Strane v. Municipality of Anchorage

OPINION

BOLGER, Judge.

This case requires us to clarify the culpa ble mental state that must be proved in prosecutions under the Municipality of Anchorage's concealment-of-merchandise ordinance, Anchorage Municipal Code (AMC) 8.15.050.B. This ordinance makes it a crime for a person to "knowingly conceal" merchandise when the person is on the premises where the merchandise is stored or is offered for sale.

We conclude that when a defendant is prosecuted under this ordinance, the government must prove that the defendant concealed the merchandise (in the sense of knowingly placing the merchandise…