Courts

Ketchikan Indian Community asks judge to halt Shelter Cove timber sale before contract award

Ketchikan Indian Community and two conservation groups asked a judge to halt the Shelter Cove timber sale before the Forest Service awards a logging contract.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readFrom Sep 30

Alaska Court of Appeals rules 2013 sex-offense sentencing law can't be applied to earlier crimes

Alaska's Court of Appeals says a 2013 law limiting lower sentences for sex offenders can't be applied to crimes committed before it took effect.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Conservation groups appeal state's Ambler road easement in Anchorage Superior Court

Seven conservation groups asked a judge to overturn DNR's easement for the Ambler road. Both sides cite the state Supreme Court's Donlin ruling.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago5 min read

Judicial Council seeks dismissal of DC group's suit over scoring records

The Alaska Judicial Council asked a court to dismiss a lawsuit demanding six years of judicial applicant scoring records, arguing the 10-day public records deadline does not apply to it.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readFrom Sep 2

Follows: Suit seeks Alaska Judicial Council records on judge screening

Alaska courts now send free text reminders before hearings to anyone with a case number

Forgetting court just got harder. Text a case number to the Alaska Court System and it'll remind you at 4 pm the day before your hearing, for free.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readFrom Sep 15

Alaska Supreme Court: spouse's word alone cannot shield inheritance in divorce

Put an inheritance into the family home? In an Alaska divorce, your word alone won't get it back out, the Supreme Court says. Paperwork, it turns out, matters.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read

Alaska must appoint lawyers for people jailed on other states' warrants, appeals court rules

People jailed in Alaska on another state's warrant have a right to a free lawyer, an appeals court ruled. The case began with requests filed on the wrong form.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min readFrom Sep 22

Judicial Council tries again to fill Kotzebue and Nome superior court seats

Kotzebue and Nome are each without their only superior court judge. The Judicial Council is trying again to fill both, Kotzebue's for the third time.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Alaska asks court to approve its share of $2.3 million Labcorp data breach settlement

Labcorp will pay 44 attorneys general $2.3 million over its debt collector's 2019 data breach. Alaska's lawyers asked a judge to sign off on the state's cut.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

A medical board appeal stalls over a $750 bond

Someone is appealing an Alaska medical board decision without a lawyer, the first such appeal since 2023. It stalls until a $750 bond is paid.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

A federal grant funds Tlingit & Haida's plan to hear child protection cases

The Tlingit & Haida Tribal Court is preparing to open its own child protection cases, using authority Alaska courts recognized more than a decade ago.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read

Spann sues state, governor and PFD director in Anchorage court

The creator of a 37,858-signature PFD petition has sued the state, representing himself. What the lawsuit is actually about is not yet known.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Fairbanks judge sentences Julian Miranda to 30 years in 2012 sexual assaults

A Fairbanks man got 30 years for two 2012 sexual assaults. The DNA kits that linked him to both women sat untested for years before they were run.

by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readFrom Sep 17

Anchorage judge sentences Adam Pringle to 55 years for 2022 killing of Keenan Wegener

The second man convicted in the 2022 killing of Keenan Wegener got 55 years, a few more than his co-defendant. It took four years to reach sentencing.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Alaska's new judicial ethics code changes reporting of incapacity and misconduct

Alaska's revised judicial ethics code takes effect Oct. 15 and clarifies when assistance-program confidentiality yields to reporting duties.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readFrom Jun 4

An appeals court reopens a McLaughlin Youth Center abuse conviction

An appeals court withdrew its decision upholding a former McLaughlin Youth Center officer's abuse conviction, sending it back over withheld records.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Alaskans with Credit Acceptance car loans may get debt cancelled under a $709.5 million settlement

Some Alaskans with subprime car loans are about to have the balance erased. The state cannot say how many, because other states run the payout.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

A jury convicted a former employee in a Trapper Creek killing

A Palmer jury convicted a former restaurant employee of first-degree murder in the 2023 killing of a 21-year-old server at a Trapper Creek lodge.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read

Appeals court orders dismissal of family's suit over Anchorage police shooting of Kristopher Handy

A federal appeals court ordered dismissal of the Handy family's lawsuit, ruling the four Anchorage police officers who killed Kristopher Handy in May 2024 are protected by qualified immunity.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read

The court found an obvious error in his commitment and upheld it anyway

Alaska's Supreme Court found an obvious error in a homeless man's commitment and upheld it anyway. The ruling came two and a half years after he was released.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read

State to drop Whittier voter misconduct cases after appeals ruling

The form had no box for what Tupe Smith is. Whittier officials told her to check citizen. The state charged her with felonies and is now dropping them.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read

Bethel judge sentences Wassillie Brink to 30 years in Kasigluk assault

A man with a prior conviction for sexual abuse of a minor got 22 years to serve for a 2022 assault in Kasigluk. Western Alaska's rate is double the state's.

by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read

Alaska has reviewed 22 police shootings since 2024 and charged no one

Alaska prosecutors have reviewed at least 22 police shootings since 2024 and charged no officer. The record clears the officer every time.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago3 min readFrom Sep 8

Ninth Circuit says tribal law cannot shield employees from federal civil rights suits

A federal appeals court ruled tribal governments cannot shield their own employees from civil rights lawsuits by writing immunity into tribal code.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago3 min read

Alaska justices affirm commitment despite skipped consent inquiry

Alaska Supreme Court upheld forced commitment and medication for an Anchorage man despite the lower court skipping a required check for voluntary treatment.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

Alaska Supreme Court hears appeal over Kotzebue officer's immunity in 2022 shooting

Supreme Court heards Kotzebue case

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

The Legislature will spend $50,000 defending the seizure of a pilot's plane

A six-pack of Budweiser cost an Alaska bush pilot his $95,000 plane. The Legislature has now voted $50,000 to defend that at the Supreme Court.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

A parent does not lose custody by placing a disabled child in a facility, Alaska court rules

Alaska Supreme Court ruled a parent cannot escape child support by placing a disabled adult child in assisted care if the parent maintains a custodial role, affirming $640 monthly support in the case.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

Alaska Supreme Court says a sleep clinic performs services in the field of health and owes the tax

Alaska Supreme Court ruled Alaska Sleep Clinic cannot claim the state's small business tax exemption because health services are excluded from it, regardless of company size.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

Alaska Supreme Court says a judge may remove a plaintiff from his own trial, after warnings

Alaska's Supreme Court ruled for the first time that a judge can remove a disruptive party from a civil trial, even the one who filed the suit.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

State clears three Anchorage officers in the fatal shooting of Emil McCord

State prosecutors cleared three Anchorage officers of criminal liability in the fatal shooting of Emil McCord, 112 days after it happened.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

A conservative group sues Alaska's judicial council for diversity records

A national conservative group founded by Stephen Miller is suing the Alaska Judicial Council for records on how it weighs diversity in picking judges.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min readFrom Sep 2

Alaska Supreme Court rules: Officers Must Stop at Unclear Lawyer Requests

Alaska Supreme Court ruled police must stop questioning suspects who make unclear lawyer requests, even after Miranda waivers, reversing a Kodiak murder conviction.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago4 min readFrom Aug 7

Alaska Supreme Court bars Nome from taxing hospital staff housing

The Alaska Supreme Court says Nome cannot tax the building where its hospital houses doctors and nurses, a ruling that reaches every borough in the state.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago4 min readFrom Aug 7

Alaska prosecutors must prove a voter knew a registration form was false

Alaska's appeals court held that a first-degree voter-misconduct charge based on a false oath requires proof the voter understood the act was wrong.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

Suit seeks Alaska Judicial Council records on judge screening

A conservative legal group sued the Alaska Judicial Council for the scoring sheets it has used to rank judicial candidates since 2020.

by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2mo ago3 min read

Fourteen states weighed in on whether an Alaskan belonged on Alaska's ballot

Fourteen states, the Alaska GOP and a national election law group filed briefs against a Petersburg man's candidacy. Two Alaskans filed for him, on their own.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read

An Anchorage man will serve 20 years for abusing a 4-year-old relative

Judge Peterson sentenced Jose Dominguez Ballesteros to 20 years in prison Monday for sexually abusing a family member starting at age 4, with lifetime sex offender registration required.

by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read

Tom Begich withdraws his campaign and endorses Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins

Tom announced he's withdrawing from the race for Governor and endorses JKT.

by Cale Green2mo ago3 min read

Alaska Supreme Court upholds rule requiring rent on expired oil leases during appeals

The Alaska Supreme Court upheld a rule requiring oil companies to keep paying rent on expired leases while appealing, ending five North Slope leases.

by Alaska News2mo ago2 min read