Indiana

Judge rebukes police department for emailing trial summaries in case in which officer is defendant

A judge rebuked the Indianapolis police for emailing trial summaries to members of the department in a case in which some of those reading the accounts could be called as witnesses. A prosecutor found out about the emails and alerted the court, reports the Indianapolis Star. “There’s potential that this…

Oct 24, 2013 4:25 PM CDT

Lawyer accused of shooting himself, making up story of attack by third party takes misdemeanor plea

Originally facing a felony obstruction case, an Indiana lawyer accused by authorities of falsely reporting he had been shot by an unknown third party at a state park has taken a misdemeanor plea. Peter Raventos, 44, pleaded guilty to false informing and the obstruction charge was dropped in the Owen…

Sep 30, 2013 3:40 PM CDT

Judge faces 45 ethics charges, is accused of delaying trials and defendants’ release

An Indiana judge is facing 45 ethics counts for allegedly mishandling her work duties, including but not limited to claimed delay of bench trials she thought might last beyond 4 p.m. The disciplinary charges against Marion Superior Court Judge Kimberly Brown date back as far as 2009, when she assumed…

Aug 26, 2013 6:40 PM CDT

Lawyer accused of secretly taping sex with client gives up his license

The Indiana Supreme Court has accepted the resignation of a lawyer who pleaded guilty to voyeurism based on accusations he secretly taped a sexual encounter with a client. The court accepted the resignation of William Wallace III in an order (PDF) issued Aug. 14. The Legal Profession Blog notes the…

Aug 19, 2013 10:45 AM CDT

19 ‘right to dry’ states outlaw clothesline bans; is yours among them?

Once upon a time, a clothesline was a standard feature of most back yards. But concern that publicly airing clean laundry attached with clothespins to a rope or wire was unsightly, or obstructed views, or even created a safety risk (strangulation is sometimes cited) led a number of condominium associations…

Aug 14, 2013 8:24 PM CDT

Attorney accused of lying about her work as a prostitute agrees to 3-year license suspension

An Illinois attorney who allegedly worked as a call girl from 2005 to 2011 while she was earning her legal degree—and used that income to cover costs of opening her own law practice—has agreed to a three-year suspension of her license. Reema Bajaj, 27, pleaded guilty last year to a…

Aug 9, 2013 3:37 PM CDT

Report: Judge bans law firm he blames for not getting court appointment

An Indiana judge has reportedly banned from his courtroom a prominent law firm he blames for not getting a coveted juvenile court appointment. Lake Superior Court Judge Nicholas Schiralli is transferring all cases of Thiros & Stracci to other courts, unidentified court officials say, because a lawyer in the firm…

Aug 5, 2013 5:30 PM CDT

Walgreens must pay customer $1.44M after pharmacist shared her prescription records

An Indiana jury awarded $1.44 million Friday to a customer whose prescription records were provided by a Walgreen’s pharmacist to the customer’s ex-boyfriend. The pharmacist was married to the plaintiff’s ex-boyfriend at the time she looked up Abigail Hinchy’s prescription records and shared them with Davion Peterson, pharmacist Audra Peterson’s…

Jul 29, 2013 6:50 PM CDT

Indiana lawyer is disbarred for revealing client information in autobiography

An Indiana lawyer who wrote an autobiography purporting to be the true story of his sexual relationship with a former client has been disbarred for his disclosures. The Indiana Supreme Court disbarred Carmel lawyer Joseph Stork Smith in an opinion (PDF) issued Wednesday, the Indianapolis Star reports. The court said…

Jul 18, 2013 4:23 PM CDT

Gay teen settles bullying lawsuit against school district

An openly gay Indianapolis student has agreed to settle a lawsuit against school officials for allegedly failing to protect him from anti-gay bullies. Under the proposed settlement, filed Tuesday in federal court in Indianapolis, 18-year-old Darnell “Dynasty” Young will receive $65,000 from the Indianapolis Public Schools district, the Indianapolis Star…

Jul 11, 2013 8:23 PM CDT

Judge jails lawyer accused of stealing $4.5M from clients, says he dissipated assets

Once a top Indiana construction accident attorney who was featured in 2009 on a Super Lawyers magazine cover, William Conour was jailed last month after a prosecutor argued that he’d violated a court order by dissipating tens of thousands of dollars worth of assets and repeatedly lying to the court.…

Jul 9, 2013 4:05 PM CDT

7th Circuit revives acquitted lawyer’s malicious prosecution suit over witness bribery case

Acquitted almost immediately in a 2009 trial over a claimed witness bribe, attorney Michael J. “Mick” Alexander then filed a civil suit against his accusers under the Federal Tort Claims Act He contended that the Delaware County, Ind., prosecutor and two FBI agents had conspired to make a false accusation…

Jul 2, 2013 6:05 PM CDT

Young victims and their families are blamed after physical attacks

In an ugly response to a pervasive problem of abusive treatment of children by other children, fellow teens and adults have blamed the victims of recent physical attacks and even entire communities have seemingly turned on the victims and their families. In Elmwood, Ind., a pregnant 13-year-old who says she…

Jun 24, 2013 6:17 PM CDT

Sending female intern’s horror-film clip to local law firms gets ex-partner suspended for 3 years

Updated: A former partner of a well-known Indiana law firm has been suspended from practice for three years for persuading his paralegal to impersonate that firm’s managing partner and send an email attaching a horror-film clip in which a new hire seemingly was onscreen in a state of undress. Arthur…

May 20, 2013 4:49 PM CDT

Feds say assets of ex-lawyer charged in $4.5M client theft are missing, ask judge to revoke bond

Released on bond as he awaits trial in a federal wire-fraud case related to his alleged theft of $4.5 million in client funds, former Indianapolis lawyer William F. Conour is now accused of having violated bond conditions by disposing of personal assets without court approval. A new inventory ordered last…

May 8, 2013 7:27 PM CDT