AlaskaCitizensForJustice supports balancing the scales of justice. We need all the help we can get and we know it will take the efforts of a lot of Alaskans. Most Alaskans have no idea how broken our justice system is until they are trapped within it. I have first-hand knowledge of our justice system and the criminal court system, gained after my 18-year-old daughter, Bonnie Craig, was murdered in Anchorage in 1994.
We all expect justice and protection from criminals. In order to get that, we need to better support the law enforcement community. Our first challenge was funding the new State Crime Lab. On April 19th,2010 the Alaska State Legislature passed and approved the funding for the new lab. The Governor signed and approved the funding! Thank you to all who made calls and sent emails in support of the lab. Thank you to all our lawmakers! This will make an incredible difference in catching the predators in Alaska. It will save lives, prevent so many crimes and prevent a lot of pain. Currently, construction is back on track for our new crime lab. We need to make sure the lab isn't further delayed in anyway. The crime lab is the foundation of the justice system.
The construction of the lab is creating jobs and will pour a lot of money into our economy. It will ultimately make our streets safer and prevent a lot of pain. Studies show there is a 40% chance the burglaries and non-violent crimes are being committed by someone who has already committed murders, rapes and other violent crimes. If they haven’t already committed these crimes there is an 80% chance that they eventually will commit a violent crime. That means 40% of these non-violent crime scenes could have evidence that would lead us to a match with evidence from a serious assault, rape or murder. Our laws now allow us to collect DNA from all felony arrests. We need to use this to our advantage and start balancing the scales of justice. Alaska is one of 23 states that have legislation to collect DNA on all felony arrests. Unlike many other states, Alaska is now processing Offender DNA samples within 30 days. Evidence samples take much longer to process and we can only process the worst of the worst crimes. Once the new lab is up and running Alaska will be able to process evidence from burglaries and non-violent felony crimes.
More funding should be directed towards the Department of Public Safety, and law enforcement manpower. We also need to revisit existing laws. For example, under the Constitution, victims are assured the right to "timely disposition of their cases". Currently, victims are not receiving this right. This needs to change. This is the next focus for "AlaskaCitizensforJustice."
Other issues before congress are the lack of funding for the Adam Walsh Act (AWA) requiring the registration of sex offenders nationwide. Attempts are being made to weaken this bill. Congressional hearings are taking place that would delay implementation and compliance by the states to register the sex offenders in their states. Alaska has not yet achieved compliance with AWA. We must work to ensuring our children are safe in our community. Our voices must be heard.
It is so incredibly wonderful to finally have the funding approved for our Crime Lab! We can't afford any more delays. Delays cost lives, incredible pain, money and further imbalance our justice system. We have to balance the scales of justice now. Again, the crime lab is the foundation of our legal system.
Thank you,
Karen Foster
