A Star Valley Ranch man has been booked into the Lincoln County Jail and charged with attempted murder and assault. The charges stem from a domestic incident that resulted in a two-day search for the suspect, which ended when he turned himself into police.
Lincoln County Sheriff Shane Johnson reported on Saturday, Sept. 10 at approximately 11:50 a.m. officers were dispatched to Star Valley Ranch for an active domestic violence incident involving a firearm. Upon arrival, deputies found that Jordan G. Hale, 40, had left the area after allegedly attempting to use a firearm against a family member.
According to Sheriff Johnson, Hale’s vehicle was later located in the Green Canyon area, disabled in a ravine. “It’s not an area that people would normally take their vehicle, it’s more of an ATV trail,” stated Johnson during a live interview on SVI Radio. “There was really no way to get that truck turned around and get it back out of there. Rough, rugged area.”

An initial search for Hale was unsuccessful and alerts were issued to the surrounding area for residents to be on the lookout. Police warned that Hale was considered armed and dangerous.
The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, along with Star Valley Search & Rescue,  Afton Police Department and the Wyoming Highway Patrol continued to search Green Canyon and the surrounding areas. However Hale was not located and the search extended through the day Sunday and into Monday morning.
“What we did is utilize our drones as much as possible to search the area,” explained Johnson. “They can pick up heat signatures and bodies. The terrain was just so rough, we were having a tough time covering that much area and keeping a good connectivity. So we also searched as much as we could on foot as safely as possible.”
“What we’re concerned about is getting anyone else hurt, including Hale. That’s not our intention. So we try to go about that in a way that we’re not going to push the issue and cause somebody to get hurt,” explained Johnson.
By Monday the sheriff’s office began looking at options to bring in a helicopter to assist with the search. However it was not needed. Sheriff Johnson said that by that time Hale had spoken with an attorney, who then called the sheriff’s office to let them know Hale would be turning himself in. Later that morning, shortly before 12 noon, Hale arrived at the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office in Afton where he was taken into custody without incident. He was booked into the Lincoln County Jail and will appear in Circuit Court for an initial appearance in the coming days. Official charges have been filed, including attempted first degree murder and aggravated assault.
Sheriff Johnson thanked all the agencies involved that assisted with the search and the community for its vigilance. “This was the best case scenario to bring this to an end. We’ll move from here and continue to work on it in the justice system.”