High court sides with Ohio in debt collection dispute
A unanimous Supreme Court says a pair of Ohio law firms did not use illegal tactics when they sent out debt-collection letters on stationery bearing the name of the state attorney general.
Courts
Articles
Supreme Court avoids major ruling in birth control dispute
The Supreme Court rid itself Monday of a knotty dispute between faith-based groups and the Obama administration over birth control. The court asked lower courts to take another look at the issue in a search for a compromise.
Vanderburgh work release program takes on new direction
Since July 2015 the Vanderburgh County work release program has undergone a metamorphosis under a cooperative agreement between the sheriff’s office and the county’s treatment courts. That is when Superior Judge Wayne Trockman and Circuit Court Judge David Kiely took over daily operations and rechristened it Therapeutic Work Release to reflect its new focus on rehabilitation.
NCAA asks US Supreme Court to hear O’Bannon case
The NCAA is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the so-called O’Bannon case that successfully challenged the association's use of names, images and likenesses of college athletes without compensation.
Illinois turf company disputes Westfield’s lawsuit
The out-of-state turf company that Westfield is suing for unsatisfactory work at Grand Park Sports Campus is disputing the lawsuit, arguing the city wrongfully terminated its contract.
COA: Lack of release advisement was harmless error
The Indiana Court of Appeals ruled a trial court’s failure to advise a man of his possible release dates was harmless error and affirmed his sentence for two felonies.
Southern District proposes mandatory pro bono
A proposed rule change would for the first time obligate lawyers to provide mandatory pro bono service to litigants in civil cases filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, the court announced Friday.
Indiana man charged with threatening Trump on YouTube
A southern Indiana man has been charged with making threats against Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and members of his family in a YouTube video.
7th Circuit: Officer not entitled to qualified immunity
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a police officer who released a dog during an arrest to find a suspect is not entitled to qualified immunity.
Chicago man sues over fatal plunge at destroyed Indiana span
A Chicago man whose wife died when he drove off a road leading to a demolished northwestern Indiana bridge claims in a lawsuit that not enough was done to block the roadway.
Indiana sues to keep silver bars, coins seized from property
The state of Indiana is suing to retain ownership of 458 silver bars valued at $220,000 that were seized from a northern Delaware County property last November.
Judge sides with House Republicans against health care law
In a setback to President Barack Obama's health care law, a federal judge ruled Thursday that the administration is unconstitutionally spending federal money to fund the measure without approval from Congress.
Judges say order for DCS interviews with children should not have happened
The Indiana Department of Child Services for Crawford County should not have been granted the opportunity to interview two children, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled, because the order doing so violates their mother’s right to raise her family without undue interference by the state.
Recorded conversation, conviction are admissible evidence, COA holds
An audiotape of phone conversations between a suspect and the victim’s mother while he was in jail and a testimony from the victim’s mother that she was convicted of assisting a criminal were admissible evidence in a child abuse case, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled.
COA upholds denial of post-conviction relief petition
The Indiana Court of Appeals upheld the denial of a man’s post-conviction relief petition after it found any ineffectiveness of counsel the man received did not affect the outcome of his case in his decision to plead guilty to Class A felony neglect of a dependent.
COA: Stop violated 4th Amendment
A police officer was not within his community caretaker function when he pulled over a woman who left a gas station after she escaped from getting stuck under car, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled. The public safety issue did not outweigh her right to privacy.
Senate Judiciary hearing set for District Court nominee Ong
President Barack Obama’s nominee to fill a vacancy on the U.S. Court for the Southern District of Indiana will get a hearing at 10 a.m. Wednesday before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary in Washington.
Feds reach $15M deal in suit over failed Indiana bank
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., which sued three former Irwin Union Bank officers in 2013, has reached a $15 million settlement with those defendants.
Hogsett touts task force to plan new jail, criminal justice reforms
As Indianapolis faces another jail overcrowding crisis, Mayor Joe Hogsett is moving ahead in his quest to reform the city’s criminal justice system.
Rucker likely to leave Supreme Court in 2017
The senior justice on the Indiana Supreme Court expects to step down sometime in 2017, which would complete a total turnover of the bench that began in 2010.