By DAVID IGNELL
When Alaska Attorney General Treg Taylor pursued felony indictments against Ketchikan Police Chief Jeff Walls, his office withheld the most credible piece of evidence clearing the chief’s name — a memo from a seasoned Alaska State Trooper investigator.
My column last week about “How Attorney General Taylor ran a decorated police chief out of Ketchikan” generated a lot of comments on Must Read Alaska and on various social media platforms nationwide.
The majority of those posting comments easily grasped the seriousness of the prosecutorial misconduct committed in gaining three separate grand jury indictments of former Ketchikan Police Chief Jeff Walls. However, apparently the quotes by former DPS Commissioner Dick Burton, Superior Court Judge Katherine Lybrand, and the Ketchikan City Manager weren’t enough for some.
There’s an old saying, “you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make them drink.”
Perhaps the number of doubters will decline after reading the concluding paragraph of the memo written by retired Lt. Jeff Hall of the Alaska State Troopers, following his investigation into Walls’ case:
“This case should never have been brought forward. Every person has a right to protect himself and others from aggression. Law enforcement officers have the right to use force in this manner to detain criminal suspects. The chief showed great restraint in dealing with a large, aggressive, intoxicated man, and was ill-served by the trooper and the prosecutor.”
Lt. Hall was the major crimes investigation sergeant for “A” Detachment, based in Ketchikan from 1992 to 1995. His investigation and opinion should have carried significant weight with AG Taylor.
But it didn’t carry any. In fact, Taylor withheld Lt. Hall’s memo from the two subsequent grand juries who indicted Walls. So much for the pursuit of truth by our prosecutors.
I recently spoke with Lt. Hall. “Chief got screwed” were among his first words to me. Toward the end of our call he gave me permission to quote him.
Lt. Hall’s memo is dated Aug. 31, 2023. He emailed it that same day to Major Anthony April, Deputy Director of the Alaska State Troopers. The next day April forwarded the email with a “High Importance” tag to Captain Mike Zweifel, Commander of “A” Detachment and Colonel Maurice Hughes, Director of the Alaska State Troopers.
Exactly where Lt. Hall’s report went from Captain Zweifel and Colonel Hughes hasn’t yet been confirmed, but one thing is certain – the Attorney General’s Office knew about the memo at least two weeks before Taylor made his second attempt to indict Chief Walls, who was now back on the job after the first indictment had been dismissed.
On Sept. 5, 2023, Walls’ defense attorney sent the memo to Taylor’s Office of Special Prosecution and also filed a Notice of Expert Witness pertaining to Lt. Hall. The notice clearly stated, “Lt. Hall is freely available for interview by OSP by appointment with the undersigned attorney”.
The notice was a matter of public record in Ketchikan and stated that Lt. Hall “will testify, most significantly, that the use of force alleged in this case was reasonable and appropriate under the circumstances.” Undeterred, Taylor sought the second grand jury indictment in Juneau two weeks later on Sept. 21, 2023.
Was this notice one of the factors that influenced Taylor to seek the second indictment in Juneau rather than Ketchikan? Was Taylor concerned that knowledge of the contents of this notice would become more easily known to the Ketchikan grand jury, dooming his attempt to put Walls in jail?
Had the Attorney General allowed the 2nd and 3rd grand juries to review Lt. Hall’s memo, here’s what they would have read:
“This opinion is the result of reviewing available information regarding the incident at Salmon Falls, Ketchikan, Alaska, 9/10/22, involving Ketchikan Chief of Police Jeffrey Walls and Mr. Wildes, a visitor from Washington State. It is written based on my years as a trooper, my experience, training, and education, and having been the major crimes investigation sergeant for “A” Detachment, based in Ketchikan from 1992 to 1995.”
“On the evening of 10 Sept., Chief Walls and his wife, Sharon, entered the Salmon Falls resort restaurant. They had made a reservation for dinner, but their table was not ready, so they sat at the bar. A short time, later, a “highly intoxicated” Mr. Wildes commented “watch this” to his two companions. Mr. Wildes then rapidly approached the chief from his right rear and drove his shoulder into the chief, knocking him almost 180 degrees on his stool. Chief Walls asked him why he did it, did he know him, and Wildes replied “I thought it’d be funny” then offered to buy the chief and his wife drinks – they declined.”
“Approximately an hour later, after their food had arrived, Mr. Wildes again assaulted the chief and his wife. Wildes, who weighs over 200 pounds, used his body to strike both the chief and his wife, driving them both onto the bar, injuring Sharon Walls’ right arm and breast. Wildes continued walking towards the door, and Chief Walls followed him with the intent of detaining him for the two assaults. Wildes’ hands were not visible, so the chief pushed him from the back, causing Wildes to fall to the floor. Wildes immediately began to get up, turned, and his head came up under the chief’s armpit. The chief attempted a headlock, then was grabbed from the rear, around his neck, by the bar manager, who separated the two. A bystander said, “we’ve got him,” referring to Wildes. At some point, Wildes received abrasions to his head.”
“At no time did Chief Walls use any excessive force. He did not strike, kick or use any type of “chokehold”. Had he used a proper LVNR, which would have been entirely appropriate, Wildes would have suffered no injury. I have submitted 20-30 men and 1 woman using the LVNR, and none suffered injury. Wildes was bleeding from a head cut and had blood on his hands, but the chief did not have any blood on him. Wildes himself stated that no chokehold was used.”
“The ‘investigation’ conducted by Trooper Larry Dur’an was a travesty –- he ignored almost all basic investigation techniques. He did not enter the building until an hour after he arrived; failed to separate witness; allowed witnesses to talk among themselves; he refused to interview the bartender: did not interview the spouses of both KPD officers; he handcuffed, un-handcuffed, then re-handcuffed Wildes; repeatedly asked witnesses if they saw the chief use a “chokehold”; suggested that witnesses change their statements, etc.”
The next and final paragraph of Hall’s memo was cited at the beginning of this article, but it is so important it merits repeating:
“This case should never have been brought forward. Every person has a right to protect himself and others from aggression. Law enforcement officers have the right to use force in this manner to detain criminal suspects. The chief showed great restraint in dealing with a large, aggressive, intoxicated man, and was ill-served by the trooper and the prosecutor.”
Former DPS Commissioner Dick Burton saw things the same way as Lt. Hall. In his “something stinky” email Burton continued to write his former colleagues: “reading the attached news report I have no sympathy for the drunk; assault another man’s wife and you can not expect anything less than a violent physical reaction.”
Taylor’s exclusion of Lt. Hall’s memo is the “smoking gun” evidence why Alaska prosecutors can’t currently be trusted with serving as advisors to grand juries in criminal indictments or in investigations. Emergency intervention by the federal government to protect citizens’ due process rights under the US Constitution is needed immediately.
It is likely that many of the current personnel under the Attorney General will need to be replaced, and the current system refined, so that more meaningful checks and balances can be implemented. But that will require our Legislature to take meaningful action, which could be a long time coming. Reform is also needed within the Alaska Supreme Court which has no right to restrict grand jury reports following their investigations.
Despite the misleading constructions of fact and law given by prosecutors to the Ketchikan and Juneau grand juries, I can’t imagine them indicting Chief Walls had they been allowed to read Lt. Hall’s memo and invited him in to testify. His memo offered valuable insight into the truth of the Salmon Falls Incident and the use of force guidelines that were so critical in the case.
Chief Walls’ case reminds me of what Pastor Bob Barton of Hoonah, a key witness in the Thomas Jack, Jr., case said in an affidavit about the actions of Juneau prosecutor Angela Kemp 15 years ago. Barton, who was awarded the Air Medal signed by former US President Lyndon B. Johnson stated:
“I recall being stunned upon learning that Thomas was convicted of multiple counts of sexual assault of T.T. in the Juneau courtroom. I returned to Alaska from Texas to be present in court and testify on Thomas’ behalf at his sentencing hearing in the fall of 2010. I recall that when Assistant District Attorney Angie Kemp figured out who I was, she stopped asking me questions and that didn’t sit well with me. In my view, prosecutors are obligated to follow the truth regardless of the result it leads to.” (emphasis added)
Over two years ago I gave Deputy Attorney General John Skidmore a copy of Barton’s affidavit and tried to pin down a time for a meeting he had previously agreed to have with me. Skidmore later told me he had changed his mind and wouldn’t meet with me because my claims weren’t credible. Incidentally, Skidmore and Kemp were involved in formulating the new rules out of Taylor’s office that restrict grand jury access to Alaska citizens requesting investigations.
If truth was the guide of our prosecutors, Chief Walls would still be in Ketchikan taking deadly fentanyl off its streets. Instead, Alaska prosecutors abused Truth to try to put Walls in jail alongside Jack.
Through his indictment of Chief Walls, exactly what message was Attorney General Treg Taylor trying to send to law enforcement officers across Alaska? That its OK for drunks to intentionally assault you or your wife? Or that if you respond to any crime in what you and your fellow officers believe is a lawful use of force, you risk felony assault charges?
Or could the message have been that if you are successful in taking deadly drugs off the street, his office will find a way to get rid of you.
This last question deserves special attention Sources I have spoken to say that Ketchikan has a reputation for being infested with vast quantities of deadly drugs. Indeed, after Chief Walls’ arrival fentanyl seizures increased 525% in his first year.
However, instead of recognizing Walls as a hero, Taylor got him indicted on two felonies and went after him relentlessly over the next two years.
Burton had this to say about the Ketchikan troopers in an email several months later: “Ketchikan is not known for doing things right anyway. I used to think they were on our side, but I think the inmates have taken over.”
Have the inmates taken over the Attorney Generals’ office as well? When one considers they ignored Hall’s memo and then kept it from the grand jury, the answer to that question is likely a “yes”.
Important questions remain: Was the Salmon Falls incident a set-up, intended to provoke a more violent reaction from Walls? If so, who was all in on it?
According to Walls, some of KPD’s drug seizures during his tenure occurred on boats that had come over from the airport on Gravina Island, which is part of the Troopers’ domain. Walls also noticed a lack of US Customs officials on his official visits to Gravina Island.
Is the Ketchikan airport a central hub of the fentanyl drug distribution network throughout Southeast? Is the deadly drug offloaded in Vancouver on container ships from China or Russia? Are containers then trucked to the Prince Rupert vicinity where the drugs are then loaded onto small planes that land in Ketchikan an hour or two later?
These are all legitimate questions. Alaskans need a grand jury to investigate and discern the truth. But the Attorney General has rigged that process too.
You were right Commissioner Burton. Things are really stinky here in Alaska.
David Ignell was born and raised in Juneau where he currently resides. He formerly practiced law in California state and federal courts and was a volunteer analyst for the California Innocence Project. He is currently a forensic journalist and recently wrote a book on the Alaska Grand Jury.
What a sorry story. I well know Mr Hall and can assure you that he is a man who lives a principled life following the principles of integrity and honesty. If he said the Chief was screwed. The city needs to pay dearly for their illegal and immoral actions.
Ummm, the AG. Maybe the City, too, but Taylor took it to 3 grand juries. Would he continued until he finally got the result he wanted had the third said, “No.”
There is a term used in law enforcement called reasonable suspicion. The author of this column has made the case for me to become reasonably suspicious that the entire judicial system in our state is self serving and does not have the citizens best interests in mind. We really need the U.S. department of Justice to take an active interest in what we have going on here.
Something is wrong (too) when the Alaska Attorney General allows an Attorney-4 to continue with state employment unencumbered after this subordinate attorney completely trashed the furnished Juneau apartment he leased from me and moved out seven months before the lease end date, stole (or otherwise disposed of) assorted furnishings, broke the front window in the third-floor apartment, left filth and dreck everywhere including cat urine and other cat damage due to an authorized cat, declines all communications with the property owner, and writes that the modest deposit he posted at the start of his tenancy “should cover everything”. The actual costs of repairs, replacements, new window and its installation, new flooring, spackling over one hundred holes in the walls and painting, and numerous trips to the dump exceed $15,000.00.
Hey Attorney General Taylor … Call me! Your employee declines to do so and refuses both to acknowledge my assorted emails on these topics and pay what is due. If you would like to see the full assortment of photos (both before and after), let me know.
Small claims before it expires, $10,000 is better than nothing.
Treg Taylor involved in the drug trade in SE?
Another CORRUPT law enforcement official?
Where’s Dunleavy to set up a special counsel and investigate this piece of shxt?
Thank you so much for reporting! How disgusting AG Taylor- you are an embarrassment and a shame to justice.
Sure wish this case would’ve made it to a jury trial so all the facts would’ve come out not just what one side with an apparent axe to grind wants heard. Hit piece anyone?
And stop bringing child molesters into this. At least a cop who may have got a raw deal I can fathom. No sympathy for child predators convicted by a jury of their peers. This just takes away from she credibility of your piece.
And to AST, the driving force behind all the Ketchikan drug seizures attributed to Chief, keep up the good work to rid our community of this scourge! Don’t let the haters get you down.
I have met with several of Governor Dunleavy’s administration staff including AG Taylor. Myself and three other legal citizens of Alaska have exhausted all possible State remedies to ensure justice for ALL Alaskans exists be it within the State of Alaska DOL, Governor’s office or within the judicial system.
A federal investigation is extremely needed at this time. Lawlessness must be stopped. Our constitutions and laws must be followed faithfully.
SCO 1993 violates Alaska Constitution Article I Section 8. To change the constitution requires an amendment. An amendment did NOT happen. SCO 1993 was authored by Chief Justice Winfree and AG Taylor and signed December 1, 2022 was not correct. The DOL attorneys then go to the legislature in 2023 regarding SCO 1993 which is not how the process works.
Alaska Constitution Article III Section 1 gives Governor authority to do what is RIGHT for the State and the publics interest. Section 16 states that the governor shall be responsible for the faithful execution of the laws…
While Governor Dunleavy continues to ignore that it is his responsibility for the faithful execution of the laws, we the people who have been wrongfully accused, and one legal citizen of Alaska is exiled into an Alaska correctional facility for 50 years w/10 years suspended because he would not take the State’s “stinky deal” sits in peril.
Governor Dunleavy is the head of the Executive Branch and he has appointed individuals that support his agenda. Let’s pray that Governor Dunleavy takes a moment to do what is RIGHT for those individuals like Thomas Jack Jr., AK Mom and her children, AK Mommy and her children and grandchildren, and others.
AG Taylor’s client is the State and his first allegiance is to the public interest. The public interest is also the safety of the public to live safely within the communities.
June 2024 in an email from the DOL to a friend in Kenai the writer states about the State and responsibility for action and in-action. To date the State has not taken action to remedy the wrongs caused to many legal public citizens. It’s imperative that a federal investigation start immediately to protect individuals against wrongful actions and in-actions of our public officials.
Thank you Mr. Ignell for another great article.
Thank you for reporting on this issue David. It is very important that we shine a light on corruption, and this certainly does not surprise me after my personal experience with Treg Taylor and others in the Department of Law such as Andy Miller. It has been my experience that Treg Taylor and the Department of Law is either incredibly incompetent, or they are knowingly and intentionally ignoring or covering up a massive illegal State employment scandal that has been going for over a decade now.
Classified State employees can be required to meet very specific minimum qualifications when hired into State positions. I have first-hand knowledge that several individuals were gifted senior level management positions when it was clear they did not meet the required minimum qualifications for those positions. I reported this to and had meetings with former Governor Bill Walker, his Chief of Staff, and the Department of Law. I’ve also met with Governor Dunleavy and Treg Taylor and gave Treg Taylor and Andy Miller with the Department of Law all the information they needed to verify the truth in the matter so they could provide that verification to Governor Dunleavy. It is my opinion due to Treg Taylor and Andy Millers’ absolutely ridiculous and nonsensical response that they decided to just cover up this crime. There is no statute of limitations in this matter, and it directly relates to public safety.
A few years before Art Chance passed away, he helped review my information with me and verified that this situation is a direct violation of State law. Anyone who knew Art or read his articles on this site understood that he probably knew more about employee labor relations than anyone in this State.
Why Governor Dunleavy has not fired Treg Taylor is mind boggling. The Department of Law is a disaster zone and cannot be trusted. Who is going to step up and fix it and the corruption in this State?
And to think that Treg Taylor may run for Governor!
Good read! Thanks, David.
I don’t have enough facts from your articles and other reports to decide if there should have been an indictment or not, but the reports indicate that the man was exiting the restaurant/bar and then Chief Walls “ran after the man and pushed him head-first into a stone wall.” Those reports suggest that this was how the man ended up cut and bleeding from his head. If those reports are correct, whatever Chief Walls conduct was it was not reasonable defense of himself or his wife. And if the reports are correct, what the Chief did was also not a proper way for law enforcement to detain someone. A responsible action under those circumstances for a Chief of Police would have been simply to call for on-duty law enforcement officers to come and arrest the man. What the Chief did sounds a lot like retaliation (and under those circumstances wanting to retaliate might have been a natural reaction, but retaliation is not legally protected). Also, although Attorney General Taylor is the head of the Department of Law and all of the prosecutors do work for him (including Mr. Skidmore), I seriously doubt that he was personally the one making the decisions about whether and how to pursue indictments and certainly not about submitting or withholding a particular letter. Those tasks are delegated down the line.
A most interesting comment, Kevin. I have a few questions for you.
First off, is it your practice to publicly opine on use of force issues when you “don’t have enough facts” as you’ve said?
Second, what qualifications do you have as an expert on use of force over that of retired Lieutenant Hall of the AST, who actually investigated the case? Did you ever wear the uniform and put yourself in the line of fire?
As the former and first Attorney General of Alaska appointed by Gov. Dunleavy, what is your opinion on whether Walls’ prosecutors violated Section 3.8 of the Alaska Code of Professional Conduct, which states the prosecutor in a criminal case shall refrain from prosecuting a charge that the prosecutor knows is not supported by probable cause.
After the first indictment was dismissed, the prosecutors had in hand Lt. Hall’s memo saying not only that the use of force was reasonable, but that the Chief showed “great restraint” in dealing with a heavily intoxicated, large, aggressive man. Ethically, shouldn’t Lt. Hall’s memo have stopped the prosecutors in their tracks?
Finally, in your opinion was it appropriate for Taylor not to know that 1) his subordinates wanted to lock up the Ketchikan Police Chief whose department led the state that year in drug seizures; and 2) over the course of a year and a half, three separate grand jury indictments by three separate prosecutors were dismissed by a judge because they kept misleading the jurors on important issues of fact and law?
If that is the case, who actually runs the Attorney General’s office and ensures that laws and ethical responsibilities are administered correctly?
Oh come on Kevin. Are you seriously suggesting that Treg didn’t know the details of this matter including Hall’s memo and Treg’s name wasn’t on the documents going after Chief Walls? Its clear from the available information Treg Taylor had a problem with Chief Walls and was determined to make an example out of him.
And those of us who have personal such as myself that have experience dealing with Treg Taylor, or Andy Miller, or Rebecca Cain, and this list goes on, that they nor the Department of Law can be trusted at all to uphold the law in a fair manner. That department certainly doesn’t care about holding it self to high moral and ethical standards, nor is public safety a priority.
I guess it would have been better if Chief Walls would have just sent Wildes a bunch of texts with kisses and invited him over for some late night dinners and wine.
Our AK judicial system has long gone corrupt.
The people have pointed this out for several years. The powers at be continue to black the citizens from true justice by placing unconstitutional arbitrary laws in the system to prevent we the people from showing their destructive, corrupt, illegal behavior. Thus saving their own jobs by controlling the laws and they are the true law breakers.
The grand jury shall never be suspended. Stand true Alaskans. We the people have more power. God help us. God help the wronged people that have suffered under their control. AG, AAG, AK bar, Judicial council, judge investigator of AK…all have blood on their hands. God sees all. One day they too will be JUDGED.