News from the Senate Majority
Alaska State Legislature

Wendy Lindskoog, Senate Majority Press Secretary
State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
Phone: 907/465-4582
http://www.akrepublicans.org
Broadcast Actualities: 800/478-6540

Integrity of the APSIN Investigation Questionable

For Immediate Release: March 30, 1998 Contact: Senator Robin Taylor, at (907) 465-3873.

Juneau – The Senate Judiciary Committee Monday received an oversight report from special counsel, Kenneth A. Norsworthy, who was hired by the Committee to review the "APSIN Scandal" – the misuse of state criminal computers by certain state and municipal government employees. The employees wrongfully accessed the Alaska Public Safety Information Network (APSIN) files of state legislators, other public officials and private citizens in 1996.

Senator Robin Taylor, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, noted that the Joint Judiciary Committee hearing of the House and Senate held May 7, 1997, asked the State Troopers to investigate 85 questionable violations. "It was not until late January 1988 that the Judiciary Committee received seven large boxes of reports, interviews and tapes. Our special investigator poured through this copious amount of information and presented us his report today," Taylor said.

Objectives of the requested oversight investigation included:

• Review the Trooper investigations and the administrative agency investigations to try to determine if evidence of any criminal violations were in fact uncovered.
• Evaluate the adequacy of the prior investigations.
• Determine whether further legislative remedies are required.

"Information reported to by the special counsel indicates that the Attorney General’s Office and the Alaska State Troopers pre-judged the facts and severely limited the scope of the inquiry to be conducted by the State Troopers. Before they had even begun their investigation, the State Troopers were told by the Attorney General’s office that ‘no crimes had been committed and that the Troopers were to avoid asking the suspects any prying questions about union or political motives’," said Taylor.

These violations involve every day citizens, local elected and appointed officials and candidates running for State office in the campaign year of 1996. "More than 85 questionable violations occurred," said Taylor. "Of these, 23 cases were given over to the Attorney General’s Office for review for criminal prosecution and not one single case resulted in a prosecution. Surprisingly, the review for prosecution purposes had been conducted by the very same assistant Attorney General who informed the State Troopers prior to their investigation that no crimes had been committed."

"Evidence presented today shows there is clearly a problem. It seems obvious there is a need to further investigate the blatant misuse of the State’s confidential criminal computer system," Taylor said.

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