Featured - The Indiana Lawyer

Lewis’ legacy: Cake, applause and a challenge coin mark a special REACH graduation

March 18, 2020 | Marilyn Odendahl

Calling REACH “a beautiful program,” Kenny Lewis credited the federal court re-entry initiative with giving him the perseverance to stay at his job and teaching him to speak louder so others could hear what he had to say. Baker and the other members of the REACH team described Lewis as a model participant who not only exhibited tremendous character and did everything expected of him, but also encouraged and supported his fellow participants.

Firm’s first woman steps aside after blazing trail

March 18, 2020 | Olivia Covington

Julia Blackwell Gelinas’ February retirement from Frost Brown Todd marks the end of an era for the firm. The first woman lawyer at the predecessor firm Locke Reynolds started in the 1970s and continued a career marked by professionalism and leadership.

Bonding over books helps women lawyers grow

March 18, 2020 | Katie Stancombe

Seven women from different walks of life — and legal practices — gathered recently to reminisce on a literary journey they’ve come to cherish. Formed in the spring of 2017, the IndyBar Women Lawyers Division’s Beyond the Book Club was birthed out of a desire to create an engaging space to talk about women’s issues.

Panel favors retention of all 13 Marion Superior judges

March 9, 2020 | Olivia Covington

The Marion County Judicial Selection Committee has unanimously voted to recommend retention of all 13 Marion Superior judges whose names will be on the ballot in November.

Web Exclusive: Pendleton inmate wins $425K solitary settlement with help from Chicago, pro bono attorneys

March 4, 2020 | Katie Stancombe

A Pendleton Correctional Facility inmate will be paid $425,000 by the state after spending four years in isolation for a disciplinary violation he says he didn’t commit. But the settlement might not have been agreed upon without the help of a Chicago-based justice center that says it advocates for underdogs.

Judges portrayed as aggressors in gunman’s self-defense claim

March 4, 2020 | IL Staff

Did Brandon Kaiser pull the trigger on two Indiana judges only after they attacked him and placed him in fear for his life? He claims in court filings they did. But even as the judges involved in the now-infamous brawl have retaken the bench after brief suspensions, video that could prove conclusive remains under a court seal.

Legislation, lawsuits used to combat Indiana’s lead problem as contamination cases persist

March 4, 2020 | Marilyn Odendahl

Organizations and individuals around Indiana have been pushing for a solution to the lead problem. The toxin is everywhere and exposure, especially in very young children, can cause lifelong cognitive impairment.

Karen Bravo to become first person of color, second woman to lead IU McKinney

March 4, 2020 | Marilyn Odendahl

Following a nine-month search that brought hundreds of applications, the best person to lead Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law was found to be someone who was already a member of its family. Karen Bravo, vice dean and director of the master of jurisprudence degree program, has been tapped to be IU McKinney’s new dean starting July 1.

Man charged in judges’ shooting claims self-defense, says judges were aggressors

February 26, 2020 | IL Staff and Associated Press

The man charged with shooting two southern Indiana judges outside an Indianapolis fast food restaurant last year claimed in a Tuesday court filing that he acted in self-defense. The notice of affirmative defense also alleges the judges were the aggressors as alleged gunman Brandon Kaiser and his nephew, Alfredo Vazquez, were stopping to eat at a downtown White Castle, where the shooting took place in the parking lot.

Lake Michigan shore fight continues in court, Legislature

February 19, 2020 | Olivia Covington

The years-long struggle between public and private rights along Indiana’s Lake Michigan shoreline continues in the Indiana Statehouse and in federal court, even as the state marks the two-year anniversary of a landmark Indiana Supreme Court decision that ruled in the public’s favor.

Web Exclusive: Young attorneys engage diverse youth on careers in legal profession

February 19, 2020 | Katie Stancombe

While various programs such as the Conference for Legal Education Opportunity encourage more diverse attorneys in the legal profession, a career in the law still seems unattainable for some. But many new attorneys are sharing their experiences with students in middle schools and high schools in hopes of showing what the profession has to offer.

Breaking barriers: Women’s White Collar Defense Association chapter brings opportunities

February 19, 2020 | Marilyn Odendahl

To elevate Indiana women in the traditionally male-dominated white-collar defense bar, the Indianapolis chapter of the Women’s White Collar Defense Association was founded in 2015. The primary goal of the group is to build a referral network so female lawyers are likelier to get handed a case or asked to represent a client.

Back to the border: Notre Dame law legal aid team sees increased hardship for asylum seekers

February 19, 2020 | Katie Stancombe

Instead of spending his holiday season surrounded by all things merry and bright, immigration attorney Rudy Monterrosa spent days at what he described as an ominous place akin to a concentration camp. For the second year in a row, Monterrosa took a team to the Texas-Mexico border to offer free legal services to women and children seeking asylum in the United States. His experience this time, however, was quite different.

Web Exclusive: Senate passes bill extending sex crimes statute of limitations

February 5, 2020 | Katie Stancombe

A bill that would have done away with the statute of limitations for certain child sex abuse crimes is making headway in the 2020 Indiana General Assembly. But some advocates are disappointed in how the bill has panned out.

In the Loop: Hoosier attorneys set sail for years of working adventure

February 5, 2020 | Katie Stancombe

Hoosier attorneys Ann Marie Waldron and Mike Simmons just returned home after weeks on a boat they plan to work from for the next few years. The couple have decided to work remotely from their boat as they complete a tour of the Great Loop: thousands of miles of waterway along the riverbanks and shorelines of eastern North America.

From a bicycle to a jet: New Marion County Justice Center to put technology first

February 5, 2020 | Marilyn Odendahl

Lawyers who have had a hearing or trial in the Indianapolis City-County Building often had to bring their own equipment, lug in the hardware, use their own applications and programs to present their material, then pack and lug everything back to the office. The situation will be dramatically different at Marion County’s new Community Justice Center under construction southeast of downtown.

Electoral collage: Harrison site curates voting exhibit, from ballot boxes to hanging chads

February 5, 2020 | Marilyn Odendahl

At a time when the nation is questioning the security of electronic voting machines, the Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site is looking back at the equipment and devices used in the past to allow citizens to cast their ballots and have their voices heard.

Legal pros on demand: Latitude Indiana to provide attorneys, legal services for short-term needs

February 5, 2020 | Katie Stancombe

A new legal services company rooted in Nashville has recently settled in Indianapolis, with a Hoosier attorney at the helm. Latitude, a Tennessee-based legal services provider founded in 2014, announced the establishment of its Indiana office last month. The company claims it will provide on-demand, sophisticated attorney expertise for Indiana corporations and law firms while increasing flexibility and reducing costs.

Web Exclusive: Expungement wait period case awaits justices

January 22, 2020 | Katie Stancombe

After more than 10 years with a criminal record, an Elkhart man successfully petitioned to reduce his felony conviction to a misdemeanor. But when he tried to expunge the conviction two years later, he faced an unexpected setback. The Indiana Supreme Court will decide whether he and others in his situation must wait longer for an expungement.

Creating collaborative communities: Rush stresses reforms

January 22, 2020 | Katie Stancombe

The importance of community collaboration in the criminal justice system — particularly through ongoing reform and problem-solving courts — was the key message of Indiana Chief Justice Loretta Rush’s 2020 State of the Judiciary address.

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