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JPD arrests
three on robbery and assault charges
Three people were placed under arrest early this morning in
connection with an alleged assault of a man the night before.
Police received a call at about 10 Monday night reporting a man had
been attacked in the 8200 block of Glacier Highway.
When officers arrived, they found a 40 year old Juneau man
suffering with what were described as mild abrasions and
lacerations.
The man was taken to the hospital by Capital City Fire Rescue
where he was treated and released.
Investigation revealed that the victim was driving in a car with a
friend when some people they knew passed them in another car.
Police say both cars drove to where Glacier Highway ends at the 8200 block.
Three people got out of the lead car and approached the victim's
vehicle. After the victim got out of his car, the three people
allegedly began beating and kicking him.
Police report one of the attackers used a stun gun on him and
another held a knife to his face while threatening him.
After the attack, police say they got into their car and drove
away. The driver of the victim's car also drove away leaving the
man behind. He went to a nearby building and called for help.
Search warrants served in the 8900 block of Mendenhall Loop Road
at about 6:30 this morning led to the arrests.
Jailed at the Lemon Creek Correctional Center were 40 year old
Joseph Cropley, 45 year old Tillie Santos, and 34 year old Rafael
Lopez.
All are facing robbery and assault charges.
Police determined that they were acquaintances of the victim.
Aurora out of
service until Friday
The state ferry Aurora has been temporarily sidelined due to
mechanical problems.
Roger Wetherell, with state Department of Transportation and
Public Facilities, says the Aurora is currently in Whittier after
experiencing a premature failure of a hydraulic lifter in one of
the ship's service generators.
That failure created cam shaft damage to the generator, and that
requires a new cam shaft and lifters to be installed.
Wetherell says parts are on the way and the Aurora is expected to
resume service this Friday.
A fortunate turn of events was helpful to the Marine Highway and
it's passengers.
The state ferry Tustumena was already in Whittier and that worked
to the advantage of the Marine Highway.
Wetherell says they were able to reroute passengers onto the
Tustumena, which is making stops in Valdez and Cordova before
returning to Kodiak.
Assembly suspends
layoffs until budget alternatives are examined
The Assembly has, at least temporarily, halted the pending layoffs
of City and Borough of Juneau workers.
At Monday's Finance Committee meeting, the Assembly
directed CBJ Manager Rod Swope to defer layoffs until the panel
can consider other budget areas that might be cut.
Deputy Mayor Randy Wanamaker says the Finance Committee was
scheduled to take up the issue in early February.
However, he says, the Assembly has requested that the date be
moved up.
Finance Committee chair David Stone will work with staff to
determine if that is possible.
City Manager Rod Swope had proposed that the Marine Engineers
Beneficial Association defer a three percent raise effective
January 1 of this year for one year.
The membership of CBJ's largest collective bargaining unit
rejected the proposal.
Swope told us in a previous interview that if the union did not
accept the proposal, as many as 10 workers would be laid off.
CBJ is working to bridge a projected $8 Million budget gap.
Assembly and
School Board hold joint meeting
The Assembly was provided an overview of the school district's
curriculum and operations at last night's (Monday) joint meeting
of its Finance Committee and the School Board.
Board President Mark Choate and Superintendent Glenn Gelbrich
described the new initiatives being taken to revise the district's
budget process.
The school board has endeavored to make the budget process more
transparent and has authorized a budget committee made up of
public and board members to provide oversight.
The board also reported on the district's mandatory drug testing
program
As of last week, no student athletes have tested positive for
banned substances.
The board briefed the committee on improvements to the Native
graduation rate and raising the entire community's educational
standards.
Deputy Mayor Randy Wanamaker says, basically, the Assembly
expressed satisfaction to the school board that they are working
on these types of issues and that they have solid plans in place
to address them.
Two cost
estimates in for proposed state office building in Juneau,
....one surpasses funding figure in pending bill
Juneau Valley Representative Cathy Munoz plans to move promptly
this legislative session to get her bill authorizing construction
of a new state office building dislodged from the Senate Finance
Committee and on to the Senate floor.
The measure calling for construction of the building on the former
Subport lot owned by the Alaska Mental Health Land Trust got stuck
in Senate Finance last session.
She's requested a committee hearing and expects to have that
hearing within the next couple of weeks, but says they need to
resolve one matter first.
Munoz says the trust has hired two different engineering firms to
come up with estimates.
One came under the amount of funding addressed in the legislation,
while the other one is higher.
The legislation authorizes $45 Million.
Half of the funding, $22.5 Million are trust funds, while the
other half would be raised through state bonding.
House Bill 161 was ultimately approved unanimously by the House
last session before it was sent to the Senate.
1st
legislative day underway
The Alaska State House of Representatives convened at 1 p.m. today
thus starting the second session of the 26th Alaska State
Legislature.
The State Senate
convened about a half hour later.
Governor Parnell is
scheduled to deliver his first State of the State Address at 7
p.m. Wednesday evening.
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The next 90 days
gives lawmakers time to catch up on bills left over from last
year.
Nineteen bills that passed the House are awaiting action in the
Senate, while 8 bills are moving the other way.
They deal with topics ranging from the tinting of vehicle windows,
defining bestiality as cruelty to animals, and designating the
Malamute as the state dog breed.
The Legislature convenes with a few new members. Neal Foster of
Nome was appointed to replace his late father, Representative
Richard Foster.
Tammie Wilson of North Pole was appointed to the House to replace
John Coghill who moved to the Senate. He replaces
Gene Therriault, who joined Governor Parnell's staff as an energy
advisor.
Senate Bipartisan
Majority Caucus lists priorities
Members of the Senate Bipartisan Majority Caucus outlined it's
goals on the first day of the legislative session.
(Tuesday)
Meeting with reporters, Senate President Gary Stevens said the
goals include a comprehensive energy package,
repaying $400 million dollars to the Constitutional Budget
Reserve, funding municipal revenue sharing, forward funding
education, a comprehensive crime package and investing in the
state's infrastructure.
Stevens told reporters that he does not see that there will be
time time to revisit oil and gas taxes due to all the other work
facing the legislature.
Stevens says, it seems to him, that oil and gas tax legislation is
"a step too far for this 90 day session."
House
majority leaders identify top issues
Members of the House Majority Caucus met with reporters this
morning prior to convening their floor session for the Second
Session of the 26th Alaska Legislature.
Speaker Mike Chenault sees the operating and capital budgets as
the key issues facing this session..
He says addressing energy costs is another big issue.
And the Speaker thinks oil and gas taxation will be highlighted.
Alaska Republican
renewing call for more lawmakers
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — An Alaska Republican is renewing a push to
increase the number of state lawmakers.
The proposed constitutional amendment, introduced by Rep. Peggy
Wilson of Wrangell, would increase the number of House members
from 40 to 48 and those in the Senate from 20 to 24.
It is similar to a proposal previously raised on the Senate side.
Concerns have been raised about population losses in rural Alaska
and what that will mean for representation of those areas as
legislative district lines are redrawn following the census.
Senate President Gary Stevens acknowledged the concerns but said
he didn't see the idea gaining traction at this point.
Egan looking
forward to first full legislative session
Juneau Senator Dennis Egan is beginning his first full legislative
session after being sworn in on the evening of the last day of last
year's session.
When asked what advice his father, former Governor Bill Egan,
would give him, Egan said, "Be kind. Have a sense of humor
and listen to the people."
Egan spent 15 minutes on the floor before the last regular session
adjourned.
He was also part of the special session this summer that lasted
about an hour.
Annual
Legislative reception set
The 25th annual welcome reception for the Legislature is Wednesday
evening at Centennial Hall.
It's scheduled from 5 to 6:30 Wednesday evening.
Parnell
unveils crime proposals
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A bill proposed by Gov. Sean Parnell
would prohibit suspended sentences for Alaskans convicted of human
trafficking, possession of child pornography or distribution of
indecent materials to minors.
The measure is one of four Parnell says he will introduce to
address domestic and sexual assault.
A second bill proposes bail law revisions, making it harder for
felony sexual assault suspects to be released.
A third bill proposes procedures for post-conviction DNA testing,
requiring police departments, courts and state agencies to retain
DNA evidence for post-conviction testing and cold case
prosecution.
Parnell also proposes $75 million in funding for a new Anchorage
crime lab.
Governor's
scholarship bill before Legislature
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Lawmakers will decide this session whether
to support Gov. Parnell's ambitious new scholarship program.
Parnell proposes that the state give scholarships equal to at
least half the University of Alaska tuition for high school
students who have a "C-plus" average or better and take
four years of math, science and language arts.
Students with an "A'' average could get their entire tuition
paid for.
Murkowski calls
for new oil tanker law after Exxon tanker loses power
Alaska U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski says the incident involving the
loss of power aboard an oil tanker Sunday morning highlights the
need for Congress to pass an update of the federal law on tanker
safety.
The 1990 Oil Pollution Act requires two escorts for single-hulled
tankers, but not for double hulls, like Exxon Kodiak.
Shippers have been voluntarily using escorts for double-hulled
tankers.
Murkowski said Monday that the bill she and Senator Mark Begich
introduced last May to require dual escorts for double-hulled
tankers would improve safety.
The House passed a version of the escort measure, but the Senate
has not.
The Kodiak was able to get underway again Monday morning and will
go to Seattle for permanent repairs after dropping off its load,
over 613,000 barrels of oil, in San Francisco.
2009
weather stats for Juneau released by Juneau Forecast Office
The National Weather Service reports that 2009 in Juneau was a
year that produced near normal conditions.
Meteorologist Rick Fritsch prepared the report.
He says the average maximum temperature for 2009 was 47.9 degrees,
only point three degrees above normal.
The average minimum was 34.7 while the norm is 35.4.
The first week of the year started out cold and produced the
coldest day of the year on January 7th went it reached 9 below
zero.
July was third warmest July on record with the highest temperature
of the year coming on the 6th when it reached 85 at the airport.
The forecaster says there were several unofficial sites that
reported it hit 90 degrees. The highest official temperature ever
in Juneau was 90 at the airport on July 7 of 1975.
Precipitation amounted to 59.43 inches, just 1.2 inches above
normal, but snowfall was another matter. The year produced 168.5
inches while the norm is 93.2 inches.
Fritsch says November was quite a month when the town was hit very
hard by numerous strong storms, with one very noteworthy.
That day, Saturday, November 14th, saw the mudslides on Gastineau
Avenue which forced an evacuation of the area.
The highest wind of the year was also recorded at the airport that
day when it hit 62 miles per hour.
Fire
reported at Era Aviation building in Aniak
Fire caused heavy damage Monday to the Era Aviation building in
the western Alaska village of Aniak.
An Alaska State Trooper dispatch says damage to the building and
contents is estimated at between $300,000 and $400,000.
No injuries were reported.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Man killed
when struck by pickup in Nulato
FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) — Investigators say a 58-year-old man was
sitting in the middle of a road when he was struck and killed by a
pickup truck in Nulato, about 300 miles west of Fairbanks.
The body of Ralph Semaken was discovered Sunday.
The driver had left the scene but was later identified and
questioned by the Alaska Bureau of Investigation.
The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports investigators are awaiting
alcohol and drug test results from both men.
(Fairbanks News-Miner)
Two Wasilla
residents charged in robbery of elderly man
WASILLA, Alaska (AP) — Alaska State Troopers arrested two people
accused of robbing a 74-year-old man at a home north of Wasilla.
Troopers say the suspects taped the victim's hands and stole
money.
The man, however, was able to describe the getaway vehicle and
Troopers stopped it.
Charged with robbery and burglary are Trena Carney and Rogers
Brown.
Both are 47-year-old Wasilla residents.
Kenai
police use shoe clue to make arrest
KENAI, Alaska (AP) — An unusual footprint helped Kenai police
solve a series of burglaries and attempted burglaries.
Sgt. Scott McBride says investigators looking into Friday's
break-in at the Salvation Army thrift store in Kenai noticed an
odd footprint — a distinct, circular tread pattern.
Later that day and the following night, police spotted the same
footprint when investigating break-ins at an eatery, a bingo hall
and, finally, unlocked cars near a theater.
Police followed the footprints to the backdoor of the Merit Inn.
When Wayman E. Bright stepped outside, his shoes left the same
imprint as the tracks police had been following.
The 20-year-old Kasilof resident is charged with burglary, theft,
criminal mischief, criminal trespass and minor consuming alcohol.
(Peninsula Clarion)
Fish and Wildlife
plane crash in Oregon kills 2
CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP) — A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employee
and a contractor were killed when their small plane crashed in an
Oregon forest.
Authorities identified the pilot as 52-year-old Vernon Ray
Bentley, a Fish and Wildlife Service employee from Blodgett. His
passenger was 59-year-old David Sherwood Pitkin of Bandon, a
former employee who was working as a contractor for the agency.
Benton County sheriff's deputies say they found the wreckage of
the Cessna on Monday morning after it failed to arrive in
Corvallis as scheduled on Sunday afternoon.
A radio signal from the plane's locator beacon allowed searchers
to narrow the crash site to an area near Philomath.
The federal agency says the two men were involved in the annual
midwinter count of migratory birds.
Open house
planned at JPD
There will be an open house at the Juneau Police Department
Monday, January 25th.
It's scheduled from 5 to 7 p.m.
Department staff will be offering tours of the building,
specialized equipment will be on display and officers will provide
demonstrations.
The open house is to celebrate the fact that the department
recently achieved accreditation, making Juneau Police the only
department in the state that is accredited.
A department release says some refreshments will be provided.
The police department is located at 6255 Alaway Avenue off of
Glacier Highway in the Lemon Creek area.
Food store
for Muslims opens in Alaska's largest city
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska now has its first store offering
food prepared under Islamic dietary law.
The Alaska Halal Grocery opened last month near the Anchorage
airport.
Anchorage is home to nearly 4,000 Muslims.
The community has purchased land in south Anchorage and plans to
build the state's first mosque.
Store owner Lamin Jobarteh says Muslims have largely been welcomed
in Alaska.
At least
600,000 cribs recalled after child death
NATASHA T. METZLER - Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — The death of a six-month old child has
prompted the recall of about 635,000 cribs sold by Kmart, Sears,
Wal-Mart and other stores.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission announced the recall
Tuesday of 20 models of Dorel Asia cribs with both drop-sides and
fixed front rails.
The cribs are being recalled because the drop side can detach from
the crib, creating a space where a child can be trapped and
suffocate or strangle, and because a child can be trapped if one
of the slats is broken or damaged.
A 6-month-old child from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, strangled after
getting trapped in the crib when the drop-side hardware broke.
CPSC and Barbados-based Dorel Asia SRL have received 31 reports of
incidents involving drop-side cribs and 36 reports of broken
slats.
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