03/02/2009 01:00 PM House JUDICIARY

HB 13 - PROPERTY CRIMES                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
1:11:55 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR RAMRAS announced that the  first order of business would be                                                               
HOUSE BILL NO. 13, "An Act relating to property crimes."                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR RAMRAS noted  that the committee has  received letters from                                                               
the Office  of Victims' Rights  (OVR), the Alaska  Peace Officers                                                               
Association (APOA), and the  Public Safety Employees Association,                                                               
Inc. (PSEA),  and all  were critical of  the concept  of [raising                                                               
the  threshold  amounts  for  felony  and  misdemeanor]  property                                                               
crimes.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  GRUENBERG  recalled  that local  law  enforcement                                                               
agencies  had opposed  past  iterations  of this  bill.   He  too                                                               
referenced the letter  by the OVR dated 2/27/09,  and offered his                                                               
understanding that  it is meant to  stand in place of  any spoken                                                               
testimony by the OVR.                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR  RAMRAS acknowledged  that  HB 13  raises some  interesting                                                               
policy questions,  and that  a felony  conviction can  change the                                                               
trajectory of a person's life.                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
1:18:23 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
GARDNER  COBB,   Captain,  Anchorage  Police   Department  (APD),                                                               
Municipality  of Anchorage  (MOA),  said that  the  APD does  not                                                               
support HB  13 on the grounds  that it won't serve  the community                                                               
well.  Regardless that the bill  is meant to adjust for inflation                                                               
and address the concern that  young people might be being treated                                                               
too harshly  by having  a felony conviction  on their  record, he                                                               
said his  30-some years' of law  enforcement experience indicates                                                               
that  prosecutors are  pretty reasonable  when considering  young                                                               
people  who  are first  time  offenders,  and take  into  account                                                               
several  factors such  as the  circumstances, the  nature of  the                                                               
crime,  and the  person's record,  and  this often  results in  a                                                               
consolidation  or   reduction  of  charges  or   in  a  suspended                                                               
imposition  of sentence  (SIS) or  in a  dismissal of  charges on                                                               
condition that restitution is paid.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
CAPTAIN COBB  said he  is more  concerned about  career criminals                                                               
continuing to  wreck havoc on  the community, and shared  his and                                                               
the APD's  opinion that there  is already  too much slack  in the                                                               
justice  system for  such  people,  and that  the  bill will  not                                                               
address that problem but in fact goes in the opposite direction.                                                                
                                                                                                                                
1:21:08 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
ROB COX,  President, Public  Safety Employee  Association (PSEA),                                                               
after relaying  that he  is in agreement  with Captain  Cobb, and                                                               
that  he made  similar points  in his  written testimony,  opined                                                               
that  HB  13 won't  do  anything  to  make law  enforcement  more                                                               
efficient or  provide better protection for  communities but will                                                               
instead just benefit  criminals.  Mr. Cox noted  that in addition                                                               
to  raising  the   threshold  amount  distinguishing  misdemeanor                                                               
property crimes  from felony property  crimes [threefold],  HB 13                                                               
also proposes to raise the  threshold amount distinguishing class                                                               
B misdemeanor  property crimes from class  A misdemeanor property                                                               
crimes fivefold.   He shared his fear that passage  of HB 13 will                                                               
transform petty  thefts and  shoplifting crimes  into financially                                                               
crippling losses for the victims, with little or no consequence.                                                                
                                                                                                                                
MR.  COX concurred  with the  comment that  there is  already too                                                               
much  leniency within  the system  as  is, and  pointed out  that                                                               
often class B  misdemeanors - the threshold of which  the bill is                                                               
proposing to  increase to $250  - aren't even  prosecuted, though                                                               
not because  the courts  or prosecutors  don't care,  but instead                                                               
because  of  their  overwhelming  caseload.    Furthermore,  plea                                                               
agreements occur  with regard  to felony-level  charges.   On the                                                               
issue of youthful  offenders, he asked the  committee to remember                                                               
that  felony   charges  don't  carry   a  label  -   only  felony                                                               
convictions  do   -  and   in  light   of  plea   agreements  and                                                               
[prosecutorial discretion],  he said  he thinks that  the concern                                                               
about  youthful  offenders being  labeled  as  felons is  greatly                                                               
reduced.   In conclusion, he  said the only other  rationale he's                                                               
heard for the bill is  to inflation-proof property crimes, adding                                                               
that  he  considers  that  to  be  bad  motivation  for  changing                                                               
statute.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MR. COX, in  response to a question, remarked that  $500 is still                                                               
a significant amount  of money, and that at  some point threshold                                                               
amounts distinguishing  different levels of  crime do need  to be                                                               
set,  and  opined that  with  today's  economy  - even  with  the                                                               
effects  of  inflation  -  the   current  threshold  amounts  are                                                               
justifiable.  In response to  comments and a question, he offered                                                               
his understanding  that Canada  has sentencing  laws specifically                                                               
pertaining to youthful offenders.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  HOLMES  said  AS  11.46.130  appears  to  already                                                               
address  repeat  offenders,  providing  that two  or  more  prior                                                               
property crime convictions  could result in a  felony charge even                                                               
if  the  original  convictions   were  for  misdemeanor  property                                                               
crimes.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
MR. COX  concurred.  In  response to  a question, he  offered his                                                               
understanding  that  although   job  applications  generally  ask                                                               
whether the applicant  has been convicted of a  felony, a minor's                                                               
felony conviction  "goes away"  and he/she  gets a  "fresh start"                                                               
when he/she turns 18.                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
1:28:14 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL  clarified that  it is  not his  intent to                                                               
inflation-proof  property   crimes;  rather  his  intent   is  to                                                               
differentiate  between  "real"  felons  and  misdemeanants.    He                                                               
questioned whether  the current  felony threshold amount  of $500                                                               
is simply  being used as  an additional tool to  initially obtain                                                               
custody  of  people,  and whether  misdemeanant  perpetrators  of                                                               
property crimes are  ever actually pursued.  He said  he would be                                                               
amenable, however, to having HB 13  held over in order to conduct                                                               
further  research.   The  policy  question  to be  addressed,  he                                                               
opined, shouldn't  be "How can  we bargain justice?"  but rather,                                                               
"What is real justice?"                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR  RAMRAS pointed  out that  homeowners  and business  owners                                                               
across  the   state  are  often  dissatisfied   with  how  little                                                               
attention  is  paid  by  law  enforcement  officers  to  property                                                               
crimes.  The current level of  response by law enforcement is not                                                               
adequate, he  surmised, and warrants  further consideration.   He                                                               
then relayed that HB 13 would be held over.