Panel backs moving up appointment of Indiana schools chief
Indiana voters wouldn’t decide anymore who serves as the state schools superintendent under a proposal being pushed by legislative Republicans.
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Trump’s AG nominee Barr asserts his independence
President Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general asserted independence from the White House on Tuesday, saying he believed that Russia had tried to interfere in the 2016 presidential election, that the special counsel investigation shadowing Trump is not a witch hunt and that his predecessor was right to recuse himself from the probe.
Judge extends grand jury used by Mueller’s Russia probe
The chief federal judge in Washington has extended the term of the grand jury used by special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation. The extension by U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell is the latest sign the Mueller probe will continue for at least the next several months.
High court to take new look at partisan electoral districts
The Supreme Court is plunging back into the issue of whether electoral districts can be too partisan. Disputes have arisen in cases involving North Carolina’s heavily Republican congressional map and a Democratic congressional district in Maryland, and the justices said Friday they will hear arguments in March.
Day 13: Dems pass funding plan without wall, Trump digs in
On their first day in the majority, House Democrats on Thursday night passed a plan to re-open the government without funding President Donald Trump’s promised border wall. The largely party-line votes came after Trump made a surprise appearance at the White House briefing room pledging to keep up the fight for his signature campaign promise.
No solution to shutdown in sight before Dems take House
The partial government shutdown will almost certainly be handed off to a divided government to solve in the new year — the first big confrontation between President Donald Trump and newly empowered Democrats — as agreement eludes Washington in the waning days of the Republican monopoly on power.
Year in Review: Hill sexual misconduct scandal top legal news story of 2018
Indiana Lawyer’s top story of 2018 began inside an Indianapolis bar in the cool early-morning hours of Thursday, March 15. Attorney General Curtis Hill had had a few drinks. A few too many, several witnesses would later claim.
A look at where the investigations related to Trump stand
President Donald Trump is facing criminal investigations in Washington and New York.Here’s a look at where the investigations related to Trump stand and what may lie ahead for him.
‘Dirty deeds’: Ex-Trump lawyer Cohen gets 3 years in prison
Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s one-time fixer, was sentenced Wednesday to three years in prison for crimes that included arranging the payment of hush money to conceal his boss’ alleged sexual affairs, telling a judge that he agreed time and again to cover up Trump’s “dirty deeds” out of “blind loyalty.”
Indiana Secretary of State investigating Johnson County Election Day glitch
Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson said Tuesday in a statement that her office is investigating Johnson County’s problematic electronic poll books and hopes “to determine the root cause of the problem" after the poll books that are used to check in voters before they cast a ballot kept freezing on Nov. 6, stalling several voting machines and preventing some people from voting.
Multiple Indiana voting laws on trial in federal court
Indiana, like many states, has been amending and enacting new voting laws in the name of stamping out voter fraud. Lawyers and civic organizations are challenging laws and regulations that they believe are restricting the right to vote.
Whether a president can be prosecuted remains in dispute
For the first time, prosecutors have tied President Donald Trump to a federal crime, accusing him of directing illegal hush-money payments to women during his presidential campaign in 2016. Although Trump hasn’t been charged with any crimes, the question of whether a president can even be prosecuted while in office is a matter of legal dispute.
Indiana midterm election turnout hit 51 percent
Voter participation in Indiana’s fall election was 51 percent, the first time since 1994 that the state topped 50 percent in a midterm election. Henry County had the highest turnout in Indiana with 64 percent of registered voters casting a ballot, while Vigo and Madison counties had the lowest turnout at 44 percent of registered voters.
Target in Mueller probe files complaint against prosecutors
A conservative author in the crosshairs of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation has filed a complaint with the Justice Department, alleging prosecutors tried to coerce him to give false testimony. Jerome Corsi said Monday the prosecutors were trying to entice him to lie to a grand jury and threatened to indict him.
Whitaker will consult with ethics officials over Mueller recusal
Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker will consult with Justice Department ethics officials about “matters that may warrant recusal” amid pressure from Democrats to step aside from overseeing the special counsel’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
White House braces for Mueller’s next steps
The White House is bracing for the probe of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign to fire up again. Trump’s advisers are privately expressing worries that the special counsel, who’s been out of the news for the past month, has been stealthily compiling information and could soon issue new indictments or a damning final report.
Revised vote tally flips St. Joseph race, ousting probate judge
The St. Joseph Probate Court judge was unseated in Tuesday’s election, reversing earlier results showing Republican Judge James Fox had retained his office. Official final vote totals now show Democratic challenger Jason Cichowicz narrowly defeated Fox in the state’s closest judicial race.
Porter County begins counting votes after delay
The commissioners in a northwestern Indiana county plagued by a mix of Election Day problems asked the FBI on Wednesday to investigate what they called “scores of alleged violations of Indiana Election Law” reported following Tuesday’s election. Porter County officials did not begin counting votes until Wednesday morning, more than 15 hours after the first polling places closed.
Voters oust trial court judge; Carmichael beats party-switching ex-jurist
Southern Indiana voters rejected one trial court judge and narrowly re-elected another who was challenged by a former colleague who changed parties to run against her. Jefferson Circuit Court Judge Darrell Maurice Auxier, a Democrat, was the lone sitting Indiana trial court judge to lose his bid for re-election, while Clark Circuit Judge Vicki Carmichael retained her bench seat in one of Indiana’s closest countywide trial court races Tuesday.
Glitches keep Porter County from counting votes
Officials northwestern Indiana’s Porter County, which hasn’t reported any general election votes, are sorting through a mix of problems to get ballots counted a day after the election.