[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":44,"_46":47,"_48":49,"_50":51,"_52":53,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":59,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":65,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":71,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6314421,"mediaKeyId","2383843-22bfa7c1e697b4db925d3283f4a94c2d","parentId",2383843,"title","Deputy attorney general describes governor's HB106 to create organized retail-theft felony, criminalize medical-record and mail theft","audioSeconds",0,"startMs",1126000,"endMs","viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2383843-22bfa7c1e697b4db925d3283f4a94c2d&start=1126&end=1126","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2383843-22bfa7c1e697b4db925d3283f4a94c2d/thumbnail_1126000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6314421/Alaska/Deputy-attorney-general-describes-governors-HB106-to-create-organized-retail-theft-felony-criminalize-medical-record-and-mail-theft","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6314421-72b8c0d28702bc9a7ad210a9e1ea46fe/orig.mp4?Expires=1776182688&Signature=V4GmV1f4~2FBHwtmnx3cMsz~CWcKNycfAD877QadqVvOFtnU3zSC-m0r2oE6xS1E0s8R0Em-5OZwR0bEqTua3MDPlwsogYDzrCswNUPBuHrC7lTq5vDp3H--3uXXqd26y~l6lvBNBtFD23bhtkTQfXl6VvpzrYV5ywlWClAqJwoFWJndZEUks-c1XjURYeN8-dc9loFJLnP6ri~Mx3XWychdyFdwDSS9QLblLps6WtPdf9jVBzca5-CMh2rDV~mOLiZQkAtmqH6Sq82mwsAzQbZvkCfZcwv5LGgYxzCp2mPRyGI3-SbBkpzQadQTR1BLiy8y5KIEbxhE2AROZQQvTA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Alaska Legislature","date","2025-02-24T00:00:00Z","article","Deputy Attorney General John Skidmore, who supervises state prosecutors, presented HB106 at a first hearing of the House Judiciary Committee and described three core provisions: an organized retail-theft offense, a theft offense directed at medical records, and a mail-theft offense.

Skidmore said the bill defines organized retail theft as conduct by three or more people occurring on two or more occasions; the proposal elevates that conduct to a class A felony with a presumptive sentence range of four to seven years for a first-time offender and a maximum of 20 years. Skidmore said Alaska's current aggregation statute (identified in testimony as AS 11.46.980(e)) allows prosecutors to add amounts taken across incidents, but that aggregation alone is ``not enough,'' prompting the governor's proposal.

The bill would also create a theft offense for medical records and related identifying information to address privacy and identity-theft risks; Skidmore told the committee that medical records include electronically stored and physical records and said federal privacy statutes such as HIPAA protect disclosure by providers but do not criminalize theft of records. Skidmore said the bill would treat mail taken from mailboxes as a class A misdemeanor; he contrasted that approach with a separate bill mentioned by members that would add some mail theft to existing theft-in-the-second-degree provisions.

Skidmore offered national and state figures, noting an estimated $121,000,000,000 in retail losses nationally in 2023 and an estimate rising to $145,000,000,000 by 2025. He said, \"In Alaska, we see approximately $2.00 $2,000,000 in theft, $222,000,000 in fraudulent returns, which is just over 400,000,000 each and every year that retailers are out here in Alaska.\" He also told the committee that organized retail theft can be violent and that \"76 percent of loss prevention staff were injured just last year\" in incidents cited in his presentation.

Committee members pressed Skidmore on several details: Representative Kopp asked how HB106 compares to a bill from Representative Colombe that treats mail theft as a class C felony; Skidmore said the bills take different approaches and that the governor's bill focuses on mail taken from USPS mailboxes and on conduct by multiple actors. Representative Vance asked whether two people could qualify as an organized group; Skidmore said two people can be jointly liable under principal/accomplice rules but the bill sets the organized-activity element at three people to distinguish it from ordinary accomplice liability. Representative Underwood asked whether the bill would give prosecutors tools beyond current individual-theft charges; Skidmore said prosecutors could pursue the higher-level organized-theft charge where the bill's elements are met.

No committee vote was taken at the first hearing. Members requested additional legal detail and comparison with other bills; Skidmore said staff would provide further information and that the legislature may amend the proposal as it sees fit.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","02/24/2025 House JUDICIARY","oneSentenceSummary","Deputy Attorney General John Skidmore outlined HB106 at a first hearing, describing a new organized retail-theft offense defined by participation of three or more people in two or more incidents, proposed felony penalties, a new medical-records theft offense, and a class A misdemeanor for mail theft.","taxTitle","2025 Legislature Alaska, Alaska","taxId",78559,"location","Alaska","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_46":81,"_48":82,"_50":83,"_52":84,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":85,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":86,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":71,"_72":73,"_74":73},6314426,"House Judiciary Committee opens public testimony on HB101; amendment deadline set",294,359000,653000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2383843-22bfa7c1e697b4db925d3283f4a94c2d&start=359&end=653","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2383843-22bfa7c1e697b4db925d3283f4a94c2d/thumbnail_359000.jpg","/articles/6314426/Alaska/House-Judiciary-Committee-opens-public-testimony-on-HB101-amendment-deadline-set","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6314426-3e789df5866ee963f52031429fa5ae06/orig.mp4?Expires=1776182688&Signature=X175duSuHJGZU67N0Uoea2jpbQsFDTiKIPC6YLsocVvY-L1kncBsy~lv6T8OryfFn1smqnHVVD-S5wxZ3g99jUEAbDgbq-V3cZDPIGt~rcUtk6F9ZY0a-AH0ZsJr6Y65Ska1ov1i0t6CSju1wNhafKkMYxl25oB9eDvugVyzHPnyZorr2Q82uTftQg6iIjuCfnrK9BH0Yli7Bz2SbD4STbW8KZ1dhPdAK08ik0WDwSmfEc0-Xdtyi2tHyaLvv26wF1pSvw0ns8LQvQ9H84sLZMB65h51ljqauhsoSWhJuP1d1J49LNIipkbFYpXmvYUdKR2EHyblcG6Z69iS5fZonQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The House Judiciary Committee opened public testimony on House Bill 101, Crimes Against Minors, on Monday and set an amendment deadline of March 3, 2025, at 5 p.m., Representative Gray, chair, said.

Samantha Minskens, an Anchorage resident, urged lawmakers to support HB101, saying she was “baffled why the age of consent is still 16” and describing widespread sexual assaults among peers when she attended high school in South Anchorage. Captain Keo Chan of the Alaska State Police stood by to answer questions and estimated that “close to 300 cases” in 2023 involved the age range targeted by the bill.

The bill prompted committee members to seek statutory clarifications. Representative Vance asked why some statutory language referenced victims “at least 12 years of age” in one section and “under 13 years of age” in another; the chair said legal staff and the Department of Law were not available to answer that question at the hearing and that the committee would schedule further hearings to resolve statutory definitions and drafting questions.

Representative Kopp requested that Representative Vance submit written questions so staff and the Department of Law could provide focused answers. The committee emphasized that further work and possible amendments would be handled before the March 3 deadline.

No committee vote was taken on HB101 at the public-testimony hearing; the chair closed public testimony and announced the amendment deadline. Additional hearings were promised to allow legal staff and Department of Law advisers to respond to members’ technical questions.","The House Judiciary Committee heard public testimony on House Bill 101, Crimes Against Minors, and set an amendment deadline for March 3, 2025. Testimony urged raising the age-of-consent protections and committee members requested legal clarifications on statutory age definitions.","actionData","errors"]

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Deputy attorney general describes governor's HB106 to create organized retail-theft felony, criminalize medical-record and mail theft

House Judiciary Committee opens public testimony on HB101; amendment deadline set