Alto v. State

OPINION

COATS, Chief Judge.

This case raises the question of whether a person who is found not guilty by reason of ■insanity and committed to the custody of the Commissioner of Health and Social Services can be convicted of escape for removing himself from that custody. We conclude that the defendant can be convicted of escape under these circumstances.

Facts and proceedings

Frank A. Alto brutally beat and killed a woman in 1973. 1 He was convicted of rape, grand larceny, and murder in the first degree in a court trial. 2 On appeal, the Alaska Supreme Court reversed Alto’s convictions and ordered…