Legislature(1993 - 1994)
11/15/1993 01:30 PM Senate JUD
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE
Anchorage, AK
November 15, 1993
1:30 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Robin Taylor, Chairman
Senator Suzanne Little
Senator Dave Donley
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Rick Halford, Vice-Chairman
Senator George Jacko
ALSO PRESENT
Senator Loren Leman
Representative Cynthia Toohey
Representative Ed Willis
Representative Ron Larson
Representative Terry Martin
Representative Ramona Barnes
Representative Con Bunde
Representative Jim Nordlund
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
ANTI-CRIME BRIEFING
WITNESS REGISTER
Edward McNally, District Attorney
Third Judicial District
Anchorage, AK
Colonel John Murphy, Director
Division of Alaska State Troopers
Anchorage, AK
Bill Mell, Executive Director of
Secondary Education
Anchorage School District
Anchorage, AK
Duane Udland, Deputy Chief
Anchorage Police Department
Anchorage, AK
Sgt. Mike Grimes, Homicide Chief
Anchorage Police Department
Anchorage, AK
Janice Lienhart
Victims for Justice
619 E. 5th St.
Anchorage, AK 99501
Ralph Samuels
Anchorage, AK
Phone: 344-7253
Donna Poff & Mindy Dinsmore
Anchorage, AK
Randy Smith
Mountain View Community Council
801 W. Bragaw
Anchorage, AK 99508
Celeste Benson
Fairview Community Council
1530 Orca St.
Anchorage, AK 99501
Alice Jean Lawrence
833 North Hoyt
Anchorage, AK 99508
Audrey Renschen, Chief, Sex Crimes Unit
Anchorage District Attorneys' Office
Anchorage, AK
Joe Bottini
U.S. Attorney, Alaska District
Anchorage, AK
Wiley Thompson, Assistant Special Agent
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Anchorage, AK
Harry Thomas, District Attorney
Fourth Judicial District
Fairbanks, AK
Larry McKinstry, Deputy Commissioner
Department of Corrections
Juneau, AK
Diane Schenker, Special Assistant to the
Commissioner
Department of Corrections
Juneau, AK
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 93-56, SIDE A
Number 001
SENATOR LOREN LEMAN, sitting in for Chairman Robin Taylor, called
the meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee to order at 1:30
p.m., and noted that the meeting was being teleconferenced to the
Barrow, Bethel, Juneau, Ketchikan, Matsu and Kenai/Soldotna
teleconference sites.
Senator Leman introduced the following invited guests who would be
making presentations during the meeting: Edward McNally, District
Attorney, Anchorage; Duane Udland, Deputy Chief of Police, APD;
Colonel John Murphy, Alaska State Troopers; Wiley Thompson, Special
Agent, FBI Anchorage; Janice Leinhart, Director, Victims for
Justice; Diane Schenker, Special Assistant, Department of
Corrections; Lee Ann Lucas Special Assistant, Department of Public
Safety; and Kenneth Bischoff, Department of Public Safety.
Number 030
EDWARD MCNALLY, District Attorney, Anchorage , in his opening
comments, noted there was also a number of citizen activists and
victims or survivors of crime who were present to be part of the
proceedings. He also passed on Attorney General Charlie Coles'
regrets that he was unable to personally participate in the
briefing.
Mr. McNally expressed the participant's appreciation for the
opportunity to appear before the committee because of their firm
belief that public safety is not just another line-item in a city
or a state budget; it is the first duty of any government. He said
in Anchorage, local conversations increasingly turn to the latest
episode of crime in the schools, crime down the street, drive-by
shootings, or the emergency gangs, and there is very much a sense
of urgency in addressing these issues. Crime is increasingly more
vicious, it is more likely to involve drugs, it is more likely to
involve guns, and, sadly, it is more likely to involve kids.
Mr. McNally said Alaska has not been immune to the types of violent
crimes that have been occurring on the national scene. Forty-four
Alaskans were murdered in 1992, fourteen of those were age 24 or
younger, two were under age 9. He said the victims seem to get
younger every year and so do the killers.
Mr. McNally noted that Attorney General Janet Reno has said that
youth violence is the single greatest crime problem in America
today. Between 1987 and 1991, the last year for which statistics
are available, the number of teenagers arrested for murder around
the country increased by an astonishing 85 percent. Not long ago,
many Alaskans dismissed this kind of violence as simply an outside
problem; however, in 1992, on average, one Alaskan was murdered
every week, more than one Alaska woman was raped every day, and an
Alaskan was brutally assaulted with either a weapon or resulting in
serious injuries every three and one-half hours.
Mr. McNally observed that respect for life seems to have ebbed
sharply among Alaska's teenagers. The cruelty and the violence
suggests a small but growing segment of young criminals with little
concern for human life. Today, the fear of crime strikes way too
many Alaska families; parents are fearing for their kids in school
or on the way home. For some Anchorage teens, violence is simply
becoming a way of life.
The focus on juvenile waiver has been on murders, but that is
misleading. He said the truth is that the system is so difficult,
so uphill and so cumbersome that the only juvenile waivers heard
about are murders, is this his office, scarce with resources,
doesn't even attempt to waive any juvenile unless someone is
actually dead. He said that is not the way it is done in 49 states
and it is not right.
Last year, 16 Alaskan juveniles were arrested for rape; thirteen of
those were age 15 or younger and five of them were 12 or younger.
Also last year, 84 juveniles were arrested for aggravated assault;
half of those 84 were age 15 or younger. Ninety-one juveniles were
arrested on weapons offenses. In Anchorage alone last year, 81
criminals were actually arrested for robbery; a fourth of those
robbery suspects were juveniles. Almost half of those arrested for
attempted murder in Anchorage last year were juveniles. A total of
more than 5,000 Alaskan juveniles were arrested for crimes
committed in 1992.
Mr. McNally said it is the outbreak of violence that increases our
children's fear of becoming victims themselves. It makes them more
likely to interpret others' intentions as threatening and,
therefore, to respond with force. He added that if the battle
against youth violence can't be won in Anchorage, the rest of
Alaska is in for trouble and, in their estimation, so far, that
battle is being lost.
Mr. McNally directed attention to a number of charts and graphs
containing statistics which show dramatic increases in the state
for the crimes of rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. He
pointed out that in the last year the resources in the Criminal
Division of the Department of Law have gone down and there are
fewer prosecutors available to prosecute these additional crimes.
He said that by these numbers and by these incidents, Alaskans are
outraged and they want something done.
Mr. McNally spoke to a law passed in the State of Washington in
early November, which provides that criminals convicted of three
major violent felonies go to prison forever, no parole.
Mr. McNally told the committee that the commonality in all the
anti-crime legislation to be discussed and considered is that
people must be held accountable for their actions. SB 54, SB 140,
SB 209 and HB 100 send a clear unmistakable and tough message that
those who commit violent crimes will be brought to justice.
Number 240
Mr. McNally advised that crack and the explosive cycle of crack-
related violence today threatens the quality of life in many
Anchorage neighborhoods. Police say that crack use has doubled and
perhaps tripled in recent years. The state's response to this
epidemic has to be across the board: drug education and drug
treatment. For those who cannot learn, or will not seek help,
Alaska needs the basic tools of law enforcement: conspiracy laws
and forfeiture laws. He pointed out that these are two good
examples of where, in a time of declining resources, the state
doesn't have to spend the kind of money being spent now.
It is time for Alaska to change the rules and, in particular,
target the repeat offenders that prey on Alaskans who are least
able to defend themselves. He said if we're able to take them off
the street and out of the community for a long time, there is a
fighting chance of turning the corner on this outbreak of crime.
In fighting drug-related violence, Alaska has a tremendous resource
in its community spirit.
In conclusion, Mr. McNally reiterated that Alaska's people are
asking for action to stop violent crime and for new laws to protect
women and children against violence and exploitation and family
violence. To do the job, Alaska is going to need reenforcements;
this is true in Anchorage where for too long the DA's office has
been understaffed.
Number 350
SENATOR LEMAN noted that CHAIRMAN TAYLOR had arrived at the meeting
and that he was turning the gavel over to him.
Number 397
SENATOR DONLEY commented that if these laws, which he feels are
necessary, are passed, it is very clear that the state will need
more prison space in the future. MR. MCNALLY responded that as
part of the federal program on combating crime, Congress is
discussing two matching programs that Alaska may have an
opportunity to participate in. One program would add 100,000 new
police officers and the other program is for prison construction.
He also suggested that the Cleary settlement agreement is something
that has to be looked at to see if there isn't a possibility, not
just to build more prisons, but to house more prisoners under less
pleasant surroundings in our jails.
Number 465
COLONEL JOHN MURPHY, ALASKA STATE TROOPERS, reviewed year-to-date
statistics on a statewide basis which closely echo was the 1992
statistics show. Violent crime in Alaska in 1993 is up 11 percent,
and felony assaults are up 26 percent. He noted that the national
average is 24 percent.
Colonel Murphy said that the problems in Anchorage, historically,
take about one to two years to spread out to rural Alaska. Other
communities in Alaska are experiencing some of the same kinds of
violent crimes as occur in Anchorage. He emphasized that to
address these problems, it has to be approached on a multi-agency
level with everybody involved.
In his closing comments, Colonel Murphy related that Alaska has
a distinction of being one of sixteen states that have bombing
deaths. He also stated that violent crime is a problem that is
here and it needs to be addressed. The Alaska State Troopers are
willing to work with the Legislature in any way they can throughout
the coming session in trying to get this problem addressed.
Colonel Murphy also informed the committee that the Uniform Crime
Report would be available to them within approximately two weeks.
Number 528
REPRESENTATIVE MARTIN asked what is the most important thing
legislators need to address in getting crime off of the streets.
COLONEL MURPHY responded that it needs to be a multifaceted
approach with more police officers and more prosecutors. Most
importantly, they need conspiracy and forfeiture statutes to deal
with violent crime.
Number 565
SENATOR TAYLOR commented that everyone is concerned about the
problem, and that there are some major pieces of legislation moving
through the process.
Number 580
BILL MELL, Executive Director of Secondary Education, Anchorage
School District, said he would address a series of issues that
have been discussed with elementary and secondary school parents
over the last month and has been an issue under consideration by
the Anchorage School Board and school district administration for
approximately three years. He said they do not feel that they are
in a situation of crisis, but they feel that they are at the edge
and need some help in dealing with some problems related to
juvenile violence, particularly the possession of guns.
Three years ago, the Anchorage School District passed some new
policies relating to weapons on campus and gangs and gang-like
behavior, but they are back before the community now because it is
felt there are some things that they need to deal with before they
reach crisis proportions. Issues identified are: (1) the need
for clear and immediate communication between the Anchorage Police
Department, the Alaska State Troopers and the schools; (2) the
conspiracy law, as it relates to young adults over 18 years of age
counselling younger students to commit violent acts or crimes; (3)
expanding the scope of the juvenile waiver law to more than just
murder; (4) school campuses and their surrounding areas declared
weapons free zones; and (5) an anti-graffiti ordinance or
regulation.
Mr. Mell said the Anchorage School District, the Secondary Advisory
Committee and Victims For Justice will be cooperating on some
public speaking out on these issues, but they will need some help
to organize.
TAPE 93-56, SIDE B
Number 001
Mr. Mell said there are some things that need to be understood
about the schools and the communities that are reflected in the
schools. The Anchorage School District has grown 4,000 to 5,000
students since about 1988. The resources that they have had
available to deal with issues related to gangs, crime control and
decorum in the school setting have either remained flat or
declined.
Mr. Mell explained that the district is trying its very best to
work in this area, but they are moving into areas that they never
thought they would have to move into. They believe that with some
changes and with the involvement of the community, particularly in
those 18 hours of the day that they don't have them as students,
they have an opportunity not to go through the same things that
schools have gone through in communities across the United States.
Number 065
SENATOR DONLEY asked Mr. Mell is the school district has been
coordinating the idea of the gun free zone concept with rural
districts to come up with a joint proposal from the school
districts statewide. MR. MELL responded that they hadn't, but they
think that probably the only success they are going to have is as
a local ordinance. SENATOR DONLEY and SENATOR TAYLOR both
expressed concern with the confusion created by having numerous
different local ordinances dealing with gun laws, and they
encouraged working with the Association of School Boards in coming
up with a statewide proposal.
Number 110
REPRESENTATIVE TOOHEY asked what specifically the curriculum can do
to stem these problems. MR. MELL said that 10 years ago the real
issue in the state wasn't violence, but was involvement with drugs.
In particular, the schools have taken a stand in two areas;
prevention and intervention. As a result of these programs, they
have seen approximately an 80 percent drop in the number of
suspensions from school for drug and alcohol-related incidences.
He said they probably need to apply the same model for violence.
This past spring they piloted a program for violent students that
falls short of possession of a firearm in school that was
relatively successful. However, they had to reorganize their
resources and stop doing other things to achieve this.
Number 135
DUANE UDLAND, Deputy Chief, Anchorage Police Department , quoted
statistics which he said reinforce the issue of juvenile crime that
is sweeping Alaska and, in particular, Anchorage. The police
department has already arrested three juveniles this year for
murder. In 1991 there were 13 juveniles arrested for robbery, and
this year, through August, they have arrested 22 juveniles for
robbery. For serious assaults, in 1991 they arrested 136
juveniles, and this year, through August, they arrested 266
juveniles.
Deputy Chief Udland said the most frightening statistic is that in
1991 the policy department arrested 94 juveniles for weapons-
related offenses; in 1992 they arrest 92 juveniles; and this year,
through August, they have arrested 102 juveniles.
Deputy Chief Udland also told the committee that there are 150
young people, some of them adults, claiming affiliations with a
gang. By the department's count, they think there are about 50 or
so that would qualify under a definition of "hard core gang
members."
Deputy Chief Udland voiced his support for the anti-crime
legislation being considered by the Legislature, which, he said,
will make the system more efficient and it will allow them to do a
better job. However, he said that the system is bogged down with
a lack of resources. He said the State of Alaska is least prepared
now of any time to deal with this rising crime rate and, at some
point, the Legislature and the local city governments are going to
have to look at the resources that are going at this problem. He
pointed out that the waiting list to get in to see a district
attorney to present a case is two to four weeks long. The
Corrections budget is also a problem and, as this tide rises,
places like the McLaughlin Youth Center need support.
Number 220
SGT. MIKE GRIMES, Homicide Chief, Anchorage Police Department,
displayed various types of weapons that the department has been
confiscating from juveniles. Each weapon is from a pending case or
an adjudicated case in which a shooting was involved. It was noted
by Sgt. Grimes that they are seeing more and more cut-down rifles
and cut-down shotguns being used.
Sgt. Grimes said he has been working as a police officer in
Anchorage for almost 22 years, and what has occurred just in the
recent past, particularly over the past summer, is the tip of the
iceberg. He said they don't have the laws right now dealing with
juveniles that are going to combat this problem.
Number 330
JANICE LIENHART, Victims For Justice, said she would be speaking on on
the victim's perspective, and the main issues she would address
is juvenile privacy and its tremendous impact on the victims of
crime, as well as the importance of the constitutional amendment
that gives victims due process to the system.
Mr. Lienhart said that when a person becomes the victim of a crime.
the most traumatic thing that person lives with from then on is
that crime, but when it becomes involved in the system, especially
if it is a juvenile crime, the victim doesn't have the privilege to
know. All of a sudden, the person who commits the crime has all
the rights and has all of the protections.
Ms. Lienhart stated that somehow the laws have to give the victim
information about the offender's treatment, so that the victim
doesn't have to live in fear if the offender is released. Also, if
a juvenile offender, who may have an anger problem, is released
from a facility and starts attending school, the staff and students
have no way of knowing this and have no protection. There is no
transfer of information so there is no safety for the community,
and the juvenile offender has no accountability because he is being
protected.
Ms. Lienhart pointed out that over 14 states have now passed a
constitutional amendment which is probably the most effective tool
in guaranteeing a victim's right to due process. She urged the
committee's consideration and support for such an amendment.
Number 430
RALPH SAMUELS, the brother of a murder victim, related how in 1989, 9,
a young mane from Service High School in Anchorage, carrying a
stolen gun, went to a house in South Anchorage and forced his
brother at gun point into giving him his car keys before shooting
him to death. The 16-year-old juvenile was arrested and confessed
to his brother's murder. However, a judge later ruled that because
the police department, even though they had the advice of the
District Attorney's office, didn't try to call the offender's
parents first, that the confession, the murder weapon, any
statements he had made, would all be thrown out of court. The DA's
office then took the case to the Supreme Court, but it is yet to be
acted on.
Mr. Samuels said that more than four years after the murder of his
brother, they have now determined that one piece of evidence can be
used to determine whether or not the offender can be tried as an
adult, which means they are at least a year away from any grand
jury indictment.
Mr. Samuels spoke to the suffering all of the delays in the system
have caused to his family. He declared it is something that should
have gone to trial three years ago and be over with so that his
family can begin the healing process. He expressed his anger at
the State of Alaska and the Legislature for not passing laws that
would prevent this kind of injustice from happening.
Number 685
DONNA POFF, the mother of a murder victim, said that she, like Ms. .
Leinhart and Mr. Samuels, is very upset and angry at the system,
and she questioned why something hasn't been done. She pointed out
that Ms. Leinhart and others have been trying to get new laws for
over seven years.
TAPE 93-57, SIDE A
Number 001
Ms. Poff said that in September she sent letters and pictures
relating to her son's death to 34 legislators and she has received
only two responses.
MINDY DINSMORE, the victim's sister, told the committee they have
spent three weeks going through a waiver hearing, and she spoke to
the traumatic effect all of the delays have had on the family.
Ms. Poff said her son didn't do anything wrong, except that he
trusted other people too much, and she questioned if the
legislators really care about the victim's rights or if they are
more interested in protecting the offender.
Number 087
SENATOR TAYLOR assured Ms. Poff that there are legislators who
care, that there is legislation that is moving through the process,
and when it passes, there will be changes and there will be
indictments. He has served in the capacity as a district court
judge for six years, and he has watched victims get misused just as
she has been misused by our system. HE said that it's time we pull
the cover off the whole thing, and that's why the hearing is being
held today and why there will be more hearings.
Number 145
SENATOR DONLEY expressed his concern to Ms. Poff, and said that he
had legislation in place a few years ago that would have changed
what has happened, if he could have been successful in getting the
legislation passed. He stressed that the way things will be done
better is with bi-partisan cooperation such as was done with the
passage of SB 54 (OFFENSES BY JUVENILE OFFENDERS) this past
session. He said the legislation is a big step forward and
legislators are looking forward to it becoming law next session.
Number 195
RANDY SMITH, President of the Mountain View Community Council, a
community of approximately 6,000 residents in Northeast Anchorage,
reminded the committee to keep in mind that was is happening in
Mountain View isn't just happening there, that these types of
things are affecting Alaskans everywhere.
Mr. Smith referred to a three-page list containing the locations of
18 crack houses and drug houses in Mountain View. In August they
had anywhere from 15 to 25 street level druggies and drug
traffickers standing on the street corners in Mountain View. APD
did a sweep for 30 days, using up all of their overtime budget
trying to get these people off of the street. He said they made a
lot of arrests, but very few of those arrests give anybody any hard
time, so they are back on the street.
Mr. Smith said that the high levels of drugs and alcohol abuse
isn't only a problem in Mountain View. He declared this is
statewide problem that is not being addressed, and the citizens of
the state are asking their elected representatives to do something
about it.
Mr. Smith also spoke to the escalation of the crime of arson; the
increased number of people being killed as a result of DWI's; and
the high levels of violent crimes, property crimes, auto thefts,
burglaries, vandalism, youth gang activities and youth crime.
Alaska isn't to the level of big cities in the Lower 48, but he
warned that Alaskans must wake up and address these problems
because it is coming.
Mr. Smith related that Mountain View accounts for over three times
the number of calls for service to APD as the Anchorage average and
four times the crime per capita as the overall rate in Anchorage.
Mr. Smith urged passage of laws dealing with conspiracy,
forfeiture, third-time DWI, grand theft auto, youth with firearms,
and drugs and alcohol. He also urged support for public safety
programs such as community policing, citizen patrols; increasing
the number of policemen, prosecutors, judges, court staffs,
correction officers, and probation officers; increasing jail and
prison space; and offering more alcohol treatment programs, drug
treatment programs and youth firearm safety programs.
Number 325
CELESTE BENSON, representing the community of Fairview, said her
community is a neighbor to Mountain View and like Mountain View,
her community experiences similar problems. She asked that laws be
developed and enacted that protect neighborhoods because they are
losing ground and everything possible needs to be done to protect
the people and the families who live in these neighborhoods.
Ms. Benson said her community has identified crack cocaine as the
destructive force in their neighborhood and, as a community, they
are doing everything they can to provide the programs and the
quality type things for their youth, but they are constantly
meeting frustrations with budget cuts in school programs,
overcrowding in schools, lack of law enforcement and a lack of
consistency in government.
Ms. Benson said Fairview has a beautiful community recreation
center, but parents do not feel that they can send their children
there because of the drug dealing that is going on outside in the
parking lot.
For several years, Fairview has been struggling with what is to be
done with the small-time criminals or the guy on the street selling
coke for the big drug dealers. The community has been given the
message they these are not the guys the criminal justice system
wants to deal with, but these are the guys that are influencing the
young people and destroying the peace and tranquility of the
neighborhoods. One of the major blocks they have found in Fairview
in dealing with street crimes is the absentee landlord, and there
needs to be laws that force these landlords to be responsible for
their properties where a lot of the crime is occurring.
In conclusion, Ms. Benson said everyone needs to work together to
see what the priorities for our youth are and what it is that is
going to keep children moving in a positive direction rather than
falling on the side of drugs and crime.
Number 480
ALICE JEAN LAWRENCE, the mother of 12 children and a resident of
Mountain View, stated that she is frustrated and burned-out because e
nothing of any significance has been done in the 27 years she has
lived in the community. She is one of the many people that have
been fighting to survive in Mountain View.
Mrs. Lawrence, speaking to absentee landlords, said these landlords
know what is going on in their properties, and a lot of the
managers of these units are the drug pushers. She suggested
cracking down on the landlords, the managers pushing the drugs and
the people buying the drugs and having them appear in court at the
same time. She also suggested putting the gangs that are the
causing the trouble to work in programs such as renovating these
properties which are in a sad state of disrepair.
Mrs. Lawrence also spoke to the work she and her husband have been
doing out of their own home in trying to combat the problems in
their neighborhood.
In her closing comments, Mrs. Lawrence said she doesn't think
anybody is doing the job that should be done and that nothing is
going to change, but she is willing to give the legislators another
chance in showing that they care.
Number 607
AUDREY RENSCHEN, Chief, Sex Crimes Unit, Anchorage DA's Office,
told the committee she works with three other attorneys and the
three of them handle all of the sexual assault and sexual abuse of
minors cases. They try to handle them in a "vertical prosecution"
so that when a victim comes in and testifies at grand jury, the
victim sees the same face again when coming in to testify at a jury
trial. That way the attorneys have the ability to know their case
best, know what the problems are, deal with them, and also treat
the victim in a more appropriate way.
Ms. Renschen stated that crimes against women and children are
increasing, and she directed attention to graphs which show a
dramatic increase since 1989 of reported rapes in Anchorage.
Between 1990 and 1992, there have been 943 reported rapes of adults
in Alaska, which is an increase of 77 percent since 1989, with
nearly half of those assaults occurring in Anchorage. For the
first nine months of 1993, there are already 330 reported rapes,
which is an 28 percent increase over the totals from last year.
In 1990, Alaska ranked third in the nation in the incidence of
sexual assault.
Child sexual abuse has also increased dramatically. In 1992, there
were 2,039 reports of child sexual abuse in Alaska. Alaska leads
the nation in the rate of child sexual abuse; it is six times the
national average. According to the statistics, one of every six
children, just in Anchorage, is sexually abused.
Ms. Renschen said these cases are difficult cases to prove because
most sexual assault cases or child sexual abuse cases often, in
terms of evidence, basically come down to one person's word against
another, which makes it very difficult to prove.
TAPE 93-57, SIDE B
Number 001
Ms. Renschen spoke to the difficulties in how they handle young
children in sexual abuse cases and the need to build a rapport and
trust with these children in order to get at the truth.
Turning to adult sexual assault cases and cases involving a
defendant and a victim who know each other in some way, Ms.
Renschen said that there are very peculiar dynamics that go on that
are very similar to the situation with children. She said they
need to intervene in those situations quickly, because if they
don't provide the information that those people need to know about
what is going to happen, the perpetrator is the one who fills in
the blanks, putting financial pressures and family pressures on the
victim.
In situations where strangers are involved in sexual assault cases,
especially in situations where a defendant has a history of
sexually assaulting women, a defendant can take a set of facts and
turn them around and make it seem as though it's the victim that is
at fault.
Ms. Renschen told the committee that the next speaker would be an
anonymous 27-year-old young woman who was the victim of a very
brutal sexual assault by a man who had previously been convicted
twice in California of sexually assaulting women. There was also
a report that the same man tried to sexually assault another woman,
but she would not press charges. She said her office was not able
to prosecute this case because the defendant was able to raise the
kinds of issues about consent that they were not in a position to
be able to disprove.
Number 132
The anonymous victim told the committee how she accepted a ride
home from a gathering by the man, but instead was taken to his
apartment where he had weapons and he threatened to kill her if she
made any noise. She said she was forced to remain in the apartment
for 12 hours where she was beaten and sexually assaulted in every
way imaginable. After the incident, she called the police and they
took her to the hospital. She said she pressed charges against the
man, but it turned out that she was the one on trial and was made
out to be the one in the wrong.
Ms. Renschen related that approximately one month ago, this same
man assaulted two other women.
Number 171
Ms. Renschen said that so far this year, their office has taken in
168 cases to determine whether or not charges should be issued,
with 96 of those being charged already. These are complex cases,
they are resource intensive cases, and they are cases the
Legislature can help by recognizing that they need the resources as
well as the additional laws that will help them prosecute the
offenders.
Number 210
SENATOR DONLEY asked if Rule 404(B) was a factor in the case cited.
MS. RENSCHEN acknowledged that it was, and they would have liked to
have been allowed to use it, but the interpretation by the court is
that evidence of prior sexual assaults can't be used with regard to
proving the lack of consent. SENATOR DONLEY said the Rules of
Evidence statute was modified two years ago to allow the use of
that evidence, and that the court's interpretation is clearly in
violation of the statute. EDWARD MCNALLY added that he was
involved in a case two weeks ago where the judges said flat out
that they do not believe that was the Legislature's intent and they
don't believe there is evidence that it was the Legislature's
intent.
Number 250
RAMONA BARNES, Speaker of the House of Representatives, commended
the committee for taking the initiative to hold the hearing, and
stated that the House Finance Committee will be holding hearings
before the beginning of the upcoming session on the anti-crime
legislation passed by the Senate last session. She also said that
some of the bills that the House passed last session are still in
the Senate and she is confident that they will be acted on early
next session.
SENATOR TAYLOR said there has been a major shift in policy in
Juneau in the last year regarding the movement of the conspiracy
bill, juvenile waiver bills,etc., and he told Speaker Barnes he
knows of her strong commitment in these areas, and he appreciates
the leadership she has provided in the House on these issues.
Number 330
JOE BOTTINI, United States Attorney for the Alaska District,
assured the committee that the criminal conspiracy law and the
forfeiture law are effective and necessary tools in successfully
prosecuting organized criminal activity.
The situation as it exists in Alaska today is that if the Alaska
State Troopers, or the Anchorage Police Department, or any other
state or local agency went out and successfully investigated and
put together a prosecutable case involving a criminal organization,
then brought the case into the DA's office to be considered for
prosecution, there would be situations where all of the players in
that organization would not be held accountable. He said the
statutes that are on the books right now don't cover all of the
situations that are found in this district, and a criminal
conspiracy law is necessary to hold accountable all of the players
in criminal organizations.
Because there is no conspiracy statute in Alaska, the burden has
fallen upon the U.S. Attorney's office in this district to take on
the larger prosecutions involving drug trafficking organizations or
violent crime activity. However, he told the committee that this
practice cannot continue because, like the state agencies, they are
experiencing budget cut-backs. He also pointed out that the U.S.
Attorney's office isn't there just as a prosecuting agency, they
have numerous other responsibilities.
Mr. Bottini said the federal judicial system, the federal law
enforcement, the U.S. Attorney's office is a much smaller pull of
resources to handle these types of cases being discussed,and that
their colleagues in the District Attorneys' offices and the
Attorney General's office ought to have the same sorts of tools as
the federal government.
Mr. Bottini informed the committee that there are at least 150
forfeiture statutes on the books in the federal system. It is a
topic that has come to the forefront over the last several years
because of the increase in drug trafficking activity and the
emphasis that the U.S. congress has put upon devoting resources to
the asset forfeiture program. He said their Alaska office has one
attorney who handles nothing but forfeiture cases, and he explained
how those cases are pursued under a criminal forfeiture theory and
under a civil forfeiture theory.
Number 485
WILEY THOMPSON, Assistant Special Agent in charge of the FBI in
Alaska, related that effective December 17, he will become the
special agent in charge for the state.
Mr. Wiley said his purpose for appearing before the committee is
two-fold: first to show support for the Alaska State Troopers, the
Anchorage Police Department, the District Attorneys' offices
throughout the state, and all of the state and local law
enforcement agencies with whom the FBI has an excellent working
relationship; and secondly, to give an overview of FBI jurisdiction
and resources.
In his overview, Mr. Wiley said that in Alaska the FBI is charged
with the responsibility of investigating 260 violations of federal
law, and due to the large volume of violations, it is necessary for
the FBI, in conjunction with the U.S. Attorney's office, to set
priorities. At this time, the FBI priorities are white collar
crime, organized crime and drugs, which they combine, and violent
crimes.
Mr. Thompson noted that it is in the drug and violent crime cases
that they work the closest with the state and local law
enforcement. However, since FBI human resources are limited and
while collar crime has a far greater impact on the state, the FBI
must constantly balance the commitment to drug and violent crime
cases, which are important, but which are sometimes of lesser
importance or priority.
Occasionally the FBI will assist the state in an investigation
where there is concurrent jurisdiction, but the state lacks the
arsenal of weapons like conspiracy and forfeiture to effectively
charge and prosecute the defendants. He added that while the FBI
enjoys an excellent working relationship with state and local law
enforcement, one must question the efficiency of federal
intervention and involvement in cases in which the state is capable
of handling the investigation, but lacks the criminal statutes
patterned after those in the federal government.
Mr. Thompson informed the committee that last year there were
$132,000 worth of forfeitures out of the FBI Alaska office, and
many of those forfeitures came through state and local agencies
which came to them because they did not have the means by which to
do that in the state system.
Number 610
SENATOR DONLEY said in the rural areas of the state, the law
enforcement people don't have near the capability of training their
people like the FBI agents are trained, and he asked Mr. Thompson
what could be done to address that concern. WILEY THOMPSON
suggested that through the preparation of the statute itself and
the crafting of the legislation, protections could be written in.
Also, many Alaska police officers have been trained by the FBI and
they would be capable of being entrusted with the responsibility to
handle both the forfeiture and conspiracy statutes.
Number 685
HARRY DAVIS, District Attorney, Fairbanks, said the juvenile waiver er
bill is only part of the solution to the problem; that we must look
at the charging decisions in the juvenile delinquency rules.
Delinquency Rule 6 provides that the charging decisions rest with
Department of Health and Social Services juvenile intake officers,
and he suggested that the charging decision on juvenile crime
should be in the District Attorneys' offices, where it is in most
states.
TAPE 93-58, SIDE A
Number 001
Mr. Davis said the problem with Rule 404(B) is that there is still
Rule 403, which allows the judge the discretion of weighing the
appropriate value in excluding the evidence. He suggested
specifically amending Rule 404(B) to say that it shall be
admissible, because as long as there is that discretion in Rule
403, there will be individual judges who are going to exclude it no
matter how appropriate it is.
Mr. Davis said an area that has been of concern to him in trying
numerous homicide cases is where the victim's character is trashed
in self-defense cases, and he suggested it is another provision
that needs to be looked at and addressed.
Mr. Davis also proposed expanding the registration of sex offenders
to DNA data banks. He said it won't be too far in the future when
they will be able to use DNA for purposes of identification of sex
offenders and be able to solve a lot of sexual assaults that they
aren't presently abe to solve.
Mr. Davis also stressed that juvenile offenders should not be
incarcerated with hardened criminals, and this could be
accomplished by simply having separate facilities or segregated
facilities where youthful offenders are kept with youthful
offenders. He suggested legislation specifically directing the
Division of Corrections that youthful offenders will be
incarcerated in separate facilities.
Mr. Davis said the Legislature has been very responsive to a lot of
the needs of prosecution, However, the times are changing and
they've got to be able to continue to respond to the new problems
that they will be facing. The juvenile justice system is in
shambles, and the only reason the public has put up with it is
because it has been shielded from them.
Number 130
SENATOR TAYLOR asked Mr. Davis if he would provide him with his
comments on what the Legislature can do to restructure the juvenile
justice system, and he said that although it probably can't be
accomplished in the next session, the Legislature could probably
get a good start on addressing the problem.
Number 220
SENATOR DONLEY said Alaska has one of the highest percentages of
incarceration of its population, and people frequently comment that
obviously, the answer is not to build more prisons and put more
people in prison. He added that he personally disagrees with that
theory because he thinks it is a very effective way to deal with
repeat offenders. HARRY DAVIS responded that the cost of letting
them out is a lot more than keeping them locked up. Also, a lot of
the offenders incarcerated in maximum institutions don't need to be
in maximum institutions, they could be in much less cost
institutions such as the half-way houses. He also suggested that
the Cleary decision should be modified and litigated because the
public isn't willing to pay for the types of institutions that are
being run in the state.
Number 338
ED MCNALLY, referring to the last part of the meeting agenda which
lists suggestions for anti-crime legislation, called it a
"prosecutors' wish list" not an Administration proposal. Some are
very small changes, but very significant. He said that they would
be happy at any future opportunity to provide the committee with
more substance of what these proposals might do.
Number 366
DIANE SCHENKER, Special Assistant to the Commissioner, Department
of Corrections, introduced Deputy Commissioner McKinstry who would
be speaking for the department. She noted that she would be
distributing a profile of the prisoner population that was taken
last summer and shows the percentage increase in the population and
the cost per day.
LARRY MCKINSTRY, Deputy Commissioner, Department of Corrections,
said he had a conversation earlier in the day with a man from the
National Institute of Corrections who indicated that he had gone
through the entire Cleary settlement agreement and looked at what
Alaska is doing, and he didn't see anything that was out of line
with what is going on in the Lower 48. Deputy Commissioner
McKinstry said it might look like Alaska is doing a lot more for
prisoners than they are down south, but that is because the numbers
are so much different. Also, it might look like the state is doing
more because the facilities are so spread out; there are a number
of small facilities and they have to provide similar types of
things to each group of people in each facility.
Deputy Commissioner McKinstry told the committee that because of
budget cuts over the last couple of years, the department has had
do some pretty innovative things. He pointed out that last year
the department spent approximately $1,700,000 to increase the
number of half-way house beds in the system, which are now running
at about 95 percent capacity.
The Deputy Commissioner also informed the committee that the prison
population is about 250 over the maximum capacity as is set by the
Cleary settlement agreement, which means they are also about 130
over their emergency capacity. In order to assimilate any changes
in the criminal code, they are going to need more beds, and they
are going to need the types of beds that take time to build and to
put on line.
One thing the department was successful in doing in the last couple
of months was petitioning the court under Cleary to allow them to
double bunk a number of cells in Spring Creek. They were
successful in this effort and were allowed to add an additional 50
beds, but that is contingent upon funding from the Legislature.
Deputy Commissioner McKinstry said everyone seems to feel that
because of the nature of the crime in our streets, that it is
necessary to be able to have immediate sanctions placed on people
when they go through the court system. In misdemeanor cases,
especially, the Department of Corrections has been forced to create
a large backlog of misdemeanants awaiting housing in their
facilities. He said it doesn't do any good to postpone a sentence
for six or eight months, and the bottom line is that the state is
going to have to increase the bed space in its prisons. He did add
that the number of people waiting to serve their time and that time
line has dropped drastically.
Number 540
SENATOR TAYLOR asked if there was any reason why they couldn't
contract for more out-of-state prisoner space. DIANE SCHENKER
answered that the department has clear statutory authority that it
can put prisoners anywhere, yet there is strong political
opposition to removing people from the proximity of their families.
DEPUTY COMMISSIONER MCKINSTRY added that at one time there were
over 200 inmates out in the federal system, but after the Cleary
agreement, they ended up with a lawsuit over conditions in the
federal system. They agreed to bring the prisoners back and built
the Spring Creek facility.
Number 620
SENATOR LITTLE said one of the points that was contested in
discussions last year on contracting with an out-of-state prison
was that the state really didn't have a handle on the cost that was
going to be charged to house the prisoners. She suggested that if
the Legislature is going to consider shipping prisoners out of
state, the cost is going to have to be very clearly lined out. She
added that she favors shipping new prisoners out of state and
retaining the prisoners already in the system in state, but she is
not in favor of vacating the state's facilities in order to
subsidize another state's economy. SENATOR TAYLOR commented that
he doesn't think there is going to be anybody out of work, but the
real question is how many more Spring Creeks do we build on down
the road. DEPUTY COMMISSIONER MCKINSTRY pointed out that in the
Cleary case there is an agreement that they don't send anybody out
of state to a federal prison against their will. But the question
of sending them to a private facility or a state facility has not
been answered.
Number 710
DEPUTY COMMISSIONER MCKINSTRY reminded the committee that adding
crimes to the books that have to be prosecuted is going to create
a need for pretrial beds, not only in the bigger cities, but in the
outlying areas as well where it is very expensive to run a
facility.
TAPE 93-58, SIDE B
Number 015
DIANE SCHENKER said the whole thrust of the department's current
population management plan to deal with the overcrowding is towards
the low-custody community bed. They believe those programs are
good, and it is the department's position that it is helpful to try
to reintegrate people gradually at the end of their sentence, but
it is not a solution to adding more people to the system. She said
if we can't afford the additional beds and staffing that's going to
be needed if these bills pass, then the only other solution is to,
as an entire system, agree upon some sort of cut in peoples'
sentences, which is not a popular alternative.
Number 060
SENATOR TAYLOR suggested that the department take a hard look at
long-term antibuse implants for repeat offenders within the
facilities who are alcohol abusers and are there because every time
they got drunk they either physically or sexually abused their
wife, children, etc. He said this has been tried in other states
and it has worked.
Number 085
REPRESENTATIVE MARTIN asked if the department is planning on
expanding the electronic monitoring pilot program. DEPUTY
COMMISSIONER MCKINSTRY answered that the department is looking at
it and considering expanding it to about 75 slots statewide. DIANE
SCHENKER said they have about a dozen people still in the program,
but to try to use the pilot program as a pretrial bed relief did
not succeed and the department is currently compiling a report on
the program.
Ms. Schenker and the Deputy Commissioner also spoke to concerns
with the early release of prisoners and the furlough program. The
department needs some statutory clarification on early release for
prisoners who have successfully done part of their furlough in a
half-way house, as well as clarification on prisoners getting
credit for time served when they are out just running around in the
community.
Number 150
SENATOR TAYLOR said told Deputy Commissioner McKinstry and Ms.
Schenker that any suggestions from the department that are creative
and may help in coming up with solutions would be appreciated.
Number 200
KEN BISHOFF, Director, Division of Administrative Services,
Department of Public Safety, informed the committee that the
Governor is reviewing legislation being proposed by the department
that would clean up their criminal history records law. He said
this is the area where they keep the fingerprints and criminal
history records, and if a DNA data base program is instituted, it
would be the logical place to put the computer aspect of this data.
Mr. Bishoff pointed out that the department also maintains links to
the FBI in other states and Canada, as well as having access to
state data bases and federal data bases in other parts of the
world. All of these data bases contain information that is
probably used at some point in virtually every criminal justice
decision.
Mr. Bishoff directed attention to a chart relating to proposed
criminal history record content. He said it would be a complete
record backed up by fingerprints, and the department's goal is to
get all of the information in one central on-line file so that all
criminal justice agencies can have access to it.
Number 300
KAREN JOHNSON and her daughter GINGER JOHNSON appeared before the he
committee in support of victims' rights.
Ginger Johnson said her fiancee, James Bradley Roberts, was
murdered for no apparent reason in October at the Northway shopping
mall in Anchorage by a 17-year-old girl with a nine millimeter
handgun. Ms. Johnson was an eyewitness to the shooting, but
because minors are involved, she has been unable to get any
information on the case.
Karen Johnson said they do know that the girl who committed the
crime is a member of a gang known as the Hamilton Tribe. She added
that the girl, who had no compunction about using the weapon, is
still in the same position she was in that night: she is still
free, she still has access to a weapon and has no compunction about
using it.
Number 470
RANDY SMITH said one thing that didn't come up during the meeting
was in reference to privatization of the state's jails and prisons.
He said he knows the Legislature has looked at the issue in the
past, and he suggested it be revisited to see if there are some
solutions to the high cost of incarcerating prisoners.
Number 500
SENATOR TAYLOR expressed his appreciation to all who had
participated in the anti-crime briefing, and adjourned the meeting
at approximately 6:00 p.m.
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