District of Wyoming · Indian Country
An agent left a card on your door. Your employer received a subpoena. A letter arrived from the U.S. Attorney’s Office with the word “target” in it. You have not been charged, and there may still be time to change what happens next.
Federal cases in Wyoming are prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming, which sits in Cheyenne and Casper. Federal practice is different in ways that matter. There is no parole. The Sentencing Guidelines shape every outcome. By the time you are indicted, the government has usually been building the case for months.
You usually know before you are charged
This is the most important practical difference between state and federal cases, and the one people most often waste.
State charges usually follow an arrest. Federal charges usually follow an investigation: a grand jury subpoena, a target letter, agents at your home or workplace “just to talk,” a search warrant, a bank inquiry, an employer telling you it received a records request.
Every one of those is notice. It is also the window in which a defense lawyer has the most leverage the case will ever offer. Before an indictment, charging decisions are still open. It is still possible to present information to the prosecutor, narrow the exposure, or in some cases persuade the government not to charge at all.
Two rules for that window. Do not talk to federal agents without counsel. Lying to them is a separate felony under 18 U.S.C. § 1001, and there is no version of that conversation that helps you. And do not destroy or alter anything, including texts, emails, and files. Obstruction is often easier for the government to prove than the underlying offense.
Where these cases are heard
The District of Wyoming covers the whole state, with courthouses in Cheyenne and Casper. The U.S. Attorney’s Office has offices in Cheyenne, Casper, and Lander. Appeals go to the Tenth Circuit in Denver.
It is a small district. The judges, the prosecutors, the probation office, and the defense bar all know each other. Credibility carries further here than in a large district, and so does the lack of it.
Common federal charges in Wyoming
- Drug offenses: trafficking, conspiracy, and distribution, often developed through task forces. Methamphetamine and fentanyl drive the docket. Conspiracy is the government’s preferred tool because it reaches people who never handled the drugs.
- Firearms: felon in possession, possession in furtherance of drug trafficking, and false statements on a purchase form.
- Fraud and financial crime: wire, mail, and bank fraud, tax offenses, program fraud, and identity theft.
- Indian Country offenses, discussed below.
- Federal land and wildlife offenses. Wyoming is nearly half federal land. Lacey Act cases, offenses in Yellowstone and Grand Teton, and BLM and Forest Service matters are a real category here.
- Child exploitation offenses, which carry some of the most severe mandatory minimums in federal law.
Indian Country jurisdiction
The Wind River Indian Reservation, home to the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribes, is the only reservation in Wyoming and one of the largest in the country. Reservation cases make up a substantial share of this district’s criminal docket.
Who prosecutes depends on three questions: the status of the defendant, the status of the victim, and whether the conduct happened in Indian Country as defined by 18 U.S.C. § 1151.
- Major Crimes Act (18 U.S.C. § 1153) gives federal courts jurisdiction over listed serious offenses committed by an Indian in Indian Country.
- General Crimes Act (18 U.S.C. § 1152) extends federal enclave law to Indian Country for interracial offenses, with important exceptions.
- Assimilative Crimes Act (18 U.S.C. § 13) borrows state law where no federal statute applies.
- Tribal jurisdiction, including special tribal criminal jurisdiction over certain non-Indian offenders under 25 U.S.C. § 1304.
Jurisdiction is an element, not a technicality, so it can be litigated. Whether a defendant qualifies as an Indian, and whether a parcel is Indian Country, can decide which government may prosecute at all. Deep Waters Law also practices in the Wind River Tribal Court, so both sides of that line are covered in one office.
Sentencing: the part that decides the case
Most federal cases end in a plea, so the real contest is usually the sentence.
- The Guidelines are advisory, but they anchor everything. Judges must calculate them correctly and consider them, and the range is where every sentencing conversation starts.
- Relevant conduct. The court can consider conduct beyond the count of conviction, often including dismissed or uncharged conduct. That is why “pleading to the lesser count” means less in federal court than it does in state court.
- Drug quantity and loss amount drive the offense level more than anything else, and they are often the most productive things to fight.
- Mandatory minimums override the Guidelines. Safety-valve relief and substantial assistance are the two main paths below them.
- Criminal history is calculated by formula and gets miscalculated often enough that it should always be checked.
- Section 3553(a) factors let a judge vary from the range. This is where mitigation work pays off.
- No parole. A federal sentence is served, less roughly fifteen percent good-conduct time and any earned credits.
The presentence report is the most consequential document in a federal case. A lawyer who treats it as paperwork, rather than as litigation, has given away the sentence.
Both chairs
Francis H. McVay has sat on both sides of the courtroom. As a Deputy County and Prosecuting Attorney in Park County, he charged misdemeanors and felonies and learned what a prosecutor needs in order to justify a resolution internally. As Senior Assistant Appellate Counsel with the Wyoming State Public Defender, he briefed and argued Walker v. State, 2022 WY 158, in which the Wyoming Supreme Court reversed two convictions under plain-error review and ordered a new trial on them. He is a graduate of the Gerry Spence Trial Lawyers College. Federal sentencing rewards exactly that kind of precision about the record.
Mr. McVay briefed and argued Walker v. State as Senior Assistant Appellate Counsel for the Wyoming State Public Defender. The matter was not handled by Deep Waters Law, L.L.C. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome in any other matter.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a state and a federal charge?
A different government, court, and set of rules. Federal cases are investigated longer before charges are filed, are indicted by a grand jury, are sentenced under the Guidelines, and carry no parole.
Federal agents want to talk to me. Should I?
Not without a lawyer. You are not required to speak with them, and a false statement to a federal agent is itself a felony under 18 U.S.C. § 1001.
What is a target letter?
Written notice that you are a target of a grand jury investigation. It is serious, and it is also an opportunity: charges have not been filed yet, and there is still time to engage with the prosecutor.
Is there parole in the federal system?
No. Federal parole was abolished in 1987.
Why is my case federal when it happened on the reservation?
Under the Major Crimes Act, serious offenses committed by an Indian in Indian Country fall under federal jurisdiction. Jurisdiction must be proven, and it can be challenged.
Can a federal case be stopped before indictment?
Sometimes. That is when defense counsel has the most influence, and it is the reason to call before an indictment rather than after.
Talk to a lawyer today
If you received a target letter, a grand jury subpoena, or a visit from agents, call before you talk to anyone.
Call (307) 333-7539. Answered 24/7, including weekends. Or request a free consultation.
Related
The law is not settled until it is just.
This page describes federal law in general terms as of September 2026 and is not legal advice. Every matter turns on its own facts. Contacting Deep Waters Law does not create an attorney-client relationship.