Begich is urging the state legislature to pass a law that says known gang members must wear ankle bracelets as a condition of their release or parole. Removal of the bracelet would automatically send them back to jail.
The mayor pointed out that currently, the Anchorage Police Department and the Alaska Court System cannot electronically share some kinds of data about criminal defendants such as bail status and domestic violence writs. He suggests better information sharing, since officers on the street often do not immediately know whether a person is out on bail or has committed other crimes. The city is looking at Arizona, Wisconsin, and Chicago for state-of-the-art systems for sharing data.
