Lisa Murkowski’s defeat could impact the chances of Sealaska’s lands legislation passing. The Republican U.S. senator was the bill’s main backer in Congress. And primary winner Joe Miller has spoken against it.
But the other two members of Alaska’s Congressional delegation say they’ll keep the measure in play.Related Link: See the latest returns, link to the campaigns & hear interviews.
One-million dollars bail set for the Hoonah man accused of shooting and killing two police officers.
John Marvin, Jr., 45, appeared in Juneau District Court on Tuesday. He was escorted by a state trooper and a judicial services officer, and dressed in red prison pants and shirt, and slip-on shoes with his hands & feet cuffed and chained.
District Attorney Doug Gardner says he doesn’t routinely ask for such a high bail amount. He justified it by saying the shooting of Officers Tony Wallace and Matt Tokuoka was an “unprovoked slaying.” Both officers did not even contact Marvin Saturday night and were — instead – socializing with their own family members. Tokuoka was off-duty, and had his two children with him. Wallace’s mother, Debbie Greene, was doing a ride along with her son as he patrolled Hoonah’s streets.
Marvin also has a criminal record including a conviction for sexual abuse of a minor in 1993.
Magistrate John Sivertsen attempted to explain to Marvin his rights. but Marvin did not appear to be very responsive.
At least twice he blurted out “I’m John McMartin Royal.”
Then, after Magistrate Sivertsen read the charging documents, Marvin repeatedly asked “Who’s treating Officer Wallace?”
In what appeared to be a brief moment of partial frustration, Magistrate Sivertsen replied “I don’t know. I think he’s dead.”
Marvin was appointed a public defender who did not immediately oppose the high bail amount. Assuming that Marvin can come up with the million dollars, he will also likely have a third-party custodian appointed.
Sivertson advised Marvin that, if convicted, he would face a minimum of 99-years in prison for each charge of murder of a police officer.
Tuesday’s court hearing was also attended by sullen members of the District Attorney’s office – a few of whom were visible upset — plus half-a-dozen Juneau police officers, state troopers from the Juneau post, and other courthouse staff.
Marvin’s next court appearance in Juneau District Court is September 8th unless a grand jury returns with a bill of indictment. Then, Marvin will be arraigned in Juneau Superior Court.
In what may be a ironic twist of fate, an apparent act of conciliation by Officers Wallace and Tokuoka may have been repaid with the loss of their life.
District Attorney Doug Gardner explained in court Tuesday that Marvin last had a run-in with the very same officers as they responded to a call of an intruder in August of last year. Marvin was charged with criminal trespass, resisting arrest, and two courts of assault on a police officer. Those charges were later dismissed –Gardnersays – at the request of Wallace and Tokuoka. Marvin had already spent four months in jail waiting for his case to move forward and the officers felt it was time to “move on.”
Marvin’s criminal history goes back nearly 20-years. He was ticketed for set of traffic offenses last January in Hoonah, including driving a vehicle without an operator’s license and failing to license and register his vehicle. He pled no contest to those violations.
Court records indicate that he also pled no contest to furnishing alcohol to a minor in Hoonah in July of 2006.
Marvin also had a dust-up with Juneau Police in July of 1991. He pled no contest to a domestic violence assault charge for dragging his then-separated wife by the hair across the street at Front andFranklin. Then, he tried to pull a responding officer to the ground by grabbing his arm. For that, Marvin pled no contest to an additional charge of disorderly conduct.
Perhaps the most significant is the conviction for sexual abuse of a minor in 1993. Marvin was convicted of abusing his stepdaughter over the course of four years. She was 9 years old when it finally stopped. Marvin was sentenced to 10-years in prison with 4-years suspended. His probation was to last 5-years. Part of Marvin’s sentence included sex offender treatment at the Hiland Mountain-Meadow Creek facility in Eagle River. But court records indicate that he stopped going two months after his entered the program. Years later, just before Marvin was scheduled to be paroled, prosecutors apparently discovered that he had not been following through on his sentence, and moved to revoke his probation. That motion was dismissed the following year after prosecutors were apparently convinced that he returned to treatment and had followed through.
Marvin is not listed in the state’s sex offender registry database since his conviction was before Alaska’s law was enacted in August of 1994.
Gardner said in court Tuesday that he could not be specific, but both short and long guns were reported found by investigators in Marvin’s residence.
The latest local, state, and regional news is compiled from reports from the KTOO newsroom, CoastAlaska stations, wire services, the Alaska Public Radio Network, and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and can be heard as often as six times each morning during Morning Edition.
This newscast includes an update of the shootings of the police officers in Hoonah.
Two Hoonah police officers died after being shot Saturday night. The alleged shooter remains in his house, surrounded by law-enforcement officers.
The officers have been identified as 32-year-old Sergeant Anthony Wallace and 39-year-old patrol officer Matt Tokuoka. Both died of wounds inflicted by a single gunman. The suspect is identified as John Marvin Jr., a 45-year-old local resident. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.
Interim city administrator Bob Prunella calls the shooting an “ambush.” He says Juneau Police and Alaska State Troopers are on the scene.
“We called in the SWAT team and about 10 officers from Juneau came in by boat,” said Prunella. “It’s ongoing and they’re trying to resolve the situation with the guy, trying to get him to come out.”
He says the shootings took place between 10:30 and 11 p.m. Saturday.
Prunella says it’s a difficult situation for the whole community.
Hoonah police were not releasing any further information about the shootings. Alaska State Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters would only say they are dealing with a barricaded suspect.
Hoonah, a city of about 800 residents, is 40 miles west of Juneau on northern Chichagof Island. Before the shootings, it had two active police officers and a third in training, in addition to a police chief.
We’ll have further details as they develop
U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski released changes to her Sealaska lands-selection legislation Thursday (July 1st). The revisions are based on amendments that have been circulating among interest groups for weeks. But officials say more changes may be on the way.
The original bill allowed Sealaska to select a significant amount of timberland on northern Prince of Wales Island. That drew opposition from the area’s small communities, which hunt, fish and conduct small-scale logging on some of the acreage.
The revised measure shifts most harvest areas to other parts of the island, as well as remote islands to the west and north.Related Link: Link to the Murkowski press release with more details on the changes.
Sealaska shareholders re-elected four board incumbents in ballots counted at the Southeast regional Native corporation’s annual meeting. They also rejected a measure that would have weakened board powers. The meeting was held Saturday (June 26) in Craig.Related Link: Hear related reports and read more about the meeting.
