Prosecution in Rural Alaska

The Alaska Department of Law in conjunction with the Alaska U.S. Attorney's Office will create a Rural Prosecution Unit within the Department of Law, Office of Special Prosecutions. The Rural Prosecution Unit will be designed to assist the rural district attorney's offices with staffing shortages and experience gaps. The prosecutors in the unit will be cross designated as Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys in order to achieve the best results for cases prosecuted. Prosecutors will focus on felony offenses occurring in rural Alaska. The expertise of the attorneys assigned to the Rural Prosecution Unit will result in successful prosecution of complex major crimes that occur in rural communities, and in lengthy prison sentences for convicted offenders. Since serious crimes involving domestic violence, sexual assault and sexual abuse of minors are prevalent in rural Alaska, the rural unit will prosecute many of those offenses.

NCA/NCF