Indiana

Witness for the prosecution: Your own car?

Originally, automobile manufacturers installed so-called black box recorders in vehicles for their own benefit. In case of any product liability suit, they wanted to be able to prove that airbags had deployed properly. But then GM expanded on that concept in 1999 by installing devices that could also capture vehicle…

May 27, 2014 5:45 PM CDT

Lawyer charged with felony intimidation over Facebook message to client’s ex-husband

Attorney James Allen “Jim” Hanson says he was just trying to send a message to his client’s ex-husband to expect a vigorous defense. But his profanity-laced Facebook post to the man, which concludes “I’ve got you in my sights now,” conveyed more, Indiana prosecutors say. They have charged the 41-year-old…

May 23, 2014 7:10 PM CDT

Accused triple murderer’s ‘death row x 3’ tattoo poses hairy issue for trial court judge

Convicted last year in a brutal slaying and sentenced to death, William Clyde Gibson decided to get a tattoo on his neck. It says “death row x 3.” Now an Indiana trial judge must decide how best to obscure it before the 56-year-old’s pending trial in another murder case, the…

May 21, 2014 10:40 PM CDT

Forced catheterization alleged; suit says cops wanted quicker urine sample after traffic stop

An Indiana man has filed a federal lawsuit alleging police and hospital officials subjected him to a forced catheterization because he didn’t provide a urine sample quickly enough after a traffic stop. William Clark of Crown Point says in the suit that a Schererville police officer held him down while…

May 13, 2014 11:56 AM CDT

Quarles & Brady opens office in Indianapolis with Frost Brown litigation team

Four litigators from Frost Brown Todd are opening a new office in Indianapolis as partners of Quarles & Brady, along with another lawyer who formerly was a partner at Krieg DeVault. D. Linden Barber, who serves as director of Drug Enforcement Administration compliance and litigation for Quarles, within the firm’s…

May 9, 2014 3:50 PM CDT

‘Law Tigers’ lawyer is reprimanded because referral website didn’t comply with testimonial ban

An Indiana lawyer has been reprimanded because he was affiliated with a referral website that posted testimonials. The lawyer, who was not named, contracted with the American Association of Motorcycle Injury Lawyers for exclusive use of the “Law Tigers” name in his Indiana territory and for referrals through its website,…

Apr 16, 2014 10:45 AM CDT

7th Circuit nixes boys-only long-hair ban, says rule didn’t just target ‘Age of Aquarius’ styles

Calling a junior high basketball coach’s short-hair rule for boys a violation of the constitutional right of equal protection under the law, a divided federal appeals court Monday reversed a trial judge who had dismissed a case brought by the parents of a now 17-year-old former player. The short-hair rule,…

Feb 24, 2014 11:35 PM CST

Posner tells BigLaw chief, ‘stop babbling,’ threatens to end argument in contraception mandate case

A contentious oral argument Wednesday before a federal appellate court panel in Chicago included a lesson in appellate advocacy for the BigLaw litigation leader representing the University of Notre Dame in a high-profile health care case. “Don’t interrupt,” Judge Richard Posner told Jones Day partner Matthew Kairis several times during…

Feb 13, 2014 8:00 PM CST

Estate of James Dean sues Twitter and fan over @JamesDean account

Iconic actor James Dean, best-known for his leading role in Rebel Without a Cause, has been dead for decades. So there’s scant likelihood that those following the Twitter account @JamesDean think they’re dealing with the real silver screen legend. However, the actor’s estate has sued the anonymous owner of the…

Feb 11, 2014 4:50 PM CST

Lawyer mourns loss of ‘little sister’ assistant he fired, vows to repay clients for missing funds

Until recently, attorney Michael Krebes thought of a longtime assistant as family. Now the Indiana lawyer, a former prosecutor and judge, is struggling to repay more than 40 clients he says were cheated out of money or representation between 2011 and 2013 because of problems he didn’t know about until…

Feb 6, 2014 6:00 PM CST

Woman lost in system serves 154 days instead of 48 hours; prosecutor filed motion to get her out

Ordered to spend 48 hours in jail in August for violating test rules for her drug program, an Indiana woman was released last week, 154 days later, after becoming lost in the judicial system. A series of mistakes led to what the special judge who released Destiny Hoffman last week…

Jan 28, 2014 2:25 PM CST

Indianapolis judge suspended pending disciplinary decision

An Indianapolis judge has been suspended with pay pending final action in a disciplinary proceeding against her. Marion County Superior Court Judge Kimberly Brown is facing possible removal for multiple violations of the state’s judicial ethics code, according to Indianapolis Business News and the Journal and Courier. The allegations against…

Jan 10, 2014 10:00 PM CST

Physician criminally charged after firing worker during jury service in high-profile trial

An Indiana physician has been charged with a misdemeanor after firing a worker at the health company he owns while the employee was taking time off for jury service in a high-profile trial. Dr. William P. Hedrick, 52, conveyed in an email that he was eliminating the job of Chriss…

Dec 12, 2013 7:00 PM CST

Ex-lawyer who had aide forge lawyers’ names on documents gets 4-year suspended prison term

A successful lawyer with political ambitions, Rodney P. Sniadecki saw his legal career spiral downward after the Indiana Supreme Court suspended (PDF) his law license for six months in 2007. He kept on practicing, according to a 2010 supreme court opinion (PDF), which disbarred him for this and other conduct,…

Dec 11, 2013 9:50 PM CST

Researcher traverses Indiana to photograph its historic courthouses

A telecommunications instructor at Ball State University drove through the state of Indiana this summer with one goal in mind: to visit every county to study and photograph courthouse squares. Chris Flook’s photos and historical courthouse information are online at IndianaCourthouseSquare.org, the Post-Tribune reports. More than 80 communities in the…

Oct 29, 2013 11:15 AM CDT