Spring 2018 Alaska Justice Forum shows impact of VPSO involvement in sexual assault cases, Aleutian/Pribilof Island Alaska Victimization Survey results, Alaska Sexual Assault Kit Initiative and more

The 2018 spring edition of the Alaska Justice Forum includes articles dealing with Alaska’s high incidence of sexual violence including how VPSO-assistance in sex assault cases in western Alaska have high referral rates for prosecution.  An overview of results from the 2014–2015 Alaska Victimization Survey for the Aleutian/Pribilof Islands shows that 45% of adult women in the region have experienced intimate partner violence, sexual violence or both in their lifetime. In addition, an article on Alaska’s Sexual Assault Kit Initiative provides an update on progress addressing unsubmitted and untested sexual assault kits collected by Alaska State Troopers and development of victim-centered policies by a group of statewide stakeholders.

The Justice Center recently developed a report for the Alaska Department of Public Safety showing that troopers in the Mat-Su Borough and part of the Valdez Cordova census area are chronically over-used, causing operational problems. The report is included in the spring Forum along with a book review that describes the Sequential Intercept Model. The model provides a framework for diverting a person with serious mental illness from the criminal justice system into community-based treatment.

The 2018 spring Alaska Justice Forum print and expanded web editions are now available and include:

• High referral rate for VPSO-assisted sex assault cases
• Alaska Victimization Survey: Aleutian/Pribilof Island
• Sexual Assault Kit Initiative: Alaska making progress
• Workload-based staffing model shows Troopers in B-Detachment chronically understaffed (web only)
• Sequential Intercept Model: Framework for a ‘wicked’ problem
• Myrstol is new Justice Center director 

The Alaska Justice Forum is a publication of the UAA Justice Center

Download spring 2018 Alaska Justice Forum print edition

View web edition

To subscribe