Greybull man gets one year in jail stemming from road rage incident

Grady Swiftney, 50, of Greybull was sentenced Friday, Jan. 16 in the Fifth Judicial District Court in Basin on five charges derived from an extreme road rage incident. 

According to court documents, two witnesses reported Swiftney stopped his truck in front of them on Sept. 16, 2024, turned on its hazards, and approached their vehicle on foot, yelling and brandishing a firearm. Investigators found a Glock 42 .380 semi-automatic pistol with one in the chamber and a magazine of five rounds in Swiftney’s vehicle; he recorded a 0.23 BAC test and admitted to taking high-level pain medication the day of the incident. 

Swiftney was found guilty by jury trial in September 2025 of two felony charges: aggravated assault and battery and possession of a deadly weapon with unlawful intent, plus three misdemeanors: reckless endangering, driving while under the influence – a second offense in 10 years, and possession of a controlled substance, marijuana. He has been out on bond since Dec. 16, switching his defense lawyer to attorney Christopher J. King. 

Friday, King presented the argument that Swiftney receive treatment rather than jail time, citing “no extensive criminal history, but extensive trauma,” including debilitating physical injuries and PTSD resulting from Swiftney’s service in the U.S. Coast Guard, a battle with colon cancer, the death of his young son in 2006, divorce, and death of his mother in 2022. King suggested Swiftney’s time on bond had resulted in no danger to the community and three of Swiftney’s family and friends were brought forth as character witnesses.

Prosecutor Jennifer Kirk, Deputy Big Horn County Attorney, countered that the severity of the crime warranted incarceration. Kim Sukut was brought to the stand for a victim’s impact statement, wherein she recounted the fear she felt in the moment Swiftney pointed his gun at her. An alleged attempt to circumvent a SCRAM test on Jan. 5 while he was on bond and seeming lack of meaningful effort to seek treatment or apparent remorse on Swiftney’s part were also put on the record.

In his allocution, Swiftney reported he had recently looked into psychological intake through the VA. 

“I’m sorry that Mrs. Sukut and everyone involved is put in the situation that we are in … I just feel this entire situation was in my control and I just wish things happened differently,” Swiftney said. 

On the aggravated assault charge, count I, Judge Bobbi Overfield ordered that Swiftney be subject to 6-10 years at the Wyoming State Penitentiary, suspended in favor of a one-year split sentence at Big Horn County Detention Center, followed by three years of supervised probation. Should Swiftney be able to enter himself into an inpatient substance abuse program before the end of his one-year sentence, he may request the court modify his sentence to allow his attendance, which would then begin his three-year probation period. 

The second felony, possession of a deadly weapon with unlawful intent, resulted in a 3-5 year sentence suspended in favor of three years supervised probation to run consecutively with Count I. For reckless endangering, a one-year jail sentence; DUI second offense, 180 days underlying sentence with mandatory seven days served, both to run concurrently with Count I. The controlled substance charge was given a $250 fine, with each of the five charges garnering a $150 contribution to the Wyoming Victims Compensation Fund and additional miscellaneous fees.