In Allison v. State,[1] the court of appeals held that the trial court committed prejudicial error in excluding evidence regarding the alleged victim’s potential Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) in defendant’s second-degree murder trial. Clayton Allison was charged with manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, and second-degree murder after his 15-month old daughter, J.A., suffered a fatal injury while Continue Reading »
In Alvarado v. State,[1] the court of appeals held that an erroneous instruction regarding a judicially noticed fact was not grounds for an automatic reversal of a conviction. Alvarado was charged with three criminal offenses for which age was a necessary element. At trial, the prosecutor requested the judge take judicial notice of Alvarado’s date Continue Reading »
In Alvarez-Perdomo v. State,[1] the supreme court held that a violation of the constitutional right against self-incrimination is structural error warranting automatic reversal. During his criminal trial, defendant Alvarez-Perdomo gave indirect, equivocal, and confused answers in response to the court’s repeated attempts to personally confirm that he intended to waive his right to testify. After Continue Reading »
In Clifton v. State,[1] the court of appeals held that probation conditions requiring medication, cooperation with guardianship, and compliance with warrantless searches were decided under and improper standard of review, insufficiently supported, and determined to far out from the release date. After being convicted of attempted murder and aggravated assault related to delusional incident, Clifton Continue Reading »
In Dere v. State,[1] the court of appeals held that it was not a violation of the double jeopardy clause to be retried on a greater charge, even if already found guilty of a lesser included charge. Dere was charged with robbery, assault, and theft. During deliberations, the foreman indicated the jury was deadlocked as Continue Reading »
In Doe v. State, Department of Public Safety,[1] the supreme court held that part of Alaska’s sex offender registration law unconstitutionally violated an offender’s due process right to privacy by not providing the offender the opportunity to prove that they are not likely to re-offend and should no longer be required to register. Doe moved Continue Reading »
In Dulier v. State,[1] the court of appeals held that there was sufficient evidence for a jury to find that a flare gun fired at the victim by the defendant was a dangerous instrument capable of causing death or serious physical injury. After an altercation, defendant Dulier pressed a flare gun into the victim’s neck Continue Reading »
In Fedolfi v. State,[1] the supreme court ruled a police officer’s convictions for attempted third-degree sexual assault and official misconduct were the same offense for double jeopardy purposes. The police officer offered to drive a drunk woman home, but instead he drove her to another location, exposed himself to her, and tried to sexually assault Continue Reading »
In Fox v. State,[1] the court of appeals held that a criminal defendant is not entitled to credit against his sentence for voluntary placement at a community residential center. Fox appealed from a superior court decision upholding the Alaska Parole Board’s decision to deny credit against his sentence for time spent in a community residential Continue Reading »
In Graham v. State,[1] the court of appeals held that a drunk driver’s sentence may have been driven by principles of retribution and that the trial court had erred in its determination of the proper sentencing benchmark, its conclusion on aggravating factors, and its interpretation of the proper basis of the community condemnation standard. The Continue Reading »
