WASHINGTON, D.C. — The public condemnation within Wyoming and across the rest of the nation to Cody Roberts running over a wolf with a snowmobile underscores that there is a national consensus that Congress should heed and take action to forbid the practice on all federal lands, according to Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy. The organizations are calling on Wyoming lawmakers to lead the charge to pass the Snowmobiles Are Not Weapons (SAW) Act, given the disgust that so many Wyoming residents feel for this extreme cruelty to wildlife.
Roberts’ actions in February 2024 sparked worldwide outrage after he ran down a young gray wolf with a snowmobile in Wyoming, severely injuring the animal. Roberts taped the animal’s mouth shut, leashed it, and brought the wounded wolf into a bar, where it remained for hours while patrons took photos and interacted with the animal. The wolf—described by observers as gravely injured and barely responsive—was later taken outside the establishment and killed.
Roberts initially pleaded not guilty to felony animal-cruelty charges but changed his plea to guilty on March 5. The judge accepted Roberts’ plea agreement on April 8, sentencing him to 18 months of probation and imposing $1,425 in fines and court fees, resolving the criminal case. “While we would have preferred prison time for Roberts, we are grateful to Sublette County prosecutor and the judge for securing a felony conviction for cruelty to animals in this case,” said Wayne Pacelle, president of Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy.
“No sane or responsible person supports running over an innocent animal with a snowmobile to delight in the pain and death the victim experiences,” said Pacelle. “Just like we have laws against dogfighting and cockfighting, we should have laws to forbid chasing down and crushing a wild animal with a snowmobile. It’s savagery. I encourage Wyoming’s powerful congressional delegation to get behind this legislation. There must be guardrails in our treatment of animals.”
Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy are now urging Congress to pass the SAW Act, legislation designed to strengthen federal protections against the use of snowmobiles and other motorized vehicles to chase, injure, or torment wildlife. In a bipartisan effort to curb extreme cruelty to wildlife on federal lands, U.S. Reps. Val Hoyle, D-Ore., Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., introduced the measure in December 2025.
The SAW Act closely tracks state prohibitions in Colorado, Minnesota, and Oregon that forbid intentionally running over animals with snowmobiles and other motorized vehicles for fun. “Minnesota has more wolves than any other state in the Lower 48 and is a snowmobiling mecca, so the law’s long-standing acceptance offers an important and practical example,” said Pacelle.
“The next step must be ensuring that no wild animal can be subjected to prolonged torture under the guise of predator control,” said Pacelle. “The Roberts case showed that public outrage can help force accountability. Now we must translate that outrage into lasting policy change.”