Welcome to First Impressions, a place for sharing your thought about legal news and issues in Indiana and beyond. I'm your host, Jennifer Nelson, Web editor for Indiana Lawyer. Just like in the courtroom, we encourage everyone to interact with civility.
Recent Blog Posts
No death penalty, more cash
October 22, 2009
Comments(0)Proponents of abolishing the death penalty have argued for years it costs more to sentence someone to death and execute them
than it does to have that person sit in prison for life. A report released this week is taking advantage...
MoreRock out to benefit agency
October 21, 2009
Comments(0)Don’t let the name fool you: You don’t need black ties or fancy dresses to attend the first Marion County Public Defender
Agency’s Public Defenders’ Ball. You just need $7 bucks and the desire to hear musicians play. The Marion County...
MoreFree speech gets a week
October 20, 2009
Comments(0)Most Americans should know they have the freedom of speech, thanks to the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, but they
may not know there’s a week commemorating the right. This week marks the annual National Freedom of Speech Week,...
MoreFest to show legal movies
October 15, 2009
Comments(0)Reporter Rebecca Berfanger wrote this post. If you’re looking to see some uplifting movies that probably won’t be at a cineplex
near you any time soon, while supporting an Indianapolis tradition, check out the Heartland Film Festival, which runs today...
MoreNo compassion in court
October 12, 2009
Comments(0)Should a judge be criticized by her peers for being compassionate to a couple in foreclosure? Yes, according to the 3rd District
Court of Appeals, who disapproved of a Miami-Dade Circuit judge’s decision to give a couple an extra month to...
MoreAn advocate remembered
October 9, 2009
Comment(1)IL reporter Rebecca Berfanger fills in for Jennifer Nelson with this post : When Indiana Lawyer started to hear about the
recent death of a prominent domestic violence victim’s advocate, comments about the attorney just kept coming from the legal
community...
MoreEconomy’s effect on diversity
October 7, 2009
Comments(0)According to the Minority Law Journal’s Minority Experience Study, minorities are feeling the effect of the economy worse
than their Caucasian counterparts. The survey asked midlevel associates (third-, fourth-, and fifth-year associates) a series
of questions, including whether they were actively...
MoreIU – Indy’s Diversity week
October 5, 2009
Comments(0)If we want law firms and legal offices to be more diverse, we should encourage diversity and inclusion at an earlier stage
in the legal career, such as while in law school. Indiana University School of Law – Indianapolis is doing...
MorePerfect law school
September 30, 2009
Comments(0)We recently posed the question “What’s the best way for people to become attorneys?” Your choices were: at law school as it
is now, through apprenticeships like back in the day, and a hybrid of law school with real-life experience. Not...
MoreAccess to SCOTUS
September 28, 2009
Comments(0)The Supreme Court of the United States of America will hold its opening conferences Tuesday. In honor of the beginning of
a new year on the court and Justice Sonia Sotomayor joining, C-SPAN has created “Supreme Court Week” beginning Oct. 4...
MoreIBA also not happy with Gov
September 23, 2009
Comment(1)First the Indiana State Bar Association issued a statement saying Gov. Mitch Daniels’ comments in the press regarding the
“voter ID” decision last week weren’t “helpful in advancing the appropriate respect for the courts and the judicial process.”
Now, the Indianapolis...
MoreISBA calls out the Gov
September 21, 2009
Comments(2)The Indiana State Bar Association wants the governor to know it didn’t appreciate his comments regarding the Court of Appeals’
ruling on our voter ID law, so it issued a statement late Friday afternoon. It’s short and to the (polite) point:...
MoreJudge uses football in opinion
September 17, 2009
Comment(1)You know it’s football season when a judge references two National Football League teams in his opinion. Chief Judge Frank
Easterbrook in the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals must love football, or think that the sport is something most people understand...
MoreName study seems flawed
September 16, 2009
Comment(1)Samantha, you should just go by Sam. Alexandra should stick to Alex. If your name is Robin, Terry, or Pat, you’ll probably
be OK, according to a new study that says women with more masculine sounding names have a better chance...
MoreTailgating with CLE
September 14, 2009
Comments(0)Grilling, drinking, socializing with friends – these things go along with tailgating before football games. At one Indiana
law school, CLE classes are also part of the mix. At Notre Dame Law School, two-credit CLE programs are offered before select
home...
MoreCatch-22 for new lawyers
September 10, 2009
Comments(0)Despite the economy, some firms are still hiring. Unfortunately for those fresh out of law school, based on the classifieds
placed recently in Indiana Lawyer , only those with experience should apply. A closer look at the last few issues of...
MoreShamed into change
September 8, 2009
Comments(0)One judge in Ohio thinks shame is the way to curb crime, so he’s ordering some criminals to wear bright T-shirts stating their
crime. The T-shirts, obnoxiously neon yellowish-green, say things like, “I’m a thief” in big, block letters. The “criminali-tees”...
More“Dangerous” cart corrals
September 1, 2009
Comments(2)Menard’s has funny-looking and somewhat impractical cart corrals that are also apparently unsafe and dangerous. Just ask Gerald
Roberts of McCreary County, Ky. He was visiting a Menard’s in Lafayette, Ind., and decided to “travel through” the cart corral,
hitting a...
MoreClerk: credit or debit?
August 31, 2009
Comments(0)Welcome to the 21st (or even arguably the 20th) century, Marion County Clerk’s Office! The clerk’s office announced late last
week it’s now accepting credit or debit cards for most court fees. People can now pay with plastic for child support,...
MoreJury duty worries
August 27, 2009
Comments(0)Jury duty: it’s not glamorous, it can be time-consuming, and perhaps even boring, but it’s part of our duty as American citizens.
A lot of people dread not only the process of being selected but possibly being seated for a long...
MoreSticking with it
August 24, 2009
Comments(0)Back in July, I wrote a blog about what inspired you to enter the law. That post got an interesting comment from a reader
who suggested I ask why people stick with the profession after finally understanding what it actually entails....
MoreDating site for lawyers
August 21, 2009
Comments(0)Have you ever wanted an online dating forum where you can meet other attorneys from around the country? Tired of those generic
dating sites that make you sift through boring teachers, accountants, and sales people when all you want is a...
MoreAttorney ignores heart attack
August 20, 2009
Comments(0)I’ve heard of coming to work when you don’t feel well, but going to court while having a heart attack is taking it to the
extreme. A defense attorney in California woke up with severe chest pains. A normal person would...
MoreActor heads to law school
August 17, 2009
Comments(0)I’ve heard of actors going back to school to get their undergraduate degree but I can’t recall one pursuing a law degree.
Now there’s Jerry O’Connell, perhaps most famous for “Stand by Me,” “Sliders,” or being Rebecca Romijn’s husband, who announced...
MoreA yawn of contempt
August 13, 2009
Comments(0)Sometimes, yawning can be criminal. Just ask Clifton Williams. The Illinois resident was sentenced to six months in jail for
yawning during his cousin’s guilty plea to a felony drug charge. His family maintains it was just a yawn, nothing more;...
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Court Calendar
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May 28, 2013 The Estate of Richard A. Mayer and Spangler, Jennings & Dougherty, P.C., v. Lax, Inc., and David Lasco - 5/28/13
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June 12, 2013 Northern Assurance Company of America v. Thomson, Inc., et al. - 6/12/13
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June 18, 2013 State of Indiana v. Robert Owens - 6/18/13
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June 18, 2013 Winston K. Wood v. State of Indiana - 6/18/13
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Never heard of remand to another state. How often does that happen?
I highly recommend Deanna and her team of professionals that serve the legal community. Great information and many thanks for sharing.
they are pushing these cases against lawyers too far. thought-crime.
vagueness cannot challenged, so let's write all laws vaguely and throw the constitution out the window.Even if the court is operating under a particular law, if they don't it they will change it to their liking. What a joke!!!
Two convictions becomes one conviction with exactly the same sentence, only it is not clear wheter or not that sentence will be 18 months, 120 months or 138 months. Actually if the guns were in a home, whether or not they were his, he is protected under the 2nd amendment. Jurors need to learn the law and the constitution before judging others. The cour5ts need to do this as well.