Yellowstone Visitor Burned, Charged, Banned

Authorities say he was under the influence when he went off-trail in thermal area
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 25, 2023 9:21 AM CDT
Yellowstone Visitor Burned, Charged, Banned
The Norris Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming.   (Getty Images/lucky-photographer)

A Michigan man had an unforgettable experience at Yellowstone National Park this week, and not in a good way. Federal prosecutors say 49-year-old Jason Wicks was charged with two misdemeanors after he traveled off-trail in a thermal area Tuesday night and suffered a non-life-threatening injury. The US Attorney's Office for Wyoming says he has been charged with thermal trespass and being "under the influence of alcohol or drugs to the degree he was a danger to himself or others," NBC News reports.

DA's office spokesperson Lori Hogan tells CNN that Wicks injured his foot in the thermal area, where scalding water lies beneath fragile, thin ground. Officials haven't disclosed exactly where in the park the incident happened, but visitors are required to keep to the boardwalks in all thermal areas. Hicks has been banned from Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks until the case is resolved. (Last year, a man's foot was found floating in a shoe at a Yellowstone hot spring.)

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