Man charged with killing wife whose head found in cellar
A Crawfordsville man has been charged with killing his wife whose severed head was found buried in his cellar, authorities said.
Murder
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2 people shot to death during protest over Kenosha shooting
Two people were shot to death and another was wounded during a third night of protests in Kenosha over the police shooting of a Black man, Jacob Blake. Authorities Wednesday hunted for a possible vigilante seen on cellphone video opening fire in the middle of the street with a rifle.
Only Native American on federal death row set to be executed
The only Native American on federal death row is set to die Wednesday for the slayings of a 9-year-old and her grandmother nearly two decades ago, though many Navajos are hoping for last-minute intervention by President Donald Trump to halt the execution at the federal prison in Terre Haute.
25 years after son’s killing in East Chicago, mom seeks answers
William “Bill” Graber died after he was shot once in the chest Aug. 2, 1995, while hanging out with friends on a corner in the 800 block of West 149th Street in East Chicago — about a block away from the apartment he shared with his mother. Graber’s family didn’t know anyone who’d been murdered before he was killed, said his mother, Mary Katherine Laird. “We lost a son,” she said. “We lost our home.”
Operation Legend puts focus on violent crime, not politics
President Donald Trump and Attorney General William Barr have touted Operation Legend, spread across nine U.S. cities including Indianapolis, as a much-needed answer to spiking crime that Trump claims is caused, at least in part, by the police reform movement and protests that have swept the U.S. since George Floyd’s death in May.
Lawyers: Purkey autopsy suggests he suffered during execution
An inmate suffered “extreme pain” as he received a dose of pentobarbital during just the second federal execution following a 17-year lag, according to court filings by lawyers representing one of the inmates scheduled to be executed next.
30-year sentence affirmed for teen linked to killing of IU doctor, educator
The Indiana Court of Appeals has affirmed a young adult’s decades-long sentence for felony burglary convictions that stemmed from several residential break-ins he committed as a teen, finding that his sentence is not inappropriate.
Attorney juror at center of Supreme Court murder appeal also suing state
As the Indiana Supreme Court takes up the question of whether a man convicted of murder should get a new trial because of misconduct by an attorney who served as jury forewoman at his trial, that attorney also is suing the state over her firing related to her conduct in the case.
2 teens charged in slaying of Gary pizza delivery driver
Two teenage boys, one of whom already faced a murder charge, have been charged in the fatal shooting last fall of a pizza delivery driver in Gary.
Navajo man on federal death row seeks stay of execution
The only Native American on federal death row is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to put his execution on hold while he seeks review of a lower court decision over potential racial bias in his case.
Web exclusive: Young attorney driven in fight to abolish capital punishment
Attorney Ashley Eve was one of more than a dozen death penalty protesters who claimed that their First Amendment rights were violated when Indiana State Police set up roadblocks that kept capital punishment protestors almost 2 miles away from the federal prison in Terre Haute while three executions took place there last month. Eve was motivated to a career in law by her opposition to the death penalty.
Indiana police to stop blocking roads during executions
Indiana State Police agreed Friday to stop blocking roads to the federal prison in Terre Haute where federal executions resumed last month and are set to continue, backing down after anti-death penalty activists said in a lawsuit the roadblocks impeded their free speech rights.
Heroin dealer loses appeal of murder convictions
A known heroin dealer convicted of murdering one of his buyers and two other individuals did not convince the Indiana Court of Appeals on Friday that his convictions should be reversed.
Native American man seeks further delay of federal execution
Attorneys for the only Native American on federal death row are asking a judge to delay his upcoming execution while they argue that the procedures should be consistent with Arizona law.
Police body camera video of Floyd arrest, death released to public
Police camera video of Minneapolis officers arresting George Floyd was released to the public Monday and was made available for publication.
7th Circuit reinstates Myers’ murder conviction in IU student Behrman’s death
The murder conviction against the man found guilty of killing Indiana University student Jill Behrman has been reinstated after the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals determined that his counsel was deficient, but not prejudicial.
Appeal rejected for Ison, who pleaded guilty to 5 killings
An Indiana appeals court has rejected the latest request by a man convicted of fatally shooting five people in southeastern Indiana in 2011 who sought to appeal his guilty pleas and sentence in those slayings.
Resumed federal executions further divide country
The deaths of Daniel Lewis Lee, Wesley Ira Purkey and Dustin Honken roused the anger of civil liberties lawyers, who say the executions were carried out in a rushed and even unlawful manner. The overarching question in public discussion has been “why” — why did Attorney General William Barr make the executions a priority? And why were they carried out while the country was dealing with a pandemic, racial unrest and a looming election?
Protesters restricted from Terre Haute execution site sue ISP
Protesters kept away from the federal prison in Terre Haute during executions last month have filed a lawsuit in federal court, arguing the Indiana State Police violated their First Amendment rights by erecting roadblocks and preventing them from holding vigils immediately outside the entrance of the facility.
Justice Department schedules 2 additional federal executions
The Justice Department scheduled two additional federal executions on Friday, an announcement that comes weeks after it fought off last-minute legal challenges and successfully resumed federal executions following a 17-year pause.