Yellowstone Camper Who Drew Gun Wrongly Charged Under State Law

A man who pointed a gun at a fellow camper during a heated political argument in Yellowstone National Park was wrongly charged under a Wyoming assault law when federal law applied, the Tenth Circuit said Tuesday.

The federal assault statute precludes assimilation of the Wyoming law here, because both seek to punish the same conduct, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit said, addressing an issue of first impression in the circuit.

When a discussion at a campsite escalated, Jeffery Lee Harris pointed a gun at another camper and threatened to kill him.

Rather than charge Harris under ...