Lake County seeks repayment for police fugitive manhunt
A northwestern Indiana county is seeking repayment of more than $30,000 from a private transport company for a manhunt police mounted after a fugitive escaped while being extradited from Texas.
Lake County
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Records: DNA links man to 1992 killing of Gary woman, girl, 4
A Tennessee man charged in the July 1992 killings of an Indiana woman and her 4-year-old daughter was linked to the deaths by a new analysis of DNA collected from the mother’s body, court records show.
Lake County Bar: Judicial-selection bill an ‘abomination,’ ‘political power play’
The Lake County Bar Association on Thursday issued the most damning rebuke to date of a bill in the Indiana General Assembly that would alter how judges in that county and St. Joseph County are selected. The northwest Indiana county’s bar called the bill “an abomination” and “a political power play by parties not even within Lake County to take even more power away from the people of Lake County in selecting their judges.”
ISBA opposes bill to change judicial selection in Lake, St. Joseph counties
For the second time this year, the Indiana State Bar Association is publicly opposing legislation targeting judicial selection in Indiana, this time speaking against a bill that it says would “unnecessarily change a working system” for judicial selection in Lake and St. Joseph counties.
Appeals court rejects bid to cut 120-year sentence in Gary double-slaying
A Gary man convicted of a 2003 double-murder failed to convince an appeals panel that his 120-year sentence should be reduced. The Indiana Court of Appeals rejected the arguments Wednesday.
Web Exclusive: Lozano Bar supports Latino lawyers with personal, professional resources
Shared experiences bring people together. That’s particularly true of the members of the Rudy Lozano Bar Association, a northwest Indiana group dedicated to serving Latino legal professionals. Formerly known as the Northwest Indiana Hispanic Bar Association, the group filed articles of incorporation under its new name in February 2020. Its namesake is the late federal Judge Rodolfo “Rudy” Lozano, who died in July 2018.
Legislation takes aim at judicial selection
A bill in the Legislature would restructure the composition of judicial nominating commissions in Lake and St. Joseph counties. Currently, an even number of attorneys and nonattorney members are appointed by local stakeholders, but the proposal would reduce attorney representation, which has prompted a backlash in the northern Indiana legal communities.
Tennessee man charged in 1992 slayings of Gary woman, daughter, 4
A Tennessee man has been charged with murder in the 1992 fatal shootings of a Gary woman and her 4-year-old daughter, the FBI said Monday.
Bill removing lawyers from Lake, St. Joseph judicial panels draws more fire
Efforts to amend a bill that would fundamentally change the composition of the judicial nominating commissions in Lake and St. Joseph counties failed in the Indiana House on Tuesday, setting up the controversial legislation for a possible final House vote next week.
Appeals panel orders sentence reduced in fatal neglect case
The Indiana Court of Appeals on Wednesday ordered a reduction in the sentence of a woman convicted of neglect resulting in the death of two of her children, finding the offense is not a crime of violence as defined by statute.
Bill to alter Lake, St. Joseph judicial selection rankles local bench, bar
Legal professionals in Lake and St. Joseph counties are raising serious concerns about advancing legislation that would change the structure of the local judicial nominating commissions that shape the state trial court judiciary in the northern Indiana counties.
Ownership fight could leave new Gary casino empty
The legal fight over ownership of a new $300 million casino in northwestern Indiana could leave it sitting unused for possibly months after construction work is completed.
Senate committee supports new judicial resources, municipal court admin fees
Efforts to add judicial resources to several Indiana counties are continuing, with a Senate committee endorsing legislation that would benefit courts in Decatur, Hamilton, Hancock, Huntington, Knox and Lake counties. Meanwhile, a related measure that would let city and town courts keep certain administrative fees is also advancing.
COA affirms for general contractor in Lake County traffic construction dispute
A panel of the Indiana Court of Appeals has affirmed judgment for a construction company against its subcontractor after a negligence suit was brought against it following an accident that took place in a Lake County traffic pattern the companies were working on.
Supreme Court creates rule for appointing commercial court judges
As Indiana’s commercial court program expands, the Indiana Supreme Court is implementing new rules to govern the appointment of judges to the specialized dockets.
Ratcliff sues Indiana Gaming Commission for suspending his license
Longtime casino executive Rod Ratcliff is suing the Indiana Gaming Commission for suspending his gaming license last month. The suit alleges the situation has jeopardized a the opening of a new casino in Gary.
Former Whiting mayor who stole money to gamble avoids prison
A former Whiting mayor who pleaded guilty to charges that he spent about a quarter-million dollars in campaign funds to gamble and pay personal bills avoided prison on Wednesday when a federal judge ordered he be placed on two years’ probation and home detention for one year.
Supreme Court launches pretrial diversion pilot program
A pretrial pilot program aimed at preserving judicial resources has been launched in four Indiana counties. The pilot will allow prosecutors to offer pretrial diversion to defendants charged with a variety of low-level offenses.
Indianapolis’ Amazon offer can remain secret, COA affirms
Indianapolis’ offer of taxpayer money and financial incentives in an unsuccessful attempt to lure a coveted second Amazon headquarters can remain secret, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled, rejecting an appeal by a tax trade publication that argued the offer must be disclosed as a public record.
Escaped murder suspect recaptured in northwest Indiana
A murder suspect who escaped from a security company’s van while the vehicle was stopped at a McDonald’s in northwest Indiana was recaptured Wednesday morning after more than two weeks on the lam, authorities said.