A Sublette County man who captured and brought an injured wolf into a bar  in February 2024, where he posed for photographs that later drew global outrage, has struck a deal with prosecutors that could keep him out of prison.  A signed plea agreement filed with the Sublette County District Cou rt and obtained by WyoFile on Wednesday afternoon means that Roberts, 44, would likely no longer face trial. It had been set to begin March 9.  Under the deal, Roberts will withdraw his earlier not guilty plea and plead guilty or no contest to felony cruelty to animals.  The deal was signed by Roberts’ attorney on Feb. 17. It calls for a prison sentence of 18 months to two years to be suspended in favor of 18 months of supervised probation and a $1,000 fine. Additionally, agreed-upon conditions of his probation include: no hunting or fishing; no alcohol, no presence at bars or liquor stores; and a requirement that Roberts follow recommended addiction treatment. Roberts will also be booked and released under the deal’s terms.  Cody Roberts kneels over an injured wolf that the Daniel man brought into the Green River Bar. (Screenshot) A judge must still agree to the deal. That will occur at a later date.  Roberts allegedly acquired the wolf by striking it with a snowmobile, leaving it “barely conscious” on Feb. 29, 2024. Photos and video from inside a western Wyoming bar that night showed him posing for pictures with the animal and even kissing it.  The wolf’s behavior suggests that it was gravely injured, according to biologists who’ve reviewed video of the muzzled animal left prone and barely moving on the floor of the Green River Bar.  The Wyoming Game and Fish Department initially handled the incident, issuing Roberts a $250 fine for possession of warm-blooded wildlife. The state agency declined to seek stiffer penalties or jail time, and Game and Fish officials maintained that predatory animals, including wolves, were exempted from felony animal cruelty laws.  Sublette County law enforcement officials disagreed. In August, prosecutor Clayton Melinkovich convened a grand jury that indicted Roberts for felony animal cruelty. That crime could have put Roberts in jail for up to two years, though his plea agreement averts mandatory time behind bars as long as he successfully completes probation.  Sublette County Attorney Clayton Melinkovich (Erin Burk/WyoFile) Prior to accepting the plea deal, Roberts sought to have the case tossed, asserting that Wyoming carved out an exemption in its animal cruelty laws for animals classified as predators, such as wolves. A judge rejected that argument earlier this month. The next step in Roberts’ legal case is a change-of-plea hearing, expected to occur as soon as next week. At that hearing, Melinkovich will provide a factual basis for Roberts’ guilty plea, according to the agreement. Evidence presented to the grand jury that indicted Roberts in August will remain sealed, though the county attorney has already previewed his arguments during earlier proceedings.  Mixed response  Roberts’ case drew international infamy after photos from the bar became public, resulting in calls to boycott Wyoming over a perception that the state doesn’t take animal cruelty seriously enough.  On Wednesday evening, Wildlife and animal rights activists who’ve closely followed the Roberts’ case had mixed reactions to a deal that would include no incarceration for the Sublette County man, provided he stays out of trouble while on probation. Jackson Hole resident Lisa Robertson told WyoFile that Roberts’ agreed-to punishment left her “pleased.”    “I feel good about it,” Robertson said. ”Basically, because he admits guilt. And there is a punishment.”  Patrons talk outside the Green River Bar in June 2025. The sign above the bar was hung to greet motorcyclists who were riding through the town in protest of Wyoming’s laws regarding the treatment of predatory species like wolves. (Joy Ufford) Two out-of-state activists also reached out to WyoFile after news of Roberts’ guilty plea broke. Kim Bean, a Colorado-based wolf advocate, was disappointed that Roberts likely won’t have to answer questions during a trial, and she found 18 months of probation to be light for the crime. But she also remarked that a stiff punishment wasn’t the goal of her advocacy.  “Our end goal has never been to put Cody Roberts in prison,” Bean said. “Our end goal is to make changes in the laws in Wyoming and to show that this should not be happening. There should be laws against this.”  Lawmakers have made repeated efforts — including one successful change to animal cruelty statutes — as a result of the Sublette County incident. Other initiatives have had less traction. There have been four unsuccessful measures to prohibit running over animals with snowmobiles in the Wyoming Legislature and two more in Congress. That’s the alleged tactic Roberts used to capture the wolf.  Jonas Black, an animal rights activist out of Texas, told WyoFile that he was underwhelmed by the plea agreement.  “Of course, we all had pipe dreams of him getting jail time,” Black said. “Is this what we all hoped for? No.”  “But it is a step in the right direction,” he added. “Change is on the way.” The post Wolf captor Cody Roberts takes plea deal that would avoid prison time appeared first on WyoFile . ...read more read less