Suzanne Downing Must Read Alaska: Breaking: Jack Coghill, ‘Mr. Republican,’ passes

John Bruce Coghill (September 24, 1925 – February 13, 2019) was a politician and businessman who was the lieutenant governor of Alaska from 1990 to 1994 under Governor Walter Hickel. Both were members of the Alaskan Independence Party.

Originally elected as the Republican Party’s lieutenant governor nominee in 1990, Coghill had faced serious compatibility issues with running mate Arliss Sturgulewski. AIP chair Joe Vogler vacated his party’s nominated slate of John Lindauer and Jerry Ward and replaced them with Wally Hickel and Coghill. While Hickel turned his back on the AIP and their platform almost immediately after taking office, Coghill remained loyal to the party, even becoming their gubernatorial nominee in 1994. Prior to these events, he was well known in Alaskan political circles as “Mr. Republican.”[1]

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By Hillel Italie: Paperback pioneer Betty Ballantine dead at 99

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By Leroy Polk: Anchorage resident killed in early morning motorhome fire
 
 
 
 
By Leroy Polk: Bryce Edgmon confirmed as Alaska House speaker after 31 days in session
During the first 29 days of the session, most Alaska House members were eligible to collect more than $8,700 each via a daily $302 per diem since the legislative session started on Jan. 15.
 
 
 
 
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Alaska Native News: Governor and First Lady Mourn the Passing of Jack Coghill; Anchorage Detectives Seek Person of Interest in Steven John Homicide Investigation and more ->
 
 
 
 
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Alaska Journal of Commerce – Gov. Michael J. Dunleavy GUEST COMMENTARY: An honest budget: sustainable, predictable, affordable
 
 
 
 
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By Patrick Enslow: Coca-Cola backs out of sponsorship for 2019 Iditarod
 
 
 
 
Local students practice business skills during Valentine’s Day sale Starting a business can be difficult for an adult let alone a kid but these 5th and 6th graders from Bowman Elementary are running a successful business for the 2nd year learning what it means to be an entrepreneur.

By KTVA Web Staff: Sand Point man sentenced in series of crimes
A Sand Point man has received sentences totaling more than a year in prison, after he admitted that he tried to smuggle drugs into the Southwest Alaska community during a crime spree spanning much of 2018.
 
 
 
 
By Lauren Maxwell: Anchorage proposal could put brake on bike thefts
Constant plans to introduce an ordinance at Tuesday’s Assembly meeting that would make it a crime to possess a bike that has had its serial number removed. It would allow police to assume the bike is stolen, seize it and fine the person who had it. The ordinance would make possessing an item where the serial number has been removed a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine that could be as high as $10,000.
 
 
 
 
By Shannon Ballard: Pot industry questions Dunleavy crime bills’ impact on growers
 
 
 
 
By Derek Minemyer: Say goodbye to nuisance properties, the Anchorage Assembly says
 
 
 
 
KTOO Public Media: Southeast Alaska tribe takes initial steps to create their own tribal court; Juneau’s legislative delegation looks to get ahead of potential cuts to state jobs; Signal detected from missing Guardian Flight plane and more ->
 
 
 
 
KYUK Public Media for Alaska’s Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta: Brazil Dam Disaster Sparks Questions Over The Safety Of Donlin’s Tailings Dam; Kings Swim In A Dangerous Ocean and more->
 
 
 
 
Alaska Native News: Troopers, SERT, Helo-3 Carry out Willow High Risk Warrant Arrest; Governor Legally Obligated to Accept Federal Funds for Medicaid Expansion and more ->
 
 
 
 
Fairbanks News Webcenter 11: Fort Wainwright Soldier Dies From Injuries; Officer Involved Shooting on the Elliot Highway; Residents voiced their thoughts on Ordinance 6093 at Fairbanks city council meeting; Fairbanks Memorial Hospital offering classes for Hip and Joint replacement patients and more ->
 
 
 
 
By John Thompson: Head of the Class: Larry Wilson
 
 
 
 
Alissa Pili broke the 4A Girls Basketball scoring record Tuesday night against West.
 
 
 
 
Program helps interns overcome obstacles Project Search is a program that helps people with disabilities gain work experience at Providence Hospital.
 
 
 
 
By Seth Kantner: Remembering Clarence Wood, a hunter in the truest sense of the word
 
 
 
 
By Mike Ross: Trail danger: Dog owner urges trap safety

By Chris Klint: Former Quintillion CEO pleads guilty in Alaska fiber-optic fraud case
 
 
 
 
By Patrick Enslow: Sass wins 2019 Yukon Quest following breakaway run into Two Rivers
 
 
 
 
By Kristen Durand: Reflecting on Black History Month: Rev. Alonzo Patterson
“I refuse to sit down and just be retired, said Reverend Patterson. “I have too much of a desire to bring us to the next level, and to help this generation see what that generation was about. I’m a little slower now. 82 is different than 33, but I still have that desire to make a difference.”
 
 
 
 
By Tracy Sinclare: Will unseasonably thin ice mean an early tripod topple?
She also said the organization isn’t concerned and the thin ice doesn’t change their plans. The tripod will go up on March 3 and ticket sale will continue through April 5 as usual.
 
 
 
 
KTOO Public Media: Knopp ends holdout for bipartisan House coalition, paving way for Republican majority; Dunleavy outlines approach ahead of big budget rollout; Of 140,000 comments, most favor keeping the Tongass Forest Roadless Rule; Transforming perspectives on trauma through paintings of hope and more ->
 
 
 
 
KYUK Public Media for Alaska’s Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta: Learning And Teaching At Yup’ik Winter Cultural Camp and more ->
 
 
 
 
Alaska Native News: Three False Calls to Police Lands Anchorage Man in Jail and more->
 
 
 
 
KTUU: Alaska’s backlog of Medicaid applications numbers nearly 16K; State culinary competition serves as qualifier for national cook-off; Some Alaska lawmakers say new ethics rules are too limiting and more ->
 
 
 
 
Fairbanks News Webcenter 11: High Speed Chase Through Lakeview Terrace Leads to Arrest; Car Theft Turns to Car Chase; Legislators voice concern over decisions made by AK Department of Health and Social Services Commissioner and more->
 
 
 
 
1 on 1: Gov. Dunleavy speaks with KTUU’s Sean Maguire
 
 
 
 
2 on 2: Dee Dee Jonrowe
 
 
 
 
By Leory Polk: Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay films unknown new TV show in Alaska
 
 
 
 
By Angela Krenzien: Ed and Cathy Rasmuson named honorary 2019 Iditarod mushers
 
 
 
 
By Dave Leval: Fat-tire bikers to get new Anchorage trail
“We need more people positively using this area,” Constant said. “I’ve heard neighbors say they no longer come here because they don’t feel safe.”

It’s something Schmidt understands well.

“To see four or five people at six o’clock on a Wednesday, hanging around with an open bottle of whiskey in the middle of them, is something you don’t want to see,” Schmidt said.

KTOO Public Media: Petersburg assembly waits on state budget, police job unfilled; Investors are backing Southeast’s largest oyster farms; Data suggests opioid-related overdose deaths in Alaska down and more ->
 
 
 
 
KYUK Public Media for Alaska’s Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta: Bethel City Audit Still Undecided and more ->
 
 
 
 
Alaska Native News: Murkowski Language Preservation Bill Advances; Fuzzy Memories of Great Alaska Cold Snap and more ->
 
 
 
 
Fairbanks News Webcenter 11: 20th Annual Bard-a-thon kicks off and more ->
 
 
 
 
By Daybreak Staff: Head of the Class: Lorianne Mordini
 
 
 
 
By Dave Goldman: Local high school singers team up for music lesson, concert
 
 
 
 
By Hank Davis: Hundreds turn out at Jewel Lake for a community fishing event
 
 
 
 
Video by photojournalist Phil Walczak: Alaska Woodturners Assn. makes bowls for Bean’s Cafe’s Empty Bowl Project The Empty Bowl Project will take place on March 9 at the Dena’ina Center in Downtown Anchorage.

By Associated Press: Man sentenced in Alaska mail theft case
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) – Federal prosecutors say a former supervisor with an Alaska commuter airline has been sentenced to six months in a halfway house for stealing mail, including computers that were destined for rural schools.

Breadoflife “Presley” Faiupu also was sentenced Friday to five years of probation in connection with thefts between March 2015 and April 2017.
 
 
 
 
By Daniella Rivera: Ex-Port of Alaska engineer to be on house arrest in attempted murder

After hearing from a state prosecutor who raised concerns about Todd’s parents serving as his third-party custodians while also posting the bail money, Anchorage Superior Court Judge Erin Marston agreed to the arrangement.

“The court doesn’t have a glass ball and can’t see what’s gonna happen in the future, but it does appear to me to — first of all I don’t think there’s a risk of flight here, that’s not a concern. The risk is whether the defendant may harm himself or others,” said Judge Marston. “This appears to be totally out of character and a result of mental illness at this point, but it sounds like he’s being treated for the mental illness and I do think that this bail proposal is sufficient to protect people.”

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE RESOURCES: If you are facing threatened or actual domestic violence, please discreetly call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or Abused Women’s Aid in Crisis in Anchorage at 1-907-272-0100.

SUICIDE PREVENTION RESOURCES: If you are considering suicide, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or Stop Suicide Alaska at 1-877-266-HELP.
 
 
 
 
By Jill Burke: Former Mat-Su elementary school teacher faces 14 new charges of sex abuse
By Sean Maguire: New Administration Commissioner plans more stringent vetting of hires, efficiencies in government
 
 
 
 

By Chris Klint: King Kong toy mailed to Anchorage yields kilo of heroin in bust

A separate state reckless-driving case involving Sanders became a flashpoint in Palmer court last year, after he didn’t pass an urine analysis test but didn’t suffer any immediate consequences from the state Pretrial Enforcement Division.

Anchorage-based FBI spokeswoman Staci Feger-Pellessier said the Anchorage street price of heroin is about $1,500 per ounce, which works out to nearly $53 per gram – or about $53,400 for the seized shipment.

State officials say heroin can command high prices in Alaska, especially when supplies are limited. Those figures can reach $500 to $600 per gram in Alaska prisons, or $800 to $1,000 per gram in remote areas of the state.

A statewide inmate database showed Sanders in custody Friday at the Anchorage Correctional Complex.
 
 
 
 
By Beth Verge: Community lifts up Valley shooting victim’s mother with surprise in Anchorage
We were able to get you a new SUV,” Ferguson exclaimed. Swan was very obviously grateful, relieved, and surprised.

“This is amazing,” she said, after checking out her new vehicle. “I was really stressed about the car. I felt like I could manage some of the smaller, other things I needed to manage right now. The car just felt looming…

“And now that I’m starting to process things, I’m trying to figure out, how do I make my life really matter from here on out, you know?” she said.

For now, there is a little bit of relief, and one big task off a daunting list.

“To have someone, a bunch of other people come along, and to say, ‘Hey, we did this for you,’ that’s incredible,” Swan said. “I’m beyond grateful.”
 
 
 
 
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By Shannon Ballard: Palmer company creates unprecedented cleaning machine for Navy
 
 
 
 
By Dave Leval: Redington High tournament remembers late ‘team mom’
 
 
 
 
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KYUK Public Media for Alaska’s Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta: Calista Squabble Patched Up; The Kuskokwim Corporation Names Sam Boyle As Interim CEO and more ->
 
 
 
 
Alaska Native News: Kuskokwim Tribes Fight Donlin Mine Permits; British Columbia Mega Mines in U.S.-Canada Transboundary Watersheds Are a Liability to West Coast Wild Salmon and more ->
 
 
 
 
Fairbanks News Webcenter 11: Celebrating Black History Month, FNSB School District and NAACP partner up; Fairbanks schools annual History Day competition comes to a close; Cushman Street was lined with community members, rallying for those with disabilities and more ->
 
 
 
 
Rasmuson Foundation: Help for Alaska artists seeking award

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By Heather Hintze: Sarah’s House offers Palmer women a second chance
 
 
 
 
By Joe Vigil: Alaska dive team ready to answer the call statewide
 
 
 
 
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By Ariane Aramburo: Illusionist Landon Swank performs magic on the Morning Edition

by Leroy Polk: UPDATE: Noodle World, not Yakitori Sushi, burns Thursday
 
 
 
 
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KYUK Public Media for Alaska’s Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta: What It Is At LKSD: Volleyball And Basketball and more ->
 
 
 
 
Alaska Native News: Koniag Appoints Longtime Executive and Kodiak Island Native Anthony Drabek to Board of Directors and more ->
 
 
 
 
Fairbanks Webcenter 11: Military Report: Soldiers discuss how to thrive in arctic environment; Local power plant celebrates four years without lost time accidents; U-Haul Acquires Sears Building; FNSB School Board begins discussion on 2019-2020 budget and more ->

By Angela Krenzien: Man charged with murder in fiery crash with taxi
“In total Mr. Ibarra’s driving history, as documented by the Alaska Public Safely Information Network, is rather abysmal and demonstrates a clear disregard for obeying any of the rules society places upon drivers,” prosecutors wrote.

Ibarra is being held at the Anchorage jail on $50,000 bail, the amount requested by the state. If he makes bail, he’ll be subject to Pretrial Enforcement Division monitoring and 24/7 house arrest.

Editor’s note: An inaccurate description of Jose Ibarra’s driving record has been corrected.
 
 
 
 
By Chris Klint: Sex offender arrested after picking up Anchorage child
Pettingill was arraigned Thursday, court records show, with his bail initially set at a total of $4,000. A statewide inmate database showed him still in custody Tuesday at the Anchorage Correctional Complex.
 
 
 
 
By Shannon Ballard: Palmer teen accused of killing friend has violent past
Flowers’ bail was set at $100,000 when he was previously arraigned on the manslaughter charge.

Although his defense attorney said Tuesday that the bail has been paid, he was not immediately released.

Prosecutors have requested a bail hearing, saying they are concerned, in part, with the teen’s juvenile record. In court Tuesday, they told a judge that in 2016 Flowers held a loaded gun to his mother’s head and threatened to pull the trigger.

The state wants to increase his bail and has requested at least $500,000 cash corporate and Pretrial Enforcement Division monitoring, with a search condition for firearms.
 
 
 
 
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By Rebecca Palsha: A gelatinous colony of bacteria and yeast creates a growing business
 
 
 
 
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Spotlight on youth: Karson Kolberg This week’s spotlight on youth features 13-year old competitive swimmer, Karson Kolberg of Palmer.
 
 
 
 
By Daybreak Staff: Head of the Class: Lorianne Mordini
 
 
 
 
By Marion Owen Lagniappe (LAN-yap) = A little bit extra: RAW vs JPEG: Why both formats are good
 
 
 
 
By Amy Carney: At Saxan Art Activity: Lovebird Cards
 
 
 
 
By Amy Carney: Sheldon Jackson Museum: February 2019 Artifact of the Month
 
 
 
 
The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC’s) Brownfield Assessment and Cleanup (DBAC) is a service offered by DEC to assist communities conduct environmental site assessments and cleanups at eligible brownfield sites. Public, quasi-public, and non-profit entities, such as cities, boroughs, tribes, native corporations and community development organizations are eligible and encourage to apply. The applicant does not have to own the site to request an assessment, but access to the site must be assured. The applicant must own the site to request a cleanup. The applicant must have a reuse or redevelopment plan in place. Any brownfield site that is NOT a federally owned property is eligible for a DBAC. A brownfield site that is privately held may be considered if the project can be shown to offer significant public benefit.

We are less than one month from the DBAC application deadline. DBAC applications need to be submitted by 5 pm Friday March 1, 2019. More information on this service and the application can be found here: http://dec.alaska.gov/spar/csp/brownfields/assessment-cleanup.

By Chris Klint: Woman found dead in Cordova Street homicide
Anyone with information or surveillance video from the area is asked to call APD at 911, or contact Anchorage Crime Stoppers anonymously at 907-561-STOP or through its website.
 
 
 
 
By Joe Vigil: Alaskans weigh self-defense options amid rising crime rates
“Somebody will get shot in the arm and they’ll give up. Win. There’s no need to continue filling this person with bullets. They’re done. It’s over. So are we,” he said. “So the goal is not to kill. The goal is to stop the threat. If death is a byproduct of that so be it.”
 
 
 
 
By Chris Klint: Board of Education OKs plan to address UAA accreditation issues
 
 
 
 
By Elizabeth Rothman: Murkowski reintroduces bill expanding funding to tribal language programs
 
 
 
 
By Lauren Maxwell: APU offers new degrees in health care
 
 
 
 
KTOO Public Media: Inspectors fault practices at Alaska Psychiatric Institute; Maw’s dividend fraud, theft trial delayed again as judge considers indictments; Southeast students explore careers to meet Alaska’s behavioral health needs; Interior Dept. kicks off new round of meetings on drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and more ->
 
 
 
 
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Alaska Native News: Fairbanks Rejects BLM’s Attempts to Stifle Public Participation in Arctic Refuge Hearings; Kodiak Man Sentenced to Seven Years for Felon Firearm Possession while Drug Trafficking and more ->
 
 
 
 
Fairbanks News Webcenter 11: State House deadlock continues, 20-20 vote for Talerico as speaker; Guardian Flight resumes service after missing plane; Fairbanks City Council holds second set of workshops on equal rights law and more ->

By Elizabeth Roman: AST: Kasigluk man arrested after exchanging nude photos with minor on Facebook
A warrant for Twitchell’s arrest was issued on Feb. 2, 2019. He was arrested that same say around 2:47 p.m. in Kasigluk.

Twitchell was transported to Yukon Kuskokwim Correctional Center in Bethel. Troopers say he was remanded and held on a $2,000 bail.
 
 
 
 
By Elizabeth Roman: Kwethluk man arrested for sexually abusing minor
 
 
 
 
By Elizabeth Roman: AST: 2 law enforcement officials arrested in separate child sex abuse cases
 
 
 
 
By Daniella Rivera: Edie Grunwald says she will bring victim’s perspective to Parole Board
 
 
 
 
By Dave Leval: Ski for Women raises money for sexual assault, domestic violence victims
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual assault or domestic violence, you can call STAR’s statewide crisis number for support at (800) 478-8999 or AWAIC’s 24-hour crisis and support hotline at (907) 272-0100.
 
 
 
 
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KYUK Public Media for Alaska’s Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta: Shutdown Cripples, But Doesn’t Sink Ocean Science and more ->
 
 
 
 
Alaska Native News: Seward Man on Meth Jailed on Weapons Charges; Kasigluk Man Indicted/Arrested on Multiple Sex Crime Charges and more->