Issue Position: Public Safety

Issue Position

The state should aggressively expand staffing for public safety, including Troopers, VPSOs, prosecutors, support staff for those respective departments, and with municipal revenue sharing that directly supports the Anchorage Police Department. Cuts to the police and prosecutor workforce, in conjunction with the opioid epidemic and reduced penalties for property crime, have led to an explosion of crime. It is time to fight back with more cops, more prosecutors, more behavioral health treatment (including expanded capacity for residential and out-patient treatment), and legal reforms to strengthen penalties for criminal behavior. The legislature should support efforts by health care providers to integrate addiction treatment with emergency room care. We also need to improve early childhood care to reduce the incidence of adverse childhood experiences and trauma, which are closely correlated with susceptibility to addiction. I strongly support stronger penalties for sexual assault, and closing loopholes to ensure that perpetrators like Justin Schneider are never released without a significant jail sentence. We should also examine policies other states have used to reduce violence associated with substance misuse. Finally, we must expand API's capacity and staffing to keep people with severe mental health issues off our streets and out of our hospital emergency rooms.

Source