Initial Report and Recommendations - Alaska Department of Law

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Chapter I. Statement of NeedThe Alaska Rural Justice and Law Enforcement Commission was created byCongress to respond to a number of needs related to justice and law enforcement in ruralAlaska that are detailed in the congressional language (Public Law 108-199). Thischapter of the Commission’s Initial Report and Recommendations reviews currentconditions in rural Alaska, recounts the history of law enforcement in rural Alaska,recognizes some of the improvements in rural Alaska that have occurred in recent years,and presents excerpts of the testimony given to the Commission during the publichearings.A. Current Conditions1. Problems the Commission Has Been Asked to AddressLike other communities nationwide, residents of remote, rural Alaska grapplewith family violence, child abuse and neglect, and alcohol addiction. Unlike othercommunities, however, many remote rural residents in Alaska lack a law enforcementpresence in their communities and they face the highest alcohol abuse and familyviolence rates in the country. Congress asked the Commission to explore various optionsthat might address these issues, including creation of a unified law enforcement andjudicial system, cross deputization, and restorative justice methods to address familyviolence, child protection and alcohol consumption.Alcohol abuse presents profound challenges in rural Alaska; its effects areinsidious, affecting and influencing the health and welfare of all who live there. As theAlaska Natives Commission reported more than a decade ago:Facts do not lie: alcohol abuse among Alaska Natives equals tragedy forfamily and village. It is proven that alcohol abuse equals violence,imprisonment, and death. It is proven that alcohol abuse in the Native familyresults in frightened, psychologically disordered children. Alcohol abuseleaves FAS, FAE, and a myriad of other physical and psychologicalsymptoms in its destructive wake. 5Last year the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER), University ofAlaska Anchorage, in its The Status of Alaska Natives Report 2004, Volume I, stated,“Analysts say that the most difficult social problems in the Native community – fromhigh rates of suicide to domestic violence and child abuse – can be traced in large part toalcohol.” 6 The costs to Alaska are not only social. Financially, it is estimated thatalcohol abuse cost Alaska well over $525 million a year. 7567Alaska Natives Commission, Final Report, Volume II. Anchorage, AK: Alaska Natives Commission,1994, p. 70. Note: Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS), Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAE), and Alcohol RelatedBirth Defects (ARBD) are now combined into the Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD), which isthe term used in this report.The Status of Alaska Natives Report 2004, Volume I. Anchorage, AK: University of Alaska Anchorage,May 2004, p. 3-24.Economic Costs of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse in Alaska, 2005. McDowell Group, Inc., December2005, p. 1.Alaska Rural Justice and Law Enforcement Commission - Page 7
The Commission emphasizes that alcohol abuse and alcoholism in rural Alaskaare not Native problems, per se, but rather problems for Natives and non-Natives alike.But the Commission also acknowledges that over 66 percent of the population in ruralAlaska is Native 8 and that recommendations in this report that mention the importance ofculturally appropriate approaches predominantly focus on Alaska Natives. Many may beadopted for non-Natives living in rural Alaska as well.The consequences of substance abuse and the corresponding importance offinding effective means to prevent alcohol and other drugs from reaching rural Alaskacommunities that have, through local option laws, decided to ban, partially or wholly,alcohol 9 are important threads in the fabric of society in rural Alaska, as they have beenin the Commission’s work over the last 10 months. Numerous statistics point to thecontinuing – and in many cases growing – overrepresentation of Alaska Natives fromrural Alaska among children in need of aid, victims and perpetrators of domestic violenceand sexual assault, and other crimes. The percentage of Native children under the care ofthe Office of Children’s Services hovers close to 50 percent and the numbers of Nativeyouth and adults in Alaska’s juvenile justice and correctional systems are similarlydisproportionately large. The justice systems in rural Alaska struggle to find locally andculturally appropriate ways to manage offenders in a way that minimizes negativeimpacts to families and communities and strives to restore harmony quickly. There arefrequent “disconnects” between tribal and State court systems, and disputes overjurisdiction continue throughout rural Alaska. In the meantime, rural residents criticizethe inadequacies of current law enforcement and public safety in much of rural Alaska,but an affordable and acceptable resolution has yet to be found.Domestic violence, child abuse, child neglect, and sexual assault are majorproblems in rural Alaska. The following quote highlights the experiences of one Alaskanresearcher:In Alaska, we often see abusive partners who have relocated their familiesto remote communities to isolate them from the support of their friendsand family, and to more easily track and control their movements. Victimsmay be held hostage in their own homes with no winter clothing or meansof escaping their extreme isolation. Deprivation and isolation becomepowerful tools to control victims.One survivor, who shares her story to help others understand the dynamicsof abuse in rural communities, described how her husband stranded herand their new baby at a remote fish camp for several weeks withoutenough food, medications and other essentials. Eventually, she was able toescape her abusive marriage and became a domestic violence outreachworker to remote villages in the Arctic. Although she struggles withdebilitating, long-term health problems secondary to the abuse, shesurvived. Her former husband murdered his next wife.89See Section B.2 of this Chapter for the relevant population statistics.Alaska’s Local Option law has five categories: (1) Sale by community license only, (2) Sale by selectedlicenses only, (3) Ban sale, (4) Ban Sale and importation, and (5) Ban possession. For a detailed historyof alcohol control in Alaska see http://www.iser.uaa.alaska.edu/Publications/Alcohol_Arctic.pdfAlaska Rural Justice and Law Enforcement Commission - Page 8
Page 2 and 3: IntroductionFor years, Alaska Nativ
Page 4 and 5: In MemoriamEric D. JohnsonApril 27,
Page 6 and 7: continuous. Those who worked hardes
Page 8 and 9: Executive SummaryCreated by Congres
Page 10 and 11: 8. Increase Access to Judicial Serv
Page 14 and 15: When domestic violence services are
Page 16 and 17: With the advent of statehood in 195
Page 18 and 19: Village Council Presidents, Bristol
Page 20 and 21: “[M]any of the laws that we have
Page 22 and 23: “[W]e’re 10 times the national
Page 24 and 25: Great contrast exists today between
Page 26 and 27: The literature has often decried th
Page 28 and 29: Another resource on economic opport
Page 30 and 31: The continuing escalation of fuel c
Page 32 and 33: In 1999, in an effort to curb youth
Page 34 and 35: and follow-up contacts. Since it wa
Page 36 and 37: Chapter II. Charge to the Commissio
Page 38 and 39: ♦ Gail Schubert, Executive Vice P
Page 40 and 41: additional time to a person speakin
Page 42 and 43: . Exchange of Information. The memb
Page 44 and 45: sheets that had been prepared by th
Page 46 and 47: Chapter IIIResponse and Recommendat
Page 48 and 49: • Developing voluntary memoranda
Page 50 and 51: example, during a protracted negoti
Page 52 and 53: staffing in Alaska is a significant
Page 54 and 55: history of being in a community for
Page 56 and 57: “The State of Alaska is mandated
Page 58 and 59: “The AFN Sobriety program provide
Page 60 and 61: community enhances alienation and i
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oth the state and the federal gover
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enforcement programs. In this proce
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skills necessary to communicate wit
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and others in the tribal community
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A Comparison of Alaska and the Lowe
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Map Showing the Location of All Ala
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Appendix BBiographical Sketchesof C
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Revenue. Mayor Botelho became Deput
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His wide range of experience includ
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Alaska Rural Justice and Law Enforc
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Workgroup MembersWorkgroup 1: Law E
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Appendix EPhotograph of Commissione
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Appendix FCommission Recommendation
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) Power differential between govern
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9. Adequate legal infrastructure to
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___________________________________
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encouraged and permitted to partici
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___________________________________
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___________________________________
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Impact Statement:More culturally ap
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___________________________________
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Option(s):a) Incorporating attitude
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Current Status:Youth Opportunity Gr
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Ideal Status:a) Aftercare programs
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issues; and in the event this becom
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___________________________________
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Ideal Status:Mandatory training yea
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Current Status:In areas without an
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Rationale for Option:To reduce the
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All of the workgroups’ options ca
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• All available vehicles should b
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Appendix HAttachments for Recommend
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(2) materials and equipment used in
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under this section if the family me
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AS 04.11.140(g) package store licen
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Initial Report and Recommendations - Alaska Department of Law

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