for large-scale economic production, it is still an un-proven and unknown resource and thus caution should be taken in its development," Freudenthal wrote to Bureau of Land Management Director member of the Foreign Relations Committee, authored the request to Condoleezza Rice. About a dozen other senators, including U.S.

Sen. Mike Enzi, signed the letter. Meanwhile, Barrasso's Democratic opponent in the November election, Gillette attorney Nick Carter, said the letter is a "diversion" intended to shield Barrasso from talking about more pressing national issues, such as the ongoing financial meltdown. Barrasso's letter calls Iranian President Mahmoud Ah-madinejad a sponsor of fundamentalist Islam and an enemy of the United States who trains terrorists to fight U.S. troops, threatens Israel and continues to pursue nuclear weapons.

We must convey our belief that at this time, Iranian leaders should not be allowed to enter the United States, even under the auspices of the U.N.," Barrasso said in the letter. "When leaders are openly working against the international community's efforts to address problems of concern, we should not provide them a bully pulpit," Barrasso's letter said. Ahmadinejad is a critic of the Bush Administration and has questioned the right of Israel to exist, but he insists that his country's nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. Barrasso's request is not unprecedented. The Reagan Administration denied Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat a visa to participate at the UN General Assembly in 1988 for his connections with terrorist activities.

Even so, the United States has an obligation to permit Ahmadinejad to attend the U.N. General Council, said Tim Kearley, who teaches public international law at the University of Wyoming College of Law. In agreeing to host the 2008 UN General Assembly, the United States entered into a treaty that prevents it from inhibiting the transit of officials from UN member states to the UN headquarters building, Kearley said. In exchange for agreeing to host leaders from around the world, the United States reaps a great deal of international prestige, and even some economic benefits from hosting Please see BAN, B2 for development. A federal moratorium on oil shale development in the Rocky Mountain Region is set to expire in October.

Freudenthal wouldn't say whether he'd seek to continue Jim Caswell. This week, the U.S. House passed an energy bill that included a provision to allow Colorado, Utah and Wyoming to decide whether to open up oil shale fields in their states Chase was found in an alley a block from her Boulder home early on Dec. 21, 1997. Police say she was walking home alone after an argument with her boyfriend when she was attacked.

Alcalde was convicted in Wyoming for abducting a woman after he followed her in her car to her apartment complex. Alcalde was chased off by the woman's brother and sister but later was identified. Dental clinic aids vandalism recovery CHEYENNE -A dental clinic has made a $1,000 donation to help offset the cost of a vandalism spree at the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens. Someone cut down $2,500 worth of plants at the gardens last month. It's too late to try to replace the plants before winter.

Ellen Thompson, the gardens' development director, says the donation from Alpine Dental will be used to replace the plants next spring. So far, there are no leads on who committed the vandalism. Govs' spouses to hold seminar CHEYENNE Wyoming first lady Nancy Freudenthal will host the spouses of 14 governors in an annual seminar next week. The National Governors' Association Spouses' Seminar will be held Sunday through Wednesday at Jackson Lake Lodge in Grand Teton National Park. Thirteen of the spouses are women, but there's one "first gentleman" in the mix.

He's Daniel Mulhern, husband of Michigan Democratic Gov. Jennifer Granholm. Lummis opposes private bailouts Trauner questions decision-making process be allowed to succeed or fail on their own." However, Lummis condi rescued insurer American International Group with an $85 billion loan that essentially gave the government a majority stake in the company. Lummis said it was appropriate for the government to bail out Fannie Mae and tionally backs those two bailouts as well. She said she assumes Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson had information that prompted him to intervene to try to "3 and played out over a 72-hour period," she said.

"It happened so fast that none of us arc aware of the circumstances that caused the government to believe that it needed to intervene." She said she remains philosophically opposed to such bailouts. Lummis' Democratic opponent, Wilson entrepreneur Gary Trauner, said he didn't believe Paulson was privy to any special information. "Blindly trusting that the treasury secretary knows something that we don't is not good policy," Trauner said. "That's been the failure of Congress before and we can't afford the same old way." Lummis also said that neither party, Republican nor Please see BAILOUTS. 82 By MEAD GRUVER Associated Press writer CHEYENNE Cynthia Lummis said Thursday that the government was right to bail out government-sponsored Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac but in general should avoid rescuing private companies.

Lummis, a former state treasurer and state lawmaker, is the Republican candidate for Wyoming's seat in the U.S. House. The government last week seized control of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which together hold or guarantee about half of the nation's mortgage loans. The move followed the government-backed takeover of investment firm Bear Stearns by JP Morgan in March. This week, the government TRAUNER LUMMIS avoid a larger crisis.

She said she gives Paulson the "benefit of doubt" "Secretary Paulson should be given some acknowledgment that he took a calculated risk in bailing out two private companies because of his belief that to do otherwise would be catastrophic," she said. "The AIG matter unraveled Freddie Mac because the government created the companies and they're huge sources of home loan credit. "I take a different view with regard to Bear Stearns and AIG," Lummis said in an interview with The Associated Press. "I believe that those are private businesses that should Your Participate To have your organization's event listed in the Casper Star Tnbun statewide calendar, send it to Calendar. Box 80, Casper, WY 82602 Phone (800) 442-6916, fax (307) 266-0568, or e-mail catendartrlb.com.

WYO Theater Today, 7 30 p.m., Sheridan, John Jorgen-son Quintet with the Quintessential Gypsy Jazz. Tickets: S20 adults, S18 seniors and military, $11 students and $9 for ages 12 and under. Info: (307) 672-9084 or www.wyotheater.com. Antiques Collectibles Show Today, 5 30 to 8 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a to 5 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Johnson County Fairgrounds, Buffalo.

Western dealers felling furniture, primitives, shabby chic, decorator pieces, dolls, jewelry, textiles, crystal, art, coins, tack, western collectibles Info: (307) 684 061? Quirts Along the Platte Today and Saturday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., and Sunday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., Rendezvous Center, Goshen County Fairgrounds, Torrington Quilts Along the Platte will honor quitter Gloria Cecil Event features more than 130 quilts from club members and Cecil. Show is open to the public.