Alaska

2 Informants Helped FBI Make Case in Alleged Plot to Kill Top Alaska Federal Judge, Court Docs Say

Two confidential informants helped the FBI bring a criminal case against defendants accused of plotting together to kill the top federal judge in Alaska. Both informants were paid for their help in pursuing the criminal case against those who allegedly planned to harm Chief U.S. District Judge Ralph Beistline and…

Mar 29, 2011 5:59 PM CDT

US Alleges Plot to Kidnap, Murder, Burn Homes re Top Alaska Federal Judge, His Wife, Multiple Others

Developing: New charges in a case against five defendants accused of crimes related to an alleged conspiracy to kill the top federal judge in Alaska and his wife describe an expanded claimed plan to kidnap, kill and burn the homes of multiple judges, state troopers and an Internal Revenue Service…

Mar 18, 2011 5:58 PM CDT

Feds Arrest 5 in Alleged Conspiracy to Kill Alaska’s Chief US District Court Judge and Family Member

Authorities have arrested an Alaska couple and claimed members of a group called the Sovereign Citizens Movement over an alleged plot to kill a federal judge and his family. Lonnie Vernon of Salcha is the only suspect facing federal charges. He is accused of threatening to kill Chief U.S. District…

Mar 11, 2011 10:20 PM CST

Mom in Spotlight for Hot Sauce and Cold Shower Discipline Is Charged with Child Abuse

An Alaska mother who sought help from a national television show in disciplining a difficult child has now been charged with abusing a 7-year-old boy she and her husband adopted from Russia. Jessica Beagley, 36, faces a misdemeanor case in Anchorage city court, reports WLTX. She is expected to plead…

Feb 4, 2011 9:40 PM CST

The Only State Without a Law School, Alaska Needs One, Lawmaker Says

The only state without a law school, Alaska needs one to help make legal services more available and affordable, a lawmaker contends. Rep. Scott Kawasaki is calling for both a law school and a medical school to be established at the University of Alaska, reports the Tundra Drums. “Alaska needs…

Dec 28, 2010 4:18 PM CST

Election Round-Up: Fed’l Judge Smacks Down Conn.‘s Potentional Ban of WWE Garb at Polls

For Connecticut voters who want to wear a Stone Cold Steve Austin costume to the polls on Tuesday, in a nod to Halloween and the retired professional wrestling star, the Christian Science Monitor has good news: They will apparently be allowed to do so, under a federal judge’s ruling that…

Oct 28, 2010 9:00 AM CDT

Reports: Ex-Sen. Ted Stevens Is Among 5 Dead in Alaska Plane Crash

After conflicting reports earlier in the day, CNN and other news media are now stating that the death of former Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) in a small plane crash near Dillingham, Alaska, last night has been confirmed. Stevens was 86 years old. Earlier, longtime family friend and former aide Dave…

Aug 10, 2010 7:15 PM CDT

Phoenix-Area Sheriff to Defy ICE’s Rollback on His Immigration Enforcement Power

In yet another bold move, controversial Maricopa County, Ariz., Sheriff Joe Arpaio has said he intends to defy Washington’s efforts to curb his aggressive enforcement of federal immigration law. Last year, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement stripped Arpaio of authority to use 100 deputies to enforce federal immigration in…

Feb 11, 2010 3:22 PM CST

Universal Settles Newspapers’ Complaints Over Fake Alien Abduction News

A marketing ploy by Universal Pictures has backfired, with the studio agreeing to pay $22,500 for creating fake news reports about alien abductions attributed to seven real media organizations in Alaska. Universal created the online articles to promote its alien-abduction movie, The Fourth Kind, according to the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner…

Nov 13, 2009 2:23 PM CST

Crowell Snags 5-Lawyer Patton Enviro Team, Opens New Office in Alaska

A five-lawyer team of environmental lawyers including the Washington, D.C., practice co-chair has been lured from Patton Boggs to Crowell & Moring. They will be working with two former Patton colleagues and two other environmental practitioners with significant government experience that Crowell also has just hired. John Martin says he…

Aug 19, 2009 9:14 PM CDT

Legal Costs Spurred Palin’s Resignation, Official Says

Alaska’s lieutenant governor says Sarah Palin is resigning from her post as governor because of the mounting legal costs of defending herself in ethics investigations. Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell of Alaska told FOX News Sunday that Palin told him of her resignation on Wednesday, the New York Times reports. “I…

Jul 6, 2009 11:48 AM CDT

Divided Court Rejects Convict’s DNA Access Claim

In a sharp 5-4 split, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled this morning that an individual whose conviction is already final doesn’t have the right to access evidence to do DNA testing that could prove innocence. Writing for the majority in District Attorney’s Office v. Osborne, Chief Justice John G. Roberts,…

Jun 18, 2009 3:04 PM CDT

Inexperience and Staffing Problems Plagued Stevens Prosecutors

The Justice Department section that prosecuted former Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens, only to see the charges dismissed, was inexperienced and overwhelmed, observers say. Defense lawyers and government officials told the Washington Post that the problems were not likely because of political motivations. Rather, the DOJ’s Public Integrity Section “miscalculated by…

Apr 13, 2009 3:49 PM CDT

Alaska Seeks Hatch Act Probe in Stevens Case, Supports Possible Tort Claim

Opening a new chapter in the ongoing debacle over the federal government’s stunningly unsuccessful prosecution of then-Sen. Ted Stevens for corruption, the legislature of his home state of Alaska today overwhelmingly passed a resolution calling for further investigation of potential election law violations and demanding that the federal government give…

Apr 9, 2009 12:24 AM CDT

US Sues BP Sub Over Alaska Oil Spills, Seeks Maximum Penalties

The U.S. Department of Justice has filed suit against a subsidiary of a global oil company, contending that two discharges totaling some 200,000 gallons of crude oil into Prudhoe Bay on Alaska’s North Slope in 2006 violated federal clean air and water laws and seeking maximum penalties. Filed in federal…

Apr 1, 2009 9:15 PM CDT