Lawsuit challenging Wyoming wolf plan draws crowd

The cast of characters is growing in a legal fight in which environmental groups are challenging the federal government's recent decision to end protections for wolves in Wyoming. U.S. District Judge Alan Johnson of Cheyenne has allowed a coalition including Wyoming county governments and sportsmen groups to intervene in the lawsuit. He hasn't acted yet on a request from the National Rifle Association and Safari Club International, a hunting group, to intervene. The groups are siding with the state of Wyoming and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in defending the federal decision to turn wolf management over to the state. Wyoming's plan classifies wolves in most of the state as unprotected predators that can be shot on sight. Two other similar lawsuits have been consolidated in Washington, D.C.