Craig Campbell, President and CEO of the Alaska Aerospace Corporation, presents “Alaska &

Small rockets, big profits: Alaska Aerospace looks to commercial market for future

Craig Campbell remembers the night when they tested the missiles. Campbell, the president and CEO of the Alaska Aerospace Corporation (AAC), presented pictures of a… Continue reading

Craig Campbell, President and CEO of the Alaska Aerospace Corporation, presents “Alaska &
Frost on a fern along the Gastineau Meadows Trail on Thursday, Oct. 12, 2017. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Don’t believe your iPhone: Snow unlikely here

Juneau residents awoke Thursday to a rime of frost glazing windshields and roads. On their iPhones, there was a forecast of something else to come:… Continue reading

Frost on a fern along the Gastineau Meadows Trail on Thursday, Oct. 12, 2017. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)
Gordon Greenwald, center, Fred Fulmer, right, and Alfie Price dance in honor of three items being transferred from the University of Pennsylvania back to a Hoonah clan during a repatriation ceremony at the Walter Soboleff Center on Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2017. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

After almost a century absence, sacred objects return to the Tlingit people of Hoonah

Almost 100 years ago, the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology acquired 46 at.óowu, sacred objects belonging to the Mount Fairweather house (Snail… Continue reading

  • Oct 12, 2017
  • By MARY CATHARINE MARTIN
Gordon Greenwald, center, Fred Fulmer, right, and Alfie Price dance in honor of three items being transferred from the University of Pennsylvania back to a Hoonah clan during a repatriation ceremony at the Walter Soboleff Center on Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2017. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)
Christopher Strawn, right, confers with criminal defense attorney Nicholas Polasky during his trial in Juneau Superior Court on Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2017. Strawn, 34, faces charges of first-degree and second-degree murder, manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, third-degree assault and weapons misconduct in the shooting death of Brandon Cook in October 2015. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Judge refuses last-minute request to throw out search warrant, evidence in murder trial

Defendant Christopher Strawn suffered another setback in his murder trial Wednesday as Judge Philip Pallenberg denied his request to have three search warrants ruled invalid.… Continue reading

Christopher Strawn, right, confers with criminal defense attorney Nicholas Polasky during his trial in Juneau Superior Court on Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2017. Strawn, 34, faces charges of first-degree and second-degree murder, manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, third-degree assault and weapons misconduct in the shooting death of Brandon Cook in October 2015. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Chamber luncheon looks to outer space

Thursday’s Chamber of Commerce luncheon presentation will be out of this world. Craig Campbell, president CEO of Alaska Aerospace Corporation, is giving a presentation titled… Continue reading

An electric motor coach provided by BYD Auto Co., Ltd., a Chinese automobile manufacturer based in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, and Alaska Coach Tours stops at the Mendenhall Glacier Visitors Center to showcase the potential for electric vehicle bus transportation as part of the tourism industry in Alaska on Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2015. The city is working to get a permanent electric bus, but even with a grant it might take more than a year for it to get to town. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Even with grant, electric bus far off for Juneau

A federal grant for bringing an electric bus to Juneau has city officials excited, but it will be a while before the bus actually makes… Continue reading

An electric motor coach provided by BYD Auto Co., Ltd., a Chinese automobile manufacturer based in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, and Alaska Coach Tours stops at the Mendenhall Glacier Visitors Center to showcase the potential for electric vehicle bus transportation as part of the tourism industry in Alaska on Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2015. The city is working to get a permanent electric bus, but even with a grant it might take more than a year for it to get to town. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)
Transportation Security Officer Renier Cava gives instructions to Father Roger Schwietz on Wednesday, Oct. 11 at the Juneau International Airport. A new policy from the Transportation Security Administration requires passengers to remove all electronic items larger than their cell phones and put them through the scanner. (Alex McCarthy | Juneau Empire)

New TSA policy takes closer look at electronics

Transportation Safety Officer Renier Cava is likely used to repeating instructions over and over as passengers pass through security at the Juneau International Airport, and… Continue reading

Transportation Security Officer Renier Cava gives instructions to Father Roger Schwietz on Wednesday, Oct. 11 at the Juneau International Airport. A new policy from the Transportation Security Administration requires passengers to remove all electronic items larger than their cell phones and put them through the scanner. (Alex McCarthy | Juneau Empire)

Pretrial finds offices in Juneau, opens in January

Juneau’s pretrial office now has a spot. After months of searching for a suitable spot in Juneau to station officers who assist in pretrial services,… Continue reading

Police calls for Thursday, Oct. 12, 2017

This report contains public information available to the Empire from law enforcement and public safety agencies. This report includes arrestand citation information, not conviction information.… Continue reading

A goat looks at a group of hikers on Blackerby Ridge in 2014. (Photo by Mary Catharine Martin)

Dehydrated goat hunters rescued from ridge

Two goat hunters, dehydrated after their water supply froze, were rescued from Blackerby Ridge by a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter Tuesday evening. The men, ages… Continue reading

A goat looks at a group of hikers on Blackerby Ridge in 2014. (Photo by Mary Catharine Martin)

Juneau photographer’s Africa photo to be displayed in Smithsonian

Juneau photographer Richard Hebhardt for the second time has received recognition from Nature’s Best Photography, a well-known and well-regarded magazine for wildlife photography. Hebhardt is… Continue reading

  • Oct 11, 2017
  • By Capital City Weekly staff report

Police calls for Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2017

This report contains public information available to the Empire from law enforcement and public safety agencies. This report includes arrest and citation information, not conviction… Continue reading

  • Oct 11, 2017
  • By Juneau Empire
  • Crime

Opera and beer at Rockwell

Break out the lederhosen or dirndl, it’s Operatoberfest time. Beer and opera will meet at the Juneau Lyric Opera’s most bawdy and rambunctious event of… Continue reading

Alaskans are getting fatter, report finds

Two-thirds of Alaska adults are obese or overweight, according to a report released Monday by the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services. According to… Continue reading

In this May 2009 photo, the Mendenhall River flows out of the Mendenhall Valley past the northwestern tip of the Juneau International Airport and through the Mendenhall Wetlands State Game Refuge. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)

River erosion leads to ‘unique’ pipe break

Last month, erosion on the Mendenhall River led to a situation that has never happened in Juneau. On Sept. 1, City and Borough of Juneau… Continue reading

In this May 2009 photo, the Mendenhall River flows out of the Mendenhall Valley past the northwestern tip of the Juneau International Airport and through the Mendenhall Wetlands State Game Refuge. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)
From left to right, Rep. Justin Parish, D-Juneau; Sen. Dennis Egan, D-Juneau; and Rep. Sam Kito, D-Juneau; speak to an audience of about 60 people during a town hall meeting at Juneau-Douglas High School. (James Brooks | Juneau Empire)

Should Alaska roll back its criminal justice reform law?

Town hall meetings in Anchorage, Fairbanks and the Mat-Su have blown a windstorm of criticism against the criminal justice reform program known as Senate Bill… Continue reading

From left to right, Rep. Justin Parish, D-Juneau; Sen. Dennis Egan, D-Juneau; and Rep. Sam Kito, D-Juneau; speak to an audience of about 60 people during a town hall meeting at Juneau-Douglas High School. (James Brooks | Juneau Empire)
Bishop Andrew E. Bellisario, right, is greeted by Bishop Edward J. Burns during his ordination as the Sixth Bishop of the Diocese of Juneau at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church on Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2017. Burns was the Diocese’s Fifth Bishop and is now the Bishop of Dallas. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

Andrew Bellisario ordained, installed as Juneau’s bishop

As Father Andrew Bellisario sat down, nearly everyone else in the room stood. Bellisario, wearing a tall cap and holding a staff, eased himself into… Continue reading

Bishop Andrew E. Bellisario, right, is greeted by Bishop Edward J. Burns during his ordination as the Sixth Bishop of the Diocese of Juneau at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church on Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2017. Burns was the Diocese’s Fifth Bishop and is now the Bishop of Dallas. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)
Christopher Strawn raises an objection against Juneau Assistant District Attorney Amy Paige’s question of a witness at his trial in Juneau Superior Court on Friday, Oct. 6, 2017. Strawn, 34, faces charges of first-degree and second-degree murder, manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, third-degree assault and weapons misconduct in the shooting death of Brandon Cook in October 2015. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

As murder trial continues, Strawn prods eyewitness

Tuesday was a pivotal day in the ongoing murder trial of Christopher Strawn, as eyewitness Tiffany Johnson endured several hours of tense cross-examination from the… Continue reading

Christopher Strawn raises an objection against Juneau Assistant District Attorney Amy Paige’s question of a witness at his trial in Juneau Superior Court on Friday, Oct. 6, 2017. Strawn, 34, faces charges of first-degree and second-degree murder, manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, third-degree assault and weapons misconduct in the shooting death of Brandon Cook in October 2015. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)

City verifies official election results

Juneau’s election results are official and certified. A week after the Oct. 3 election, Municipal Clerk and Election Official Laurie Sica signed and verified the… Continue reading

A view of downtown Sitka taken from Castle Hill in 1879. Courtesy of the Sitka History Museum

The Osprey Incident: How three confusing years in Sitka changed Alaska’s future

The first decade of American rule in Alaska spelt confusion and uncertainty, but there was some semblance of order thanks to the United States Army… Continue reading

  • Oct 10, 2017
  • By Caitlin Rogers
A view of downtown Sitka taken from Castle Hill in 1879. Courtesy of the Sitka History Museum