A Wright, Wyoming, man accused of whacking his neighbor’s face with a baseball bat during a two-family brawl last Fourth of July doesn’t get to avoid trial on a self-defense argument, a judge ruled Tuesday.
John S. Harris, who turns 65 this year, was charged with aggravated assault last July on allegations that he beat his neighbor’s adult son Josh Springer with a baseball bat, after Springer and John’s wife Melissa got into a shouting match in front of the Harrises’ home the night of July 4, 2023.
A lengthy hearing stretching across three dates last week and Tuesday ended with Campbell County District Court Judge Stuart Healy III ruling that Harris may argue he acted in defense of self and family before a jury — but he can’t use that argument to dodge prosecution.
“Before anybody knew what was happening, Mr. Harris took a swing with a bat at Mr. Springer,” said Healy, referencing what he believed was the most credible testimony to emerge from Harris’ self-defense hearings. “I’m certainly not finding that’s what happened beyond a reasonable doubt. But … the court will find that the state did carry its burden.”
Advertisement
Wyoming self-defense hearings have two parts: first the defendant must provide evidence showing at first glance that he acted with reasonable self-defense.
Then the prosecutor must try to show by a preponderance of the evidence (a higher standard than the defendant shoulders) that the defendant did not behave reasonably to defend himself or others.
Harris made his case at first glance, but Healy defeated it with the evidence he showed, Healy ruled.
And yet, Healy said this self-defense argument is appropriate to go before a jury, should Harris go to trial.
First, Huge Fireworks
Melissa Harris had called police multiple times on July 4, 2023, to report that her neighbor Debbie Souza’s party guests were shooting off fireworks that battered her house, according to court documents and testimony.
Advertisement
Springer is Souza’s son. He was preparing to drive away from his mother’s home after the fireworks shows that night with his two sons in his vehicle. But he stopped in or along the road, got out of his vehicle and had an argument with Melissa Harris instead.
Melissa Harris told the court that Springer called her cruel and sexist names. Springer said she called him names.
Melissa Harris said Springer punched her multiple times and pulled a gun out of his truck to brandish it at her, her son, or her husband multiple times. At some point prior she had called John Harris to tell him how severe the Souza party fireworks were, she testified.
John Harris rushed home from his work at the coal mine, and emerged from his truck with a baseball bat in hand, according to court testimony.
Roads Diverged
Here’s where the testimonies diverge.
Advertisement
Melissa Harris described Springer attacking her, knocking her down and her young adult son Tyler Harris trying to intervene. John Harris arrived in his truck to find Tyler helping Melissa off the ground, her testimony indicates.
Tyler testified that John pulled up to witness Springer attacking them both.
And John testified that when he pulled up, he saw Melissa trying to get up from the ground while Tyler held an enraged Josh Springer back.
All three testified that Springer had charged John, growling, shortly after John pulled up. Springer is reportedly several pounds heavier and about a foot taller than John Harris.
John Harris’ attorney Christina Williams argued to the court that Harris could not possibly win a fistfight against Springer, that he pulled up to a scene of violence, and that he acted reasonably to defend himself.
Advertisement
The Neighbors
Souza and Springer recounted it differently, telling the court that Melissa Harris and Springer were merely exchanging words just before John Harris pulled up.
Tyler was watching but not engaging at all, Souza claimed. She also claimed the Harris men attacked her 11-year-old grandson at some point.
There were inconsistencies in all testimonies, Healy noted.
Williams had exposed inconsistencies, for example, in which Souza’s version of events did not align perfectly with what her two grandsons allegedly told police last July after the incident.
But Souza’s and Springer’s testimonies aligned more closely with one another than did the Harrises’ three testimonies, Campbell County Chief Deputy Attorney Greg Steward argued.
Advertisement
Healy said he agreed with Steward’s assessment of “witness credibility.” He voiced some trepidation about Springer’s testimony, noting Springer could gain by casting himself in a favorable light.
Springer had also told investigators hours after the incident that everything was “fuzzy,” according to court testimony and documents.
But Healy said he found Souza’s testimony credible and “largely consistent.”
Next
Campbell County Deputy Tyler Stearns arrived after the incident the night of July 4 to find John Harris sitting on the ground with blood coming from his mouth and nose, according to the evidentiary affidavit in the case. He saw Springer walking in the street, bleeding from wounds above his eye.
Springer had what Stearns called “significant pain, multiple cuts on his temple and right cheek, and temporarily lost consciousness while I was speaking with him.”
Advertisement
Both Springer and John Harris were taken to the hospital.
On Scene
Healy wondered aloud why, if Springer had punched Melissa Harris, she did not tell Stearns that when Stearns arrived on scene after the fight.
“One would think that if this detailed story that Mrs. Harris told occurred — with all the violence — that would have been the first thing out of her mouth when she spoke to Deputy Stearns,” said the judge. Rather, she noted that Springer had pulled a gun on them, but didn’t say when, the judge recounted.
Melissa Harris had testified earlier that she didn’t feel comfortable telling investigators her story at first because they had allegedly treated her unpleasantly.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
CASPER, Wyo. — Two Wyoming residents died and a third was injured in Arapahoe, Wyoming, on Friday after their vehicle went airborne and struck a pole, according to the Wyoming Highway Patrol.
The crash was reported around 10:39 p.m. May 8 near Goes In Lodge and Mission roads south of Riverton. According to the WHP’s investigation, the Dodge passenger vehicle was driving at a high speed north on Mission Road and failed to make a left-hand curve, driving off the road.
“The Dodge drove up the roadway embankment toward Goes In Lodge Rd and vaulted approximately 154 feet,” the WHP said. The Dodge rolled end-over-end about three times, struck a utility pole while airborne and came to rest on its wheels, where it caught fire.
23-year-old Wyoming residents Kalvin Yellowbear and Rosario Lopez were killed in the crash. Another passenger was injured. No seat belt use was indicated for the deceased.
Speed and other factors are under consideration by investigators, the report said.
Advertisement
There have been 40 highway fatalities so far in 2026, the WHP said, compared to previous years to-date:
34 in 2025
27 in 2024
46 in 2023
This story contains preliminary information as provided by the Wyoming Highway Patrol via the Wyoming Department of Transportation Fatal Crash Summary map. The information may be subject to change.
County 17 publishes letters, cartoons and opinions as a public service. The content does not necessarily reflect the opinions of County 17 or its employees. Letters to the editor can be submitted by emailing editor@oilcity.news.
Dear Gillette,
I am writing this letter because I am fed up with being forced to make impossible decisions just to live and work in Gillette.
We are constantly told that Campbell County is a great place to build a life, but the reality on the ground is exhausting. We are facing a double penalty here: a dwindling, high-cost economy and an almost non-existent dating scene. I am tired of having to choose between paying outrageous rent for a basic apartment or moving away from friends and community because I cannot find a genuine, long-term partner.
Advertisement
The dating pool in Gillette feels more like a shallow puddle. Many of us are doing everything right — working hard, staying stable — yet we are coming up empty-handed due to limited public social spaces and transient culture that isn’t conducive to long-term relationships.
It is disheartening to see the “Wyoming Advantage” disappear while we are stuck in a dating desert. Rising costs and limited supply make housing a heavy burden, with residents struggling to find affordable options. Skyrocketing fuel, utility and grocery prices have put families under extreme financial pressure.
I am tired of sacrificing my personal happiness and financial stability to live here.
We need more than just industrial growth; we need quality of life that allows us to find love and build a future here, not just by a paycheck.
Kevin McNutt Gillette
Advertisement
Related
Advertisement
Serving Gillette, Wright, Rozet, Recluse, Little Powder, Savageton, and all of Campbell County with unbiased news – never behind a paywall.
More by County 17
Rich Renner always knew he had pretty good neighbors, but he found out just how good when his new rescue dog from California got himself lost in a Wyoming whiteout.
Renner had taken the goldendoodle named Charlie out ahead of this past week’s storm to relieve himself. There was some snow on the ground at the time, but Charlie wasn’t having a thing to do with that strange, cold, white stuff on the ground.
At least not at first.
“I had taken him out to the barn, but he was staying under the overhang,” Renner said. “He wouldn’t go out to the snow.”
Advertisement
Given the dog’s reluctance, Renner decided to shovel a path from the barn to the house to make it a little easier for the pooch to get around.
While Renner was doing that, the dog finally decided maybe the snow wasn’t so bad after all.
“He kind of got the zoomies,” Renner said. “So, he was running around and went around the corner, out of sight. I had boots on, so I followed after him.”
By the time Renner turned the corner, there was no sign of Charlie.
A dog named Charlie a Wyoming couple rescued from a California shelter running off with a whiteout blizzard on the way triggered a 24-hour search. It was a miracle, Charlie’s owners believe, that a newlywed couple in the middle of nowhere found him. (Courtesy Rich and Barb Renner)
A California Dog Meets His First Wyoming Whiteout
At first, Renner wasn’t too concerned. It wasn’t the first time the dog had done a little bit of exploring around the house.
Advertisement
Normally, he came back on his own.
But this time was different. There was a huge snowstorm expected later in the day, and the forecast was for temperatures in the range of 25 degrees.
Charlie is a rescue dog fresh from California, which means the goldendoodle didn’t have much in the way of fat stored in his body. Nor was he yet acclimated to the cold.
Renner followed his dog’s tracks down to a forested edge, and there saw what had captured Charlie’s attention.
“There were deer tracks all over,” Renner said. “Boom, he was gone.”
Advertisement
Renner was at first more worried about the deer than the dog.
He’d just put an AirTag on the dog’s newly arrived collar right before they went outside that morning. The collar also had the couple’s names and phone numbers.
“An hour later, that AirTag pinged at a neighbor’s house about a half mile away,” Renner said. “So I zoomed down there on a four-wheeler and I saw tracks, but no Charlie.”
Renner roamed around on his four-wheeler for about an hour, looking for and calling for Charlie. Then he had to go to work.
“My wife, Barb, stayed home all day and worked off and on and looked for him some, too,” he said.
Advertisement
A dog named Charlie a Wyoming couple rescued from a California shelter running off with a whiteout blizzard on the way triggered a 24-hour search. It was a miracle, Charlie’s owners believe, that a newlywed couple in the middle of nowhere found him. (Courtesy Rich and Barb Renner)
A Long, Cold Night
Once Renner returned home, he and his wife did more searching until about 10:15 p.m. that night using a headlamp to see.
“I thought I’d see his eyes somewhere with that headlamp,” Renner said. “But to no avail.”
By this time, a sick feeling was growing in the pit of his stomach.
He was thinking about how the dog had chased after an animal three times his own size and how sometimes deer had charged, unafraid, at the couple’s older husky.
Maybe Charlie had been hurt. And Wyoming’s famous winter winds were picking up.
Was his California pooch stuck somewhere outside in this Wyoming whiteout, where the temperature was just getting colder and colder?
Advertisement
“It had snowed all day,” Renner said. “It was just a lot of snow.”
That snow covered the dog’s tracks, making him impossible to track.
The AirTag was proving next to useless as well, suggesting the dog had gone somewhere very rugged, some place with little to no data to transmit a signal.
Tuesday night, Renner could barely sleep thinking about Charlie, lost in this heavy snowstorm, with temperatures forecast to get into the lower 20s that night.
“Since we didn’t find him, I’m thinking, ‘Oh my God, he’s not going to survive the night,’” Renner said. “I kept waking up a lot and thinking about him. Like, ‘Oh my gosh, what’s he experiencing right now? Where’s he at? Did a mountain lion get him?’”
Advertisement
The next day, Renner and his wife were both exhausted but had not lost hope they would yet find Charlie.
They were looking, their neighbors were all looking. They even hired a drone company to come look for Charlie using an infrared camera.
A dog named Charlie a Wyoming couple rescued from a California shelter running off with a whiteout blizzard on the way triggered a 24-hour search. It was a miracle, Charlie’s owners believe, that a newlywed couple in the middle of nowhere found him. (Courtesy Rich and Barb Renner)
Neighbors Rally As Storm Deepens
The Renners had been putting messages out on Facebook and social media about Charlie, asking for the community’s help to find him.
Renner was amazed at how his neighborhood sprang into action.
It seemed that everyone he knew — and even some people he didn’t know yet — were looking for his pet, who he feared was too skinny to survive another night out in the cold, much less the cold, wet snowstorm that continued into Wednesday.
“Before, I lived in Cheyenne for a lot of years, and you didn’t even hardly know your neighbors,” he said. “You maybe said ‘hi,’ to them when there’s a snowstorm and you’re shoveling your snow at the same time.
Advertisement
“But other than that, we didn’t even know our neighbors.”
Mountain Meadows, though, proved to be a different kind of friendly — the kind that doesn’t smile and wave in passing; the kind that shows up on the doorstep and asks, “How can I help?”
“There were probably six different vehicles or side by sides at different times looking for him Tuesday night,” Renner said. “And then people were passing the word on through Facebook and emails and everything.
“And just everyone was praying for him. I mean the number of prayers that went up for Charlie is just amazing.”
A Blind Date, A Snowy Hike, And A Lost Dog
While a small army of neighbors continued to search for Charlie with drones and side-by-sides, a newlywed couple the Renners had never met were on a surprise date.
Advertisement
Jada, a Laramie native, and Collin Szymanski, from Utah, are newlyweds.
Since Collin is new to Wyoming, Jada has been making a point of showing him some of her favorite places.
That day, she’d decided on a literal blind date, complete with blindfold, to one of her favorite places in Curt Gowdy State Park — Hidden Falls.
The falls are a couple miles from where the Renners live as the crow flies, and maybe 10 miles or more away in twisting, winding, dog-chasing-a-deer miles.
By the time Jada and her husband arrived at the Hidden Falls Trail, snow was picking up speed and Jada was starting to question the idea of hiking that afternoon.
Advertisement
“There was, like, snow everywhere,” Jada said. “I was like, ‘Oh man, I thought it was going to be a little less snow than this.’
“So I unblindfolded him and I was like, ‘Should we still go?’”
The couple are young and in love, so of course the answer to that question was, “Yes!”
As they hiked into the thick carpet of new snow, they soon found themselves with a new-but-stand-offish friend.
“All of a sudden we see this little dog running around,” Jada said. “We’re thinking, ‘Oh well, his owners must have decided to go on a hike in the snow, too.’”
Advertisement
A dog named Charlie a Wyoming couple rescued from a California shelter running off with a whiteout blizzard on the way triggered a 24-hour search. It was a miracle, Charlie’s owners believe, that a newlywed couple in the middle of nowhere found him. (Courtesy Rich and Barb Renner)
The Sound Of Loneliness
When they got to the end of the trail, though, there were no owners around.
That was when Charlie began to howl, a haunting, lost sound.
“You could tell he was so sad,” Jada said. “So we were trying to get to him, but he was a little scared of us.”
Once Jada managed to get close enough to see Charlie’s collar, things changed. The second she said his name, the dog immediately calmed down and came over to them.
It was remarkable, given that Charlie had only had that name for about four weeks. But it clearly meant everything to the dog to hear that one word.
These were friends, Charlie decided, because somehow they knew his name.
Advertisement
An Answer To A Prayer
By noon, with no further sight or sign of Charlie, the Renners’ hopes were dwindling.
Their property backs up to some very rugged country with deep draws and thick timber. It’s a maze of places to get lost.
It’s also a maze full of obstacles and dangers much larger than Charlie — mountain lions, deer, moose. Then there are box canyons easier to get into than out.
Their skinny California dog, chasing a deer in a full Wyoming whiteout, could easily become lost, trapped, or hurt. More and more, it seemed like that’s what had happened.
Just as they were about to give up and call it a day, Renner got a phone call from a man he didn’t know.
Advertisement
“Hey, are you guys missing a dog?” the man asked.
Relief flooded through Renner at those words as the man told him he’d just found a golden-colored dog at Hidden Falls in the box canyon.
Thanks to the collar, which had the Renners’ number on it, he’d been able to immediately call from the canyon.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Renner said, noting that calls from the canyon are usually impossible to make.
It felt like a minor miracle.
Advertisement
Charlie had spent all day and night Tuesday in a snowstorm that got down to about 25 degrees, and had somehow managed to bump into what were the only other hikers on the Hidden Falls Trail, somehow none the worse for his adventures.
Soon, Renner and his wife were headed in their cars to go pick up Charlie from the Szymanskis, meeting halfway between their home and Hidden Falls.
For Rich, who describes himself as a person of faith, all these details add up to something bigger than coincidence.
“I know that God makes things happen,” he said.
Jada felt that as well, considering how things happened.
Advertisement
“Their whole neighborhood had been looking for him,” she said. “He told us he had just been praying so hard. We felt like we got to be the answers to those prayers.”
A dog named Charlie a Wyoming couple rescued from a California shelter running off with a whiteout blizzard on the way triggered a 24-hour search. It was a miracle, Charlie’s owners believe, that a newlywed couple in the middle of nowhere found him. (Courtesy Rich and Barb Renner)
Celebrity Life On A Leash
Back home, Charlie acts as if nothing miraculous has happened at all.
“He’s happy to be home for sure,” Renner said. “He spent yesterday in the barn, and he’s in the barn today.”
But he’s not going outside any more for a while without a leash, Renner said, as he remains just a little too fascinated with Wyoming wildlife, particularly moose, which are 100 times heavier than he is.
Renner is looking into electric fences to keep Charlie and his moxie corralled so that the pooch’s future adventures won’t be quite so harrowing.
“We’re chuckling now, because he’s like a celebrity,” Renner said.
Advertisement
For all the worry and all the searching, what’s really sticking with the Renners is how his Wyoming neighbors were there when needed, crawling the snowy hills in their trucks and side-by-sides, looking for a California pooch with no idea what a Wyoming whiteout really means.
“That’s the real story,” Renner said. “It’s the community, the neighborhood, how everyone just rallied behind this to help.”
Renée Jean can be reached at renee@cowboystatedaily.com.
