Report: Half of Americans OK if DNA testing companies share user data to solve crimes
Almost half of Americans don’t mind if DNA submitted for ancestry testing is used to solve crimes, according to a Pew Research Center report.
Criminal
Articles
Web Exclusive: Senate passes bill extending sex crimes statute of limitations
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.
Man seeks to have conviction overturned with new testimony
A Gary man testified that a now-dead man gave him a video recording of his confession to killing five people in 2000, a crime for which another man is serving 300 years in prison.
Newburgh man pleads guilty to abusing elderly disabled man
A southwestern Indiana man has pleaded guilty to charges that he put an elderly disabled man in a headlock and otherwise abused him while working as his caregiver in 2017.
Indiana lawmaker facing felony charge drops reelection bid
A state legislator from Indianapolis facing charges of threatening police officers who stopped him on suspicion of drunken driving is dropping his re-election bid.
Woman who pleaded guilty in deadly Elkhart crash sent back to jail
A northern Indiana woman who pleaded guilty for her role in a hit-and-run crash that killed a man and two children has been returned to jail after violating probation.
Ex-boyfriend accused of killing woman targeted in November
A northwest Indiana man who was set free on bond on attempted murder charges is accused of fatally shooting his girlfriend, who he allegedly previously attempted to kill, authorities said Friday.
Woman found guilty but mentally ill in aunt’s 2006 slaying
A woman has been found guilty but mentally ill in the slaying of her 83-year-old aunt more than a dozen years ago in Greenwood.
Wrongly admitted evidence of man’s 10-year-old crime requires new trial
The Indiana Court of Appeals has ordered a new trial for a man convicted of sexual battery after finding a trial court abused its discretion in admitting evidence of the man’s decade-old false informing conviction.
Sentence upheld for man convicted of beating pregnant girlfriend
A man who beat his pregnant girlfriend and urged her to change her story and not testify against him did not convince the Indiana Court of Appeals to reverse his sentence and convictions.
Man pleads guilty to manslaughter in deaths of 2 women
An Indiana man on Thursday pleaded guilty but mentally ill in the 2016 strangulation death of a radio personality and her daughter.
Man who provided gun in deputy’s killing gets 46 years
A man who pleaded guilty to providing a handgun used to kill a Boone County sheriff’s deputy has been sentenced to 46 years in prison on drug and weapons charges.
Misdemeanor summonses, small claims filing limit bills pass House
Bills that would allow for summonses to appear instead of arrests in misdemeanor cases and that would raise the small claims filing limit statewide have passed the Indiana House of Representatives.
Rapist loses appeal of assault convictions against ex
A convicted rapist has failed to overturn his convictions of sexual assault against his ex-girlfriend, with the Indiana Court of Appeals rejecting his challenges to the trial court’s evidentiary and procedural rulings.
Access to justice, voting rights, bail reform on ABA midyear meeting agenda
Rural communities’ access to justice, bail reform and ensuring voting rights for individuals with criminal convictions will be chief among several criminal justice topics set for discussion during next month’s 2020 American Bar Association Midyear Meeting.
Bill allowing 12-year-olds to be charged as adults headed to Senate committee
A bill mandating tougher penalties for juvenile defendants, including allowing 12-year-olds to be waived to adult court for attempted murder, is scheduled to be heard in a legislative committee Tuesday, but already strong opposition is mounting with both state and national organizations warning of the consequences.
Senate Democrats push end to jail for minor marijuana possession
No more jail time. That’s what some Indiana Senate Democrats repeatedly said Thursday as they advocated for legislation aimed at limiting the number of individuals arrested for possession of marijuana. The bills, however, may not get a hearing in the Indiana General Assembly this year.
Creating collaborative communities: Rush stresses reforms
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.
Suit over federal executions likely headed back to SCOTUS
Death penalty experts say they expect justices of the United States Supreme Court ultimately will decide whether federal executions will resume at the United States Penitentiary in Terre Haute.
7th Circuit affirms Indianapolis man’s robbery convictions
A man found guilty of robbing three Indianapolis beauty stores and attempting to rob another could not convince the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals that there wasn’t enough evidence to support his convictions, or that one did not qualify as a crime of violence under the Hobbs Act.