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In the aftermath of Brian Smith’s Anchorage murder trial, there are mixed emotions for the families and advocates of the two Alaska Native women he killed.
Rhonda McBride from our flagship station KNBA reports, the trial may be over but the need for change remains.
It took the jury less than two hours to convict Brian Smith on all 14 counts in the deaths of Kathleen Henry and Veronica Abouchuk.
Both women were from small coastal villages.
They battled addiction and struggled to survive on the streets of Anchorage – vulnerabilities, prosecutors say, Smith preyed upon.
Abouchuk’s sister Margie Lestenkoff says the unusually quick verdict came as a relief.
“It was pretty hard on all of us, but we tried to be strong in our hearts, but it still it hurts a lot. But we’re happy that the trial went through and all the evidence were found.”
Evidence that was overwhelming, much of it focused on an SD card with footage that gave police the key to the case.
It was labeled “Homicide at midtown Marriot,” turned in by a sex worker, who stole the killer’s cell phone and copied footage of Kathleen Henry’s last tortured moments alive.
Only the jury, attorneys, and court staff saw the footage, but everyone in the whole room heard the sound.Golda Ingram, an advocate for Victims for Justice, said nothing in her experience prepared her for the trauma.
“It was just sitting there, hearing the gasping for air – and, ‘You die. You live.’ It’s like he’s sitting there, and he’s proud of listening what he did. That was kind of a wake-up moment for me.”
But Ingram said it was healing to spend time with the Abouchuk family, as they quietly supported each other.
She said their kindness and perseverance helped to restore the dignity of the victims.
Lestenkof says it was only fitting.
“Veronica was a real nice person. She never cussed, didn’t have a mean bone in her soul.”
Abouchuk’s daughter Kristy Grimaldi says her mother’s troubles began when she was molested by a priest as a child.
“I learned that much older, but after that I looked at my mother very differently, (with) understanding and compassion for her.”
Grimaldi’s younger brother Sean Hinson says, all too often, Native families have loved ones gone missing and murdered.
“We’re one piece of that puzzle. Everyone has their own piece. You never know what someone is going through and what baggage they’re carrying.”
Advocates for Missing and Murdered Indigenous People say the deaths of the two women forced the community to confront the horror of racial violence.
The next step, they say, is to do something about it.
The 52nd running of the Iditarod gets underway this weekend, with the ceremonial start in downtown Anchorage Saturday, as Rhonda McBride reports.
The 1,000-mile race to Nome officially gets underway in Willow on Sunday.
Last year, the top three finishers were all Alaska Native.
AFN keynote speaker Ryan Redington.
Ryan Redington, an Inupiat with roots in Unalakleet, is the defending champ. His grandfather, Joe Redington, was one of the founders of the Iditarod.
Also returning is Pete Kaiser, a Yup’ik from Bethel who took first place in 2019.
Last year’s third place finisher Richie Diehl, an Athabascan from Aniak, did not enter this year’s Iditarod, although he’s been helping Kaiser with his team.
The race alternates between a southern and northern route.
This year, 38 mushers are set to run the northern route.
The race in recent years has averaged less than nine days to finish.
U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm announced funding for projects on tribal lands, during her remarks at the Tribal Clean Energy Summit held this week in California, as the Mountain West News Bureau reports.
Some include solar projects with the Navajo Nation and Hopi Tribe in the Southwest – and a hydro-solar project with the Yakama Nation in Washington state, where solar panels will be positioned over irrigation canals preserving environmental and cultural resources.
Granholm announced more than $200 million in funding for 12 tribal projects.
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