Former office manager gets nearly 5 years in prison for fraud
A bookkeeper who pleaded guilty to defrauding a small Franklin construction company out of hundreds of thousands of dollars has been sentenced to nearly five years in federal prison.
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Former Elkhart resident accused of supporting ISIS
A former Elkhart resident has been charged in federal court with providing and conspiring to provide material support to foreign terror organization the Islamic State or Iraq and al-Sham.
Indictments? Impeachment? A look at Trump’s legal woes
A bad day in court for his former associates could foreshadow hard days ahead for President Donald Trump. But it’s unlikely he’ll find himself in a courtroom facing criminal charges, at least while he’s president.
Ex-Trump campaign chairman Manafort guilty of 8 charges
Paul Manafort, the longtime political operative who for months led Donald Trump’s winning presidential campaign, was found guilty of eight financial crimes Tuesday in the first trial victory of the special counsel investigation into the president’s associates. A judge declared a mistrial on 10 other counts the jury could not agree on.
KY Distiller to Bob Dylan whiskey co.: Hands off the trademark
With more than 1.4 million barrels of aging bourbon whiskey in reserve, Heaven Hill Distilleries may not cry over a spilled shot glass or two, but it will fight to defend its trademark. The Kentucky distiller has filed an infringement lawsuit against a Chicago-based company that makes a collection of American whiskeys co-created by musical legend Bob Dylan.
Crown Point man gets 15-year prison term in terror-related case
A Crown Point man who pleaded guilty to terror-related charges has been sentenced to 15 years in prison. U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana Judge Joseph S. Van Bokkelen on Monday also sentenced Marlonn Hicks of Crown Point to three years of supervised release, to be served after his prison term.
Hill enduring backlash in voting lawsuits
Even as the office of embattled Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill is pleading for more time to challenge a ruling that found changes to the state's voter registration statute violated federal law, it's taking another election dispute to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Anthem data breach judge OKs huge fee award, but not as much as attorneys wanted
A federal judge late last week awarded plaintiffs’ lawyers $31.05 million in legal feels in the Anthem Inc. data breach case, ending a months-long dispute over how much they deserved for striking the $115 million settlement last year. The fees were less than the $38 million the attorneys originally had requested.
Prosecutors cite ethics rules to Hill in abortion lawsuit
Three Indiana prosecutors are renewing their calls for Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill to concede on their behalf the merits of lawsuit that blocked a 2018 abortion law and told the AG's staff in an email that Hill is obligated under the Indiana Rules of Professional Conduct to follow their directive as his clients. Hill, however, maintains he is authorized to defend the statute on behalf of his "ultimate client:" the people of Indiana.
Questions mark first day of deliberations at Manafort trial
The jury in the fraud trial of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort ended its first day of deliberations with a series of questions to the judge, including a request to “redefine” reasonable doubt. The questions came after roughly seven hours of deliberation, delivered in a handwritten note to U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III. Ellis read the questions aloud to lawyers for both sides as well as Manafort before he called the jury in to give his answers.
Judge lets Marion County inmate suicide suit proceed
A lawsuit claiming the Marion County Sheriff’s Office and one of its deputies violated an inmate’s constitutional rights by leaving him unattended long enough for the inmate to kill himself will continue after a district court judge declined to fully grant summary judgment to the county.
7th Circuit: Disability benefit arguments lack merit
Medical evidence did not support the testimony of a deceased man about the degree of limitations he experienced, the 7th Circuit affirmed when reviewing his denied disability benefits case. The court found arguments in the case lacked merit.
7th Circuit remands mandatory-minimum drug case for resentencing
A “dangerous drug” conviction in Arizona is not considered a felony drug offense qualifying for particular federal mandatory minimum sentencing in Indiana under because of differences in definitions, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals determined.
Jury deliberations under way in Manafort fraud trial
Jurors began their deliberations Thursday in the trial of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, who prosecutors say earned $60 million advising Russia-backed politicians in Ukraine, hid much of it from the IRS, then lied to banks to get loans when the money dried up.
Prosecutors: Arrests made in Indiana synagogue vandalism
Federal prosecutors say they’ve made arrests in connection to anti-Semitic graffiti that was spray-painted at a Carmel synagogue last month.
7th Circuit slaps ALJ, remands engineer’s disability case after stroke
A district court’s decision affirming a Social Security administrative law judge’s ruling on the onset date of an engineer’s disability was vacated Wednesday by the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, which found medical and other evidence strongly suggests an earlier disability date.
Federal courts propose broad evidence, civil, bankruptcy rule changes
Proposed federal court rule changes released for public comment Wednesday would impose new duties on prosecutors who seek to introduce evidence of a criminal defendant’s prior crimes and on lawyers involved in depositions, among other changes.
‘Manafort and his lies’ at heart of case, prosecution argues
Paul Manafort lied to keep himself flush with cash and to maintain his luxurious lifestyle when his income dropped off, prosecutors told jurors Wednesday in closing arguments in the former Trump campaign chairman’s financial fraud trial.
Manafort trial turns from prosecution’s case to his defense
Prosecutors rested their tax evasion and bank fraud case in the trial of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, closing two weeks of testimony that depicted him as using millions of dollars hidden in offshore accounts to fund a luxurious lifestyle — and later obtaining millions more in bank loans under false pretenses.
Northern District appoints AUSA as new magistrate judge
A new magistrate judge has been selected in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana to succeed retiring Magistrate Judge Paul R. Cherry.