SAFETY & SECURITY

Hearing from neighbors and business owners in Midtown Anchorage, safety is a top concern. I hear from people that they feel unsafe in their homes, in their businesses and their communities. Anchorage is battling violent crime and property crime like never before. And in the Legislature, I also hear from Alaskans about how rural Alaska is struggling to keep our communities safe without adequate law enforcement officers. 

The ravaging effects of opioid addiction are tearing through our families and communities. Alaska has the country’s highest percentage of teen drug users and the second highest percentage of adult users. In Juneau, I am fighting to put an end to this epidemic and get support for Alaskans whose lives have been devastated. 

I am also working to protect Alaska’s right to bear arms. As an Alaskan who grew up in a family of responsible gun owners who taught me how to hunt, I understand the importance of preserving our second amendment and protecting Alaskans’ way of life.

PROTECTING OUR SECOND AMENDMENT RIGHTS AND OUR FAMILIES

In Alaska, hunting is deeply ingrained in our lifestyle and culture and provides food on our table and is an important part of our non-cash economy. I will always strongly defend the 2nd Amendment.  The recent horrors in Highland Park, Uvalde, Buffalo, Las Vegas, Parkland (and the terrible list goes on and on…) are a devastating reminder of the need for our leaders to have an honest and open conversation about gun use in our country. Alaskans must lead in this conversation because Alaska has the highest rate of gun deaths in the nation. Collectively, we must have a reasoned and respectful national conversation about what can be done to reduce the risk of gun violence. As an elected representative in the Alaska Legislature I am participating in these important discussions and protect your 2nd Amendment rights while also taking action to protect our children and ourselves from becoming victims of another mass shooting.

The most common cause of gun violence is bad people using guns for bad reasons.  These people must be stopped before they act or punished fully once they do.  Additionally, gun violence is the result of a number of societal factors that we must commit to addressing: depression and other forms of mental illness; social isolation; lack of educational support; lack of counseling; poverty; drug and alcohol abuse; criminalization of recreational drug possession and sales; and economic inequality. We must enforce existing laws on the books that punish criminals and keep people with records from getting guns.  Additionally, we must provide access to effective services such as mental health care, substance abuse treatment, and vocational education. In addition, we must ensure that those demonstrating a significant threat to themselves or others are separated from any guns.

We must eliminate any restriction on the collection and study of data associated with gun violence. We cannot properly discuss this critical issue without access to accurate and comprehensive information. We must ensure that law enforcement has the legal tools necessary to take action when a person in crisis poses a threat to themselves or others. I am in support of legislation that would allow law enforcement to remove guns from the possession of someone who represents a threat to themselves or others. Finally, we need a fool-proof national background check system.

PUBLIC SAFETY

More than 70 Alaska communities — places with some of the highest rates of sexual assault in the U.S. — have no local police protection. That means, unlike most anywhere else in the United States, emergency help is hours or even days away.

There are ways Alaska can work to improve law enforcement in our communities. I am supporting state policies that will help cities and villages hire officers who can not only respond to crime as it happens but prevent crime with strong youth mentoring and local partnerships.

We need a strong re-entry program from prison and from drug treatment programs so people have the support they need to stay in recovery, find meaningful work, go back to school, reunite with their families and live full lives. The state budget that I supported reflected some improvements this year, but we have more work to do.

HOMELESSNESS & CRIME

The state of Alaska faces one of the highest rates of homelessness - and it is a crisis. People who experience homelessness tend to have frequent interactions with law enforcement, creating a close relationship between homelessness and the criminal justice system. In my district, we especially hear from business owners and neighbors that too many Alaskans are without homes. Access to permanent housing is central to breaking the cycle of incarceration and homelessness for many people. Federal, State and Municipal entities need to combine efforts to increase the number of affordable housing units in Anchorage and throughout the state. I have heard from businesses and residents in my district, Midtown Anchorage, that they are concerned for the Alaskans they see who are clearly without a safe place to stay and have little access to needed services such as mental healthcare, addiction services, employment readiness training, and more. In addition, business customers, employees and families who live here want to feel safe walking on the sidewalks, going into schools and businesses. Bussing folks without a home to a campground without a plan for any services is not an answer.