WAYNE COUNTY, Utah — The Bureau of Land Management is investigating 25 burro deaths at the Axtell Off-Range Corral. 

According to the BLM, caregivers noticed several of the burros exhibited signs of respiratory illness and lethargy. They had been handling the animals for routine vaccines, anemia testing, and adoption preparation. 

Burros are more commonly known as donkeys. 

Before the burro deaths, the animals had been collected from the Canyonlands Herd Management Area, according to the BLM. 

What led to the burro deaths?

The burro deaths were reported between March 11 and March 21, 2025. Post-mortem examinations found the animals had bronchopneumonia complicated by streptococcus equi zooepidemicus. 

Bronchopneumonia causes inflammation in the lungs, according to the University of Minnesota. 

Although horses and donkeys are different species, The Donkey Sanctuary said they are susceptible to the same respiratory illnesses. 

According to BMC Veterinary Research, streptococcus equi zooepidemicus is an extremely infectious disease that impacts the upper respiratory tract of horses, burros, and other species. 

“The underlying viral infection causing the death of the animals was identified as a gammaherpes virus,” the BLM press release read. 

Gammaherpes virus is a less common virus, leading to respiratory and neurological diseases. 

“Equine herpesviruses only infect horses, burros, and mules. They are not known to infect people or other domestic species,” the BLM said. 

The BLM compared the situation to a 2016 pneumonia outbreak at Sinbad Herd Management Area. 

Other burros infected, receiving treatment

An unknown number of surviving burros are in quarantine, recovering from the same illness. They are currently receiving medical treatment. 

According to the BLM, other burros at the corral are not showing symptoms. 

After they’ve been cured, the burros will be available for adoption. 

“The BLM remains committed to the health and welfare of wild burros and continues to work closely with veterinary professionals across the state and nation to ensure appropriate management practices are in place,” the press release read. 

BLM investigates deaths of three wild horses, offers reward for information

“No person shall be … deprived of life, liberty or property, without due process of law.” — Fifth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States

The constitutional conservatives who lead Utah’s political class are strangely silent about the horrible abuse of basic constitutional rights that the Trump administration is perpetrating.

Utah’s members of Congress, its state officials, its legal scholars and law school professors, should be raising the roof to object to the way agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement have been snatching people off the street and deporting them, some to prisons in foreign nations, some back to nations they have no real connection with, without having to establish in court that those involved are the criminals or other threats the government claims they are.

(At least, we think these are ICE agents, as some of them are not uniformed or otherwise identified.)

The White House and right-wing media are claiming that people in the United States without authorization, or who are suspected of committing crimes or being members of violent gangs, are not entitled to the constitutional guarantee of due process. That the government is not obligated to appear in court and support, not just casually allege, those charges.

This is false. The Constitution’s guarantees of basic rights, including the right to due process, repeatedly and pointedly protect “persons.” Not citizens, legal residents, refugees or any other privileged class. Just, plain and simple, persons.

The persons who have been seized, or have had their student visas canceled, have been described as gang members on no evidence beyond that they have tattoos. Some who speak up for Palestinian rights have been wrongfully accused of being Hamas terrorists when they are doing no more than exercising the universal right of free speech and protest. Freedoms we preach about to other nations.

If the government can claim anyone is not entitled to due process, it can claim no one is entitled to due process. Law-abiding citizens, such as you, are just as vulnerable to being spirited away if the government isn’t obligated to prove that you are who they say you are.

Utah Sens. Mike Lee and John Curtis, Reps. Celeste Maloy, Burgess Owens, Blake Moore and Mike Kennedy should be on record objecting to these practices. Before it starts happening in our state.

Editorials represent the opinions of The Salt Lake Tribune editorial board, which operates independently from the newsroom.

SALT LAKE CITY — At the monthly Utah State Board of Education meeting, a resolution directing removal of DEI in Utah schools drew all the attention.

Utah has already outlawed DEI practices in government organizations as well as public schools, but five board members sponsored a resolution that was on Thursday’s agenda.

One of the five, Christina Boggess who represents District 8, said she got on board when she began receiving complaints of non-compliance to the law.

“There are what we would call an affinity group or a racial group in one of our schools. I personally received 5 complaints about it where in if you are not of a certain ethnicity, you are not allowed to participate,” said Boggess. “And there’s multiple complaints that it’s still occurring today, which is part of what radical DEI advocates.”

Before the board voted the resolution down 10 to 4, board member Joseph Kerry wondered if the board wasn’t wasting its time.

“I always thought resolutions were: ‘in a year, I am gonna lose weight, I am gonna get to the gym.’ This is like saying I am making a resolution that you’re gonna lose weight, and you’re gonna go to the gym, and I think when we do that, we have to use our rule-making authority, not our resolution ability,” said Kerry.

Jeanetta Williams, President of the NAACP Salt Lake Branch & Tri-State Conference of Idaho, Nevada and Utah submitted a letter to the board urging them to reject the resolution.

She couldn’t understand why there were references to the former Soviet Union in the text, and said the resolution missed the mark.

“It just doesn’t make sense because if there’s one or two schools that’s not fully compliant, then they need to find out what is that they’re not complying with and try to go in and maybe talk to those different schools,” said Williams.

Yet, despite the push back, Boggess said, she doesn’t plan on throwing in the towel.

“I think it’s important that our students are able to engage and have access to a discrimination free education. I think that’s important, so I am going to continue to work on an advanced policy in line with that vision, where we have equal opportunity for all students.”