Man gets 10 years for fiery crash that killed police dog
A man was sentenced Tuesday to 10 years in prison for a fiery 2019 crash that killed a police dog in northeastern Indiana.
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Court rules IU’s access of data on ID cards did not violate Constitution
Four Indiana University students failed to persuade a federal court that their privacy rights were violated when the school tracked their movements through the data gathered from their university identification cards as part of an investigation into a suspected fraternity hazing incident.
COA: $475k purchase price reasonable for Hamilton County utility acquisition
Two Hamilton County wastewater companies can move forward with their acquisition deal costing the significantly larger entity hundreds of thousands of dollars, the Indiana Court of Appeals has affirmed.
Purdue wins judgment on wage discrimination claims but allegations of FMLA, FSLA violations can proceed
Purdue University and a group of its employees have secured victory on a terminated worker’s wage discrimination claims. However, the former employee’s claims alleging violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act and Family and Medical Leave Act by her Purdue supervisors can proceed.
High court divides 5-4 to leave Texas abortion law in place
A deeply divided Supreme Court is allowing a Texas law that bans most abortions to remain in force, for now stripping most women of the right to an abortion in the nation’s second-largest state.
Northern District Court transitioning to NextGen CM/ECF
The case management and electronic filing system used by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana will get a facelift this fall once it upgrades to the next generation of CM/ECF.
Coal to diesel project fuels evidentiary standard argument
A plan to build the country’s first direct coal-hydrogenation refinery in southern Indiana has spawned a crop of flimsy yard signs proclaiming either support for or opposition to the project and has caused a legal argument to flourish over how much ordinary Hoosiers need to do to get their day in court.
Prosecutor hesitant but other agencies see benefit in relocating to new Marion County Community Justice Campus
Detailed plans that carefully choreograph the movement of each box and piece of furniture are being set into motion as the Marion County courts and jails begin the process of relocating from downtown Indianapolis to the new Community Justice Campus on the east side of the city. The move-in dates are now just months away for the $567 million justice campus campus that broke ground in 2018.
Justices uphold distinction between active, passive fraud, find in favor of clinic after missed diagnosis
The Indiana Supreme Court has reinstated judgment in favor of a now-defunct clinic that missed a woman’s hepatitis C diagnosis, finding that the patient’s medical malpractice claim was untimely.
Kids’ Voice, Child Advocates finding ways forward after shift of GAL/CASA contract
The fallout is continuing from Indianapolis’ decision to switch providers of CASA and guardian ad litem services.
Merger of GAL, CASA programs puts more eyes on kids
What began as a conversation 18 months ago culminated in May with the merger of the guardian ad litem and court appointed special advocates programs in Allen County, bringing together attorneys and volunteers to serve the abused and neglected children who are involved with the court system.
August hearing set for suspect in Indiana officer’s slaying
A man accused of fatally shooting a western Indiana police officer during an ambush outside an FBI field office will appear in federal court in mid-August for his initial hearing in the case.
Congress passes bill to fund Capitol security, Afghan visas
Congress overwhelmingly passed emergency legislation Thursday that would bolster security at the Capitol, repay outstanding debts from the violent Jan. 6 insurrection and increase the number of visas for allies who worked alongside Americans in the Afghanistan war.
Federal judiciary seeks $1.5B for security, IT, construction upgrades, including Fort Wayne courthouse
The United States federal judiciary is requesting more than $1.5 billion to support courthouse security, information technology and courthouse construction projects, including funding to upgrade the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana’s Fort Wayne location.
Preparations underway to help renters caught in wave
In less than two weeks, the moratorium on evictions put in place by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is scheduled to end, and while some fear a wave of evictions will follow, others say the long-awaited day of reckoning needs to come.
Trump lawyers might be penalized over Michigan election case
A federal judge considering whether to order sanctions against some of former President Donald Trump’s lawyers spent hours Monday drilling deeply into details about an unsuccessful lawsuit that challenged Michigan’s 2020 election results.
DTCI: Ruminations on an attorney’s post-pandemic ‘new normal’
Courts are back in business, but it’s not business as usual. Defense lawyer Scott Cockrum writes for the Defense Trial Counsel of Indiana about his views on attorneys’ “new normal.”
National, state wiretaps see decreases during 2020
Federal and state judges reported a combined 26% decrease in authorized wiretaps in 2020, according to court statistics released last week. Convictions stemming from cases involving electronic surveillance also decreased significantly.
Senate confirms Jackson-Akiwumi to 7th Circuit
In a 53-40 vote Thursday, the U.S. Senate confirmed Candace Jackson-Akiwumi to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, making her the first person of color to sit on that bench since Judge Ann Claire Williams, the first person of color to join that court, retired in 2018.
No jail time in 1st riot sentence; Oath Keeper pleads guilty
An Indiana woman on Wednesday became the first defendant to be sentenced in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and avoided time behind bars, while a member of the Oath Keepers extremist group pleaded guilty in a conspiracy case and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in a major step forward for the massive investigation.