AK POST flashcards
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32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- Probable cause
- Facts and circumstances that would lead a reasonable officer to believe an offense has been committed or evidence will be found in a particular place.
- Reasonable suspicion
- Specific and articulable facts suggesting criminal activity is afoot, justifying a brief investigative detention short of arrest.
- Miranda custody
- Custody exists when a reasonable person would not feel free to leave; interrogation plus custody triggers the warning requirement.
- Exclusionary rule
- Evidence obtained through unconstitutional searches or seizures may be suppressed, and Alaska courts may apply independent state grounds.
- Alaska Constitution Article I
- The Declaration of Rights section containing due process, privacy, counsel, and speech protections that constrain state criminal enforcement.
- Right to privacy
- Alaska Constitution article I, section 22 protects personal autonomy and has been read more broadly than the federal privacy doctrine.
- Alaska Statutes titles
- The codified state laws organized by title, with criminal law in AS 11, procedure in AS 12, and vehicles in AS 28.
- Implied consent
- A driver lawfully arrested for DUI must submit to a chemical test or face license revocation and evidentiary consequences.
- Traffic stop standard
- A traffic stop is a seizure requiring reasonable suspicion of a violation, which may arise from any observed vehicle code infraction.
- Actual physical control
- A DUI element meaning the person was in a position to operate the vehicle, even if it was not moving at the time.
- Inventory search
- A warrantless search of a lawfully impounded vehicle conducted under standardized departmental policy to protect property and officer safety.
- Reactionary gap
- The distance maintained from a subject to allow time to perceive and respond to a sudden attack.
- Contact and cover
- A two-officer tactic in which one officer communicates with the subject while the other watches for threats.
- Officer-created jeopardy
- Risk created by an officer's tactical choices, which courts may consider when evaluating the reasonableness of force.
- Chain of custody
- The documented record of every transfer and location of evidence from collection through trial, supporting authenticity.
- Hearsay
- An out-of-court statement offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted, generally inadmissible unless an exception applies.
- Best evidence rule
- The original writing, recording, or photograph is required to prove its contents unless a recognized exception applies.
- Excited utterance
- A statement made while the declarant was under the stress of a startling event, admissible as a hearsay exception.
- Objective reasonableness
- The force standard asking whether a reasonable officer, facing the same circumstances, would have used similar force.
- Graham factors
- Severity of the crime, immediate threat to safety, and active resistance or flight, used to judge force reasonableness.
- Deadly force
- Force likely to cause death or serious bodily injury, justified only to prevent imminent death or serious injury or to apprehend such a suspect.
- Duty to intervene
- An officer's obligation to stop and report excessive force used by another officer, even a superior.
- Procedural justice
- The framework of voice, neutrality, respect, and trustworthiness that shapes how people perceive police encounters.
- Subsistence rights
- State and federal rules governing hunting and fishing for personal and family use, central to many rural Alaska communities.
- Alaska Native tribes
- There are 229 federally recognized tribes in Alaska, each with distinct cultures, languages, and governance structures.
- Brady disclosure
- The constitutional duty to disclose exculpatory evidence to the prosecution and defense before trial.
- Giglio obligation
- The duty to disclose officer credibility issues that could impeach testimony in a criminal case.
- Conflict of interest
- A situation in which personal interest could improperly influence official action and must be disclosed or avoided.
- Report chronology
- Presenting events in the order they occurred, with times and locations, to make the narrative clear and verifiable.
- Supplemental report
- A dated addendum used to correct or add information without altering the original report.
- Tourniquet application
- A limb tourniquet is used for severe bleeding when direct pressure and packing fail, placed above the wound and tightened until bleeding stops.
- Adult CPR rate
- Chest compressions at least 2 inches deep at 100 to 120 per minute, with an AED applied as soon as available.