Laws on Solicitation in Alaska

Laws on Solicitation in Alaska

Solicitation laws in Alaska can be kinda confusing — there’s a lot of legal mumbo jumbo that makes it hard to understand what’s allowed and what’s not. This article aims to break it down in simple terms so regular folks like you and me can make sense of it all.

What is Solicitation?

Basically, solicitation is when someone asks, urges, or encourages someone else to commit a crime. For example, if Bob asks Sue to help him rob a bank, Bob is soliciting Sue to commit the crime of bank robbery. Make sense?

Is Solicitation Illegal in Alaska?

Yep, solicitation is illegal here. Alaska’s criminal solicitation law says it’s against the law to intend to get someone else to commit a crime and then ask, tell, hire or otherwise try to get them to do it.

There’s a few key parts to this:

• You have to intend for the other person to commit the crime
• You have to actually ask or encourage them to do it
• The crime you’re asking them to commit has to be a real crime – you can’t solicit someone to do something that’s not against the law

So if you really want your friend to rob a store and you outright ask them to do it, you’re soliciting them to commit a crime. Not good!

What About Soliciting Prostitution?

Soliciting prostitution is also illegal here. Alaska’s prostitution laws make it a crime to pay someone for sex, OR to get paid for sex. So if you offer to pay for sexual services, or agree to provide sexual services for money, you could be charged with prostitution.

The crime of solicitation covers prostitution too – so asking or encouraging someone to engage in prostitution is solicitation. Bottom line, don’t do it!

What Are the Penalties?

The penalties for solicitation in Alaska depend on what crime you solicited. Basically, it’s the same penalty as if you committed the actual crime yourself. For example:

• Soliciting murder – up to 99 years in prison
• Soliciting robbery – up to 5 years in prison
• Soliciting prostitution – up to 1 year in jail

So you can see, it’s taken pretty seriously. The punishment fits the crime that was solicited.

What About Soliciting Minors?

This is a big no-no! Alaska has extra laws making it illegal to solicit minors to commit crimes or engage in illegal sexual activity. Even if the minor says yes or seems willing, soliciting sex from minors is against the law and you could face felony charges.

Can I Still Fundraise?

You might be wondering – what if I just want to raise money for a charity or good cause? Not a problem! There are specific laws that allow soliciting contributions for charitable organizations. You just need to register with the state if you plan to solicit donations as part of your job.

So soliciting donations for legit charities is A-OK in Alaska. But make sure the charity is registered and you have permission to fundraise on their behalf.

What About Door-to-Door Sales?

Going door to door selling stuff is legal in Alaska, with a few rules. You need a permit from the local government, and you can only sell between 8am and 9pm. Oh and you have to leave if they ask you to!

There are also rules about how many days you can sell in one place before moving on. So door-to-door magazine sales, lawn care services, etc are allowed if you follow the right steps.

Can I Be Charged Just for Discussing a Crime?

This is where it gets tricky. Generally, just talking about doing something illegal isn’t enough for a solicitation charge. For example, if you and your buddy talk about robbing a bank but don’t make any specific plans, that conversation alone wouldn’t be solicitation. An agreement to commit a crime in the future could potentially lead to conspiracy charges instead.

But context matters! If you bring up a crime and actively try to get someone to commit it, that could cross the line into solicitation. So be careful what you say and who you say it to.

What’s the Defense Against Solicitation?

There are a few ways you could defend yourself against a solicitation charge and get the case dismissed or charges reduced/dropped:

• You didn’t actually intend for the crime to be committed – it was just idle talk
• You changed your mind and stopped encouraging the crime before it happened
• You couldn’t actually influence the other person’s actions
• You were entrapped by police into soliciting the crime

An experienced criminal defense lawyer can evaluate the details of your case and build the best defense strategy.

The Takeaway

The main takeaway when it comes to solicitation laws in Alaska:

• Don’t ask or encourage anyone to commit a crime!
• Be extra careful about soliciting minors
• Get permission before soliciting donations
• Follow the rules for door-to-door sales
• Avoid loose talk about criminal acts

And if you do get charged, don’t panic – a good lawyer can help! Just use your common sense and stay on the right side of the law.

Hope this overview helped explain solicitation laws in the Last Frontier. Let me know if you have any other legal questions!

References

Here are some references I used to write this article:

Alaska Charitable Solicitations Act

Alaska Criminal Solicitation Statute

Alaska Telephonic Solicitations Act

Alaska Prostitution and Solicitation Laws

Alaska Criminal Law on Solicitation

Anchorage Code on Solicitation