February 2010
February was a short month, but long on stuff worthy of the ALO website news. Let's start with office news. Three civil cases were settled, the most significant of which was a claim against a local store for a broken leg. A Bethel man fell on a mound of ice at the base of the front steps of a local store, as he departed with a large box. He suffered a badly broken leg for which he was compensated. The second case involved a home fire in Shaktoolik. A family lost all of its belongings and settled its claim against the local Housing Authority. The third settlement involved a group of passengers on a commuter flight to a village on the Yukon River. During the flight, the pilot's door popped open and couldn't be closed. For the duration of the flight, two of the passengers struggled to keep the door partially closed while the pilot flew the plane, creating a panic situation for the passengers.
Dog season continued in February, but the big local event wasn't a race, it was Pete Kaiser's fund raiser. Pete is a young man who has grown up taking part in various Kuskokwim 300 race events, and this year has decided to tackle the Iditarod. The Angstmans are helping to sponsor him, with money and two good dogs. A large crowd showed up at his fund raiser to help with sponsorship. The race starts March 6th in Anchorage, and this article describes the event pretty well.
Speaking of Iditarod, one of Andy's Iditarod dogs died in February. Rudy was a favorite at the Dog Farm, mainly because of his goofy attitude, but also for his ability to keep going when common sense suggested he shouldn't be able to. Rudy had arthritis for the last few years of his life, and had discomfort in his ankles whenever he ran. Several race vets noticed the problem, and suggested he be dropped during a race. He never was, and in fact was always among the most eager to go when the rest stop was over. He led Sarah, Andy and Myron out of Tuluksak on their K300 races, the last one two years ago at age 10. At age 9 he made it all the way to Nome with a gait Andy described as lumbering. Dogs like Rudy are remembered fondly at Old Friendly Dog Farm. Happy Trails.
Minnesota Public Radio did a recent feature on Baldwin Township which had an article about Long Pond Elk Farm. Featured in the photo is the backside of neighbor Dave Price.
ALO webmaster Rich Gannon recently designed another Bethel website, this time for Kuskokwim Wilderness Adventures. Rich lives near Cut Bank, Montana, and the local paper there provides and
Finally, the death of Elya Evan was noted in February. Elya was part of the colorful Stony River Evan family with many connections to the Angstman family. Elya's older brothers Evan and Wassillie helped build the log building which was the Angstman home for many years and is now ALO. Myron went on a number of hunting trips with Evan before he drowned in the Kuskokwim River. Elya helped build the Angstman cabin pictured on the front page of this website. He amazed his co-workers with his outdoor skills and strength. At one point he climbed a sheer rock wall near the cabin just to show that he still could. tending a fire on the beach. The stories of the Evan family would be a big chapter in any book about the Kuskokwim.
January 2010
January is race month in Bethel, and cold temperatures with strong north winds prevailed for most of the month. The wind chills bottomed out at about -65, and that happened Saturday morning on the weekend of the Kuskokwim 300. Myron was racing the Bogus Creek 150 at that time, and he encountered enough problems to withdraw from the race after about 60 miles. The other team from Old Friendly Dog Farm, raced by Mike Parker, took second in that race, winning over $5,000 in the largest payday in years for OFDF.
Two weeks later , her first wins ever as a dog racer. The first win was in the delayed Holiday Classic, a 50 mile race which followed part of the K300 trail. She won that event with a time of 4:12. The next day, the Bethel sprint club sponsored a race over the same trail, and Casie won again with exactly the same team, in the same time. For full results, check k300.org, or become a friend of Kuskokwim 300 on facebook. A good photo spread of all the races can be found on Ian Foulds Flickr page.
ALO resolved two cases in January. One involved a man who suffered a broken finger at the Bethel jail which healed poorly and will likely have to be amputated. The complaint against the jail alleged poor medical care for missing the break in the finger until it started healing. The other settlement involved a potential appeal by a Bethel man who was on the losing end of a recent jury trial. ALO's client sought payment of legal fees from the opponent, which is allowed under Alaska law. The opponent elected to pay a portion of ALO's fees, and agreed to drop any appeal, to end the case.
Another legal case resolved, this one not directly involving ALO. The case against former K300 race manager Staci Gillilan finally moved toward completion as she entered a guilty plea to a felony theft charge. She agreed to pay restitution in an amount yet to be determined to the K300, in addition to any amounts owed to Kilbuck school yearbook purchasers who paid money to her three years ago and also to a trust fund were Gillilan was paid to assist a young girl who was deemed unable to manage her own money. The case against Gillilan dragged on for almost two years before the plea. Sentencing is set for March. Meanwhile she is employed as a legal assistant at the law firm representing her, Power Brown. Some callers to ALO have recognized a form of symmetry in that situation.
Dean Painter of Nulato came to the Dog Farm to help with racing during January and someone dug up a clipping from December of 1978 which tells an interesting story about dog training on the Kuskokwim. a Minnesota weekly paper from Myron's home town. Dean's first name is obviously reported incorrectly, but the rest of the story is fairly accurate.
December 2009
December was a busy month at ALO, with a civil trial in Dillingham, and a couple of settlements. The Dillingham trial was a business dispute concerning the operation of a remote fishing lodge near Togiak. A former owner and the current owner could not agree on the terms of their deal, and a Dillingham judge and jury were asked to sort it out. ALO represents the current owner, and the jury sided with him on most of the issues. Two of the most important issues are still to be decided by the judge.
Meanwhile Matt settled two traffic accident cases in Bethel, both involving ALO clients who were injured in fender benders. A major case involving a death in Mountain Village was also settled. In that case, ALO represented a young man who was convicted of homicide for a shooting in that village. While working on that case, it became apparent that before the shooting, the defendant and his friend had traveled up the Yukon River and purchased a huge amount of liquor at the two package stores operated in the Galena and Nulato area. Neither purchase was legal, in that ALO's client was underage, and the other purchaser had an ID which showed he lived in a dry village. Together, the two men bought more than 80 bottles of hard liquor and the younger man was highly intoxicated when the shooting happened. The murder victim's family contacted ALO and wanted to sue the two liquor stores for their role in the shooting. That case was referred to another law firm which filed suit. ALO's client was brought into the suit as well. One of the liquor stores settled the claim against it recently, and the other store has defaulted, meaning there was no attempt to defend. ALO's client received a settlement for legal fees.
A recent obituary in the Anchorage paper brought back memories of former ALO client Fred Hess. Fred was a traveling handy man and electrician, who worked in western Alaska for many years. He would travel by snow machine or boat and often would stay in a village for weeks or months after his work was finished. On one such trip, Fred boated into Kuskokwim Bay enroute to Quinhagak on the coast. He had a wooden boat, some gear and no radio. Near the mouth of the Kanektok River, Fred's engine quit. To his north and east there was coastline, but to the south and west was the Bering Sea. The wind and current pushed him west. He drifted for days, out of sight of land much of the time. He had meager supplies which were not going to last very long. Fred knew the country well enough to know that he was in big trouble. After a few days of drifting, he saw land ahead. He could see that his current path would either take him to the very southern tip of the landmass, or else he would miss by a bit. He had a paddle on board so he worked hard to move into a position to make land. As he neared the shore, he could see he was going to make it, but the new problem was heavy breakers on a beach that had some boulders. Fred secured his gas can to his body with either tape or rope both for floatation and for fire starter, and stored his matches in a jar inside his coat. The surf busted his boat but he made it to shore. He used driftwood and the remains of his boat to start a fire. He had beached on the southern tip of Nunavak Island, around the first of October. The nearest village was on the far north shore of the island, and there are few visitors. He kept his fire going and waited. After a few days, a US government plane happened by on a late trip to pick up supplies on the island, which was a wildlife refuge. They spotted him and he was rescued. It was their last flight of the season. No one even knew Fred was missing, because no one knew where he was supposed to be. Fred responded to his ordeal with a sort of a shrug, not thinking it was any big deal. The details of the story are recited here from memory, and readers who have more details of the story to report are encouraged to contact ALO.
December was quite the month for weather on the Delta. JoeJoe Prince takes lots of pictures around Bethel and he that deserves publication. Check out JoeJoe's facebook page for dozens of pictures of the area. The month brought two record setting warm days in the mid 40s, which ruined trail conditions for dog training and other winter sports. The records weren't just broken, they were shattered by about 6 or 7 degrees each day. And of course the records were previously set within the past few years. All time record high temps happen often in Bethel, new lows almost never. For much of December, there was no snow at all.
The ALO Christmas party offered a new twist this year. It was catered by Ben and Sarah. The menu was Indian food, and the reviews were spectacular. It wasn't the only gala event for Ben and Sarah last month. They also attended a wedding in San Francisco, which made the internet. Ben's cousin was the groom, and to best appreciate the situation, Google the name Marissa Mayer, who was the bride. Ben was a groomsman, and had several events where urban attire was needed. Ben of course suffers from afashionosis, an affliction common to men living in rural Alaska. It requires serious searching for something suitable to wear when going to events in the big city. Ben was hard pressed enough to visit ALO for possible loaner attire. Several jackets hang in the hallway, ready for court use. Those items didn't fit, so he settled for a sport coat from Lucas Salzbrun. (his only one, purchased by his mother, used once) Ben's relatives who attended the San Francisco wedding will have a chance to compare that event with the upcoming Ben and Sarah wedding on Mission Road in Bethel.
Finally, what Christmas season is complete without the Nutcracker? ALO medical consultant Don Lehmann takes part in Sitka's production of the Nutcracker every year. The director takes certain liberties with the script, and Don usually ends up with a character somewhat modified from the original. Don is a dancer of sorts,
November 2009
Sue and Myron returned to Bethel for Thanksgiving, and were welcomed by a dose of winter. Early cold weather and snow got dog training underway with a bang, and resulted in a three hour run Thanksgiving day. Casie and Mike Parker handled training in October and November, and the dogs are shiny and fast. A busy winter of racing is planned. .
Debbie Fairbanks has always maintained that there is frequent drama in the Angstman family. November's dramatic story happened during deer season in Minnesota. Hunters on our farm noticed a pile of trash in a remote corner of the property which Myron checked out a few days later. Approaching the trash, which was about a mile from the nearest road, a piece of plastic tarp could be seen sticking up a couple feet from the ground. Closer inspection revealed a couple of blankets inside the plastic, all wrapped with strapping tape. The entire package was about 2 feet by 3 feet. A couple of aluminum cans were discarded nearby. The plastic wrapping was somewhat obscured by grass and weeds. All looked routine until the package was kicked, and a bone popped out. More kicks produced more bones. The bones were clearly not deer or elk, but brief inspection could not eliminate the possibility they were from a human, especially considering the circumstances.
Sue was consulted, and of course, emails to Alaska followed. Debbie was convinced that human remains had been discovered. After some debate, the police were called. A long golf cart ride allowed the county cop to inspect the scene. He needed back up, and another cop was called. Finally an investigator with suit and tie was summoned (think CSI) The final decision: pig bones. No one, including the cops, could guess why anyone would go to the trouble of packaging pig bones and carrying them to such a remote location.
Another animal suffered a similar fate on the elk farm. A coyote managed to enter the elk pen, where the cows promptly stomped it to death. The elk are very fussy about predator visits. Henry the dog once escaped death by an inch or two when a cow stomped his head, knocking him out. Several elk have shown a desire to stomp Tanner, who races around the outside of the pen taunting them. An occasional Canadian honker gets stomped, just for practice.
A common complaint at ALO is the bad press the Bethel area receives in statewide press, and even national publications. It is commonly believed that Bethel is an awful place. Frequently Anchorage folks impolitely inquire of Bethel folks how anyone could stand to live in such a place. A reasonable response to such a question is "How could anyone stand to marry your mother?" Occasionally a local story comes along that challenges the notion that Bethel is such an awful place. Rick and Kathy Hanson, long time members of the OFDF softball team, have managed to raise a couple of lively kids in Bethel. .
Andy got a chance to hone his skill as a play by play announcer recently during the Alaska Shootout. He called the men's championship game for the UAA radio station which can be heard online. He will continue to call games throughout the winter. Of course he got his start doing radio for Bethel basketball on KYUK and later hosted a call-in variety show along with Colin McDonald and others. Finally, some office news.
Matt settled a car accident claim for a Bethel woman who was injured in a cab crash. He also secured a dismissal of a felony assault charge from the village of Koliginek, filed in the Dillingham court.
October 2009
Minnesota weather was rude to the Angstmans upon their arrival in Princeton Oct 1st. Cold wet weather was common all month, a significant change from the warm dry fall weather that is typical for the recent past. Because much of the farm activity is outdoors, the weather stalled some of the fun that takes place at Long Pond Elk Farm. All was not lost, however. Webmaster Rich Gannon brought his family to the farm via the Amtrak which stops at the Gannon hometown of Cutbank, Montana, and also stops at St. Cloud, 30 miles from Princeton. Never mind that arrival time is about 5:30 a.m. As usual. Jen documented the Former ALO employee Jane Imholte and her escort John spent one of those days with us on the farm, and tried her hand at
Wildlife is always the focus of the farm stay, and this year the highlight was a flock of trumpeter swans that staged on Long Pond, right in front of the cabin for a couple of weeks. The flock numbered as many as 30, with 17 present most days. Trumpeters were market hunted to extinction in Minnesota, but were reintroduced recently and are doing well. They certainly dress up a pond. A great horned owl made several appearances, and deer and pheasants were abundant. The farm has numerous walking trails, and when the weather cooperates, it is a daily event.
On the way to Minnesota, the Angstmans spent a short time in Anchorage and met up with Bob and Mary Reardon, who had just left their Takotna cabin on the way back to Great Falls. Mary had entertained her twin grandkids at the cabin and introduced them to the joys of a Leaving Alaska was a little more hectic than usual. Minnesota visitor Dave Price traveled with Myron and Andy by float plane from Bethel to Anchorage, and the flight had to be moved up a day because of an approaching storm. In a hurry to close up the cabin. Myron left behind his hearing aids. The cabin was sealed up with plywood over the doors and windows for bear protection, and the float plane season was about over, so there was not much chance to get them until ski plane season. But former Bethelite Sue Flensburg from Dillingham saved the day by making a float plane trip to the cabin on a beautiful fall day and sent them to Minnesota. Andy made use of the float plane in Anchorage to obtain a float rating to go along with his wheel rating earned over the summer.
Speaking of Dillingham, Matt secured a not guilty verdict from a jury in Dillingham on a drunk driving and refusal case. Such cases are hard to win as there are not many excuses for refusing a breath test. Matt runs the office in October and November, and he had his hands full for a few days with employee illnesses, but the addition of legal intern Mike Eshleman has helped greatly. Mike comes from Ohio, where he is a licensed lawyer.
Three civil settlements were obtained, one involving a wrongful death case for a Bethel man who died from a heart attack after using a powerful pain medication which was later found to increase the risk of heart attack. Another case involved a Kotzebue lady who injured her knee in a fall on the icy court house steps, where she worked. Finally ALO settled a case for a Bethel woman who was unhappy with her previous lawyers, switched to ALO and got a settlement within a month.
Two motions for new trial were filed in the double wrongful death case involving a Bethel tug boat owner represented by ALO (reported earlier). The judge wasted little time in rejecting the motions, noting that there was ample evidence to support the jury's verdict. Some cases seem to last forever, and this case might be one of them. An appeal has been promised by the losing parties.
September 2009
September's report comes from the elk farm, where cool rainy weather greeted Sue and Myron in the first week of October. September was typically hectic, with out of state visitors, family outings, winter preparations, cabin work, and a hurried get away to Minnesota. That trip, which started with a float plane ride to Anchorage, had to be advanced one day because of approaching bad weather. Myron, Andy and Dave Price beat the weather by a few hours and had a gorgeous flight through the Alaska Range to Lake Hood. The plane stayed there for Andy to obtain his float rating during October to go along with his wheel rating which he got earlier in the summer.
The cabin got sealed up for the year but not before a number of September visits. One trip involved Zach Fairbanks doing a bit of painting and while he was there the bears were thick. One morning he left the cabin at dawn and paddled the canoe a few hundred yards up the bay where he bumped into seven bears at one time. That was the most in one sighting, but there were numerous sightings of three or four at a time. Sue stayed at the cabin alone for two days with numerous bears near by, thus earning the name Grizzly Lady from her friends in Bethel. It was determined that Tanner, in addition to his skill as a pheasant dog, also has talent as a fish retriever. On one occasion, he fetched seven dead salmon and stacked them on the beach quite proudly. He also tried to catch live ones along shore, without any luck so far.
Some moose hunting took place, without success, but Ben and Sarah managed to get a caribou. September fishing was excellent with lake trout and dolly varden the main focus. During one trip across Chauekuktuli, it was learned that the lake is at least 800 feet deep. The fall colors were glorious this year because of an early light frost followed by fairly warm weather for several weeks. An interesting online article about the Wood-Tikchik State Park will give a reader more insight into this area.
Web designer Rich Gannon had an interesting September outing worth noting. He and his family were hiking in Glacier National Park when a bighorn sheep approached on the same trail. It got fairly Rich did a new website for his cousin and former Bethel guy Don Rearden. Don is a writer, among other skills. One of his early non-fiction pieces involved a memorable night at Slate Lake near the Angstman cabin site east of Bethel.
Legal stuff managed to get done as well. Two civil cases settled, one involving the loss of two teeth by a grade school student in Dillingham which resulted in a settlement with the school district. The other was a wrongful death case which involved a car accident near Princeton, Minnesota which produced a settlement for the surviving family. Numerous criminal cases were resolved, including one in Fairbanks involving a professional football player charged with theft of gift cards from a local store. He received a sentence which will allow him to clear his record if he completes his probationary period without additional problems. Matt obtained dismissal of a felony charge in Dillingham, and obtained a reduction of several felony charges to a misdemeanor for a Manakotak man.
Finally, does anyone see the humor in this video clip?
August 2009
Last month'ss news of the wrongful death trial of two intoxicated men generated more response than normal for ALO. Every response questioned how such a case made its way to the point where a jury had to sit for two and a half weeks to make its decision. In fact, the case was one that probably should never have been filed. At least one local attorney refused to take the case, noting the intoxication of the drowned men and the fact there was no evidence of how they ended up in the river. A summary judgment motion was filed, asking the court to find there was insufficient evidence to go forward with the trial, but that motion was denied. It takes very little evidence to survive summary judgment, but of course ALO believes that motion was incorrectly decided. Regardless, such a case is expensive to litigate, and hard to win for the families of the deceased.
Another trial happened a couple of weeks after the boat case, this time involving a car accident with peculiar facts. This time Power Brown represented a cab driver who claimed he was injured when an ALO client backed into his cab in a housing parking lot. ALO's client claimed she looked behind her as she backed out of her parking spot next to her house. The cab was making a delivery of a person to the house next door, and for unexplained reasons ended up stopping at the wrong place just as the parked truck started backing. The resulting impact created a dent a few inches wide in the fender of the cab, about an inch deep. The driver said the impact caused neck and shoulder pain and headaches, which resulted in about $2500 worth of chiropractic care. ALO challenged several parts of the case, including whether or not the cab intentionally pulled behind the backing vehicle, whether there was enough impact to cause any injury, and whether the chiropractic care was needed or properly priced. The jury found there was negligence, but that the negligence was not a factor in any injury suffered by the cab driver. ALO called this a phony case, and apparently the jury agreed.
ALO also settled some civil cases in August, including a case involving a serious hand injury on a boat docking at Dutch Harbor. In that case, the seaman settled an earlier claim against the boat owner, and this time settled the remaining claim against the dock owner. The seaman lost part of his hand in the accident, when the boat hit the dock while parking because of a broken pier. Another settlement involved a broken ankle suffered at the entrance to a Bethel apartment building, and a third settlement involved a head on car crash on the lake road near Dillingham. In that case, a woman visiting from out of state suffered a head injury when another driver pulled across the road to make a turn directly into the path of her car.
With all that legal activity, there was still time for fun. Pike fishing has been an Angstman family activity for many years. This including Myron's Dad (the youngest) in about 1910 with a stringer of pike from Sandy Lake near the Angstman farm. In 1950, in central Minnesota. in 1990 on the Innoko River north of Bethel. Finally, Ben, Andy and Myron took advantage of good August weather to visit the Innoko on a work day and came away with in three hours of fishing in one spot. The location of that spot remains a family secret. The invention of the trail camera, which snaps photos of wildlife at remote locations, is one of the best ideas yet for people who love to view animals. John McDonald of Bethel uses his on the Kisaralik River near his family's fish camp. who wandered by. A trail camera on the elk farm in Minnesota.
Here is a,
July 2009
This month’s news is a bit late because of a long trial which started in July and spilled over to August. The trial involved wrongful death claims against ALO client Faulkner Walsh Constructors and the City of Bethel, represented by Bill Ingaldson. Bill is a Minnesota native with whom ALO has tried three cases in the past couple of years.
After two and one half weeks of trial, the jury voted 12-0 against the families who were seeking damages for the deaths. The deceased, Nick Kameroff, Sr. of Aniak and Roy Wolkoff, Sr. from the Kodiak area, were employees of FW, and drowned in the Kuskokwim river in front of Bethel after an evening of drinking. They were found with a high level of alcohol in their blood, and were reported to be fairly drunk to very drunk by witnesses who saw them that night. They were dropped near the tugboat Warhorse at about 11:30 pm by a cab driver, who last saw them approaching the seawall where the boat was moored. They were found a few days later by search and rescue volunteers who dragged the river near where they were last seen.
The plaintiffs were represented by Power Brown of Bethel, who claimed FW should pay because of the lack of a proper means to get on and off the boat. The City of Bethel was blamed for having a poorly maintained seawall. After a few hours of deliberation, the jury rejected those claims.
Alcohol was the main focus of the trial. The families argued the men were not that drunk, but early on they agreed they would accept their share of the blame for the deaths. With little evidence to show how the men actually fell in the water, the plaintiffs had a tough case from the start.
Trying a case with Bill Ingaldson is always a treat. He carries with him through trial a sense of humor which makes an otherwise stressful period of time much more pleasant. He also has a court room style which nicely contrasts with that of ALO, and is quick minded during trial, which is an essential tool for anyone hoping to win.
Winning a major piece of litigation gives everyone involved a big boost. Unfortunately, other jury trials are set for the near future so little time is allowed to relax after this verdict. During trial ALO expressed its understanding of the families’ desire to blame someone else for the death of their husbands and fathers. But it was also mentioned that bringing suit against others when it is obvious that booze was the cause of the deaths is not fair. Apparently the jury agreed.
June 2009
June was spent mostly at the elk farm in Minnesota. A side trip to watch the Minnesota Twins play the Cubs at Wrigley Field was highly entertaining. Minnesota fans numbered about 4-5,000 and were louder than the Cub fans in attendance. A vendor said he had never seen that happen before at Wrigley. A chance to see Joe Mauer, on his way to becoming the greatest catcher ever, was worth the seven hour drive. When he homered it was even better.
Another ball game, this time at the Metrodome in Minneapolis had special significance as well. In what was likely the Angstman’s last trip to the Dome, second row seats behind the dugout allowed a chance to overhear conversation at the open end of the dugout where players wait to enter the on deck circle. The Twins move to a new outdoor stadium next year.
Baseball has a long history in the Angstman family. Jacob and Emma Angstman moved to what is now Long Pond Elk Farm in 1904 by horse and wagon, arriving with all their equipment, livestock and household goods, along with 13 children. There were 11 boys, and they soon established a baseball team that played some of their games in the pasture behind the barn. This after a July 4th game in Orrock near Princeton. In later years, the brothers recalled that they never lost a game, but upon cross examination revealed that they actually might not have won a game. The team picture dates from 1913.
A more recent ball team photo is from the Bethel Fourth of July tourney where the won the championship. Missing from the photo is part time player Myron, who spent the holiday at the family lake cabin.
The Kuskowkim River float by Ben, Casie and Jane was successful. Ben submitted photo evidence of the wonderful . The floaters missed seeing this river scene however. A plane crashed at an upriver strip, and the owner decided to for the trip back to Aniak for repairs.
An Angstman family gathering in Fresno featured hot weather. The invitation mentioned semi-formal attire, which posed a problem for some family members who are formally challenged. Here’s how the up in 110 degree temps.
Of course, the law office has to remain open to fund these adventures. ALO settled a claim brought by three members of a Bristol Bay family that was involved in an auto accident in Anchorage. The family agreed to split $90,000. Much of June was spent preparing for a trial which starts in late July involving the death of two men who drowned in the Kuskokwim. Both were drinking, but blame the city for having an unsafe dock and the boat owner for having an unsafe boat.
May 2009
Angstman Law Office south is active for the month of June on the elk farm in Minnesota. Of course, the fax machine doesn’t work, and there are printer problems as well. Tech support for Hewlett Packard is in India, and they want slightly more than the value of a new printer to discuss, in broken English, the problem with the current machine. Having tech support overseas is excellent strategy, because it prevents irate customers from invading the office with their broken machines.
Back when the technology was working better in May, ALO settled an airplane crash case out of Aniak. Three clients were passengers on an aircraft that lost power shortly after takeoff and landed roughly on a Kuskokwim River sandbar. One lady broke a finger, the other two were bumped and bruised in the landing. They shared a $60,000 settlement.
A Teller client settled a claim against the Federal government for medical malpractice after she had a growth removed from her arm. The doctor cut in the wrong place, requiring a second operation. The case settled for an undisclosed amount. Sometimes one party or the other requests the amount of a settlement be kept confidential. ALO honors those requests. When it is a mandatory term of the settlement, failure to comply could result in further litigation.
ALO helped another client who was unhappy with the work of a previous attorney. A claim was filed with the Alaska Bar Association to seek return of a portion of the fees paid in a criminal case. The attorney agreed to return half of the fee before the case was heard by the Bar. Fee arbitration is a service available to any person who feels an Alaska attorney did not charge the proper fee in a case. It is free of charge, and can be done over the phone. The claimant need not have an attorney help with the arbitration, but may use one if desired.
Pictures of the Bethel flood were posted on this site earlier. This year’s flood was fairly high but Bethel dodged a bullet when the ice failed to jam below town. The water was running very high during May because of a large snow fall in the upriver drainages and a late rapid thaw. Some Kuskokwim villages were hit hard, including Aniak and Akiak, when the ice jammed near those villages. Bethel was poised for one of its worst floods but the ice flowed fairly smoothly from Bethel on down.
Ben Kuntz, Jane Imholte and Casie Stockdale decided to float the river from McGrath to Bethel shortly after the flood receded. Their trip should end June 8th or 9th. Ben and Casie are well known to readers of this page, and Jane is a former attorney at ALO now working in Minneapolis. Watch this site for photos soon, with stories next month.
Myron and Sue are off to Chicago with former Bethel residents Dan and Sharon Boyette this week to watch the Minnesota Twins play the Cubs at Wrigley Field. On their return, there is a stop planned at Madison, Wisconsin to visit former ALO attorney Cathy Connolly and Rich Trotto. Rich is famous in Bethel for many things, and this story explains why. When their daughter Nina was a baby, Rich was left in charge one day when Nina needed some medicine applied every few hours by syringe. Most old time Bethelites remember Rich as a recreational dog musher. Of course he kept the usual dog medications around the house. When Cathy returned home to check on her daughter, she inquired about the medication. Rich proudly declared he had administered the dosage on schedule. It was time for another dose, so Cathy gathered the medicine and the syringe, but there was something wrong—the syringe was the wrong color. Rich had used the wrong syringe---the one he normally used to administer wormer to his dogs. It still had the residue of several previous wormings stuck to the plastic sides. To his credit, Rich reported his error to his buddies. One follow up report to that story, Nina now attends Whitman College in Washington State and has never had a worm infection.
April 2009
Property loss settlements dominated the news at ALO in April. The biggest such claim was a vehicle accident in Aniak, where a small truck driven by a drunk driver slammed into a parked fuel truck containing close to 5,000 gallons of diesel fuel. No one was injured in the crash. The driver’s insurance paid an amount calculated to be the fair market value of the fuel truck plus freight, because the truck was totaled. ALO’s client pointed out that the truck was about 15 years old with a total of less than 3,000 miles, driven about once or twice a week for a mile or two. With good up-keep, the fuel truck would likely last for a very long time and was worth more than most 15 year old trucks. It was also argued that the replacement truck would not have increased value in Aniak because there was no chance of reselling such a vehicle in a small bush town. The case was settled a few weeks before trial for $90,000, the original demand.
Two other cases also settled, one a residential fire case in Shaktoolik against the local electric utility for $20,000, leaving intact a companion case against the regional housing authority. The other settlement involved damage to a rental unit in Togiak for which a contractor paid $15,000.
April was one of the biggest months in a long time for newly opened files at ALO. It was also the month when ALO dropped all newspaper advertising in Bethel. This was done because of the ever escalating ad wars in this community. Of course, attorney ads are controversial, after being forbidden for many years nationwide. Now such ads are allowed in Alaska, but with some regulation by the Bar Association. It is clear that large colorful ads attract business, especially for a firm that might not get business any other way. But ALO seems to get enough business without such ads, and prefers to have clients who select their attorney based on past performance rather than color photos. Grant Fairbanks has frequently offered to prepare an appropriate ALO ad, which would spoof the local ads he reads every week. Maybe one of Grant’s ads will appear on this webpage someday.
There were two correct guesses in last month’s trivia quiz. Dean Painter was the training partner. Rich Gannon and Bob Rearden guessed right, but of course there was a juicy hint in the story. Three upriver guys helped out during that first Iditarod year, and all three are still around. In addition to Dean, James Nicholas and Nathan Underwood helped train and feed dogs at times.
The pictures of the successful ski trip to the mountains were posted earlier, and as a result of that trip a major expedition by dogs is planned for next March. ALO is seeking volunteer snow machine drivers to break trail and already Greg Ponsness has expressed interest. He is married to ALO employee Amy, and is an avid outdoorsman. His biggest claim to fame, though, is his connection to a company which was featured on the TV show Dirtiest Jobs. His parents run Forked Tree Ranch in Idaho. They recently visited ALO and identified website forkedtreeranch.com where the viewer learns that money can be made selling maggots.
Finally, marathon runners often speak of “hitting the wall” at about the 22 mile mark in a race. This dog video reveals that it can happen in a much shorter race.
March 2009
A late winter kept the dog season alive into April once again this year. Old Friendly Dog Farm raced in numerous events, winning the Aniak 150 with Dean Painter on the sled and finishing second in two shorter races in Bethel with Casie Stockdale driving. She also got third, five seconds out of second, in a 120 mile race in Akiak. But dogs are not just for racing. The favorite pictures of the month come from recreational mushing, featuring Mary,
There were other outdoor adventures as well. Tomas Israelsson and Eric Whitney attempted a trip to the Angstman cabin 100 miles east, Tomas on skis and Eric with a snow machine. The route took them through Heart Lake pass, and a descent of Milk Creek, always considered an obstacle to winter travel. They made it through, just barely according to Tomas, and could not have made it back with a snow machine because of the steep down grades they would have encountered going the other direction. A daring supply drop was accomplished at about the halfway point when it was determined that Eric forgot his sleeping pad and pillow. Casie Stockdale took some photos of the airplane trip, one showing their camp (). The pair carried a tracking device which was activated each evening to send an email to various folks watching the progress. Here is a link to their location at the cabin via their tracking device on Google Maps.
All play and no work doesn’t pay for dog food or airplane gas , however, so legal work had to continue. Matt obtained a dismissal of a Dillingham criminal case involving possession of a controlled substance. Matt argued that there was insufficient evidence presented in front of the grand jury to support the indictment. The Dillingham judge agreed, and issue this order, which is highly unusual. (Download .pdf Order)
Bethel historical trivia has been featured on these pages in the past with good response. This question comes from Dec. 1st, 1978. On that day Myron Angstman and a partner were training a team of dogs for the 1979 Iditarod north of Bethel near the Gweek River. It was a late winter with travel on the river not starting until mid-November with little snow. The team of dogs was turned into a slough off the Kuskokwim, following a faint snow machine track. At one point, the track turned up a steep bank, but the team stayed on the ice. A little further down the slough the ice starting buckling. Both riders bailed off the sled and crawled back toward safer ice. Just then a plane flew by and spotted the two crawlers on the ice, and circled twice. Thinking rescue was soon to happen, the crawlers waited on the ice. As dusk descended, the sound of an approaching helicopter encouraged the pair. It took a while for the chopper to find the spot, but the troopers eventually rescued both and soon the statewide newspapers and Alaska magazine carried the story. Who was the partner?
February 2009
A recent jury verdict tops the February news. Of course it wouldn’t be on top if our side had lost. This case involved two falls in the Pilot Station native store. We represented the store, and Michele Power represented the plaintiffs, all members of the Greene family from Pilot Station. Charlie Greene, who has weighed around 275-280 for the past several years claims he fell once on a wet floor and once on a few plastic straps that were on the floor of the store room. In the first fall, in 2006, he said he injured his right knee and in the second fall his left knee. His medical records proved to be his undoing. They showed no reference to any fall in the store, and showed that he complained of left knee pain from 2006 which he twice blamed on falls while playing basketball, which he continued to play after being advised not to. He even argued with his physical therapist about whether he had been treated for his left or right knee for the past year, when all records said left knee.
At trial evidence revealed that the Greene family had three other recent lawsuits, including two that were falls, one of which was another claim against the Native store for injuries suffered by a seven year old who fell and bruised his leg. Mrs. Greene said the bruise lasted two days. Greene testified at his deposition that he gained 50 pounds as a result of the falls, which was disproved by his records. He also admitted earlier that he saw both the wet floor and the plastic straps before he fell. In short it was the type of case that gives trial lawyers a bad name.
This was the first trial where Myron opposed his former employee of ten years who left in 2005 without notice, taking many files with her. Winning is always better than losing, but some wins are better than others.
ALO also settled a claim against a local air carrier. It was an unusual case involving no accident or physical injuries. Three ladies from a Yukon River village were flying to Bethel on a small plane which took off normally. Shortly after it became apparent to them that there was a problem. The airplane could not climb, and instead kept creeping closer and closer to the ground. All three could see the pilot attempting to adjust the controls to gain altitude, but they estimated they were clearing the tundra by about 10 feet for several minutes. The ladies assumed the crash position, and all thought they would surely die if they lost any more altitude. After many minutes, the problem was resolved and the flight continued without incident. In Alaska, extreme fright created by a life threatening incident is sufficient to create a legal claim, if a reasonable person would have that reaction. Here, there was little doubt that the passengers were justified in their belief that they were about to crash and die, and they were able to settle their cases for $12,500 each without filing a law suit.
Alaska weather has been stormy, resulting in deep snow and bad flying conditions. The Old Friendly dog team was headed to Unalakleet to defend its title won last vear by Dean Painter, but had to turn back twice for weather. Lucky thing too, because since that time (10 days ago) no light plane flights have been possible back to Bethel.
Two pictures make the cut for this month’s news page. Bethel’s Jeremiah Klejka used two dogs from OFDF to compete in the Junior Iditarod last week. He finished ninth as a rookie. This shot shows him shortly after the start near Willow. The other picture taken by Don Rearden, who commutes from his home high on the Anchorage hillside to UAA every day. He says there were four lynx along the road but he only got three in this photo.
January 2009
January is Kuskokwim 300 month at ALO. This year that had added significance as Myron was co-race manager along with other duties involving the race (board member, racer, fan, host, etc). Weather played a typical role this year, forcing two delays in the race start because of thawing conditions. A freak wind hit during one of the delays, and the committee scrambled to find a decent route. The race happened, and the two ALO teams, raced by Myron and Casie Stockdale, both finished the Bogus creek 150. These pictures reveal that old guys look better before racing all night than they do after. See k300.org for details.
More racing happens in February and March. Be sure to keep an eye on Bethel’s Pete Kaiser in upcoming races. The 21 year old son of ALO friends Ron and Janet Kaiser finished a strong 5th in the 300 and won rookie of the year, and followed that up with a 4th place finish in the Tustumena 200. Old Friendly Dog farm is helping Pete with some loaner dogs for racing, so his success brings added excitement to ALO.
ALO was involved in a major civil case in Anchorage which included sex and drugs. It concluded recently after many years of litigation, but the results are confidential.
ALO handled its first medical marijuana case recently in Dillingham. A middle aged man from that town was convicted of a felony for possession of a significant quantity of pot plants. He tried to represent himself, with poor background help from a person who was not a lawyer. Even though the man was entitled to a medical marijuana card for a chronic illness, he had never obtained one until after he was busted. He presented the card at his sentencing, and ALO argued for a suspended imposition of sentence which would allow the man to keep a clean record without any jail time. The judge agreed and the case ended well.
Another major case, this one involving the massive Hooper Bay fire, also resolved. Judge Leonard Devaney issued the attached summary judgment opinion. Download that document here. . ALO represent the Lower Yukon School District. LYSD was sued after the school burned in an incident where children started a fire under the school while playing with matches. Many nearby houses also burned, and those folks blamed the school for not taking steps to prevent the kids from playing under the school. The fire was started in the wee hours, during the summer when school was not in session. The plaintiffs have requested reconsideration of the order ending the case.
A quick trip to wine country in late January went less smooth than hoped. Flight snafus on both ends of the trip made for a lot of airport time, but still 70 degree temps in Sonoma, California were a nice break from the below zero temps common this winter in Bethel. No wonder Jack London retreated there during his breaks from the Klondike gold fields. His former farm, now a park, made for a great afternoon tour.