Joint court planning progresses

Progress is being made on an experimental joint court coming to the Kenai Peninsula.

Announced in October, the court will be a partnership between the Kenaitze Indian Tribe and the Alaska Court System. Kim Sweet, the chief judge for the tribe, and Kenai Superior Court Judge Anna Moran will hear cases together in the new program targeted toward substance abusers and those facing lengthy felony sentences.

The program, slated to launch in March, has been a long time coming according to Moran and Sweet.

“We have wanted to have a therapeutic-style court in the Kenai area for several years,” Moran said, adding that funding fell through the last time a similar effort was made. “It’s a way work collaboratively together to solve a very serious problem in our community.”

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

After some guidance from groups that have created similar joint court systems, the state and tribe built the new program’s specific needs into the framework they were given. The system will work with community partners focused on healing, recovery and providing tools to addicts to succeed in the future, Sweet said.

Those deemed eligible for the court will have to agree to commit to the program, which spans a minimum of 18 months, Sweet said. Their cases will be heard by both judges at the same time. Though the court location will alternate between the tribal and state court, its format will remain therapeutic and intimate, Sweet said.

Therapeutic court differs from state court in that it focuses more on healing, Sweet said, in accordance with the tribe’s established values.

“Definitely the boarding school era and everything put a huge barrier up for families,” Sweet said. “It changed the way culture is viewed. I mean, it took away a lot of the cultural norms for families. … Children are there to support the elders and vice versa, and that was broken, and it wasn’t too long ago.”

Therapeutic court systems function to help uncover reasons behind how a person has evolved to the point at which the court is meeting them, while still holding that person accountable for their actions, Sweet said.

The tribe plans to hire its own probation officer with the addition of the program, she said.

The joint court will take referrals from the District Attorney’s office for people identified as a good fit for the program. Sweet said she and Moran are mainly looking for those facing felony charges for substance abuse, those also involved with Child in Need of Aid cases, and those facing lengthy jail time.

“We need to be community minded, we need to support each other in this movement against substance abuse,” Sweet said. “It’s affecting all ages, all races in our population right now in our community, and it’s gross … what it is doing to our community.”

One of the system’s largest challenges will fall on the judges when it comes to juggling their tight schedules. Moran, who already splits her time between Kenai and Homer court, said it will be a matter of fitting more work into her existing time. Sweet said she will transition from being in court two to three times a month to the weekly hearings the joint program will require.

The ultimate goal is for the system to serve as an example that can be picked up and implemented in different communities, Sweet said.

The project’s team will soon review final edits to the program’s handbook, Sweet said. Moran said the team is waiting for a memorandum of understanding from the Attorney General before moving forward to the program’s next steps.

Reach Megan Pacer at megan.pacer@peninsulaclarion.com.

More in News

Jason Criss stands for a photo in Soldotna, Alaska, after being named a qualifier for the Special Olympics USA Games on Thursday, July 10, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Soldotna athlete to compete in 2026 Special Olympics USA Games

Thousands of athletes from across all 50 states will be competing in 16 sports.

The entrance to the Homer Electric Association office is seen here in Kenai, Alaska on May 7, 2020. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)
HEA opens bids for real property

The deadline to submit bids is 5 p.m. on Aug. 11.

Arturo Mondragon-Lopez, Jr. (right) attends a change of plea hearing related to the October 2023 fatal shooting of Brianna Hetrick on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025, at the Homer Courthouse in Homer, Alaska. (Delcenia Cosman/Homer News)
Mondragon-Lopez sentenced for death of Homer woman

Arturo Mondragon-Lopez, Jr. accepted a plea deal in February for the shooting of Brianna Hetrick.

Soldotna City Hall is seen on Wednesday, June 23, 2021 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Soldotna OKs $395,000 capital plan

This year’s list of capital projects is “nominal compared to some past years,” according to officials.

A map of areas proposed for annexation by the City of Soldotna. (Provided by City of Soldotna)
Soldotna adds annexation proposal to ballot

The proposed annexation is split across five small areas around the city.

Nets are extended from North Kenai Beach in Kenai, Alaska, during the first day of the Kenai River personal use dipnet fishery on Thursday, July 10, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
‘A really good day’

Kenai River personal use sockeye salmon dipnet fishery opens.

The entrance to the Kenai Peninsula Borough building in Soldotna is seen here on June 1. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)
Borough assembly to consider ordinance to increase residential property tax exemption

If approved by voters in October, the ordinance would increase the tax exemption by $25,000.

Vice President Kelly Cooper speaks during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly in Soldotna, Alaska, on Tuesday, July 8, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Borough considers seasonal sales tax rate

Borough sales tax would be modified from a flat 3% to a seasonal model of 4% in summer months and 2% in winter months.

Most Read

You're browsing in private mode.
Please sign in or subscribe to continue reading articles in this mode.

Peninsula Clarion relies on subscription revenue to provide local content for our readers.

Subscribe

Already a subscriber? Please sign in