Chinese tariffs shed light on theft of American IP
The brewing trade war between the United States and China has shone a renewed spotlight on a longstanding source of contention between the two economies: intellectual property theft.
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Ex-Bunker Hill town marshal faces misconduct, forgery case
Authorities say the former town marshal of Bunker Hill in Miami County provided false police credentials for an acquaintance so the person could be paid more while working as a security guard.
Landis, longtime head of Public Defender Council, to retire in July
Despite working on Indiana public defense reforms for 41 years, there are still goals Larry Landis wishes he could have accomplished before his impending retirement from the Indiana Public Defender Council. In a perfect world, Landis said his career would have led to more judicial sentencing discretion, a greater focus on mental health treatment, and a justice system that values restoration over punishment.
‘Truth prevails’: Cosby accuser hails guilty verdict
The woman Bill Cosby was convicted of sexually assaulting tweeted “Truth prevails” Friday, the morning after a jury came back with a verdict that could send the 80-year-old comedian to prison for the rest of his life.
Bill Cosby convicted of drugging, molesting woman
Bill Cosby was convicted Thursday of drugging and molesting a woman in the first big celebrity trial of the #MeToo era, completing the spectacular late-life downfall of a comedian who broke racial barriers in Hollywood on his way to TV superstardom.
COA: Bomb threat still evacuates closed courthouse
A man convicted of intimidation for threatening to blowup a courthouse failed to persuade the Indiana Court of Appeals that he did not want to evacuate the building because he made the calls when he knew the place would be empty.
COA affirms denial of motion to suppress drug evidence
A man found slumped over a steering wheel who later admitted to possessing methamphetamine and marijuana has lost his appeal of the denial of his motion to suppress the evidence against him. The Indiana Court of Appeals found the seizure of the man was constitutionally permissible.
Top Lake County Sheriff’s official indicted for lying to FBI
A former top Lake County Sheriff’s Department official has been indicted for lying to the FBI during a public corruption investigation that led to the conviction of former Sheriff John Buncich.
COA rejects prosecutorial misconduct argument, upholds conviction
A woman’s conviction of resisting law enforcement was affirmed Friday by the Indiana Court of Appeals, which found no error by the trial court in denying a mistrial sought by the defense for alleged prosecutorial misconduct.
Former LaPorte mail carrier charged with not delivering mail
A former LaPorte mail carrier has been accused of paying someone to dispose of 11,000 pieces of mail and hiding another 6,000 in his home.
Signature waived right to jury trial, COA affirms
A Clay County defendant waived her Sixth Amendment right to a jury trial when she signed a form acknowledging the deadline to demand a jury, then missed that deadline, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled in an opinion upholding the denial of the defendant’s untimely jury trial demand.
COA: Gun admissible under inevitable discovery rule
A gun was admissible as evidence in a battery trial despite its location through an unwarranted search because it inevitably would have been discovered, despite any Fourth Amendment violation, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
Divided COA finds evidence of prior bad acts harmless
A majority of the Indiana Court of Appeals has upheld a Howard County man’s drug convictions and sentence, finding any error in the admission of evidence of prior bad acts was harmless. The dissent, however, provided a lengthy history of state and federal caselaw to highlight why she believed the error was prejudicial.
Fogle seeks $57 million in damages in D.C. filing
Former Subway pitchman Jared Fogle is continuing his legal fight against his 2015 child pornography convictions, this time filing a complaint in a Washington, D.C., district court alleging judicial fraud and seeking $57 million in damages. The filing is the latest in a series of pro se jailhouse filings by Fogle that sometimes have incorporated sovereign citizen-styled pleadings.
Retired Ball State professor gets probation after plea deal
A retired Ball State University journalism professor who pleaded guilty to a lesser charge after being accused of molesting a boy has been placed on probation for 18 months.
Man gets 50 years in slaying of Terre Haute radio personality
A man who prosecutors say planned a burglary that led to the 2016 beating death of Terre Haute radio personality Matt Luecking has been sentenced to 50 years in prison. Donald Featherstone on Wednesday was the final defendant in the murder case to learn his punishment.
7th Circuit remands drug conviction for deficient counsel hearing
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana must hold a hearing on a convicted drug offender’s motion for collateral relief after the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals determined the offender presented evidence to justify a hearing on deficient counsel performance.
Attempted murder conviction vacated for ineffective counsel
A man’s attempted murder conviction after a Vanderburgh County knife attack will be vacated after a divided Indiana Court of Appeals found his trial counsel erred by failing to object to two jury instructions.
Walmart halts anti-shoplifting program AG criticized
An anti-shoplifting program that had been implemented by Walmart at 36 Indiana locations — including Beech Grove, Kokomo and Lafayette — has been voluntarily discontinued by the company after Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill issued a critical opinion.
Alleged DOJ misconduct spreads to Indiana death penalty case
Accusations of sexual harassment and prosecutorial misconduct at the U.S. Department of Justice’s Capital Case Section have ensnared a death penalty case in the Southern District of Indiana against a federal inmate charged with killing his cellmate.