Alaska Department of Public Safety
The Alaska Department of Public Safety is a law enforcement agency with its usual focus being the protection of life, property and wildlife resources in the state of Alaska in the United States.
| Alaska Department of Public Safety | |
|---|---|
 Alaska Department of Public Safety patch | |
| Abbreviation | Alaska DPS |
| Motto | Loyalty, Integrity, Courage |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | 1959 |
| Annual budget | $182,000,000 |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction | Alaska, USA |
 | |
| Jurisdiction of the Alaska Department of Public Safety | |
| Size | 663,268 square miles (1,717,900 km2) |
| Population | 683,879 (2020) |
| Legal jurisdiction |  Statewide |
| Governing body | Governor of Alaska |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Headquarters | 450 Whittier St. Juneau, Alaska |
| Governor of Alaska responsible |
|
| Agency executives |
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| Website | |
| Alaska DPS website | |
The Alaska Department of Public Safety is under the direction of Commissioner James Cockrell.
Alaska DPS personnel enforce laws related to criminal statutes, traffic, wildlife, and fire. The Alaska DPS also performs search and rescue, court services and maintains criminal justice records.
Divisions
DPS has five divisions:
- Division of Administrative Services
- Division of Alaska State Troopers
- Division of Fire and Life Safety
- Division of Statewide Services
- Division of Alaska Wildlife Troopers
DPS also administers:
Unique feature
Unlike DPS agencies in many other states, due to the vast area of Alaska and limited local enforcement agencies, Alaska's DPS is the primary law enforcement and public safety organization for most of the state. The men and women of DPS provide service in conditions not usually found in many other parts of the country.
Fallen Officers
There have been 16 Alaska State Troopers, 1 Court Services Officer, and 2 K9s killed since its beginning in 1948.
| Rank | Name | Date of Death | Cause of Death | Age | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Officer | Gary George Wohlfeil | 03-05-1964 | Killed along with Officer Leroy Garvin Bohuslov in an aircraft crash northwest of Fairwell, Alaska while conducting a low-level caribou survey | 22 | northwest of Fairwell, Alaska |
| Officer | Leroy Garvin Bohuslov | 03-05-1964 | Killed along with Officer Gary George Wohlfeil in an aircraft crash northwest of Fairwell, Alaska while conducting a low-level caribou survey | 38 | northwest of Fairwell, Alaska |
| Trooper | Dennis Finbar Cronin | 02-18-1974 | Shot and killed in his squad car while meeting with an informant; the shooter then committed suicide and his motives are unknown | 31 | Anchorage, Alaska |
| Trooper | Frank Stuart Rodman | 12-11-1974 | Killed along with Trooper Larry Robert Carr; they were transporting a drowning victim back in an airplane when the plane crashed in the ocean, 10 minutes away from landing, for unknown reasons; only 1 out of the 3 bodies were found | 25 | off the coast of Kodiak Island, Alaska |
| Trooper | Larry Robert Carr | 12-11-1974 | Killed along with Trooper Frank Stuart Rodman; they were transporting a drowning victim back in an airplane when the plane crashed in the ocean, 10 minutes away from landing, for unknown reasons; only 1 out of the 3 bodies were found | 23 | off the coast of Kodiak Island, Alaska |
| Trooper | Roland Edgar Chevalier Skip, Jr. | 04-03-1982 | Shot and killed after intervening in a domestic dispute between a drunk father and mentally-ill son at Cleary Summit Ski Area; shot with a .30-.06 | 33 | Cleary Summit Ski Area in Fairbanks, Alaska |
| Sergeant | John David Stimson | 01-14-1983 | Killed overnight by hypothermia after a helicopter crash while searching for a missing pilot; the pilot broke his back and Stimson made him as comfortable as possible; the pilot survived | 41 | near Cordova, Alaska |
| Trooper | Troy Lynn Duncan | 05-19-1984 | Shot and killed while he and other SWAT members searched for a serial killer in the woods by helicopter; the shooter opened fire and hit Trooper Duncan, he was a U.S. Marine Corps veteran | 34 | near Manley Hot Springs, Alaska |
| Sergeant | Robert Lee Bittick | 10-11-1994 | Killed in an aircraft crash during bad weather | 55 | near Haines, Alaska |
| Trooper | Bruce Alan Heck | 01-10-1997 | Killed in a fight on a traffic stop on Glenn Highway | 42 | in between Mendeltna and Tolsona, Alaska |
| Sergeant | David C. Churchill | 11-16-1998 | Killed when he suffered a heart attack while hiking up a mountain searching for a hunting party | 51 | N/A |
| Trooper | James A. Moen | 06-25-2001 | Killed in an aircraft crash; causes of the crash are unknown | 49 | in Lake Iliamna, Alaska |
| Trooper | Hans-Peter Roelle | 11-24-2001 | Shot and killed after chasing a suspect to his home | 40 | Wasilla, Alaska |
| Trooper | Tage Brandel Toll | 03-30-2013 | Killed in a helicopter crash while on a search and rescue mission | 40 | Near Talkeetna, Alaska |
| Sergeant | Patrick Scott Johnson | 05-01-2014 | Shot and killed along with Trooper Gabriel Lenox Rich while responding to reports of a person with a firearm | 45 | Tanana, Alaska |
| Trooper | Gabriel Lenox Rich | 05-01-2014 | Shot and killed along with Sergeant Patrick Scott Johnson while responding to reports of a person with a firearm | 26 | Tanana, Alaska |
| K9 | Helo | 11-25-2016 | Shot and killed while chasing a suspect through the woods after a vehicle chase | N/A | Palmer, Alaska |
| K9 | Rico | 03-26-2017 | Shot and killed while chasing a suspect after a vehicle chase | 3 | Wasilla, Alaska |
| Court Services Officer | Curtis Worland | 12-13-2022 | Killed by a muskox while defending a dog kennel | Nome, Alaska |
External links
- Alaska Department of Public Safety
- Alaska State Troopers Archived 2015-07-31 at the Wayback Machine
- Fraternal Order of Alaska State Troopers
- Alaska State Troopers Museum at ExploreNorth (with photographs)
- Alaska State Troopers on National Geographic Channel (with video)
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