CRIMINAL LAW Megan Mason Dister In Stacy v. State, 500 P.3d 1023 (Alaska 2021), the supreme court held that under Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963) and Alaska law, prosecutors have a duty to take steps to learn about favorable material possessed by the prosecution and in personnel files. (Stacy, 500 P.3d at 1026-27). Continue Reading »
CRIMINAL LAW Margot Graham In Simpson v. State, 489 P.3d 1181 (Alaska Ct. App. 2021), the court of appeals held that the investigatory stop and breath test of the defendant were warranted and that the defendant’s convictions should not be merged (Id. at 1186, 1188.). Responding to a call from Simpson’s girlfriend, officers found Simpson Continue Reading »
CRIMINAL LAW Maddie Ayer In Sherwood v. State, 493 P.3d 230 (Alaska Ct. App. 2021), the court of appeals held that the lower court erred in dismissing the defendant’s application for post-conviction relief, because it was plain error for the court to accept the defendant’s attorney’s certificate of no arguable merit when the attorney had Continue Reading »
CRIMINAL LAW Adam Beyer In Seaman v. State, 499 P.3d 1028 (Alaska Ct. App. 2021), the court of appeals held that the eligibility date for discretionary parole is not determined by deducting good time credit from the active term of imprisonment. (Id. at 1030). The case arose after an inmate serving seventy-year sentence challenged the Continue Reading »
NATIVE LAW Emma Giusto In Scudero v. State, 496 P.3d 381 (Alaska 2021), the supreme court held that an Alaska Native’s fishing rights did not exempt him from the State’s fishing regulations. (Id. at 383). Scudero, a member of the Metlakatla Indian Community, was charged with not having a fishing permit, fishing in closed waters, Continue Reading »
FAMILY LAW Maddie Ayer In Ronald H. v. Department of Health & Social Services, Office of Children’s Services, 490 P.3d 357 (Alaska 2021), the supreme court affirmed the lower court’s order to terminate a father’s parental rights, holding that the lower court did not err in finding that the Office of Children’s Services (OCS) had Continue Reading »
ELECTION LAW Margot Graham In Resource Development Council for Alaska, Inc. v. Vote Yes for Alaska’s Fair Share, 494 P.3d 541 (Alaska 2021), the supreme court held that the statute setting the petition circulator compensation at $1 per signature was unconstitutional and, thus, the lieutenant governor properly certified the petitions collected by Vote Yes for Continue Reading »
ELECTION LAW Margot Graham In Pruitt v. Office of Lieutenant Governor, 498 P.3d 591 (Alaska 2021), the supreme court held the losing House candidate failed to meet his burden to sustain an election contest claim (Id. at 608). Pruitt, a losing House candidate, sued the Division of Elections, claiming that it committed malconduct that influenced Continue Reading »
CRIMINAL LAW Hannah Rogers In Peterson v. Municipality of Anchorage, 500 P.3d 314 (Alaska Ct. App. 2021), the court of appeals held that a court cannot rely on uncharged conduct as the basis for a restitution order but can rely on that same conduct in crafting a term of imprisonment. (Id. at 325). Peterson, driving Continue Reading »
CONSTITUTIONAL LAW & CRIMINAL PROCEDURE Sasha Kahn In Perozzo v. State, 493 P.3d 233 (Alaska Ct. App. 2021), the court of appeals held that a police officer’s request for a vehicle passenger’s identification before subsequently conducting a warrants check is not part of a “routine” traffic stop, meaning it cannot be done “without a reasonable Continue Reading »
