Elkhart man charged with murder in beating death of boy, 4
A northern Indiana man has been charged with murder in the death of a 4-year-old boy who died at a hospital after being beaten unconscious, authorities said.
Criminal Charges
-
New murder trial affirmed for Elkhart man with mental disability
A man with a mental disability who has for years claimed he was wrongfully convicted of an Elkhart murder and who spent more than 15 years behind bars can proceed to a new trial after the Indiana Court of Appeals upheld a post-conviction relief order vacating his murder conviction.
Read More -
Web Exclusive: Bill aims to bring local criminal justice stakeholders out of ‘silos’ to study reforms
House Bill 1068 would allow for the creation of local justice reinvestment advisory councils modeled after the statewide JRAC. The local councils would be tasked with reviewing criminal justice practices on a county or regional level, collecting data and reporting back to JRAC, which would use the data to make policy decisions.
Read More -
AG Barr in Indianapolis discusses efforts to reduce violent crime
The last time William Barr was attorney general of the United States, violent crime in the nation was at an all-time high. And now, after years of decline, the year of COVID has created another surge. The nation’s top law enforcement official stopped in Indianapolis on Thursday to address crime-fighting strategies.
Read More -
Web Exclusive: Domestic violence shelters see fewer calls, more severe cases in pandemic
The silence was deafening. Little to no calls were coming in to the Middle Way House’s domestic violence help and crisis line in the months after Indiana’s stay at home orders, leaving Debra Morrow in a panic. “It got deathly quiet, and to us, that was horrifying. We were worried about those who couldn’t reach out.”
Read More
Articles
7 people charged in fatal beating of man at Marion Co. jail
At least seven people have been charged with murder in the fatal beating of an inmate at the Marion County jail.
Man formally charged in killings of Indiana woman, 3 kids
A man accused of killing a woman and her three young children in a northeastern Indiana home was formally charged Tuesday with four counts of murder.
Charges after US Capitol insurrection roil far-right groups
Former President Donald Trump’s claims about a stolen 2020 election united right-wing supporters, conspiracy theorists and militants on Jan. 6, but the aftermath of the insurrection is roiling two of the most prominent far-right extremist groups at the U.S. Capitol that day.
Indiana man appears in US court involving Portland protests
An Indiana man accused of throwing an explosive toward police and smashing windows during protests in Portland, Oregon, appeared in federal court this week and was detained pending further proceedings.
Suspect in court after fire destroys re-created Clark cabin
A Clark County man appeared in court Monday to face a charge he set a fire that destroyed a cabin built as a re-creation of the home where Revolutionary War figure George Rogers Clark spent his retirement years in southern Indiana.
Fort Wayne man charged in death of toddler
A Fort Wayne man has been charged in the death of his girlfriend’s toddler son, who authorities said was battered so badly an autopsy found that his heart had been ripped in half.
Greenwood boy, 16, sentenced in fatal shooting of another teen
A 16-year-old suburban Indianapolis boy charged as an adult in another teen’s fatal shooting has been sentenced to more than two years in prison after pleading guilty to criminal recklessness and a weapons charge.
High court won’t make unanimous jury requirement retroactive
The Supreme Court ruled Monday that prisoners who were convicted by non-unanimous juries before the high court barred the practice a year ago don’t need to be retried.
Man, teen face attempted murder charges after Terre Haute police chase
An armed robbery suspect now also faces a preliminary attempted murder charge following a pursuit early Friday in which shots were fired at officers, Terre Haute police said.
Former Indiana man suspected in wife’s death appears in court
A former Indiana resident suspected in the death of his wife who disappeared last Mother’s Day made his first appearance in court Thursday to be advised of the charges he could face, including first-degree murder.
Father of drowned brothers pleads guilty to neglect charges
An Indiana man pleaded guilty Wednesday to two counts of neglect of a dependent resulting in serious bodily injury in the drownings of his two sons.
Ponzi schemer Cochran escalates fight for early release on COVID grounds
Jim Cochran, the former Indianapolis businessman serving a 25-year prison term for his role in the massive Fair Finance Ponzi scheme, is asking a Chicago appeals court for early release on the grounds that his health problems could make contracting COVID-19 lethal and that he has undergone a religious conversion that no longer makes him a risk to society.
Justices reject appeal to make public Indianapolis’ Amazon HQ2 offer
The Indiana Supreme Court has declined to hear an appeal from a tax trade publication that sought disclosure of tax dollars and incentives Indianapolis and the state offered Amazon in the city’s failed attempt to lure the online retail giant’s coveted second headquarters project known as HQ2.
Eastern Indiana woman gets 55 years in slaying of child’s father
A judge sentenced an eastern Indiana woman to 55 years in prison Tuesday after a jury convicted her of murder in the shooting death of her child’s father.
COA rejects challenge to text message evidence, upholds meth dealing conviction
A man convicted of dealing meth based largely on text messages failed to convince the Indiana Court of Appeals that the messages were improperly admitted at his trial.
Split Supreme Court upholds denial of LWOP defendant’s pro se request
A Boone County murder defendant convicted and sentenced to life without parole failed to convince a majority of the Indiana Supreme Court that the trial court improperly denied his request to proceed pro se. The majority provided an analysis for considering pro se requests in capital and LWOP sentences, but minority justices raised concerns about the majority “till(ing) new constitutional soil.”
Supreme Court skeptical of low-level crack offender’s case
Crack cocaine trafficking kingpins convicted more than a decade ago can ask courts to reduce their prison terms under a 2018 federal law. The Supreme Court on Tuesday sounded skeptical that people convicted of older low-level crack crimes can do the same.
2 charged in dismemberment of Fort Wayne man appear in court
Two men charged in the death and dismemberment of a 55-year-old man requested public defenders during their initial court appearances Tuesday.
Attorney suspended 90 days after second domestic violence conviction
A Logansport lawyer who was convicted for a second time of beating his wife will have his law license suspended for 90 days with automatic reinstatement, the Indiana Supreme Court has ruled.