Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson on Thursday announced the creation of a specialized Domestic Violence Unit of the Municipal Prosecutor’s Office, specifically targeting domestic violence in Anchorage. He named prosecutor Monica Elkinton as deputy municipal prosecutor in charge of the unit, made up of five long-time prosecutors, four administrative support staff, and two Anchorage Police Department officers.
The Municipal Prosecutor’s Office handles almost all the misdemeanor criminal charges in the boundaries of the Municipality of Anchorage, which is over 10,000 cases per year. Domestic Violence cases (such as assault, criminal mischief/destruction of property, and other crimes) consist of roughly half of the crimes prosecuted by the office. The Domestic Violence Unit specifically focuses on crimes involving intimate partner violence, child abuse and neglect, as well as animal abuse and neglect cases that can be a precursor to domestic violence against partners or household members.
The MOA also prosecutes a unique crime called “Family Violence,” which consists of committing a domestic violence assault in the presence of a child, an act which has been shown to have long-term trauma consequences on children’s brain development. Each of the specially-trained prosecutors handle caseloads of 300-500 cases at once. The APD officers stationed in the domestic violence unit are charged with enforcing bail and sentence conditions, which prohibit abusers from contacting their victims after arrest.
In addition to Elkinton, Mayor Bronson appointed Travers Gee, another deputy municipal prosecutor in charge of general trial cases at the Prosecutor’s Office. Both will serve under Municipal Prosecutor Sarah Stanley.
Elkinton, Gee, and Stanley are all long-term employees of the Municipality and have served under several administrations.
Click below to watch Deputy Municipal Prosecutor Monica Elkinton discuss the new specialized unit.
Municipality of Anchorage Domestic Violence Unit
Most DV cases are never convicted.
This seems to be an attempt to change that. I wish them luck. A very small percent of the population are and have always been responsible for the vast majority of the problems.
There’s always been law enforcement arresting the perps, and there’s always been prosecutors to file the charges. The problem arises when the women who don’t have a job and don’t have a career and have no place else to go decide to just stay at home and take it. It’s the beaten women syndrome. They may even go as far as going into the courtroom only to change their mind on the day of trial. Nothing will change until we provide refuge for those women. Yes there’s been shelters available but they need counseling. Without all those things in place a perp it’s free to keep on beating
You are partially right Greg. But there are plenty of women who do everything right according to the courts and still their abusers get almost no punishment. In the shelter those women look down on the ones who keep going back as they perpetuate the stereotype of ‘beaten women” you just described. In my experience it’s worthless calling the cops and going to court because no one there gives a crap. My solution? Run, start over and start carrying.
You know, I think Mayor Bronson will do great things for Anchorage if the looney Assembly would quit being so antagonist. The people of Anchorage deserve better!
The face of Wokeness, appeasement obvious! Please.
Don’t matter. Just another gov throwing money around to try to look like the state is going to do something. Until DV is always classified as a felony with REAL jail time, nothing will happen. The prosecutors drop 80% of DV charges. Getting a long term protection order is extremely difficult. Alaskan women are victimized twice. By the abuser and by the Alaskan court system.
Prosecutors can’t try a case if the victim is unwilling to testify and if the witnesses are also unwilling. There’s little that can be done. He’ll keep beating on people and one of these days go too far and then they can throw his butt in jail for manslaughter
Fire, you and Greg are both correct. Until the victims have a safe place to go, counseling and help getting set up on their own they will be little if any change. Once the victims of DV have a viable alternative they will be more likely to testify. I do not think misdemeanor convictions will do much to reduce DV, it needs to be a felony with serious consequences. That is something the Legislature will have to change.
I already can hear democrats gloat ‘for a man running as a conservative he adds new government positions’ unless this an assembly idea. Domestic violence- oh geez -the government tends to increase the family issue rather than reduce the problems. Why add one more team leader when the existing prosecutors should be replaced if they need another advisor to help them improve. One more thing how can anyone do any good decreasing dv when they don’t even apply the bible to their life? You facing spiritural warfare about DV and city and court employees are ill eqripped to fight it when they themselves are no smarter than a child’s reasoning.
There you go again Jen, always casting the first stone. You know what they call you in the Bible right?
Christian-baiting Communist Greg is back! It’s either this one or ‘turn the other cheek’ that you Communists think are the only verses in the Bible.
If the shoe fits Comrade.
I think this is a better use of a new position that that of “Equity” Officer.
Because we need more Alaskans in jail. What a great job. Stripping Constitutional rights. What could be more fun for a leftard.
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