Recent Submissions

  • Alaska Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Data Systems Development: Gaps, Opportunities, & Recommendations

    Hedwig, Travis; Miller, Virginia; Parker, David; Payne, Troy C.; Gonzalez, Andrew; Kisarauskas, Yevgenii; Slone, Avram; Brown, Paulsen; Harvey, Hattie; Hiratsuka, Vanessa; et al. (UAA College of Health, 2021-06-28)
    The report, "Alaska Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Data Systems Development," was prepared for the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority by the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) College of Health. This report was a partnership between the Alaska Justice Information Center, the Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies, the Center for Human Development, and the Division of Population Health Sciences.
  • Adverse Childhood Experiences, Intimate Partner Violence, and Sexual Violence Among Persons Who May Be Alaska Mental Health Trust Beneficiaries: Findings from the Alaska Victimization Survey

    Gonzalez, Andrew; Ingrid, Johnson; Troy C., Payne (Alaska Justice Information Center, University of Alaska Anchorage, 2021-10-25)
    The Alaska Justice Information Center (AJiC) at the University of Alaska Anchorage has released a new report, “Adverse Childhood Experiences, Intimate Partner Violence, and Sexual Violence Among Persons Who May Be Alaska Mental Health Trust Beneficiaries: Findings from the Alaska Victimization Survey.” This report used data from the 2020 Alaska Victimization Survey (AVS) to estimate the extent to which victims of intimate partner violence and sexual assault were Alaska Mental Health Trust beneficiaries. It also estimated the extent to which Alaska Mental Health Trust beneficiaries experienced Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). Alaska Mental Health Trust beneficiaries include Alaskans with mental illness, developmental disabilities, chronic alcohol or drug addiction, Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia, and traumatic brain injuries.
  • Relationships between Intimate Partner Violence and Alaskan Women's Health

    Johnson, Ingrid; Gonzalez, Andrew (Alaska Justice Information Center, University of Alaska Anchorage, 2023-11-30)
    This report details a sample of Alaskan women's experiences with psychological, physical, and sexual harm by an intimate partner, and the relationships between those experiences and their current physical and mental health. These analyses of Alaska Victimization Survey (AVS) data are comprised of almost 13,000 survey responses from adult, non-institutionalized Alaskan women. The findings confirm those of prior, non-Alaska based research that all types of historical and recent intimate partner violence (IPV) are linked to victims’ current physical and mental health. Non-physical IPV has the same negative relationships with various health status indicators as physical IPV: Control, threats, and psychological aggression are generally associated with the same prevalence of negative health outcomes as physical violence, although sexual violence is associated with the highest prevalence of negative health outcomes.
  • Alaska Police Officer Use of Deadly Force: 2010-2020

    Payne, Troy C.; Kisarauskas, Yevgenii; Henderson, Robert E. (Alaska Justice Information Center, University of Alaska Anchorage, 2021-04-21)
    The Alaska Department of Law Office of Special Prosecutions (OSP) and the Alaska Justice Information Center (AJiC) partnered to answer two questions regarding police officer use of deadly force. First, to what extent existing OSP investigative casefiles could be used to fully describe the nature of uses of lethal force incidents in Alaska. Second, to describe lethal use of force incidents using the available information. We found that while OSP casefiles files contained sufficient information for OSP’s purpose of determining whether criminal charges are warranted under the circumstances, the OSP casefiles lacked some information of interest to policymakers and the public. AJiC analyzed all OSP casefiles involving officer uses of lethal force from 2010 to October 2020, covering a total of 92 incidents, 100 citizens, and 295 officers. Just over half of citizens died as a result of the incident in which deadly force was used, with another quarter sustaining serious injuries. Nearly every citizen involved displayed or used a weapon. No human officers were killed in the incidents reviewed, but two police dogs were killed, and three officers were seriously injured. Over a third of incidents involved the citizen making statements indicating they wanted to commit suicide-by-cop, and over two-thirds of incidents involved a citizen exhibiting some indication of mental illness during the incident. A third of incidents involved a citizen who had consumed alcohol, and methamphetamine/amphetamine was the most common drug other than alcohol, involved in more than a quarter of incidents. We offer the following recommendations for data collection based on our project: 1. The State of Alaska should develop a comprehensive statewide data collection regarding police officer uses of lethal force housed at an agency that can compile and use the information to drive policy. 2. OSP casefiles can serve as a starting point for data collection, but OSP case files cannot be the sole data source. 3. The development of a comprehensive data collection platform should include mandatory standardized data elements, starting with the FBI’s National Use-of-Force Data Collection Elements. 4. Other data elements should be considered for inclusion by a broad group of stakeholders from inside and outside of the criminal justice system. 5. Detailed use of lethal force incident data should be public where possible — but that may not always be possible or advisable.
  • AJiC Tableau Dashboard Style Guide

    Payne, Troy C.; Kisarauskas, Yevgenii; Slone, Avram; Gonzalez, Andrew (2020-09-02)
    This document describes the broad design and style conventions of Alaska Justice Information Center (AJiC) Tableau data dashboards. This document is meant as a style guide, and deviations from the general guidelines may be necessary for specific projects. Design goals and styles for every part of a dashboard are presented in the document.
  • Alaska State Troopers C Detachment Patrol Staffing Study Final Report and Description of Police Incidents

    Payne, Troy C.; Kisarauskas, Yevgenii (Alaska Justice Information Center, University of Alaska Anchorage, 2020-07-07)
    This report provides a workload-based staffing estimate for the Alaska State Troopers C Detachment sworn staff, including troopers and court service officers. The report begins by examining incidents serviced by C Detachment for meaningful changes over years, seasonal variation, and variation by incident type. Next, we describe challenges of creating a workload- based model for staffing C Detachment, followed by summaries of interviews with sergeants in C Detachment and a description of C Detachment’s stated goals. The model is specified next, including a post-by-post staffing recommendation for C Detachment based on the 75th percentile of the number of reports, adjusted for leave and other factors.
  • Homicide in Alaska: 1976-2016

    Gonzalez, Andrew (Alaska Justice Information Center, University of Alaska Anchorage, 2020-05-20)
    AJiC's Homicide in Alaska: 1976-2016 compiled 41 years of data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Supplementary Homicide Reports (SHR). This is the first time these data on homicide in Alaska have been examined across a multi-year timespan. The report describes homicide incidents, victims and suspects. These characteristics included weapon use, relationships between victims and suspects, circumstances, demographic characteristics, and more presenting the differences among race and sex groups. Additionally, the report makes note of the magnitude and characteristics of homicides involving American Indian and Alaska Native female victims, as well as how the rate of homicide victimization differs by race and sex of the victim. In addition to the full report, three one-page fact sheets are included: 1) Homicide Victimization Fact Sheet; 2) Firearms Fact Sheet, and; 3) Relationships Fact Sheet.
  • Alaska Results First Initiative: Adult Criminal Justice Program Benefit Cost Analysis

    Valle, Araceli (Alaska Justice Information Center, University of Alaska Anchorage, 2017-10-02)
    Results of the Alaska Results First Initiative show that most of Alaska’s evidence-based adult criminal justice programs are showing positive return on state investment of money. Notably, all but one of those programs are shown to measurably reduce recidivism — the likelihood that an inmate will re-offend when released — which not only improves public safety, but saves the state the costs associated with criminal activity. The State of Alaska annually invests in Alaska’s adult criminal justice system to provide services and programs to eligible offenders, including domestic violence treatment, vocational and general education, and re-entry services. The study estimates that approximately $20.58 million in state funds were invested annually to the 19 evidence-based adult criminal justice programs that are shown — by academic studies and rigorous reviews — to yield results. The report is the result of a multi-year project, with support and participation of all three branches of Alaska state government, and in partnership with the Pew-MacArthur Results First Initiative.
  • Alaska Results First Initiative: Progress Report & Initial Findings

    Valle, Araceli; Myrstol, Brad A. (Alaska Justice Information Center, University of Alaska Anchorage, 2016-07-15)
    This report presents the initial results of Alaska’s Results First Initiative, which is examining both the effectiveness and the efficiency of the state's adult criminal justice programs by conducting a comprehensive review of the full array of programs funded by the state. The review includes a thorough inventory of state-funded programs, determining the proportion of those programs that are evidence-based, and detailing both the costs of operating those programs, as well as the benefits derived from them via reductions in offender recidivism. The Alaska Results First Iniative is a participant in the Pew-MacArthur Results First Initiative, a "smart justice" approach to reducing recidivism under the auspices of The Pew Charitable Trusts and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, that is being led in our Alaska by the Alaska Justice Information Center (AJiC), housed in the UAA Justice Center.