Articles

Illinois poised to be 11th state to allow recreational marijuana

Illinois is likely to become the 11th state to allow small amounts of marijuana for recreational use after the Democratic-controlled House on Friday sent a legalization plan to Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker. The move further isolates Indiana’s criminalization of marijuana nationally and among its neighboring states.

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Indiana fetal disposition law upheld by U.S. Supreme Court

Indiana’s law mandating that fetal remains be either buried or cremated has been upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States in a per curiam opinion issued Tuesday that found the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals had “clearly erred” in overturning the law. However, in the same opinion, the Supreme Court let stand a ruling which blocked another Indiana law that would have prevented abortions based on the gender, race or genetic abnormality of the fetus.  

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‘Red flag law’ changes narrow language, information gaps

Indiana is considered a leader in the red flag law movement that allows firearms to be confiscated from people deemed dangerous. But with language that some experts considered overly broad and potentially unconstitutional, the Indiana General Assembly revisited that legislation, known as the Jake Laird Law, during the 2019 legislative session.

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Justice Department to turn over some Mueller documents

Easing some of the escalating tension between Congress and the White House, the House Intelligence Committee postponed efforts to enforce a subpoena against the Justice Department on Wednesday after officials agreed to hand over a cache of documents related to special counsel Robert Mueller’s Trump-Russia report.

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Search warrants tied to former Trump lawyer Cohen released

Months before the FBI raided the office and hotel room of Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer Michael Cohen, investigators were examining the flow of foreign money into his bank accounts and looking into whether the funds might be connected to a plan to lift sanctions on Russia, according to court filings unsealed Wednesday.

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ACLU, state debate ‘alternatives’ to banned abortion procedure

As abortion rights supporters and opponents nationwide clash over legislation restricting abortions in several states, Indiana is beginning yet another legal battle over a law that could limit Hoosiers’ abortion access. This year’s fight is centered on second-trimester abortions and whether alternative procedures make banning a specific abortion procedure permissible.

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US: Flynn described efforts to interfere with cooperation

Former White House national security adviser Michael Flynn told the special counsel’s office that people connected to the Trump administration and Congress sought to influence his cooperation with the Russia investigation, and he provided a voicemail recording of one such communication, prosecutors said in a court filing made public Thursday.

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Suit: Indiana’s absentee voter verification system unconstitutional

Common Cause Indiana and a group of registered voters in St. Joseph County are challenging the process Indiana uses to validate absentee ballots, calling it constitutionally flawed and asking a federal court to prohibit the state from rejecting absentee ballots based solely on perceived signature mismatches.

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Alabama governor invokes God in banning nearly all abortions

Alabama's Republican governor has signed the most stringent abortion legislation in the nation, making performing an abortion a felony in nearly all cases. The development comes as two Indiana petitions challenging abortion laws linger before the U.S. Supreme Court.

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Will, wile and wisdom: New book details Bayh’s Senate tenure

A longtime aide to late Indiana Sen. Birch Bayh has published a biography documenting the liberal lion’s leadership in some of the most momentous social changes in the nation’s recent history. The book debuted just as Hoosiers paid their final respects to Bayh at a Statehouse memorial service May 1.

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Rosenstein: Russia probe justified, closing it wasn’t an option

Fresh out of his job as deputy attorney general, Rod Rosenstein said Monday that the Justice Department’s investigation into Russian election interference was “justified,” that he would have never allowed anyone to interfere with it and that closing it had not been an option. Rosenstein also took aim at former FBI Director James Comey, characterizing him as a “partisan pundit” busy selling books and earning speaking fees.

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Republican senator takes partisan fire over Trump Jr. subpoena

Republicans lashed out Thursday at fellow GOP Sen. Richard Burr for his committee’s subpoena of President Donald Trump’s son, a move that suggested the Russia investigation is not “case closed,” as some in the party insist. Trump said he was “very surprised” at the move.

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