Assembly Chair LaFrance cusses out employee of municipality

F-bomb LaFrance takes out frustration

By Suzanne Downing -February 7, 2022

At last Tuesday’s Anchorage Assembly meeting, the chair of the Assembly, Suzanne LaFrance, included the confirmation of Anchorage’s new police chief — the most understated confirmation of any police chief perhaps in Anchorage history. It was on the consent agenda.

After Chief Michael Kerle was confirmed, he rose, as if he expected to be able to speak briefly. But LaFrance thanked him for being there and continued with the meeting, without inviting him and his wife, who had traveled back to Anchorage from a trip Outside, to approach the podium and address the Assembly. The confirmation was, in a word, curt.

The Assembly had already allowed a 10-minute drumming and dancing ceremony for Black History Month, and another 10-minute retirement ceremony for Sharon Walsh of the Port of Alaska. The Assembly had listened to members of the public complain about the slow progress in implementing police body cameras for the force. It simply could not spare three minutes for the new chief to speak to his new role, after spending decades putting his life on the line as a police officer.

It was in stark contrast to how the Assembly had welcomed the previous police chief, Ken McCoy, who has since left the force to pursue a career in “equity” politics at Providence Alaska Medical Center. McCoy and his family had been welcomed to the podium in April for his confirmation, and community celebrations and ceremonies continued well into August, including a ceremonial swearing in at Bartlett High School, his alma mater.

Mayor Dave Bronson, who attended Chief Kerle’s swearing-in ceremony the on Wednesday, made note of the snub by LaFrance and the leftists on the Assembly.

That apparently enraged LaFrance, who came up to the mayor’s floor on the 8th floor of City Hall and cussed out the mayor’s chief of staff, Alexis Johnson. LaFrance is said to have dropped the “F” word on Johnson, who had only been on the job for a week.

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