Articles

Anderson man gets probation in Indiana voter registration fraud case

A central Indiana man has been sentenced to a year of probation after pleading guilty to 30 misdemeanor counts of voter registration fraud stemming from allegations before the 2018 primary election. Datwaon Collier of Anderson entered the pleas Friday in Madison Circuit Court Division 6 in an agreement with Madison County prosecutors.

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Despite counsel’s error, defendant not entitled to relief, COA says

Despite a trial attorney’s failure to include a pretrial transcript in the record on a defendant’s direct appeal, the defendant is not entitled to post-conviction relief because the Indiana Court of Appeals would not have found prejudice in the attorney’s performance, the court ruled Friday in addressing the case for the second time.

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Southern Indiana District Court to offer CLE on black history

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana will celebrate Black History Month by welcoming Marcia M. Anderson, the first African-American woman to achieve the rank of Major General in the U.S. Army and an attorney who spent more than 25 years as the clerk of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Wisconsin.

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Venue transfer arguments face justices’ scrutiny

In back-to-back oral arguments, the Indiana Supreme Court considered whether to grant transfer in two medical malpractice cases seemingly in conflict with each other. The debate: whether Indiana Code § 23-0.5-4-12 is a validly enacted statute or a nullity under the Supreme Court’s interpretation of Trial Rule 75(A)(4) regarding venue.

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Divided 7th Circuit lifts injunction against Indiana fetal-tissue research ban

An Indianapolis judge’s ruling that blocked an Indiana law effectively banning stem cell research derived from aborted fetal tissue was reversed by a divided 7th Circuit Court of Appeals panel Thursday. The 2-1 decision is a defeat for Indiana University researchers challenging the ban, and a dissenting judge questioned the state’s motivation and intent behind a law he said threatens IU research into potential treatments for Alzheimer’s disease and other disorders.

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In 420-0 vote, House says Mueller report should be public

The United States House of Representatives voted unanimously Thursday for a resolution calling for any final report in special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation to be made public, a symbolic action designed to pressure Attorney General William Barr into releasing as much information as possible when the probe is concluded.

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Bank’s arbitration award reversed for abuse of discretion

A small claims court’s confirmation of an arbitration award to a bank after its ‘dilatory conduct’ was reversed Thursday by the Indiana Court of Appeals, which found an abuse of discretion occurred in granting the bank relief several years after the case should have been dismissed with prejudice.

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