Alaska spent more than $24 million on state executives last year

And: Judge rejects call for independent investigation of state-endorsed private guardian who neglected dozens of clients ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ Email not displaying correctly? [View the web version]( Good afternoon. It’s Thursday, February 15. In today's newsletter: - The state of Alaska [spent more than $24 million]( paying 167 executive-level officials in 2023, an increase of more than 5% in spending. - A judge declined to order a forensic accountant to investigate a [private guardian’s mishandling of finances]( that left the funds of more than 100 Alaskans entangled in a single account. - An Anchorage man on trial for murder interrupted police during an interrogation about the death of an Alaska Native woman and [confessed to killing a second woman]( footage shows. We all know the feeling of trying to pick a place to eat when we're not sure which cuisine we're in the mood for. Food writer Mara Severin recently tried out an Anchorage restaurant that's perfect for the indecisive, as it offers a little bit of everything: Mexican, Italian, fine dining, casual and family-friendly all in one. [Saint Coyote’s menu]( is an enigma worth exploring, Mara writes. Anchorage weather It's mostly sunny today with a high near 35 degrees. We'll see sunny skies again on Friday before a mostly cloudy weekend. A chance of snow enters the forecast early next week, and daytime temperatures will hover in the mid-30s for the next several days. Here’s what else is making headlines in Alaska today. — Megan Pacer, mpacer@adn.com [Alaska’s top-paid state executive got nearly a half-million dollars last year →]( The state’s top-paid executive was Frank Richards, president of the Alaska Gasline Development Corp., who was compensated nearly $480,000. State spending on executive compensation has exceeded $20 million annually since 2009. ADVERTISEMENT [For an Iditarod ‘re-rookie,’ delivering food bags means progress toward a goal →]( Gabe Dunham, of Willow, is returning to the Iditarod after scratching in 2020. Offloading her food bags for this year’s race is “huge,” she said. [Judge rejects call for independent investigation of state-endorsed private guardian who neglected dozens of clients →]( Tom McDuffie will not be required to pay for a forensic accountant to untangle the funds of over 100 former clients. Instead, the judge said he would leave the investigation of McDuffie’s accounting system to the state Office of Public Advocacy, absent other options. [‘Are you guys in a rush?’: Smith interrupted police interview to confess to second killing →]( This week, jurors watched more of a nearly nine-hour interview of defendant Brian Smith by law enforcement officials, including the moment when the investigation opened up to include another victim. [Ludacris joins Alaska State Fair concert lineup →]( Chris “Ludacris” Bridges dominated the rap charts in the early 2000s and has starred in the “Fast and Furious” movie franchise. He also joined Usher in the Super Bowl halftime show last weekend. ADVERTISEMENT More from the ADN [Mat-Su Borough revisits rule that snowplowing contractors must remove tall berms →]( [As Alaska pays millions to fix food stamp backlog, lawmakers suggest systemic fixes →]( [How Americans define a middle-class lifestyle — and why most can’t reach it →]( [Shooting after Chiefs Super Bowl parade appeared to stem from dispute among several people, police say →]( [Wasilla man charged with murder after victim in October shooting dies →]( [Trump’s New York hush-money case will start March 25, the first of his criminal trials →]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [Click here to unsubscribe and manage your email subscriptions.]( Anchorage Daily News, 300 W 31st Ave, Anchorage, AK 99503, United States