ALASKA CRIMINAL JUSTICE COMMISSION 2020 Annual Report October 30, 2020 Executive Summary ii Table of Contents Executive Summary .................................................................................................................................... vii I. Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 1 II. Commission Research and Recommendations ................................................................................... 2 A. Victim’s Rights and Services ............................................................................................................. 3 1. Background ................................................................................................................................... 3 2. Recommendation: Public Outreach .............................................................................................. 5 3. Recommendation: Victim Advocates Working in Partnership with Law Enforcement ................ 6 4. Recommendation: Establish Victim Coordinator Positions to Improve Communication to Victims ................................................................................................................................................... 7 B. Domestic Violence ............................................................................................................................ 9 1. Recommendation: Make Bail Conditions Accessible to Law Enforcement Officers ..................... 9 C. Rehabilitation, Reentry, and Recidivism Reduction...................................................................... 11 1. Recommendation Regarding Civil Detention of People with Mental Disorders ........................ 11 2. Recommendation: Implementation of the Crisis Now framework ............................................ 11 3. Recommendation Regarding Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Training ........................................ 13 4. Recommendation Regarding Computer Access for Inmates ...................................................... 13 D. Youth Justice ................................................................................................................................... 15 1. Recommendation Regarding Child Offender Safety Valve ......................................................... 15 E. Previous Work ................................................................................................................................ 16 III. Criminal Justice Data ...................................................................................................................... 18 A. The Incarcerated Population .......................................................................................................... 18 1. The Incarcerated Population as a Whole .................................................................................... 18 2. The Incarcerated Population by Race and Ethnicity ................................................................... 23 3. The Incarcerated Population by Violent/Non-Violent Offenses ................................................. 25 4. The Incarcerated Population by Offense Type ........................................................................... 26 B. The Pretrial Population .................................................................................................................. 27 1. Pretrial Population and Admissions Data ................................................................................... 27 2. Pretrial Supervision ..................................................................................................................... 29 C. Parole and Probation ..................................................................................................................... 31 1. Parole Releases ........................................................................................................................... 31 2. Supervision and Revocations ...................................................................................................... 32 D. Recidivism ....................................................................................................................................... 34 Executive Summary iii 1. Individuals Convicted of Felonies Who Return to Custody ......................................................... 34 2. Criminal Activity Following a Conviction ..................................................................................... 35 E. Risk Assessment Study ................................................................................................................... 38 F. Sex Crimes Processing .................................................................................................................... 41 IV. Additional Criminal Justice Data .................................................................................................... 43 A. Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Criminal Justice System ........................................... 43 1. Impacts on Crime ........................................................................................................................ 43 2. Court System Operations ............................................................................................................ 44 3. Changes in Arrests, Charges, and Convictions ............................................................................ 45 4. Impacts on DOC Operations ........................................................................................................ 46 5. Impacts on DOC Populations ...................................................................................................... 47 B. Statewide Crime Rates ................................................................................................................... 49 C. Crime in Anchorage ........................................................................................................................ 50 D. Criminal Case Processing ................................................................................................................ 52 1. Arrests, Charges, and Convictions .............................................................................................. 52 2. Time to Disposition ..................................................................................................................... 55 E. Data Available on Victims .............................................................................................................. 57 V. Reinvestment Implementation .......................................................................................................... 59 A. Reinvestment in substance use disorders treatment at DOC ....................................................... 59 B. Reinvestment in Violence Prevention ........................................................................................... 63 C. Reinvestment in Reentry, Treatment and Recovery Services ...................................................... 68 VI. Savings and Recommendations for Further Reinvestment .......................................................... 75 A. Analysis of Savings from Criminal Justice Reforms ....................................................................... 75 1. DOC Operating Costs ................................................................................................................... 75 2. Marijuana Taxes .......................................................................................................................... 75 B. Recommendations for Reinvestment ............................................................................................ 75 VII. Conclusions and Future Projects .................................................................................................... 79 Appendix A: Organization Appendix B: Commission Members Appendix C: Commission Recommendations to Date Appendix D: Sex Offense Case Processing Executive Summary iv Index of Figures Figure 1: Number incarcerated on Snapshot Days by Legal Status, July 2014 - July 2020 ........................ viii Figure 2: Daily Incarcerated Population Count ........................................................................................... 19 Figure 3: Number Incarcerated on Snapshot Days by Legal Status, July 2014 - July 2020 ......................... 20 Figure 4: Number of People Admitted to Incarceration Per Quarter, 2014-2020 ...................................... 20 Figure 5: Average Felony Sentence Length in Days .................................................................................... 21 Figure 6: Average Misdemeanor Sentence Length in Days ........................................................................ 22 Figure 7: Share of Incarcerated Population by Race ................................................................................... 23 Figure 8: Number Incarcerated by Ethnicity ............................................................................................... 24 Figure 9: Number Incarcerated for a Violent or Non-Violent Offense ....................................................... 25 Figure 10: Sentenced Offenders by Crime Severity .................................................................................... 25 Figure 11: Snapshot Days by Offense Type ................................................................................................