Indiana

Ex-Navy SEAL sues lawyer, says bad advice about best-selling Osama bin Laden book cost him millions

Recently profiled on 60 Minutes, a former Navy SEAL who wrote a best-selling book about the U.S. government raid that killed Osama Bin Laden wound up being federally investigated, his lawyer says. The issue: Whether Matt Bissonnette, writing under the pen name “Mark Owen,” revealed government secrets in violation of…

Nov 6, 2014 10:50 AM CST

Judge blames defense lawyers for talk recorded by police, says they should have sought private room

An Indiana judge has refused a defense request to dismiss a manslaughter case because of an attorney-client conversation that was recorded by police and reviewed by a prosecutor. Instead, LaPorte County Judge Kathleen Lang said former defense lawyers for John Larkin were to blame for the recording, because they failed…

Oct 29, 2014 6:15 AM CDT

Man who reportedly confessed to multiple slayings is held in contempt for silence in court hearing

A man who has been charged with murder in one woman’s death last week and reportedly confessed to six more slayings after he was arrested over the weekend isn’t talking now. Darren Deon Vann, 43, was held in contempt by an Indiana judge on Wednesday after he refused to speak…

Oct 22, 2014 12:30 PM CDT

Police say man arrested in one slaying led them to 6 other bodies; he is now charged with murder

A registered sex offender convicted in Texas of aggravated rape was quickly linked by police in Hammond, Indiana, to the slaying of a prostitute at a motel there Friday. But when Darren Deon Vann, 43, was taken into custody Saturday, police said he confessed not only to killing Afrikka Hardy,…

Oct 21, 2014 4:10 PM CDT

Police stop over unbuckled seat belts leads to chaotic arrest and federal civil rights suit

A police stop of a family in Hammond, Indiana, over two unbuckled seat belts last month ended in emotional chaos after the officers broke a window and used an electronic stun gun on a passenger. What exactly led to the escalation is in dispute: A federal civil rights lawsuit filed…

Oct 8, 2014 5:55 PM CDT

7th Circuit explains how acquitted murder defendant can still be punished by sentencing judge

Acquitted by a jury in the fatal shooting of a rival Latin Kings gang member, Martin Anaya nonetheless was blamed for the murder by the federal district judge who oversaw his Indiana racketeering and drug conspiracy case. As a result, Anaya had his sentence enhanced to two concurrent 30-year terms.…

Oct 8, 2014 3:20 PM CDT

Judge complains about smelly appeals documents; can the culprit be sniffed out?

An Indiana appeals judge smells something amiss in an appeal of a prostitution conviction. In footnote 1 in a Sept. 30 opinion (PDF), Judge Edward Najam Jr. has a complaint about the transcript: It “emits an unpleasant odor” of smoke. The Indiana Law Blog noted the footnote and the Indianapolis…

Oct 8, 2014 7:00 AM CDT

During traffic stop, state trooper asked driver if she accepted Jesus, ACLU suit claims

An Indiana state trooper gave a woman a warning ticket and then a religious brochure after he pulled her over for a traffic stop, according to a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana. The suit filed on behalf of the driver, Ellen Bogan, says the trooper’s…

Oct 7, 2014 5:45 AM CDT

Inspired by man who filed more than 120 lawsuits, Indiana Supreme Court sets pro se limits

Pro se parties must “play by the rules,” and courts can place reasonable limits on filings by an “abusive litigant,” the Indiana Supreme Court wrote Tuesday in an opinion involving a man who has filed more than 120 lawsuits over the past six years. The court did not impose sanctions…

Oct 1, 2014 3:20 PM CDT

Judge axed evidence when cops took Fifth in lawyer-client eavesdropping; will she dismiss 2nd case?

For the second time this year, an Indiana judge will have to decide whether to eviscerate evidence in a slaying case due to claimed inadvertent eavesdropping by police in LaPorte County. Currently before Judge Kathleen Lang is a motion by lawyers representing John Larkin to dismiss a voluntary manslaughter case…

Sep 26, 2014 10:08 AM CDT

Lawyer faces drunken-driving case and contempt hearing after allegedly coming to court intoxicated

A longtime Indiana lawyer who allegedly admitted to police that he drank “about a pint” of vodka within hours of a Monday court hearing is now dealing with a double whammy. In addition to criminal charges in including operating a vehicle while intoxicated, Joseph Robertson II is also facing a…

Sep 12, 2014 5:00 PM CDT

Parents make bullying claim over mug shot T-shirt of teen worn to high school soccer game

When Kevin Rittenhouse’s teenage son was caught using marijuana with friends last year, his dad tried to do the right thing and turned the teen, a member of the soccer team at his Indiana high school, in to police. “Authorities confiscated his phone and that’s how they came up with…

Sep 11, 2014 12:30 PM CDT

With ‘eye-popping speed,’ 7th Circuit strikes 2 states’ same-sex marriage bans 9 days after argument

Acting with what USA Today describes as “eye-popping speed,” a Chicago-based federal appeals court on Thursday struck same-sex marriage bans in two states only nine days after hearing oral arguments. Joining with federal appeals courts that have declared bans on same-sex marriage in Oklahoma, Utah and Virginia to be unconstitutional…

Sep 4, 2014 4:30 PM CDT

Judge orders lawyer to put on socks

Told by an Indiana judge that a local court rule requires lawyers to wear socks, Todd Glickfield resisted. “I hate socks,” he told Blackford Circuit Judge Dean Young, who at first saw to it that the attorney was privately advised during a break about the need to don the footwear.…

Sep 3, 2014 1:40 PM CDT

Judge nixes convicted murderer’s request for death penalty

Sentenced to 95 years for shooting a man outside an Indiana bar, including a 30-year enhancement for being a habitual offender, Walter Leach has asked for the death penalty. But an La Porte Circuit Court judge turned down the 61-year-old’s request, saying that Leach hasn’t exhausted his administrative avenues for…

Aug 27, 2014 7:55 PM CDT