JUNEAU — The state House on Saturday easily cleared a plan to clarify — or broaden, depending on who’s talking — people’s right to defend themselves with deadly force.

It would expand the explicit (in state law) right to use lethal force to apply anywhere someone has “a right to be.” Proponents say it will assure everyone in Alaska he or she does not need to back off if they find themselves in a dangerous situation and want to fight back with a lethal weapon.

Rep. Eric Feige, R-Chickaloon and a co-sponsor, said the change would send two messages. To good people, he said, it “solidifies their right to defend themselves. It makes it absolutely clear.” He said the measure also tells potential criminals to think twice before they break the law.

The bill passed 33-6. Rep. Scott Kawasaki, D-Fairbanks, backed the measure but with “apprehension.” A National Rifle Association member, he said the bill would not help address a social trend toward “a culture of violence” where “thoughtful deliberation” in conflict is too often replaced with violence. All seven representatives from the Interior delegation supported the bill.

Detractors said the measure would, as put by Minority Leader Beth Kerttula, D-Juneau, turn the state’s self-defense law “on its head” and compound state government’s ability to prosecute murderers.

The measure, House Bill 80, would need to pass the Senate and Gov. Sean Parnell’s desk to become law. Rep. Mark Neuman, R-Big Lake and the proposal’s lead sponsor, said by statement after the vote that he has worked with state attorneys to address concerns the measure could contribute to violence.

“The bill places the duty to retreat on the criminal or person who means to do you harm. We’ve expressly left the justification for the use of deadly force unchanged,” he said. “Alaskans deserve full protection of their constitutional and human rights to self-defense and to keep and bear arms for personal protection.”

Law of the sea

The Alaska Legislature last week formally asked Congress to ratify the Law of the Sea treaty.

The request suggests the United States is “forfeiting sovereign rights to and international recognition of” a vastly larger share of Arctic waters than it currently oversees under domestic and international laws. It estimates that one-third of all oil and natural gas production worldwide comes from offshore sources and states that the United States would be unwise to neglect the chance to secure sovereignty over its Arctic resources.

The treaty, finished in 1994, outlines and assigns global responsibilities with respect to the world’s oceans. The United Nations states on its website that drafters sought “a more stable order” and “better management of ocean resources” to minimize conflicting interests.

A handful of state lawmakers including Sen. Joe Paskvan and Rep. Bob Herron, Democrats from Fairbanks and Bethel, proposed the resolution this winter.

The treaty — the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea — has 160 nations as parties. The United States’ absence has drawn concern from many in Alaska, which has two-thirds of the nation’s coastline and is the only Arctic state. The treaty has been signed by the U.S. government’s executive branch but the Senate has yet to ratify.

Arctic caucus

The Legislature also urged closer executive branch participation in the Arctic Caucus of the Pacific Northwest Economic Region, a collaboration between northwest U.S. states and western Canadian provinces and territories. The caucus includes Alaska, the Yukon and the Northwest Territories.

Proponents said the resolution, which cleared the Senate on Thursday, emphasizes that “coordinated U.S. and Canadian policies are vital for the well-being of the regions’ citizens.”

The Arctic Caucus was first promoted by Sen. Lesil McGuire, R-Anchorage, when she was president of Pacific Northwest Economic Region two years ago.

Contact staff writer Christopher Eshleman at 459-7582.