News – Sheridan Media
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An arraignment hearing was held Thursday in Fourth Judicial District Court for a Sheridan woman charged with felony theft. Sheridan Media’s Ron Richter has the details.
On November 21, 2025, 63-year-old Ranee Diefenderfer was arrested by the Sheridan Police Department for theft for allegedly stealing cash in an amount greater than $1,000 from James Buchanan. The alleged criminal activity occurred between May 1, 2025, and November 3, 2025 when Diefenderfer was an employee of Buchanan Chiropractic in Sheridan.
Diefenderfer, at Thursday’s arraignment hearing, pleaded not guilty to the felony theft charge. District Court Judge Darci Phillips scheduled a two-day jury trial to begin June 1. A pretrial conference will take place April 30 at 9 am. Diefenderfer’s bond was continued under the same terms and conditions that were previously set in Sheridan County Circuit Court. The crime of felony theft is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
Also from District Court:
A sentencing hearing was held Thursday in Fourth Judicial District Court in Sheridan for 62-year-old Polly Wheat. On March 13, 2025, Wheat was arrested for DUI after the Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office received a REDDI report that she was driving while under the influence of alcohol. Wheat’s blood alcohol content was .237, which is almost three times the legal limit. It is her fifth DUI conviction and fourth in a ten year period, which resulted in the crime being charged as a felony.
At sentencing Thursday, District Court Judge Darci Phillips accepted the terms of the plea agreement reached with the State and sentenced Wheat to 3 to 7 years in prison with credit for 177 days of time served of presentence confinement. Wheat was also ordered to pay $375 in court costs and assessments.
Also sentenced Thursday in District Court was Lynsey Markham of Denver, Colorado. Markham was arrested on May 25, 2023 during a traffic stop on Interstate 90 near Sheridan. During the stop, law enforcement found Markham to be in possession of more than three grams of fentanyl. Markham failed to show for several arraignment hearings in July and August of 2023 and was on the lam since May 5, 2025 when she was arrested on a warrant. Judge Phillips sentenced Markham to 2 to 3 years in prison, suspended in lieu of three years of supervised probation.
Markham was also ordered to pay $375 in court costs and assessments, $500 in public defender fees and $2,189 in restitution to the Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office for extradition from Colorado.
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Last modified: January 10, 2026