The Alaska Rural Justice and Law Enforcement Commission (ARJLEC) was created by Congress in 2004 and was charged with the task of studying four areas of the law related to rural Alaska including: law enforcement, judicial services, alcohol importation and interdiction, and domestic violence and child abuse.
In 2004 Senator Ted Stevens told the Alaska Legislature that the panel's primary objectives will be stronger law enforcement and a swift, fair system of justice for all. We must move forward, at a state and federal level, to implement today's recommendations with the continued participation of Alaska's rural stakeholders.
ARJLEC members participated in meetings beginning in October 2004. Fifteen public hearings were held across the state and in our rural communities from October 2004 through June 2005.
The Commission members, their staff and the 50 members comprising the Commission's working groups worked extremely hard to create a comprehensive report, which was completed in April 2006. Implementing the recommendations of this Report will require continued advocacy at the state and federal level.
The working groups identified over 100 options, which, through careful deliberation, resulted in nine broad categories of recommendations for improving the four aspects of rural justice identified in the Commission's legislative mandate: (1) Engaging in more partnerships and collaboration, (2) Making systemic changes to improve rural justice law enforcement, (3) Enlarge the use of community-based solutions, (4) Broaden the use of prevention approaches, (5) Broaden the use of therapeutic approaches, (6) Increase employment of rural residents in law enforcement and judicial services, (7) Build additional capacity, (8) Increase access to judicial services, and (9) Expand the use of new technologies.
At the legislative level we continue to improve our state bootlegging and local option laws - topics strongly tied to concerns raised by the Commission with respect to the use, sale and abuse of alcohol in rural Alaska. At the departmental level, we have created new law enforcement and rural prosecution positions, worked with federal agencies to step up rural alcohol interdiction efforts, and have launched a pilot "Sub-Hub" project to become more proactive in providing services to villages. Our goal is to work with village residents to address their needs.
