 - Theft - and primarily shoplifting - continued to be the No. 1 crime recorded in the City of Lander in 2025, according to a year-end review from the Lander Police Department.){kind=link}
(Lander, WY) – Theft – and primarily shoplifting – continued to be the No. 1 crime recorded in the City of Lander in 2025, according to a year-end review from the Lander Police Department.
At least 85 percent of those thefts were committed by individuals who don’t live in the community, LPD Chief Kelly Waugh told the Lander City Council during a meeting last week.
He attributed that statistic to the city’s “geographical location” and the fact that, until recently, the local Safeway grocery store “refused to report shoplifting.”
That practice likely gave would-be shoplifters an incentive to target Lander, Waugh said.
“If I know I can shoplift somewhere in Lander, then I’m always going to go to Lander,” he explained. “Ultimately, it continues to bleed down our Main Street.”
However, a few months ago, Waugh said Safeway’s regional asset protection officer contacted him and assured him that “they’re going to start reporting shoplifting.”
That change will likely “have an effect” on the amount of shoplifting that occurs in town, Waugh said.
“I think long-term, if everybody starts reporting it, then they just stop coming here,” he predicted, though he noted that, statistically, it will probably look like instances of theft have increased at first “because they’re actually reporting it now.”
Domestic violence
The LPD also focused on addressing a rise in domestic crime in 2025, Waugh said. 
“The initial response to this was sending three of the officers to an eight-hour training specific to domestic violence laws,” he said in his report. “This assisted in giving the officers some clarity on the law in regard to domestic relations as well as them being able to return to the (LPD) and share the information with their team … on how we can combat domestic violence and try and get out ahead of it.”
Now, Waugh said, the LPD is exploring “alternative ways” to curb domestic violence – including “proactive” strategies “to approach it before the relationships become violent.”
For example, he said, “We’re going to start meeting people in the jail with flyers of support and ways that they can move past this.”
The LPD could also collaborate with community organizations that work to prevent domestic violence – and increase reporting, Councilmember Julia Stuble suggested.
She was referring to an earlier comment from Waugh, who had pointed out that, in his opinion, many victims of domestic violence don’t report the crime – often because “they don’t trust the police, for whatever reason.”
He expressed hope that, as LPD officers continue to be active in the community, building relationships with local residents, more people will feel comfortable coming to them to report abuse.
“I truly believe once we gain trust, more people are going to start reporting,” he said. “I guess maybe that’s my pipe dream – (that) they’re starting to report to us more because they trust us and we’re going to do something about it.”
Community engagement
Community engagement remained a priority for the LPD in 2025, Waugh’s report states, with officers participating in “multiple community events, multiple school programs, and a number of neighborhood meetings throughout the year.”
Councilmember Melinda Cox said the agency’s traffic data is also “indicative of community policing,” given “the amount of warnings that you’re issuing versus citations.”
“(I) commend you for that,” she said. “That community engagement is impactful, so thank you.”
Waugh responded to her comments by saying he tries to “push” his officers to focus on “high visibility enforcement and being seen.”
“(That) is of the utmost importance,” he said. “But the flip side of it is, these are ways to have candid conversations and … build relationships with the community.”
He also pointed to the LPD’s use of force statistics, which show that, out of more than 10,000 contacts with citizens in 2025, local officers used force “less than half of a percent of the time” – well below the national average.
“(That) is phenomenal,” Mayor Missy White said. “There are many things that show how exceptional LPD is, (but) that is … a very important one, and I think one that needs to be highlighted.”
Stuble agreed that Waugh’s report documented “remarkable work” by the LPD in 2025, with outcomes that the city can “be really proud of.”
“Regardless of Friday … we are really an incredibly safe community,” she said, referencing the fatal bar fight that occurred less than a week before Waugh gave his report.
Stuble mentioned the fatal incident earlier in the meeting, too, calling it “horrific.”
“It’s the type of violence that can really shake our community,” she said, offering “deep condolences … to the victim’s family and friends.”
“In a small community like Lander, after an event this horrifying, you’re not grieving alone.”
The LPD’s year-end report can be viewed in full here.