Security footage from the Wyoming Capitol requested as part of the investigation into campaign checks distributed on the House floor in February has been deleted is no longer available, according to the Wyoming Highway Patrol. The Open Range Record submitted a public records request seeking video from February 9 through February 11, including footage from the House floor and cameras located outside the office of Legislative Service Office Director, Matt Obrecht.
Security Footage No Longer Available
There is an ongoing criminal investigation into questions of bribery which was announced on Facebook by the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office on February 14. When The Open Range Record submitted a request for security footage from Capitol cameras, a response from the Wyoming Highway Patrol indicated the recordings were no longer available.
"The videos requested have timed out of the system and is [sic] no longer available," the message stated.
The explanation suggests the footage may have been automatically overwritten by the Capitol’s video retention system. This raises serious questions about the retention of documents and information surrounding the LCSO’s investigation as well as how the legislature is handling it.
Conflicting Responses from WHP
The NextRequest portal used by the Wyoming Highway Patrol initially closed the request with a different explanation, stating: “This is not a public records request.”
The portal message was later followed by a separate note indicating the requested footage had timed out of the system. It isn’t clear why the request was first closed under that classification and then later a second message was sent to The Open Range Record.
The first message suggests that, perhaps, the files did exist and were not going to be turned over. Secondly, the request sent to the WHP very clearly falls within records available to the public and is consistent with the Wyoming Records Act.
Legislative Service Office in the Timeline
Several elements of the events surrounding the February 9 incident involve staff from the Wyoming Legislative Service Office (LSO), the nonpartisan agency that provides legal and procedural support to the Wyoming Legislature. During testimony before the House Select Investigative Committee on February 26, Representative Karlee Provenza said she showed the photograph of campaign checks being distributed on the House floor to the chief clerk of the House and to Representative Liz Storer. The chief clerk works for the Legislative Service Office.
On February 12, Provenza introduced a motion on the House floor that led to the creation of the House Select Investigative Committee examining the incident. Legislative sources say the motion language was drafted with assistance from the Legislative Service Office Director, Matt Obrecht. The Open Range Record reported that Obrecht did not notify or talk to Speaker of the House Chip Neiman before Provenza’s motion wasdelivered on the floor.
During the February 26 committee hearing, Representative Christopher Knapp testified that he requested that LSO staff draft an amendment to Provenza’s February 12th motion, but the request was declined.
Statements About the Photograph
In an interview that aired March 6 on Wyoming PBS, Provenza said she provided the photograph to members of the press on her own initiative.
"I sent it to the press shortly after on my own volition," Provenza said in the interview. "No one told me to do that." The interview also included discussion about the act of taking photographs on the House floor, which can raise questions about chamber rules governing decorum and the use of electronic devices by members.
In a separate interview with Cowboy State Daily’s morning show host Jake Nichols, Provenza said, “I gotta tell ya Jake, I sent that photo to a member of the media moments after I took it.”
As The Open Range Record has reported, Provenza’s statements to the media are inconsistent with testimony she gave to the Special Investigative Committee in which she indicated a consultation with “staff.”
Security footage from outside of the Legislative Service Office would have confirmed which version of events Provenza told is accurate.
Questions About House Complaint Procedures
Questions also remain about how the Wyoming House of Representatives handles complaints involving conduct on the chamber floor. During a press conference on February 27, the day after the House Select Investigative Committee hearing, Speaker Chip Neiman confirmed, in response to a question from The Open Range Record, that complaints had been filed related to the incident involving Representatives Karlee Provenza and Mike Yin.
Under House procedures, complaints involving alleged violations of chamber rules can be addressed internally by House leadership. House Rule 22-1 outlines procedures for handling certain complaints involving member conduct. It remains unclear whether those complaints that have been filed will be handled publicly or resolved internally under House rules.
Questions Sent to Law Enforcement
The Open Range Record asked both the Wyoming Highway Patrol and the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office for clarification on the retention period for Capitol security footage, whether any preservation request was made after the investigation began and when the February 9–11 recordings were overwritten. As of publication time, neither agency had responded.
Without the broader set of Capitol security recordings, the precise sequence of events inside the Legislative Service Office area during the days following the February 9 incident may never be fully known.
Whether the security footage requested was overwritten by the Capitol’s security system or if it was intentionally deleted, the result is the same. Those records do not exist anymore.
One thing is certain, this is a staggering breach of government transparency, unintentional or otherwise.