Judge dismisses 27 charges against ex-Broad Ripple bar owner, calls probe a ‘fishing expedition’
Prosecutors had alleged that Robert Sabatini underreported nearly $4 million in sales and failed to pay about $350,000 in taxes from 2020 through 2023.
Legal Issues
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New habeas corpus strategy is freeing some immigrant detainees
Attorneys are using it as a fast-pass ticket to seek a district court order that forces immigration judges to grant detainees a bond hearing or order their release.
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Helping legal aid: ILAS has full agenda to raise money, build its identity
Even as Indianapolis Legal Aid Society has been successful at bringing in more money from grants and private donors in recent years, the nonprofit is still facing an identity crisis with people getting confused about its name as well as the services it provides. The new chair of the nonprofit’s board of directors is launching an effort to clear the confusion and grow the contributions.
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Back to the border: Notre Dame law legal aid team sees increased hardship for asylum seekers
Instead of spending his holiday season surrounded by all things merry and bright, immigration attorney Rudy Monterrosa spent days at what he described as an ominous place akin to a concentration camp. For the second year in a row, Monterrosa took a team to the Texas-Mexico border to offer free legal services to women and children seeking asylum in the United States. His experience this time, however, was quite different.
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Alternative approaches: Pew study finds civil legal problems impacting 47% of US households
After finding the need for civil legal assistance in the United States is widespread across all income levels — and perhaps spread wider than previously thought — The Pew Charitable Trusts sees a need for new solutions to addressing the problems experienced by many individuals and families.
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Articles
Trump issues pardon to former Indiana congressman convicted of insider trading
Buyer was sentenced to 22 months in prison in 2023 for trades made while working as a consultant and lobbyist. The Supreme Court in May rejected Buyer’s appeal without comment or noted dissent.
Joey Chestnut to defend hot dog eating title while on probation after pleading guilty to battery
The competitive eating sensation was accused of slapping a man across the face during a late night out at a Westfield bar.
Rural Hoosiers lean on the law to fight unwanted drone intrusion
Hoosiers in rural Indiana say drones are unlawfully tracking deer for poachers, inexplicably flying around chicken coops and increasingly just making people uneasy.
Senate extends surveillance powers until April 30 after longer renewal collapsed in House
At the center of the standoff that has stretched throughout the week is Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which permits the CIA, National Security Agency, FBI and other agencies to collect and analyze vast amounts of overseas communications without a warrant.
Live Nation CEO, defending his company, takes star role at antitrust trial
Michael Rapino, who has led the company since it was formed 21 years ago, defended the dominant position Live Nation has taken over the last two decades.
Jurors wade through daunting evidence in high-stakes Meta trial about social media risks to children
A daunting stream of testimony and evidence has been presented over seven weeks in a New Mexico case that explores what social media conglomerate Meta knew about the effects of its platforms on children.
Those seeking to sue ICE for injuries or damage face uphill battle
Scores of claims arising from the crackdown on illegal immigration are winding through a bureaucratic process mandated under the Federal Tort Claims Act.
South Korea relaunches truth commission with focus on adoption fraud
Advocates say hundreds of adoptees are already seeking investigations, including many from the United States, who were underrepresented in a previous inquiry even though American parents were by far the biggest recipients of Korean children over the past seven decades.
‘Public camping’ ban targeting homelessness heads to governor
The measure bans camping, sleeping or long-term sheltering on land owned by the state or a unit of local government — and establishes a Class C misdemeanor for violations.
Lawmakers weigh scope of doxxing bill after redistricting threats
The National Association of Attorneys General said that doxxing and swatting — or reporting false emergencies to trigger an armed response from law enforcement, which happened to several Indiana lawmakers last year — are closely related but different actions.
$2M Geist home at heart of Drive Planning legal battle
Nearly a year after a federal judge placed Georgia-based financial firm Drive Planning LLC into receivership, the court-appointed receiver is still wrestling to gain control of the $2 million Geist mansion where the now-defunct firm’s managing partner lives.
Ex-Indiana congressional candidate gets prison sentence in campaign finance fraud case
Former Indiana Congressional candidate Gabriel “Gabe” Whitley admittedly falsified campaign finance records and lied about raising hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions ahead of the May 2024 primary.
Judge slashes punitive damages awarded by jury in case against Wabash National
Judge Christopher E. McGraugh said the original $450 million amount awarded by the jury was “grossly excessive” and not in line with the company’s constitutional rights.
Regulatory panel denies Stifel’s claim against Indy competitor
A financial industry arbitration panel has ordered Stifel, Nicolaus & Co. Inc. to pay $7 million in attorney’s fees to a group of former Stifel advisers in Indianapolis.
Indianapolis couple sues IU professor, students for $2B alleging they stole project plans
Tim and Doris Anne Sadler say the students disclosed the couple’s plans for a 1,550-acre development in Puerto Rico to a company that used the information to take over the project.
Prominent Republicans back ‘safe and regulated’ marijuana legalization group
A Republican-backed group pushing Indiana’s lawmakers to “adopt safe and regulated” marijuana policies launched on Wednesday.
State bar association looks at limited legal licensing for non-attorneys
At its annual summit Thursday, one of the bar association’s breakout sessions,”Exploring Alternative Forms of Licensure,” allowed members to give their own feedback on what they think about having non-attorneys perform certain legal services and what those services might be.
U.S. drug control agency moving to reclassify marijuana in historic shift, sources say
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration will move to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, a historic shift to generations of American drug policy that could have wide ripple effects across the country.
Marijuana recommendation by U.S. health agency hailed as first step to easing restrictions
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has delivered a recommendation to the Drug Enforcement Administration on marijuana policy, and Senate leaders hailed it Wednesday as a first step toward easing federal restrictions on the drug.