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Crow v. State

Supreme Court of Alaska
Dec 28, 1973
517 P.2d 756 (Alaska 1973)

Opinion

No. 1966.

December 28, 1973.

Appeal from the Superior Court, Fourth Judicial District, Fairbanks, Warren W. Taylor, J.

Herbert D. Soll, Public Defender, Anchorage, Stephen R. Cline, Asst. Public Defender, Fairbanks, for appellant.

John E. Havelock, Atty. Gen., Juneau, Monroe N. Clayton, Dist. Atty., James M. Hackett, Asst. Dist. Atty., Fairbanks, for appellee.

Before CONNOR, ERWIN, BOOCHEVER and FITZGERALD, Justices.


OPINION


In this appeal it is claimed that a sentence of five years' imprisonment, with two years suspended on condition of good behavior, is excessive for a first felony conviction.

Appellant pleaded guilty to the crime of assault with a dangerous weapon, which arose from a shooting incident at Circle City, Alaska. The superior court found him guilty based upon his plea, and imposed the aforementioned sentence.

Appellant has eighty-one prior misdemeanors on his record, including five convictions for assault and battery and six for larceny. By his own estimate, appellant has spent eight of the past ten years in jail.

Prior psychiatric and psychological evaluations have shown appellant to be an "immature individual with poor impulse control and a great deal of underlying hostility" whose behavioral problems are further compounded by chronic alcoholism. He was not viewed as a proper candidate for psychiatric treatment. There is no indication that appellant's condition had changed at the time of this sentencing.

In view of appellant's recidivism and the duty of the court to protect society, we do not find the sentence imposed to be outside the zone of reasonableness.

Kriska v. State, 501 P.2d 159 (Alaska 1972).

Affirmed.

RABINOWITZ, C.J., not participating.


Summaries of

Crow v. State

Supreme Court of Alaska
Dec 28, 1973
517 P.2d 756 (Alaska 1973)
Case details for

Crow v. State

Case Details

Full title:ROBERT CROW, APPELLANT, v. STATE OF ALASKA, APPELLEE

Court:Supreme Court of Alaska

Date published: Dec 28, 1973

Citations

517 P.2d 756 (Alaska 1973)

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