Evidence of systemic bias has been around a long time. A study by the Alaska Judicial Council in 1977 found that judges gave minorities longer sentences for the same crimes. But the problem resolved over time with a presumptive sentencing law that took away judges’ discretion and with case law developed through appeals of unfair sentences. A later study showed that sentences are generally fair across races now.

That example shows a path. Study what’s wrong and design solutions to fix it.

More than a fourth of Alaska’s inmates haven’t been convicted of a crime. They are arrested and cannot make bail and so wait in jail for trial. Since Alaska Natives tend to make less money -- Native villages have some of the lowest average incomes in the nation -- they have a harder time making bail and spend more time waiting.

Defendants stuck in jail face a huge disadvantage. Their lawyers must make difficult, time-consuming visits just to meet them. For overworked public defenders, the meetings are usually about pleading guilty.

If you can’t make bail, pleading guilty is often the quickest way to get out of jail, regardless of whether you committed the crime.