Empire Archives is a series printed every Saturday featuring a short compilation of headline stories in the Juneau Empire from archived editions in 1985, 1995, and 2005. The stories include names, AP style, and other content of their eras.
This week in 1985, Victor B. Johnson, charged with murdering Emanuel D. Telles at the Imperial Cafe early Sunday morning, is being held in lieu of $100,000 bail at the Southeast Correctional Center at Lemon Creek. He is charged with one count of first-degree murder for allegedly shooting Telles in the head with a 30-30 rifle. District Attorney Rick Svobdny said the court on Tuesday will set a date for a preliminary hearing, but the case will be taken to the grand jury. According to police, witnesses indicated Johnson entered the Front Street cafe early Sunday morning and shot Telles. Telles had been acquitted by a jury here of the 1982 murder of James and Anne Benolken, who were knifed to death and raped in their South Franklin Street apartment. A co-defendant, Newton Lambert, was sentenced to 99 years for the murder of Anne Benolken and acquitted for the murder of James Benolken.
Today unanswered questions remain about the murder of the Benolkens, according to a 2022 published on Medium by Robin Barefield.
Original Story: “Telles murdered,’” by Leslie Murray and Debbie Reinwand. 3/25/1985.
This week in 1995, MarkAir delivered some more bad news to its Juneau passengers today. The airline is pulling out of the capital city almost two weeks earlier than originally announced — its last flight will be Sunday. Earlier this month, MarkAir Inc. announced it was dropping its Juneau service on April 15. That message came soon after the state refused to guarantee a $40 million loan for the financially troubled airline. Craig Johnson, a MarkAir spokesman in Anchorage, said the decision to leave Sunday was made because the airline wants to direct its airlines to more profitable routes as quickly as possible. He said MarkAir passengers will be accommodated on other airlines. He recommended customers call MarkAir right away.
Over the years service to Juneau by major carriers other than Alaska Airlines has continued to be intermittent. Today Delta Airlines offers seasonal service.
Original Story: “Airline departs Sunday,” by Dirk Miller. 3/28/1995.
This week in 2005, they call it the MASH unit, an odd nickname for a dental clinic that temporarily occupies an office building. Patients are treated with noisy portable equipment. While communicating on walkie-talkies, assistants wear winter coats as they rush back and forth between buildings to treat patients. “We’re kind of bopping around,” said dentist Dr. Kim Hort of the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium. The SEARHC dental clinic is making the best of what it has until it moves into a new home, which should accommodate more than twice its present number of patients. Since late January, the clinic has been split in two, while renovations are being completed to expand the old location. The dental care unit occupied half of a second floor in a two-level building on the SEARHC campus. In June, the new clinic will fill the entire level. In the meantime, the clinic uses three to six chairs to treat 25 patients per day, creating a backlog of appointments.
Today SEARHC is planning to build a new dental clinic at Vintage Business Park in the Mendenhall Valley as part of a “campus” there that includes a medical center and employee housing.
Original Story: “Growing pains for SEARHC dental,” by Andrew Petty. 3/28/2005.
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at mark.sabbatini@juneauempire.com or (907) 957-2306.
