Brandeis article discusses recent changes to federal marijuana policy

Prof. Jason Brandeis

Professor Jason Brandeis' latest article about marijuana law was published in the January-March 2018 edition of The Alaska Bar Rag, the Alaska Bar Association's quarterly journal. The article, "Marijuana legalization: Can you bank on it?", on p. 10-11, discusses recent changes to the federal policy on marijuana legalization and how those changes may impact marijuana businesses and government regulators in the State of Alaska.

Prof. Brandeis teaches courses on the American legal system, constitutional law, and civil liberties, and is a frequent speaker on constitutional law and other legal topics.  Prof. Brandeis also maintains a private law practice through which he advises clients on marijuana law and policy questions.  He has also provided legal services to the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol in Alaska.

Society of Law & Justice event with APD panel Thursday

Have questions about police procedures? Bring them to a panel discussion with members of the Anchorage Police Department on Thursday, March 29 at 7 p.m. The Society of Law & Justice is sponsoring the Policing Procedures Panel in SSB 118. The event is free and open to the public. If you'd like to know more, contact szsheppard@alaska.edu.

Payne authors workload-based staffing model for AST B Detachment

The UAA Justice Center produced a workload-based staffing model for police patrol in the Alaska State Troopers B Detachment, studying a period for 2009–2015. Alaska State Troopers provide service in unincorporated areas of the state. B Detachment’s service area is a large part of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough and portions of the Valdez-Cordova Census Area along the Richardson Highway,an area of about 20,000 square miles containing 2,250 miles of roadways. According to the study, Troopers in B Detachment are chronically over-utilized, which causes operational problems. The Department of Public Safety released a press release providing additional details from the study as well as a link to the study and infographic based on the study.

Reference

Alaska State Troopers B Detachment Patrol Staffing Study and Description of Dispatched Police Incidents (revised ed.)  by Troy C. Payne. Report prepared for the Alaska Department of Public Safety. Anchorage, AK: Justice Center, University of Alaska Anchorage, 22 Feb 2018.

Media coverage

"Mat-Su Troopers Face Staffing Crisis Amid Calls for Help"  by Chris Klint.  KTVA CBS 11 News, 24 Mar 2018.

"Palmer Police Expansion Would Be Costly, as Valley Grapples with Crime" by Casey Grove.  Alaska Public Media, 29 Mar 2018.

"Understaffed, over Utilized: UAA Study Shows Troopers Are Stretched Too Thin in the Valley" by Tim Rockey.  Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, 4 Apr 2018.

Alaska Victimization Survey results show that 45% of adult women in the Aleutian/Pribilof Island Region have experienced intimate partner violence or sexual violence or both

The results of the 2014-2015 Alaska Victimization Survey for the Aleutian/Pribilof Island region were released on March 13, 2018, to the Unalaska City Council. The troubling numbers show that:

• 45% of adult women in the Aleutian/Pribilof Island region have experienced intimate partner violence, sexual violence or both, in their lifetime;
• More than two out of every five adult women in the Aleutian/Pribilof Island region have experienced intimate partner violence in their lifetime; and
• One in four women in the Aleutian/Pribilof Island region have experienced sexual violence in their lifetime.

Due to the survey’s limitations, estimates may be conservative.

The survey was designed to measure the lifetime exposure to sexual violence and intimate partner violence. It was conducted from April to June 2014 and from May to August 2015 through a contract with the Council on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (CDVSA). Respondents were randomly selected by phone (using both land lines and cell phones).

Details of the survey are available at the Alaska Victimization Survey website.

• Summary document
• PowerPoint presentation

More Information

For more background on this project, visit http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/justice/avs/
For more information about CDVSA, visit http://www.dps.state.ak.us/CDVSA/

Unalaskans Against Sexual Assault and Family Violence

Unalaskans Against Sexual Assault and Family Violence (USAFV) provides a safe haven for victims of sexual assault and family violence, and USAFV plays an active role in educating the public in how to recognize victimization and how to avoid becoming a victim. Contact USAFV for crisis intervention, referrals, immediate safety, legal advocacy and support, education and prevention programs. Their 24-hour crisis line is 907-581-1500 in Unalaska and 1-800-478-7238 throughout Alaska.

Cravez speaks at Women's History Month event

Pamela Cravez, editor of the Alaska Justice Forum and author of The Biggest Damned Hat: Tales from Alaska's Territorial Lawyers and Judges, provided a presentation on Alaska's early women lawyers with lawyer and historian Barbara Hood. Cravez and Hood had both been coordinators of Alaska's Joint State-Federal Gender Equality Task Force. Their presentation was sponsored by the ACLU of Alaska, Anchorage Bar Association's Young Lawyers Section and the Anchorage Association of Women Lawyers. More than 50 lawyers attended the presentation in honor of Women's History Month.

Myrstol provides Alaska Results First data at Smart Justice conference

Alaska Judicial Council Director Susanne DiPietro
and Brad Myrstol presented at Smart Justice Conference

Justice Center Director Brad Myrstol presented Alaska Results First data at the 13th Annual Reducing Recidivism Conference Smart Justice in Alaska in Anchorage on Monday, March 12. The two-day conference brought together policy makers and service providers from around Alaska. Melissa Threadgill, keynote speaker and senior policy specialist with the Crime and Justice Institute, provided an overview of criminal justice reform from the national and local perspective.

Barnes interviewed on KRUA - listen Friday, March 9 at 1p.m.

Educational radio station based out of UAA 

Tune into KRUA 88.1 The Edge, on Friday, March 9, to hear Prof. Allan Barnes, Justice Center faculty, talk about how he got into the field of criminology and describe the history of the Justice Center. Dr. Barnes spoke with Deb Moll on “Infomania,” a KRUA show broadcast live on Monday.  Informania repeats on Friday at 1 p.m. for those who didn't have a chance to catch it the first time.

Justice Bolger hears student motions in Advanced Litigation class

(L-R) Mark Turberville, David Forthoffer, Jennifer Menjivar, Mackenzie Gilpin,
 Justice Joel Bolger, JoAnna Delasse, Joseph Morris, Kaleb Gibertoni,
Prof. Ryan Fortson, Laura Eagle, Kisung Kang

Alaska Supreme Court Justice Joel Bolger listened to oral arguments by students, provided feedback, and made rulings on the motions during Prof. Ryan Fortson's Trial and Advanced Litigation Processes Class (LEGL 487) on March 1. Students drafted legal memoranda on motions from four fictional scenarios and defended their positions before Justice Bolger. Justice Bolger's participation in the class helped students better understand how judges might react to their work.

Chamard co-leads THINK TANK on making public spaces safe

Prof. Sharon Chamard, Justice Center faculty, along with Prof. Shannon Donovan, Department Chair, Department of Geography & Environmental Studies, and a representatives from the Municipality of Anchorage, will lead a discussion on, "Can we make public spaces in Anchorage safe and welcoming for everyone." This THINK TANK with the municipality is Thursday, March 8, 11:30a.m. to 12:45 p.m. in UAA/APU Consortium Library, Room 307. Pizza will be provided.

The event is hosted by the UAA Environmental Studies, UAA Justice Center, UAA Center for Community Engagement and Learning, and the Municipality of Anchorage.