Rural Alaska Corrections Plan (A Summary)

Abstract

Efforts to improve correctional services in the rural, predominantly Native communities of Alaska have been going on since before statehood. Complete implementation of plans developed by the Alaska Criminal Justice Planning Agency during the 1970s have been hampered by a number of factors: (1) the scope of the planning has tended to be confined to correctional facilities; (2) the problems faced by corrections in Alaska are complicated by diversity of communities served; (3) financial requirements have exceeded available resources; (4) the authority and responsibility for achieving the plans' objectives were unclear. This document offers proposals for a rural corrections plan which offers a comprehensive, systemic — rather than purely correctional — approach for improving public safety and corrections in rural Alaska. It describes the existing situation, philosophy, coordination and planning, organizational proposals, financing, and implementation.