Siblings of Juneau man killed by police demand answers

Jason, Monty and Dawn Kissack successful Juneau connected Aug. 23, 2024. They were successful municipality for their relative Steven’s memorial. (Photo by Clarise Larson/KTOO)

The family of a man who was changeable and killed by rule enforcement successful Juneau in July opportunity they’re still waiting for answers. 

Jason, Monty and Dawn Kissack arrived from Florida past week for a memorial to grant their brother, Steven Kissack. Steven was unhoused, and lived connected nan streets of downtown Juneau for respective years pinch his malamute, Juno. 

Monty Kissack, Steven’s older brother, said they want to cognize why he was killed, and to make judge that nan officers progressive successful nan incident are held accountable. 

“We’re not going to fto it spell away. We will support talking astir it, until thing is done,” he said. 

Monty was 8 years aged erstwhile Steven was born. They grew up adjacent Tampa Bay, Fla. 

“He was nan youngest. We ever carried him astir pinch us, everyplace we went,” oldest relative Jason Kissack said.

Steven was a calm, smart kid who loved animals, Jason Kissack said. He was reserved, but he loved to statement pinch his older brothers. He told them he wanted to spell to Alaska, wherever he could beryllium extracurricular and beryllium free. He lived connected a vessel successful Juneau for a while earlier he couldn’t support up pinch nan bills.

The Juneau Police Department says Steven Kissack threatened officers pinch a weapon and made verbal threats before he was changeable connected July 15. The incident took spot connected a downtown thoroughfare successful nan mediate of nan day, with dozens of witnesses. It’s still nether investigation by nan Alaska Bureau of Investigation. 

Since his brother’s death, Jason Kissack said he’s been calling nan bureau and nan authorities Office of Special Prosecutions, but he’s only received sparse specifications astir what happened.

“We want nan information. We want it all,” Jason Kissack said. “We’re conscionable being near successful nan dark.”

Dawn Kissack said she wants to spot nan constabulary assemblage camera footage. They’ve watched nan videos taken by bystanders dozens of times.

She had been trying to get successful touch pinch her relative past period erstwhile she learned from a societal worker successful Juneau that thing had happened. Then, her kids started looking online.

“You shouldn’t perceive astir your babe relative dying from societal media,” she said.

The Kissacks opportunity nan videos were reliable to watch. But they are gladsome they exist, because they want to cognize precisely what happened. They still don’t understand why he was killed.

The 5 officers progressive — 4 from nan Juneau Police Department and an Alaska Wildlife Trooper — were placed connected administrative time off aft nan incident. They’re now backmost connected duty.  

“If personification successful nan nationalist shoots somebody, we get arrested, we person to spell to jail. We person to enslaved ourselves retired if we’re fixed a bond, and past we person to spell backmost to tribunal truthful that we beryllium our innocence … we person to beryllium that what we did was justified,” Dawn Kissack said. “I want nan aforesaid point for those cops. They request to beryllium held to higher standards than we arsenic citizens are held.” 

Dawn and her brothers person received messages from galore group successful Juneau who knew Steven. It’s helped to cognize that he was truthful loved here, she said. 

“We miss him, you know?” Dawn Kissack said. “And we ever wanted him to travel back, but this was his home. You know, he didn’t person a location pinch walls, but Juneau was his home, and nan group of Juneau were his family too, and we couldn’t person dragged him distant from here.”

The memorial was held Sunday astatine Marine Park astatine 1 p.m., led by Pastor Karen Perkins and section statement Haa Tóoch Lichéesh. The memorial was set to beryllium livestreamed and recorded by Resurrection Lutheran Church.