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Trial delayed again in fatal Glacier Highway car crash case

The jury trial for the 26-year-old Juneau man accused of murder after a fatal car crash on Glacier Highway last summer was pushed back once again.

Slated to begin next week, attorneys on Monday asked for more time since they are still awaiting DNA results from the crime lab in Anchorage.

District Attorney David Brower told the judge he expected the results last week, but the lab was having software problems.

Juneau Superior Court Judge Louis Menendez vacated the May 21 trial start date, and scheduled the parties to meet that day to discuss how to proceed.

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Fed up with litterers, city installs surveillance cams

Litters, beware. The city is no longer willing to pick up after you.

Think of 2012 as the year that broke the camel’s back, says George Schaaf, the city’s Park and Landscape Superintendent.

Maybe it was the deer carcasses in the middle of a parking lot. Could have been was the live clams, which were thrown in the street around the same time there were reports of paralytic shellfish poisoning. Perhaps it was the endless supply of tires, refrigerators and sofas at Montana Creek Drive.

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Police chief awards Juneau's top cop, civilian employee of the year for 2011

The Juneau police chief this week announced his picks for the police officer of the year for 2011, as well as the dispatcher and civilian employee of the year and a host of other awards designated to recognize those who go above and beyond the call of duty.

“Day in and day out, they’re doing good work,” Chief Greg Browning said in an interview. “I do congratulate them all.”

An award presentation for the “Employee Recognition Awards for 2011” was held May 5 for the officers, employees and their spouses, Browning said.

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Detective testifies in hearing against accused murderer

Four-month-old Rian Orr woke up “fine and happy” for her early morning feeding on Aug. 9, 2010, according to the testimony of the lead Juneau police detective who investigated the infant’s death.

It was only after David J. Paul took the baby to the bathroom to make her a bottle, where he later admitted accidently dropping her on her head and shaking her, that Orr started to become fussy, said Det. Kim Horn.

Grand jury indicts 4 on Friday

A Juneau grand jury handed up four indictments on Friday.

Devin L. Clements, 20, and Lacy L. Diamond, 23, were indicted in connection to a robbery and vehicle theft last fall, according to the indictment.

Clements was charged with second-degree robbery for allegedly using force, or threatening to use force, to take someone’s property on Oct. 7, 2011. Diamond was charged with aiding and abetting.

Those are class ‘B’ felonies that can carry up to 10 years in prison.

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Shooter in December 'standoff' pleads guilty

The 27-year-old man who prompted the Juneau Police Department SWAT team to surround a residence on Delta Drive in December after he fired a handgun inside has pleaded guilty to assault and weapons misconduct felony charges.

Ryan J. Hamley, 27, changed his plea Thursday in Juneau Superior Court.

Hamley pleaded guilty to one count of third-degree assault and one count of attempted second-degree weapons misconduct. Both of those are class ‘C’ felonies that can carry a maximum punishment of five years in prison and a $50,000 fine.

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Man charged, arraigned for child sex abuse

A Juneau District Court judge Thursday maintained $100,000 bail for a man who was arrested this week on multiple felony sexual abuse of a minor charges.

Judge Thomas Nave kept the bail amount and appointed the Public Defender Agency to represent 34-year-old Harley C. Woods. During a financial inquiry under oath, Woods told the judge he has been unemployed for about a month.

Man who led police on chase arraigned

A judge set bail at $15,000 cash for the suspected drunken driver who led police on a high-speed chase through Mendenhall Valley on Tuesday morning, which ended when the driver smashed his truck into a tree.

District Attorney David Brower requested the bail amount during 26-year-old Devin Moorhouse’s arraignment in Juneau District Court Wednesday.

“He and a lot of people are lucky that no one got killed,” Brower said of the eight-minute chase that began on Egan Drive near McDonald’s around 11 a.m.

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Autopsy requested for dead man found in Mendenhall Tower

Police say they have requested an autopsy for a 35-year-old man who was found dead in the Mendenhall Tower Apartment Homes building downtown last week.

Foul play was not suspected, and there were no signs of trauma, said Lt. David Campbell, a Juneau Police Department spokesman.

“But given his age, the medical examiner’s office is going to do an autopsy,” Campbell said.

Police and medics responded to a report of a deceased person at about 1 p.m. Friday.

Missing 13-year-old girl found alive

A 13-year-old girl who was reported missing in Port Protection on Sunday has been found alive and unharmed, according to Alaska State Troopers and the Coast Guard.

Coast Guard Lt. Ryan Erickson of Sector Juneau said in a phone interview he just received news at about noon on Tuesday that Makayla McRoberts was found sometime this morning.

Troopers confirmed that in an updated dispatch online, which said McRoberts was found by ground searchers at about 12:02 p.m.

“She appeared fine,” Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters said by phone.

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