Indiana

Mayor declares local Wal-Mart a public nuisance

The mayor of the Indiana town of Beech Grove has declared its Wal-Mart a public nuisance, a designation that will allow the town to assess fines when police are called to the store. The nuisance declaration by Mayor Dennis Buckley followed two shoplifting incidents that resulted in two deaths, the…

Aug 18, 2015 9:09 AM CDT

Nearly 4 million affected by hack on medical records systems software company, feds say

Nearly 4 million patients of 11 health care providers in multiple states were affected by a hack attack earlier this year on Medical Informatics Engineering. The Indiana-based company creates software for Internet-based medical records systems used by health care providers, the Associated Press explained when the intrusion was announced in…

Aug 4, 2015 2:50 PM CDT

Five years after ‘Rosa’s Law’ eliminated ‘R-word’ from federal lexicon, movement continues to grow

At age 14, Rosa Marcellino already has an enviable track record as a lobbyist. Five years ago, she was a central figure, along with her parents and other family members, in a national campaign to pass a law requiring federal government officials to eliminate the “R-word”—mentally retarded—from their lexicon. Although…

Jul 24, 2015 4:06 PM CDT

This law school will give 100% scholarships to all of its students; it’s not too late to apply

Updated: Indiana Tech Law School is offering 100 percent scholarships to all students enrolled there next year after failing to win provisional accreditation in June from the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar. Law dean Charles Cercone tells the ABA Journal that anyone enrolled in the…

Jul 23, 2015 9:15 AM CDT

Defendant jailed after ‘I defy you Satan’ comment to judge during contempt hearing

A former professional boxer whose sanity is at issue in an ongoing Indiana attempted rape trial has already been sentenced to a 10-day jail term for his remarks to jurors and the judge. Santiago Valdez, 59, has been diagnosed as schizophrenic but was determined to be competent to stand trial…

Jul 22, 2015 10:50 AM CDT

7th Circuit criticizes lawyer for raising too many issues on appeal

A federal appeals court is criticizing an Indianapolis lawyer for filing an appeal that raises too many issues and “conveys the impression of ‘dictated but not read.’ ” The decision (PDF) by the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that lawyer Ronald Weldy filed the appeal too late…

Jul 7, 2015 5:45 AM CDT

Parishioners at Church of Cannabis avoid criminal charges, plan civil suit

Parishioners at the First Church of Cannabis in Indianapolis left their pot at home when they gathered for a service on Wednesday, the same day that Indiana’s new religious freedom law took effect. Police had announced in advance that any pot smokers would be arrested, and officers were posted outside…

Jul 2, 2015 7:30 AM CDT

Lawyer targeted in claimed murder plot says not enough was done to protect her family

An Indiana matrimonial lawyer allegedly targeted by a mother and son in a bizarre murder plot says authorities haven’t done enough to protect her and her family. Even though two suspects have been arrested, Rebecca Eimerman is fearful that she is still in danger. She credits her husband, Michael McQuinn,…

Jun 30, 2015 9:00 AM CDT

Lawyer targeted in claimed murder plot says her husband saved her life by taking her car

Following news that authorities have recaptured a mother and son accused of participating in a bizarre murder plot against an Indiana divorce lawyer, the attorney herself is speaking out. Rebecca Eimerman says she is still fearful for her family’s safety and credits her husband’s decision to drive her SUV for…

Jun 26, 2015 10:45 AM CDT

Indiana Tech Law School denied provisional accreditation

Indiana Tech Law School has been denied its bid for provisional accreditation by the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar. The two-year-old school was notified of the decision Tuesday, according to a statement on the school’s website. The news was also posted (PDF) on the section’s…

Jun 10, 2015 4:30 PM CDT

Mom and son accused of plotting to kill divorce attorney are on the lam

An Indiana divorce lawyer was allegedly targeted in a murder plot because she tried to help a client collect money owed in a divorce settlement by the client’s ex-husband. Now the Florida mother and son accused of plotting to kill attorney Rebecca Eimerman and sitting in a vehicle outside her…

Jun 10, 2015 3:00 PM CDT

Barnes & Thornburg opens Dallas office with 2 partners from Gardere Wynne

A well-known Midwestern law firm has planted its flag in Texas, opening a Dallas office with two litigation partners from Gardere Wynne Sewell. Managing partner Bob Grand says Barnes & Thornburg expects the new office to have 15 to 20 lawyers within a year or so, Texas Lawyer (sub. req.)…

Jun 8, 2015 4:25 PM CDT

Once America’s youngest death row inmate, released convict dies in apparent suicide

A 45-year-old former death row inmate released from an Indiana prison in 2013 has died in an apparent suicide, 30 years and two weeks after the murder that sent her to prison. Paula Cooper had received the death penalty for the 1985 stabbing death of 78-year-old Ruth Pelke, who let…

May 27, 2015 9:47 AM CDT

Judge who called parents ‘knuckleheads’ and their dispute ‘retarded’ is chided by top state court

Indiana courts will tolerate a judge’s “crusty” demeanor toward litigants, if evenly applied, but a juvenile court judge in Marion County went too far, the Indiana Supreme Court has found. In a case to determine whether a teen should be placed in state custody, the state supreme court said the…

May 14, 2015 7:22 AM CDT

Wife of appellate judge charged with threatening him in effort to get son-in-law arrested

The wife of an Indiana Court of Appeals judge has been cited for obstruction and making a false report after allegedly threatening the jurist in an effort to get the couple’s son-in-law arrested. Beverly “Star” Cochran is accused of threatening Judge Edward “Ted” Najam in cellphone text messages and in…

May 12, 2015 12:45 PM CDT