by Travis Mateer

On Friday I completed my bi-county public comment campaign with an appearance at the Mineral County Commissioner meeting in Superior, Montana. Not only did I show up on time, I even had the opportunity to speak directly with Sheriff Funke afterward, and it was a good conversation!

The main takeaway I got from this conversation is that the Missoula County Sheriff’s Office is still the sole jurisdiction responsible for any investigation into death of Joey Thompson, despite the body being found in Mineral County. I was able to communicate some of the information I can’t write about, and I got assurances my frustration about the non-response from the Missoula County Sheriff’s Office would be communicated directly to our Sheriff, Jeremiah Petersen.

A note to reporters who may or may not work at the Missoulian: going DIRECTLY to the geographic places you are trying to get information from can sometimes produce positive results!

Another part of the conversation with Sheriff Funke I feel comfortable relating to Zoom Chron readers is how I articulated my suspicion of outsiders coming in to do things for their own reasons, which often times has to do with money. I will make a few exceptions, of course, for those rare moments when national media tries to expose the predations of outside agitators, but their goal is ultimately the same as the P.I. exposed in the article below, and that’s to squeeze money from tragic circumstances.

Does an article like this, from Hunter S. Thompson’s old rag, mean that Mineral County will get additional resources to do proper investigations when the need arises? Very doubtful. That kind of work has to come from those who LIVE in the communities impacted by political decisions at local and state levels.

I hope my attempts to convey my perspective, even to people I’ve been quite critical of, is understood as the actions of someone who is genuinely worried about what’s happening to his community and country, and ultimately what that means for the younger generation coming of age amidst this insanity.

Below are the links to the week’s posts, and above, in podcast form, is the first chapter of In Retrospect: A History of Mineral County, by Margie E. Hahn. If you appreciate my LOCAL journalism, Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF) is one way to support me, and making a donation at my about page is another.

Who Found Joey Thompson’s Body In The Clark Fork River, And Where? (June 19th, 2023)

This Is How I Juneteenth (June 19th, 2023)

The Rainbow Is Now A Tool Being Used For Dividing And Conquering Non-Compliant Citizens (June 20th, 2023)

Stupid Trash Wars, A Political Non-Profit Pretender, And Me Showing Everyone How To Actually Get Shit Done! (June 21st, 2023)

A Learning Moment For Councilman Carlino As Missoula’s Former Top Cop Plays The Victim Card While A Propagandist Published A Well-Timed Hit Piece (June 22nd, 2023)

The Email Has Been Sent And The Clock Is Ticking (June 23rd, 2023)

Thank you for listening/reading!