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.
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Senator drops push to force Indiana marijuana prosecutions
A Republican state senator has dropped a proposal attacking what he called “social justice prosecution” by empowering Indiana’s attorney general to appoint special prosecutors to take over criminal cases that local authorities decide they won’t pursue.
Prosecutor fighting discipline over role in police sex investigation
The elected prosecutor of Knox County in southwestern Indiana faces an attorney discipline case related to his conduct stemming from a local police investigation into his former chief deputy prosecutor’s relationship with a woman who was serving time on drug charges. An attorney for the prosecutor, however, is contesting the discipline case and says the prosecutor is the victim of a vendetta born of the small-town rumor mill.
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.
Prosecutor in Vincennes fighting discipline over role in police sex investigation
The elected prosecutor of Knox County in southwestern Indiana faces an attorney discipline case related to his conduct stemming from a local police investigation into his former deputy prosecutor’s relationship with a woman who was serving time on drug charges. An attorney for the prosecutor, however, is contesting the discipline case and says the prosecutor is the victim of a vendetta born of the small-town rumor mill.
Ex-deputy prosecutor who retaliated against detective suspended
A former Knox County chief deputy prosecutor has been suspended from the practice of law for abusing his prosecutorial authority as part of a retaliation campaign against a detective who discovered his sexual relationship with a criminal defendant. The elected Knox County prosecutor also faces a related disciplinary case, according to the Indiana Supreme Court.
‘Social justice prosecuting’ bill advances despite widespread opposition
Despite unanimous opposition from nearly all of the organizations and individuals who testified, a bill that would allow the attorney general to appoint a special prosecutor over certain cases that a local prosecutor declines to prosecute has advanced out of an Indiana Senate committee.
Indiana lawyer faces DUI charges after announcing candidacy
An Indiana attorney was arrested on drunken driving charges in the southern Indiana community of Newburgh shortly after announcing his candidacy for the state Legislature.
Bill to allow summonses, not arrests, for misdemeanors advances
A bill that proponents say would show legislative leadership in efforts to end jail overcrowding by issuing summonses to appear to misdemeanor defendants has advanced out of an Indiana House committee.
Juvenile molestation finding reversed over faulty rights waiver
The Indiana Court of Appeals on Thursday reversed a 12-year-old boy’s delinquency adjudication for what would be Level 4 felony child molestation, finding he lacked maturity to knowingly and voluntarily waive his rights and that evidence of a police interrogation should not have been admitted.
Gary man killed by police was wanted in woman’s death
A man who shot and wounded two police officers at a northwestern Indiana apartment complex before being fatally shot by police was a suspect in the strangulation death of a woman he had been dating, police said Tuesday.
Suspect killed, 2 SWAT officers injured in Gary shootout
Police fatally shot a suspect Monday after he opened fire and injured two members of a SWAT team who stormed a Gary apartment complex seeking to apprehend him, authorities said.
Reversal: Indianapolis police immune in teen’s death linked to handcuffing
Despite multiple 7th Circuit decisions finding police at fault for injuring individuals by excessive handcuffing, a panel from the Chicago court has granted qualified immunity to two Indianapolis police officers in the death of a teenager because none of the previous cases specifically give arrestees the right to not be handcuffed after complaining about difficulty breathing.
Prosecutor recommends probation for teen’s hoax SWAT calls
A 17-year-old boy who admitted in an Ohio court to making hoax phone calls to authorities in a half-dozen states, including Indiana, should receive a one-year sentence with credit for time served, a prosecutor said.
Ex-Chicago cop wins resentencing appeal
An ex-Chicago cop serving time for drug-related convictions linked to his connection with the Latin Kings street gang will have an opportunity to have his request for a reduced sentence considered, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday.
Sheriff: Distracted trucker charged in Boone Co. crash that killed 3
A Michigan trucker distracted by his coffee mug was charged in connection with a nine-vehicle crash in Boone County that killed three people, including a toddler, and injured more than dozen others, authorities said Monday. Boone County sheriff’s officials said Matthew Small, 34, of Grandville, Michigan, was jailed after being charged with three counts of reckless homicide.
Indiana man faces trial in 1994 Wisconsin murder case
A judge ordered an Indiana man to stand trial for the 1994 death of a woman who was strangled and run over with a car in Madison, Wisconsin. Dane County Circuit Judge Valerie Bailey-Rihn said during a hearing Thursday that there’s enough evidence for 52-year-old Willie L. Coleman to be tried for first-degree reckless homicide in the Nov. 4, 1994, death Lula Cunnigan.
Indiana school bus safety program nets nearly 2,700 tickets
Indiana police departments issued nearly 2,700 tickets and 1,400 warnings for unsafe driving around school bus stops and routes during a two-month enforcement program, state officials announced Thursday.
New IMPD chief hopes to make dent in homicide rate
Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett on Tuesday named high-ranking internal candidate Randal Taylor as the chief of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, succeeding Chief Bryan Roach.
Man badly wounded in Indianapolis police shooting
Indianapolis police officers shot a man early Saturday after he refused orders to drop a rifle, authorities said.