Crime & Courts

In wake of Fairbanks standoff, Department of Corrections says escapees nothing new

Fairbanks police say Michael William Bracht faces new charges after a Tuesday car chase led to a 10-hour standoff during which Bracht allegedly threatened suicide and caused some of the Interior city's streets to be shut down. ?By 1:30 p.m., he had turned himself over to authorities -- unharmed -- and was taken to an area hospital. Several weeks prior, on Aug. 19, Bracht had escaped from the Northstar Center, a facility the state considers a community residential center -- more commonly known as a halfway house.

Bracht is not the only offender to escape from such a facility in Alaska recently, and Fairbanks isn't the only area having a tough time keeping them in place. According to data provided by the Alaska Department of Corrections, 138 offenders have escaped from community residential centers across the state since the start of 2014. Ninety-eight of them have returned to custody. By Wednesday, Bracht was charged with the misdemeanor of escaping custody, a crime DOC said is common.

"The incident that occurred today involved a previously non-violent misdemeanant offender that chose to walk away from the Community Residential Center (CRC) in Fairbanks," said DOC Deputy Director of Administration Sherrie Daigle in a Tuesday email. "At the time of placement, the offender met the requirements set forth in the Department of Corrections Policy for being placed in a CRC."

Unlike at a "hard facility," or prison, residents at a community residential center are trying to work their way back into society. They are allowed to come and go for work and community service projects but are expected to make the choice to return.

Daigle said that if offenders are escaping from such facilities, then "they are not ready to make that decision to be a law abiding citizen."

Since the start of 2014, 31 individuals have escaped, or absconded, from Northstar Center, said Daigle. Data provided by DOC and online court records show eight of those escapees remain on the lam.

"(Fairbanks) Mayor (John) Eberhart is confident that the State of Alaska Department of Corrections will review these incidents and determine if its procedures for transporting persons are needed," Fairbanks city spokesperson Amber Courtney said last week. "It is a concern for public safety when an individual deemed to be dangerous is possibly hiding in our community; however, I do not feel that this is indicative of a trend or larger problem. I am confident that the Fairbanks police and Alaska State Troopers will diligently and successfully pursue these individuals and keep our citizens safe."

ADVERTISEMENT

At the time of Bracht's escape, he had two reopened cases stemming from probation violations for a 2013 DUI charge and a 2014 case for third-degree theft. He pleaded guilty to both.

On Wednesday, he was arraigned on the escape charge and seven additional charges relating to Tuesday's standoff. Bracht now faces three counts of assault in the third degree, along with one count each of criminal mischief, failing to stop at the direction of a law enforcement officer, reckless endangerment and reckless driving. Five of the new charges are felonies.

But Bracht, 38, is only one of several recent escapees in Fairbanks.

In the past month, one convicted felon and one suspected criminal escaped custody in the city in separate incidents. Both were moving to and from the Fairbanks Correctional Complex and the Northstar Center. Both are now back in custody.

Laura Mulcahy was headed to the Fairbanks Correctional Complex in a Northstar van for a medical appointment in early September when she hopped out and ran while the van was sitting at a red light at the intersection of Airport Way and Cowles Street, according to troopers.

Mulcahy had been arrested Aug. 29 on an outstanding warrant for a single second-degree theft charge from 2013. She fled less than a week after being apprehended, according to DOC.

Just weeks prior, Adam Bloom escaped in similar fashion, according to troopers.

The 27-year-old was being transported from the Fairbanks Correctional Complex to Northstar Aug. 14 when the van came to a stop to drop someone off and he simply got out of the van and ran. After his escape, troopers said Bloom, who has several theft cases currently open against him, could be dangerous and advised the public not make contact with him. He spent two weeks on the run before being apprehended.

Daigle wouldn't comment on the prisoner transportation procedure, as she said it isn't public information.

"When someone escapes or absconds from a Community Residential Center such as Northstar Center, the Alaska State Troopers are notified, a report is taken, and a locate is issued for the escapee," said Daigle in an email.

But spokesperson for troopers Megan Peters said they are not always the ones notified. "Escapes or evasions from those CRC locations are reported to the local police agencies when discovered," Peters wrote in an email. "Escapes or evasions from CRC locations outside of City Police jurisdictions are reported to the Alaska State Troopers for investigation."

Although more than 130 inmates have escaped custody this year, bulletins alerting the public to the escapes have been sporadic. Peters attributed this to the fact that not all escapees are believed to be threats to the public.

"If an offender is considered to be an immediate danger to the public, the police or themselves, a press release or special alert bulletin may be issued and circulated in the region," Peters wrote.

Megan Edge

Megan Edge is a former reporter for Alaska Dispatch and Alaska Dispatch News.

ADVERTISEMENT