Anchorage news

• Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof sentenced to death

  10-01-2017 23:39 via ktoo.org
  
  A jury has sentenced to death the man who murdered nine people in a Charleston church basement in 2015.
  The twelve jurors deliberated for about three hours before sentencing Dylann Roof, 22, to die. To impose the death penalty, they had to reach a unanimous decision.
  It is the same jury that found Roof guilty of federal hate crimes charges for entering Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in June 2015 and sitting among those at a Bible study in the basement before opening fire on the worsh
  
  Read more

• Dylann Roof sentenced to die for Charleston church killings

  10-01-2017 23:07
  
  CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) – A federal jury has sentenced Dylann Roof to death for killing nine black church members in a racially motivated attack in 2015.
  Roof, who is white, faced either life in prison or execution for the slayings on June 17, 2015. The Justice Department says he is the first person to get the death penalty for federal hate crimes.
  The jury reached a decision after about three hours of deliberations.
  Roof was convicted last month of all 33 federal charges against him. Durin
  
  Read more

• Follow President Barack Obama’s farewell address live at 5 p.m.

  10-01-2017 22:00 via ktoo.org
  
  President Barack Obama meets with Kotzebue residents during his three-day tour in 2015 of Alaska. (Photo by Eric Keto/Alaska Public Media)
  KTOO is carrying live NPR coverage of President Barack Obama’s farewell address beginning at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 10.The president will deliver remarks to an audience at McCormick Place, a convention center in Chicago.
  The address will be followed by NPR analysis. You can live stream it here on KTOO, or tune in over the air. Alaska News N
  
  Read more

• Silver Alert issued for missing woman last seen at Wasilla bank

  10-01-2017 21:17
  
  Betty Prada
  Officials with the Alaska Department of Public Safety and the Alaska Division of Homeland Security activated the Alaska Silver Alert Monday evening in response to a missing 66-year-old woman.
  “She is believed to be endangered,” the alert states.
  Betty Prada was last seen around 12 p.m. Monday at the Wells Fargo bank inside a Wasilla mall located at the Parks Hwy and E. Palmer-Wasilla Hwy, according to a Facebook post from the Wasilla Police Department.
  Prada, who police s
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Silver Alert cancelled for missing Wasilla woman

  10-01-2017 21:17
  
  Betty Prada
  Last updated at 4:55 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 10
  The Silver Alert for a Wasilla woman was cancelled Tuesday afternoon when it was reported to authorities that she had been found and was safe.
  Wasilla police investigator Dan Bennett said 66-year-old Betty Prada was found in Anchorage and was being brought back to Wasilla as of 4:50 p.m.
  Bennett noted that the media and the public were very helpful in locating Prada and ensuring her safe return.
  To sign up for Silver Alerts, as well
  
  Read more

• Juneau Assembly considers downtown ‘camping’ ban

  10-01-2017 21:16 via ktoo.org
  
  
  A man sleeps in the doorway of a shop on South Franklin Street in July 2014. The location is now Kindred Post, which opened in September 2014. (Photo by Jeremy Hsieh/KTOO)http://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2017/01/10HOMELESS-PKG.mp3Juneau Assembly members asked pointed questions but didn’t indicate whether they would support amending Juneau’s camping ordinance to empower police officers to cite people sleeping in front of downtown businesses and move them on.
  Police Chief Br
  
  Read more

• Juneau Assembly considers anti-camping ordinance for downtown

  10-01-2017 21:16 via ktoo.org
  
  A man sleeps in the doorway of a shop on South Franklin Street in July 2014. The location is now Kindred Post, which opened in September 2014. (Photo by Jeremy Hsieh/KTOO)
  The Juneau Police Department chief spoke out in support of a proposed anti-camping ordinance that would empower officers to clear homeless people sleeping in front of the city’s downtown businesses.
  Police Chief Bryce Johnson told the City and Borough of Juneau Assembly on Monday night that current law only all
  
  Read more

• Trump’s Homeland Security pick faces confirmation hearing today

  10-01-2017 19:55 via ktoo.org
  
  President-elect Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Homeland Security, retired Marine Corps Gen. John Kelly, sits for a confirmation hearing Tuesday afternoon, facing questions from members of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
  The 66-year-old Kelly has appeared before lawmakers before, in his role as head of the U.S. Southern Command, which is responsible for military matters in the Caribbean, Central and South America. Kelly has also served as an ad
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Witnesses pull unconscious Kodiak teen from burning car

  10-01-2017 18:02
  
  KODIAK, Alaska (AP) – A Kodiak teenager was injured when his car crashed and burned on a road south of the city.
  Alaska State Troopers say 18-year-old Devan Monkiewicz was driving Sunday on Rezanof Drive when his car left the roadway and crashed in a ditch near Mile 9.
  The engine compartment burst into flames.
  Monkiewicz wore a seat belt in the crash. He was unconscious when witnesses pulled him out of the burning car.
  Emergency medical technicians transported him to Providence Kodiak Isla
  
  Read more

• Interior Alaska forecast calls for extreme cold

  10-01-2017 16:47
  
  FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) – Temperatures in Interior Alaska are forecast to drop to 40 degrees below zero starting next week.
  The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports the National Weather Service predicts a cold low-pressure air mass will move over the area in seven to 10 days. The agency’s Rick Thoman says the weather will be different from typical cold snaps, which are caused by warm air in higher elevations that gets trapped in low-lying areas.
  Galena and the western Interior are expec
  
  Read more

• Tests reveal no detectable amounts of Fukushima radiation in Alaska waters

  10-01-2017 06:41
  
  Five years after Japan’s Fukushima nuclear disaster, tests of Alaska seafood continue to show no detectable amounts of radiation from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced Monday.
  The plant was swamped during a tsunami immediately after Japan’s 9.1-magnitude earthquake in 2011. Some of the plant’s reactors went into meltdown and seawater was used to help cool them down.
  Since then, testing b
  
  Read more

• New plan issued to help polar bears survive in Alaska

  10-01-2017 06:35
  
  A new plan to improve polar bear survival was released Monday by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Anchorage.
  Their research shows the biggest risk for polar bears continues to be Arctic warming and loss of sea ice habitat, but the bears face other risks as well, which Fish and Wildlife officials believe would contribute to their population decline if not addressed.
  Scientists, native communities, oil companies and the U.S. government worked together to form this plan.
  “When we started
  
  Read more

• First wave of pre-filed bills highlights issues for debate this session

  10-01-2017 06:21
  
  The first round of pre-filed bills was released Monday ahead of the start of the 2017 legislative session. Among the 52 proposed pieces of legislation are bills in both the Alaska House and Senate to restore Permanent Fund Dividend checks to their original amount — $2,044 — before Gov. Bill Walker used his veto power to reduce them to $1,022 last fall.
  Sen. Mike Dunleavy filed the PFD legislation in the Senate, as he told reporters in October he would. Incoming Rep. David Eastman aut
  
  Read more

• Possible lack of treatment brings Esteban Santiago’s mental health into spotlight

  10-01-2017 06:16
  
  Fort Lauderdale, Florida, shooting suspect Esteban Santiago Ruiz was taken to an Anchorage mental health facility after telling the FBI a U.S. intelligence agency was controlling his mind. However, the details of the treatment he received — and for how long — are unclear.
  Santiago’s brother recently told the Associated Press he did not receive proper mental health treatment after serving in Iraq. Santiago’s brother and mother have claimed he had been hearing voices before
  
  Read more

• Alaska to test Amber Alert system Wednesday

  10-01-2017 05:36
  
  Pay close attention to any Amber Alerts you might see on Wednesday — the state is testing its emergency system from 10:20 a.m. to 11:20 a.m.
  The Department of Public Safety (DPS) wants to make sure everything goes smoothly should a real-life Amber Alert need to be sent out in the future.
  The state relies on Amber Alerts to aid in the safe return of abducted children, but there’s a history of snags with Alaska’s system. The last time an Amber Alert was issued in Alaska was
  
  Read more

• One home destroyed, 22 considered not safe after winter storm hits Savoonga

  10-01-2017 05:15
  
  In western Alaska, people in Savoonga are rebuilding after a severe winter storm damaged several homes on New Year’s Eve. The mayor issued a local disaster declaration and is asking for state assistance.
  The storm brought in winds over 60 mph for several hours, including a peak gust of 81 mph. Those hurricane-force winds took a toll on the homes and buildings of Savoonga.
  Two representatives of the American Red Cross of Alaska and two emergency managers from the Alaska
  
  Read more

• Job losses in nearly every sector expected for 2017

  10-01-2017 05:00 via ktoo.org
  
  Like most other sectors of the economy, state jobs are in decline. Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development economists predict a shrinking economy in 2017 as the state struggles to recover from low oil prices and a loss of billions in revenue from the oil and gas industry.  (Photo by Andrew Kitchenman/KTOO)
  Thousands of Alaskans lost their jobs in 2016, and in the forecast for 2017, it doesn’t look like the economy is going to stop shrinking anytime soon.
  Oil prices,
  
  Read more

• Insurance for law enforcement and firefighters’ survivors among early bills

  10-01-2017 04:27 via ktoo.org
  
  The funeral procession for slain police officers Matt Tokuoka and Tony Wallace moves through downtown Hoonah in 2010. (Photo by Casey Kelly/KTOO)
  Lawmakers couldn’t agree last year whether to permanently provide health insurance to the survivors of police officers and firefighters who die in the line of duty. Starting next week, they’ll have another chance.
  A bill to provide survivors with insurance was among the first bills filed ahead of the legislative session, starting on Jan. 17
  
  Read more

• AG: Juneau officer and others were under imminent threat, shooting was justified

  10-01-2017 04:18 via ktoo.org
  Juneau Police Chief Bryce Johnson demonstrates how officers saw Jeremie Tinney hold an object that appeared to be a rifle during an officer-involved shooting on Dec. 3, 2016. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
  A Juneau police officer is returning to full duty after the Attorney General’s office says they will not file criminal charges against him for using deadly force against an intoxicated suspect who previously threatened to commit “suicide by officer.”
  The nine-page report was iss
  
  Read more

• For 1st time since Cold War, U.S. tanks roll into Russia’s backyard

  10-01-2017 03:36
  
  Since the end of the Cold War, the U.S. has been drawing down its military presence in Europe. But at the main docks in Bremerhaven, in northern Germany, that’s no longer the case. In fact, CBS News correspondent Elizabeth Palmer reports, quite the reverse is the order of the day.
  All the massive hardware of a U.S. combat brigade arrived in Germany over the weekend, and started rolling east toward Poland, where 4,000 American soldiers will be waiting for it.
  It is the first build-up of Ame
  
  Read more

• Park official’s off-duty comments draw watchdog attention

  10-01-2017 03:26
  
  A U.S. Interior Department watchdog says an official with Denali National Park and Preserve had a conversation of a sexual nature with park service employees that showed questionable judgment.
  The department’s Office of Inspector General said Monday that it had investigated a claim that a park official made inappropriate comments during an off-duty gathering at the official’s home. The office said it did not find that the official harassed or offended anyone. But it said the conversa
  
  Read more

• Accused airport shooter assigned a public defender at first court appearance

  10-01-2017 02:38 via ktoo.org
  
  The man charged with shooting 11 people at Fort Lauderdale’s airport Friday had his first court appearance Monday.
  Esteban Santiago, 26, was escorted into federal court in Fort Lauderdale in manacles. He told U.S. magistrate Judge Alicia Valle he understood the seriousness of the crimes he is charged with. Federal authorities say Santiago flew to the airport from Anchorage, Alaska. Upon arrival, they say, he removed a semi-automatic handgun from his checked luggage, loaded it in a bathroom
  
  Read more

• Thieves steal ATM from store outside North Pole

  10-01-2017 02:27
  
  Alaska State Troopers are looking for thieves who stole an ATM from a store outside North Pole.
  At around 4:17 a.m. Monday, thieves broke out a window of a store located at 771 Badger Road, trooper spokeswoman Megan Peters confirmed.
  Once the location of McPeak’s Badger Store, the Liquor Well now occupies the space and owned the ATM, according to a clerk at the store. She said the machine was bolted to the floor, but the thieves tore it out.
  Troopers say a newer model royal blue Toyot
  
  Read more

• Juneau Afternoon – 1-10-17

  10-01-2017 02:00 via ktoo.org
  
  Tuesday at 3 on A Juneau Afternoon,We’ll talk with City Manager Rorie Watt about Emerging Energy technology;Julie Diana will be here to highlight the upcoming auditions for Juneau’s Got Talent;Lori Wilson will get an update about Red Cross activities;Beth Loudon will be here to talk about big Brothers/Big Sisters;And we’ll get the details about this week’s Mudrooms.And we’ll hear Writers Almanac, Bird Note, music and more.Live at 3 on KTOO, repeated at 4 on KRNN, an
  
  Read more

• Renovated 120-slip Douglas Harbor on track to reopen in spring

  10-01-2017 01:38 via ktoo.org
  
  
  Contractors work on upgrading slips at Douglas Harbor along Gastineau Channel on Oct. 27, 2016. (Photo courtesy Juneau Docks and Harbors)http://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ktoo/2017/01/douglasdocks-jeremyh.mp3Extensive work rebuilding Douglas Harbor is 85 percent complete with contractors projected to finish work by the end of March or early April. That’s according to the City and Borough of Juneau, which has invested millions to renovate the 120-slip harbor on Gastineau Channel.
  Deputy Por
  
  Read more

• Teen suspect in Grunwald case now facing separate child porn charges

  10-01-2017 01:16
  
  Devin Peterson in court for charges relating to David Grunwald's death
  A teen charged in connection with the murder of Palmer teen David Grunwald in November is now facing six more felony charges.
  Online court records show the Palmer District Attorney filed six counts of possession of child pornography and one count of distributing indecent material to minors against 18-year-old Devin Peterson on Thursday, Dec. 29.
  The Mat-Su Frontiersman reports a 10-second video found on a cell phon
  
  Read more

• Teacher of the Week: Marsha Williams

  10-01-2017 00:08
  
  Marsha Williams has always been a music person. She says there’s something about it that brings people together.
  “Anything we can do together to build community through music is my passion,” said Williams.
  She began teaching music at Williwaw Elementary after spending most of her career in special education. When a position opened up at the east Anchorage elementary school, Williams immediately applied.
  “This was really the only place I wanted to be,” Williams
  
  Read more

Follow @AnchorageNewsUS on Twitter!