Ex-Muncie cop pleads guilty to assaulting arrestee, falsifying report
A former Muncie Police Department officer faces up to 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to assaulting an arrestee and falsifying a report to cover up the offense.
civil rights
Articles
High court rules for state in case of man shackled at trial
The Supreme Court said Thursday that a federal appeals court was wrong when it ordered Michigan to retry or release a convicted murderer because his rights were violated when he was shackled at trial.
Plea deal rejected by 3 ex-officers in George Floyd’s death
Prosecutors revealed Monday evening that they offered plea deals to three former Minneapolis police officers charged with aiding and abetting the murder of George Floyd, but said at a hearing that the defendants rejected them.
7th Circuit: IN Legislature, not state, was employer of women who accused former AG Hill of groping
Three of the four women who accused former Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill of groping them cannot sue the state under Title VII, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled, finding the legislative staffers were employed by the Indiana House and Senate, not the state itself.
COA reverses for ISP in wrongful death, civil rights violation suit
The Indiana State Police, including its superintendent in his individual capacity, has secured a win in a wrongful death case after the Court of Appeals of Indiana reversed in the civil rights lawsuit filed by the estate of a Black man who was shot and killed by a trooper nearly a decade ago.
Kelln and Harrell: Could Title VI force change in IN enviro policies?
Conceptually, environmental justice is the “fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin or income, with respect to the development, implementation and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations and policies.” The concept of environmental justice is not new, but came to the forefront during the Obama administration in the aftermath of the Flint, Michigan, lead-contaminated drinking water crisis. However, environmental justice never became a coherent strategy and was overshadowed by significant rulemakings around climate change. That has changed in the first year of the Biden administration.
All 3 defendants convicted of hate crimes in Arbery killing
The three men convicted of murder in Ahmaud Arbery’s fatal shooting were found guilty of federal hate crimes and other lesser charges Tuesday for violating Arbery’s civil rights and targeting him because he was Black.
Indiana justices’ opinion in ‘revenge porn’ case lauded
Academics and lawyers specializing in free speech and cyber civil rights issues are hailing a recent Indiana Supreme Court ruling regarding the sharing of nonconsensual pornographic images.
Governor to pardon Plessy, of ‘separate but equal’ ruling
Louisiana’s governor planned to posthumously pardon Homer Plessy on Wednesday, more than a century after the Black man was arrested in an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow a Jim Crow law creating “whites-only” train cars.
Former Purdue prof secures partial reversal in dismissed discrimination complaint
A former Purdue University assistant professor who sued her then-supervisor after he allegedly retaliated against her when she rejected what she claimed were his sexual advances has partially secured a reversal from the Court of Appeals of Indiana on the dismissal of her claims.
Chauvin pleads guilty to federal charge in Floyd’s death
Former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin pleaded guilty Wednesday to a federal charge of violating George Floyd’s civil rights, admitting for the first time that he kept his knee on Floyd’s neck — even after he became unresponsive — resulting in the Black man’s death.
Chauvin expected to plead guilty in Floyd civil rights case
Former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin appears to be on the verge of pleading guilty to violating George Floyd ‘s civil rights, a move that would remove him from a federal trial but could significantly increase the amount of time he’ll spend behind bars.
Citing confusion in circuit courts, Health and Hospital Corp. urges SCOTUS to take appeal over nursing home resident rights of action
The Health and Hospital Corp. of Marion County is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to stop a lawsuit brought on behalf of an Indiana nursing home resident that raises the question of whether the Federal Nursing Home Reform Act allows residents to bring claims regarding their care and treatment.
Northern District Court offering training on prisoner civil rights litigation
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana will host a training session for attorneys on prisoner civil rights litigation on Dec. 7 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. EST via Zoom.
Kyle Rittenhouse cleared of all charges in Kenosha shootings
Kyle Rittenhouse has been acquitted of all charges after pleading self-defense in the deadly Kenosha, Wisconsin, shootings that became a flashpoint in the nation’s debate over guns, vigilantism and racial injustice.
High court struggles with government secrets case
The Supreme Court struggled Monday with whether to allow a lawsuit by Muslim men claiming religious bias by the FBI to go forward despite the government’s objection that doing so could reveal national security secrets.
U.S. Supreme Court won’t hear case involving transgender rights
The U.S. Supreme Court is declining to wade into a case involving transgender rights and leaving in place a lower court decision against a Catholic hospital that wouldn’t allow a transgender man to have a hysterectomy there.
Ahead of Rittenhouse trial, race seen as underlying issue
Kyle Rittenhouse, the aspiring police officer who gunned down three people in Kenosha, Wisconsin, during a protest against racism and police brutality, is white. So were those he shot. But for many, his trial next week will be watched closely as the latest referendum on race and the American legal system.
Oklahoma executes inmate who dies vomiting and convulsing
Oklahoma administered the death penalty Thursday on a man who convulsed and vomited as he was executed for the 1998 slaying of a prison cafeteria worker, ending a six-year execution moratorium brought on by concerns over its execution methods.
Gary officer indicted for deprivation of civil rights against arrestee
A former Gary police officer is facing a federal criminal charge for allegedly slamming a citizen’s head against a vehicle during an arrest.