CRIMINAL LAW Peter Graham In Linden v. Municipality of Anchorage, 501 P.3d 238 (Alaska Ct. App. 2021), the Court of Appeals held that the crimes of assault and of family violence do not constitute the same offense for purposes of double jeopardy when a single act produces two crimes suffered by separate victims. (Id. at Continue Reading »
CRIMINAL PROCEDURE Emma Giusto In Lee v. State, 503 P.3d 811 (Alaska Ct. App. 2021), the court of appeals held that neither an Alaska statute requiring the conservation of biological material in homicide and sexual assault cases for later DNA testing nor due process are violated when non-DNA biological evidence is destroyed, but that the Continue Reading »
PROPERTY LAW Peter Graham In Jigliotti Family Trust v. Bloom, 497 P.3d 472 (Alaska 2021), the Supreme Court held that parties to a quiet title action are entitled to a final judgment quieting title separate from a trial court’s findings and conclusions. (Id. at 474). The Jigliotti Family Trust purchased property from an owner that Continue Reading »
FAMILY LAW Megan Mason Dister In In re Baron W., 498 P.3d 1045 (Alaska 2021), the supreme court held that the removal of a guardian is not a termination of parental rights nor a foster care placement under the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), 21 U.S.C. §1912, and the standard used for removal of guardians Continue Reading »
PROPERTY LAW Hannah Rogers In Happy Farmer v. Alaska State Fair, 497 P.3d 568 (Alaska 2021), the supreme court held that a vendor’s entry into agreement with a fair organizer for use of a merchandise booth inside a fairground building did not create a constructive bailment or a bailment implied by fact that would impose Continue Reading »
CRIMINAL LAW Melissa Gustafson In Geisinger v. State, 498 P.3d 92 (Alaska Ct. App. 2021), the court of appeals held that the defendant was not entitled to post-conviction relief for convictions and sentencing related to manslaughter, first-degree assault, driving under the influence, leaving the scene of an injury accident, and second-degree forgery. (Id. at 95–96). Continue Reading »
CRIMINAL LAW Sloane Bessey In Galindo v. State, 481 P.3d 686 (Alaska Ct. App. 2021), the court held that Special Conditions of Probation need to be supported by the record and if there are less restrictive alternatives those should be considered by the trial court. (Id. at 690–94). Galindo was convicted of first-degree sexual assault Continue Reading »
ENVIRONMENTAL LAW Megan Mason Dister In French v. Alaska Oil & Gas Conservation Commission, 498 P.3d 1026 (Alaska 2021), the supreme court held that the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (AOGCC) has jurisdiction over determining if a gas leak is waste and the AOGCC’s hearings must be supported by substantial evidence. (Id. at 1028). Continue Reading »
CONSTITUTIONAL LAW Emma Giusto In Dunleavy v. Alaska Legislative Council, 498 P.3d 608 (Alaska 2021), the supreme court held that Alaska Statute § 39.05.080(3) and House Bill 309, both of which provided that legislative inaction on the Governor’s appointments was akin to a rejection, were unconstitutional. (Id. at 612–13). In 2020, Governor Dunleavy provided over Continue Reading »
ETHICS Sasha Kahn In Disciplinary Matter Involving Chaobal, 498 P.3d 617 (Alaska 2021), the supreme court held that a thirty-month suspension, with two years and one day to be served, is an appropriate sanction for an attorney’s misconduct when the attorney in separate cases has knowingly failed to follow nine different state ethics rules. (Id. Continue Reading »
