Terms Used In Alaska Statutes > Title 12 > Chapter 62 > Article 1 - Criminal Justice Information

• Acquittal:
  1. Judgement that a criminal defendant has not been proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
  2. A verdict of "not guilty."
   
• action: includes any matter or proceeding in a court, civil or criminal. See Alaska Statutes 01.10.060
• Adjourn: A motion to adjourn a legislative chamber or a committee, if passed, ends that day's session.
• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Annuity: A periodic (usually annual) payment of a fixed sum of money for either the life of the recipient or for a fixed number of years. A series of payments under a contract from an insurance company, a trust company, or an individual. Annuity payments are made at regular intervals over a period of more than one full year.
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
• Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
• Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• average annual wage: means the amount determined by dividing the total wages paid by covered employers during a 12-month period by the average monthly employment reported by covered employers for the same period. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• Bail: Security given for the release of a criminal defendant or witness from legal custody (usually in the form of money) to secure his/her appearance on the day and time appointed.
• Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may discharge their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings.
• base period: means the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters immediately preceding the first day of an individual's benefit year, except that, if an individual would not otherwise be eligible for unemployment compensation because of the use of a base period that does not include the most recently completed calendar quarter immediately preceding the first day of an individual's benefit year, "base period" means, and eligibility shall be determined using, the four most recently completed calendar quarters before the start of the benefit year. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• benefit year: means a period of 52 consecutive weeks beginning at 12:00 a. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• benefits: means the money payments payable to an individual, as provided in this chapter with respect to the individual's unemployment. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• Bequest: Property gifted by will.
• calendar quarter: means the period of three consecutive calendar months ending March 31, June 30, September 30, or December 31. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• claimant: means an individual who has filed a request for a determination of insured status, a notice of unemployment, a certification for waiting-week credit, or a claim for benefits. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. ^Source:
• employer: means (A) an employing unit which for some portion of a day within the calendar year has or had in employment one or more individuals. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• employing unit: means one or more departments or other agencies of the state, a political subdivision of the state, a federally recognized tribe, an individual, or a type of organization, partnership, association, trust, estate, joint trust company, insurance company, or domestic or foreign corporation, or the receiver, referee in bankruptcy, trustee, or successor of one of these, or the legal representative of a deceased person, that has or had one or more individuals performing service for it in the state. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• employment: includes services described in this subparagraph and (A) of this paragraph only if
  (i) the contract of service contemplates that substantially all of the services are to be performed personally by the individual. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.525
• employment office: means a free public employment office or branch of one operated by this state or another state or territory as a part of a state-controlled system of public employment offices or by a federal agency or an agency of a foreign government charged with the administration of an unemployment insurance program or of free public employment offices. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
• Executor: A male person named in a will to carry out the decedent
• Extradition: The formal process of delivering an accused or convicted person from authorities in one state to authorities in another state.
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• Foreclosure: A legal process in which property that is collateral or security for a loan may be sold to help repay the loan when the loan is in default. ^{Source: OCC}
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• fund: means the unemployment compensation fund established by this chapter. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• Garnishment: Generally, garnishment is a court proceeding in which a creditor asks a court to order a third party who owes money to the debtor or otherwise holds assets belonging to the debtor to turn over to the creditor any of the debtor
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Grand jury: agreement providing that a lender will delay exercising its rights (in the case of a mortgage,
• Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
• insured worker: means an individual who, with respect to a base period, meets the wage and employment requirements of Alaska Stat. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Juror: A person who is on the jury.
• Legislative session: That part of a chamber's daily session in which it considers legislative business (bills, resolutions, and actions related thereto).
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• month: means a calendar month unless otherwise expressed. See Alaska Statutes 01.10.060
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• peace officer: means
  (A) an officer of the state troopers. See Alaska Statutes 01.10.060
• person: includes a corporation, company, partnership, firm, association, organization, business trust, or society, as well as a natural person. See Alaska Statutes 01.10.060
• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• Probate: Proving a will
• Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
• property: includes real and personal property. See Alaska Statutes 01.10.060
• Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Recess: A temporary interruption of the legislative business.
• Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
• Restitution: The court-ordered payment of money by the defendant to the victim for damages caused by the criminal action.
• state: means the State of Alaska unless applied to the different parts of the United States and in the latter case it includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Alaska Statutes 01.10.060
• state: includes the states of the United States of America, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• temporary: means a period of less than seven continuous days. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.526
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Transcript: A written, word-for-word record of what was said, either in a proceeding such as a trial or during some other conversation, as in a transcript of a hearing or oral deposition.
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• vocational training or retraining course: means a course of vocational or technical training or retraining in schools or classes, including field or laboratory work and related remedial or academic instruction, which is conducted as a program designed to prepare individuals for employment in trades, skills, or crafts. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• wages: means all remuneration for service from whatever source, including insured work, noninsured work, or self-employment. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.530
• waiting week: means the first week of unemployment for which an individual files a claim during the individual's benefit year and for which no disqualification is imposed under Alaska Stat. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• week: means the period of seven consecutive days which the department may by regulations prescribe. See Alaska Statutes 23.20.520
• writing: includes printing. See Alaska Statutes 01.10.060