Manslaughter

Two suspects in a Muldoon home-invasion robbery last month that left two men dead are facing charges including manslaughter, according to Anchorage police. APD spokesperson Marlene Lammers says Brian Pfister, 19, and Ursula Pico, 21, were indicted by a grand jury Thursday for manslaughter, robbery, conspiracy to commit robbery and burglary. Pico was also indicted for evidence tampering, after allegedly attempting to hide the group's getaway car. Maurice T.R. Johnson and Joseph Trantham, both 19, were killed in the early hours of Nov. 10 on the 700 block of Muldoon Road, when 55-year-old Larry James said they entered his house armed, hit him in the face and led him to a bedroom to open a safe.

A man who got behind the wheel drunk and killed an Anchorage taxi driver in a wreck last year is going to prison. Judge Michael Wolverton this afternoon sentenced Lawrence Brewer to more than 7 years behind bars. Brewer's friends and family said it was a case of someone who hit rock bottom, made an awful mistake, and is today truly remorseful for what he did -- the judge agrees. Lawrence Brewer entered an Anchorage courtroom more than a year and a half after causing a fatal collision at the intersection of Fireweed and Arctic.

Alaska State Troopers say 29-year-old Jessica Olanna of Brevig Mission has been arrested and charged with manslaughter in the stabbing death of Andrew Tocktoo early Tuesday morning. The stabbing was reported at about 4:30 a.m. Tuesday. Olanna will be arraigned in Nome court Wednesday.  

A jury has found an Anchorage man guilty of manslaughter for causing a crash on the Seward Highway that killed one person and severely injured another. Prosecutors say Thomas Lorah was drunk and out of control when he slammed head-on into another car in 2009. Annette Knofel was killed in the crash, and her husband Bruce Knofel was seriously injured. Lorah was also convicted of DUI and assault, but the jury couldn't reach a decision on a second-degree murder charge. It will be up to the prosecution to decide whether to pursue the murder charge in another trial.

A Salcha woman was run over and killed by the driver of the vehicle she was getting out of early Tuesday morning in Salcha, southeast of Fairbanks.   State Troopers say the woman, Rachel Carlston, 41, initially survived the incident and was able to call 911. The Trooper report says Carlston was a passenger in a Ford Bronco driven by Nina Batey, 46 of Salcha. Batey was pulling into Carlston’s driveway when Carlston exited the passenger door and was then run over. Carlston called 911 and Batey went to the home and got Carlston’s roommate, who carried Carlston inside, and a second 911 call was made.

by Channel 2 News staff Friday, March 12, 2010 ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- An Anchorage man has been indicted on murder and manslaughter charges for the death of a cab driver. Lawrence Brewer, 39, was indicted on charges of vehicular homicide for the Jan. 30 death of Dale Pokarney. Brewer is charged with one count of murder in the second degree and one count of manslaughter. The indictment also alleges that Brewer acted with extreme indifference when he killed Pokarney while driving under the influence.

by Megan Baldino Monday, February 01, 2010 ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- An Anchorage father says he is relieved after a jury found his daughter not guilty of manslaughter for a fatal car wreck on the Seward Highway in July of 2008. Josh Jennett called the charges against his daughter, Danielle, ridiculous. It was relief in an Anchorage courtroom Monday afternoon. Danielle Jennett was acquitted of manslaughter in the July 2008 Seward Highway fatal accident that killed her passenger Riley McVitty and the driver of an oncoming pick-up truck, Jeffrey McClure.

by The Associated Press Monday, February 01, 2010 ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- A 27-year-old man has pleaded guilty in the beating death of his girlfriend's 2-year-old daughter, and has been sentenced to 16 years in prison. Alaska State Troopers say Shaka Levshakoff entered his plea in Anchorage Superior Court on Monday. He was charged in the June 24, 2007, death of Anne Marie Nimmo of Whittier. Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters says Levshakoff pleaded guilty to manslaughter and interference to official proceedings.