The Alaska Supreme Court has ruled that the forced forfeiture of a Cessna 206 used by Fairbanks pilot Kenneth Jouppi to transport a six-pack of beer to a dry village does not violate the excessive fines clause of the U.S. Constitution.
The ruling, made on Friday, means that Jouppi must surrender his aircraft as a penalty for violating alcohol transport laws back in 2012.
Jouppi’s attorney, Robert John, expressed disappointment in the court’s decision, stating, “Obviously, we’re quite disappointed in the opinion.”
However, John indicated that this battle is far from over, as they are considering taking the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
“The odds are good that we’re gonna be seeking review in the United States Supreme Court,” he said, adding that they will need to gather their resources to move forward.
Securing a review by the U.S. Supreme Court is a challenging endeavor, with the justices agreeing to hear only about 1% of the appeals they receive each year.
At the state level, Jouppi’s case has been in litigation for over a decade, bouncing between trial and appellate courts.
In 2012, a Fairbanks jury found him guilty of a misdemeanor related to bootlegging after evidence showed he aided a passenger in loading roughly 72 beers onto his plane.
Although the aircraft never left the airport because Alaska State Troopers were present with a search warrant, the prosecution successfully argued that Jouppi was at least aware of one six-pack being loaded onto the aircraft.
Jouppi was sentenced to three days in jail and fined $1,500, along with three years of probation. However, an earlier district court ruling indicated that the state could not confiscate Jouppi’s plane as part of his punishment.
This conclusion was challenged by the state, leading to a reversal by the Alaska Court of Appeals, which sent the issue back to the trial judge for further analysis.
The case returned to the appellate court, this time focusing on constitutional grounds concerning the forfeiture of the plane.
After the appellate court reviewed the case a second time, both parties petitioned the Alaska Supreme Court, which was primarily concerned with whether the forfeiture of Jouppi’s $95,000 plane constituted an excessive fine.
The central issue is whether a fine can be deemed “grossly disproportional” to the offense committed.
In their Friday ruling, the justices highlighted the societal harm associated with alcohol abuse, stating that even the illegal transport of a six-pack can lead to significant negative impacts on public health and safety.
“Within this context, it is clear that the illegal importation of even a six-pack of beer causes grave societal harm,” the court wrote, suggesting that this rationale supports the forfeiture as not grossly disproportional.
Notably, the opinion from the state Supreme Court differs from previous rulings by the Alaska Court of Appeals in that it concluded further fact-finding in the trial court was unnecessary.
In a previous evidentiary hearing, Jouppi indicated that he had retired from flying and would likely sell the plane if it were returned to him.
According to state business records, Jouppi’s company, KenAir, LLC, was established in 2008 and dissolved in 2014, raising questions on what might happen to the plane should it be forfeited.
As of now, spokespersons for the Alaska Department of Law have not provided responses regarding the lengthy litigation or the next steps concerning the aircraft’s potential forfeiture.
image source from：https://alaskapublic.org/news/public-safety/2025-04-23/6-beers-1-plane-alaska-supreme-court-upholds-aircraft-forfeiture-in-bootlegging-case
