In January of 2020 the American Legion Auke Bay Post 25 was burglarized, JPD was called and the burglary reported. An officer arrived shortly thereafter. A considerable amount of theft and damage occurred. Our heating system was stolen along with several other items, (a list was given to JPD), our back door was destroyed, and our Memorial to the 687 men lost on the USS Juneau was taken.
The perpetrators’ vehicle was caught on our security camera. Photos were turned over to the responding JPD officer. JPD knew the owner of the vehicle. JPD found items in the vehicle confirming it was involved and impounded the vehicle. I later discovered who the owner of the vehicle had loaned the vehicle to. I met with the vehicle owner and tracked down the driver of the vehicle, and turned this information over to JPD. Some of the stolen items were then found at the perpetrator’s family members’ residence.
The American Legion still has not received justice, the perpetrator has not been sentenced. We have only had one item returned. I testified before the grand jury in June 2020 and the jury found sufficient cause to proceed with charges against the perpetrator. The perpetrator has been in and out of jail on numerous occasions for other criminal activity since then, the most recent just this month, but time after time was simply released.
In the three-plus years the courts have sent no less than 100 different notices regarding either hearings or trial dates for this perpetrator for the Legion burglary, many of which were either postponed, canceled or rescheduled. Why is that and what the heck is wrong with this picture? Two years ago we sent a letter to the court asking for a status report. That was never acknowledged or a response received.
Very early on in the process when I asked to meet with the responding officer I was informed that the officer’s supervisor restricted contact with me regarding this case. The detective assigned the case was also reluctant to share or discuss the case. After I tracked down and spoke with the vehicle owner and found who the vehicle had been loaned to, and told JPD who the perpetrator was and where to find stolen items, the detective was not happy that I had this information. It also had proven that the little information the detective had shared with me was not the truth. Requests to meet with the JPD chief to rectify the issues with the detective and responding officer went unacknowledged and unanswered.
There is more to this case, but you get the general picture. The bottom line is three-and-a-half years later the perpetrator is still out on the streets, no trial has been held, the perpetrator has pleaded guilty to the theft, but apparently a slap on the wrist plea-bargain is in the makings because of the woefully inadequate (or intentional?) handling of the crime and evidence by JPD, the courts and the prosecuting attorney. The Legion still has not received due justice and apparently JPD has lost or misplaced the evidence and any recuperated stolen items. And this perpetrator is still free to continue doing harm to the public.
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that the courts, attorney and the local police department were all either woefully inadequate in handling this case, or all apparently had some sort of arrangement with this perpetrator. What that arrangement is is anybody’s guess. Otherwise why no justice? In either case it is simply unacceptable.
And just how many other local citizens have been harmed by their inadequacy or arrangement with this criminal?
• Tom Dawson is the past commander of the American Legion Auke Bay Post 25.
