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(07/12/07 12:43am)
SOUTH BEND – Former U.S. Rep. Jill Long Thompson formally announced Tuesday that she will run for governor, joining two other Democrats seeking the party's nomination for a likely matchup with Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels.\nLong Thompson, who served three terms as congresswoman from the Fort Wayne area during 1989-95, said that if elected she would consider the state's options on every privatization contract signed by Daniels, including the Indiana Toll Road lease.\n"Something I learned in business school and growing up on a farm is there is a difference between spending money and investing, and investing wisely," she said.\nLong Thompson said she believes if Daniels is elected to another four-year term he will privatize even more government services.\nLong Thompson joins State Senate Minority Leader Richard Young of Milltown and Jim Schellinger, president of an Indianapolis architecture firm and a longtime Democratic activist, in seeking their party's nomination. Daniels announced last month that he was running for a second term, and he is not expected to face a GOP challenge.\nLong Thompson spoke for about 15 minutes, focusing primarily on highlighting the differences between her and Daniels. She said she would provide leadership on the issue of tax fairness, specifically property taxes.\n"I will provide the leadership to take a look at our overall tax structure that frankly was created for an economy of the 19th century, not for the 21st century," she said. "We need to ensure tax fairness and we need to be looking and considering all of our tax laws."\nDaniels on Monday hinted at the possibility of a special legislative session on property tax relief.\nLong Thompson said she also would consider seeking to move the entire state to the Central time zone. "It's pretty ridiculous when it's still daylight to almost midnight," she said.\nRobert Vane, a spokesman for the Indiana Republican Party, said Long Thompson offered "empty rhetoric" and no new ideas.\n"It's obvious that she has spent too much time in Washington, D.C., and has missed all the tremendous progress Indiana has made because of Gov. Daniels' leadership," he said.\nLong Thompson made her announcement at the St. Joseph County-City Building in South Bend before a small group of supporters. She also stopped in Fort Wayne and at the Statehouse in Indianapolis, and planned to travel to Evansville and Terre Haute on Wednesday.\nState Democratic Party Chairman Dan Parker has said the party is taking a neutral position among the Democratic candidates, but hopes Democrats coalesce around one so a primary campaign can be avoided.\nMany Democrats and political observers view Schellinger as the early favorite. He is a fresh face – having never run for office before – and is an experienced fundraiser. He recently announced that he had raised more than $1 million since getting into the race in March.\nHe is backed by some top Democrats, including Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson, U.S. Rep. Julia Carson and former Indiana House Speaker John Gregg.\nYoung said he had raised about $60,000 to $70,000 so far, but had just begun to focus more on that. Daniels began the year with $2.6 million in campaign cash, and has raised more than $700,000 so far this year.\nLong Thompson said she began raising money last week. She would not say how much she has raised, but called it "respectable." She said she expects it will cost $20 million to run in the general election.
(07/08/07 10:35pm)
ZIONSVILLE, Ind. – A record class of 121 troopers graduated Friday from the Indiana State Police Academy, a day after a veteran trooper was fatally shot in Wabash County.\nState Police Superintendent Paul Whitesell spoke of selflessness and sacrifice to about 500 friends and relatives of the new troopers during the graduation ceremony, which closed out 23 weeks of training for the largest recruit class in the department's history.\n"More men and women like you are sorely needed now ... with crime as rampant as it is," Whitesell said. "You have chosen to be the hunters in a society of the hunted, so be careful."\nMaster Trooper David Rich, 41, became the first trooper killed in a line-of-duty shooting since December 2003 on Thursday when he was fatally shot by a Michigan man who then reloaded the shotgun and killed himself.\nRich, an 18-year veteran, was shot in the chest by a shotgun after he stopped to help Joseph M. Vultaggio Jr., 21, of Gaylord, Mich., whom he thought was stranded. The trooper was on his way home and wasn't wearing a bullet-proof vest or uniform when the shooting happened.\nA funeral service will be held for Rich at 11 a.m. on Wednesday at the Honeywell Center Gymnasium in Wabash.\nThe shooting was on the minds of the new troopers and audience members during Friday's ceremony. Dorothy McCooe, 85, of New Albany, said she will learn to cope with her fears for the safety of her grandson, Brock.\nDanger comes with the hat, badge and sidearm, said Trooper Brock McCooe, 29, an Army veteran who graduated at the head of his class.\n"To say I don't have fear would be a lie," McCooe said. "The definition of courage is going forward in the face of fear."\nTrooper Edward Kaucher, 28, of Indianapolis, said his training prepared him and his classmates to face danger.\n"We realize this is part of the job," Kaucher said. "We go places where normal people do not go."\nLt. Gov. Becky Skillman said Rich's death and the deaths of others in law enforcement illustrate the dedication and sacrifice the job requires. She said there's no way to thank the new troopers enough for their service.\n"There's always a sacrifice inherent in police work," Skillman said. "In order to keep our neighborhoods safe, you have to risk your own safety."\nThe rookies will spend the next three months in field training, riding alongside veterans at their assigned posts.
(07/08/07 10:34pm)
After the death of her husband in 1996, Betty Lou Culler needed something to occupy her time.\nThe Clay City, Ind., woman had been a farm wife for almost 50 years.\n"The farm was all I knew," said Culler, now 82.\nShe and her son Richard Culler, 58, devised a plan that would keep her busy and help maintain their 800-acre soybean, wheat and corn farm.\nThe mother-son team went into the soy byproduct business, providing items such as soy candles, animal feed, soy hand and body lotion and soy massage creams.\nIndiana currently ranks fourth in soybean production in the United States, with about 28,000 farmers cultivating more than 5.4 million acres a year. That accounts for nearly 10 percent of all soybeans in the United States. The Indiana industry is valued at $1.78 billion.\nSuffering from a skin condition and fed up with over-the-counter creams and prescriptions that failed to cure it, Betty Lou Culler's hunt for a soy-based, money-making skin treatment began.\n"My skin would look like dandruff all the time," she said. "I had to find something that would work for me and other people with it."\nTogether with a chemist, the Cullers developed a soy-based lotion and massage cream that could be manufactured and sold for profit. In 2004, the lotion hit the shelves of the Cullers' small store, Eel River Marketing, on Main Street in Clay City, and has been a hit with hometown shoppers.\n"This business is the reason I get up seven days a week. It's my passion. I love what I do," Betty Lou Culler said.\nMegan Kuhn, communications director for the Indiana Soybean Alliance, said the Cullers' skin products aren't new.\n"Soy products – candles and lotions – have been around for several years," Kuhn said. "It's just in the last 10 years, there has been an increase in the products and now they're more public."\nSatisfied with the success of the creams, the Cullers moved to develop and market a new product – soy socks. A skiing trip prompted the idea.\n"I went to Utah and had to buy ski socks, and I was dissatisfied," Richard Culler said. "They were expensive and not very comfortable. I felt like I could make my own and they'd be better."\nWith support from the agriculture college at Purdue University, the Cullers came up with a way to use soy oils to create soy silk threads to make the socks. They introduced the idea to an Indiana company, For Bare Feet Originals, based in Nashville, Ind., which now makes the socks for the Cullers. The socks are made of 75 percent soy and 25 percent spandex.\n"We're hoping to see if there's any medical benefit from the combination of therapeutic oils, and if there's benefit to cancer patients, burn victims and other people who have skin too sensitive for cotton," Richard Culler said.\nThe newest design is a cream-colored footie with pink breast cancer logos splashed all over it.\n"We took our socks, put a logo on them and give a portion of the proceeds to a foundation," Betty Lou Culler said. "They're softer and more comfortable than cotton socks and more eco-friendly."\nThe Cullers use soy products grown and processed by other farmers because they don't have the equipment to make the oils from their own soy crop.\nThey travel across the state, selling their goods at trade shows, fairs and farmers' markets. Betty Lou Culler estimates that more than $3 million has been invested in the business, which grosses about $1 million a year.\nBut she added, "We're not getting rich off of this."\nThe socks cost about $6. The business requires dedication, she said.\n"Do lots of research and develop new products. Prove to the world that it's marketable."\nWhile Betty Lou Culler said the business has become her passion, her son said he wishes he had done a few things differently. He has been a youth counselor and ski resort attendant.\n"If I could turn back the hands of time, I would get married and have kids," Culler said. "But the potential upside of something like this is great. It's a trade-off. My life is good"
(07/08/07 10:33pm)
PORTAGE, Ind. – Duane Cheney resigned from the Indiana House of Representatives last week.\nNow he's changed his mind.\nCheney still plans to move to a house he bought near Bloomington, but he thinks he can still represent his constituents in Portage and some surrounding townships in northwestern Indiana's Porter County.\n"I would be a little less available, but I think I would still be more available than the majority of the legislators who live in their districts," Cheney said.\nHe sent a letter Wednesday to House Speaker Pat Bauer and Indiana Democratic Party Chairman Dan Parker asking that his resignation be rescinded. Cheney said the state Constitution only stipulates a representative live in the district he serves for at least a year before his election. He was first elected in 1988.\nBut he can't just rescind his letter of resignation. He must convince 10th District Democratic precinct committeemen that he's still the man for the job when they meet on Saturday. Because he officially resigned, Cheney has to run to get his seat back.\nCheney said he changed his mind because he wants what's best for the residents of the district. But Porter County code enforcement officer Jack Clem, who has filed his candidacy for the seat, believes Cheney is running again to block him from getting it.\nCheney had endorsed Portage Director of Community Development A.J. Monroe to succeed him.\nClem said he has the support of enough committeemen to beat Monroe, and Cheney knows it, prompting Cheney to attempt a return and Monroe to withdraw his candidacy.\nCheney said Clem's candidacy had no bearing on his decision.\nJennifer Wagner, a spokeswoman for the Indiana Democratic Party, said it will be up to the precinct committee chairmen to decide whether they will accept Cheney's request to rescind his resignation. If they do, she said, Cheney will regain his House seat.\nIf they don't, the caucus will move forward in choosing Cheney's successor.
(07/08/07 10:32pm)
INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana State Police on Friday mourned the death of a popular trooper as they worked to piece together details of the roadside shooting that claimed his life.\nMaster Trooper David Rich, 41, was shot in the chest Thursday after he stopped to help a Michigan man he thought was stranded, police said. The shooter then reloaded his shotgun and killed himself, state police Sgt. Tony Slocum said.\n"We might not ever know the reason why," Slocum said. "It obviously doesn't make sense to us at this point."\nInvestigators said Rich, an 18-year state police veteran, was on his way home Thursday around 4 p.m. from the Peru, Ind., post when he spotted a sport-utility vehicle parked along U.S. 24 about 40 miles southwest of Fort Wayne. Rich, who was not wearing a bulletproof vest or a uniform, pulled his unmarked car behind the SUV and approached the vehicle.\nRich did not radio dispatchers when he stopped, which is not uncommon when a trooper stops to check on a motorist and does not suspect unusual activity, Slocum said.\nPolice believe Rich displayed his police identification as he walked up to the driver's side window of the SUV. He had unholstered his handgun, which was found next to his body, along with his police badge and police radio, Slocum said Friday.\nJoseph M. Vultaggio Jr., 21, of Gaylord, Mich., likely shot the trooper with a shotgun aimed out the partially opened window before turning the gun on himself, police said Friday.\nOtsego County, Mich., Sheriff James McBride said the suspect's father reported that his son had stolen the vehicle around 9:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The next day, the father provided more detail about the vehicle, enabling the department to enter it into the computer system as stolen.\n"That's about the time everything else started going down in Indiana," McBride said Friday.\nVultaggio had been arrested and convicted for a misdemeanor DUI charge in 2004 in Michigan.\nHis father said he had no idea why his son had taken the SUV or why he headed to Indiana.\n"I'm sorry for the other family that they've had to go through this," said Joseph M. Vultaggio Sr., declining to comment further.\nRich was from a law-enforcement family; his father is former Miami County Sheriff Jack Rich, a retired state trooper, and his brother is state police Capt. Bob Rich.\nSlocum said Rich and his family are well-known and respected in the area, and that they were overwhelmed with support from the troopers, law enforcement officers and the community. Slocum said troopers are mourning their fallen brother while trying to perform police work required of them.\n"We still have a job to do," he said. "We're still going to stop and assist broken-down cars. If someone calls 911, we're still going to get there as fast as we can – just with a heavier heart."\nFuneral arrangements were pending for Rich, who also is survived by his wife Connie, their 7-year-old daughter Lauren and 4-year-old twins Carson and Connor. Gov. Mitch Daniels on Friday ordered flags to be flown at half-staff in parts of Indianapolis and Wabash County on the day of funeral services.\nRich is the first state trooper killed in a line-of-duty shooting since December 2003, when Trooper Scott Patrick was fatally shot after he stopped to a check a vehicle parked on an exit ramp along Interstate 80/94 in Gary. Darryl Jeter of Chicago was convicted of murder and was sentenced last year to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
(07/05/07 5:15pm)
Japan’s embattled defense minister resigned Tuesday over his comments suggesting the 1945 atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were inevitable. Fumio Kyuma had come under intense criticism from survivors of the bombings, opposition lawmakers and fellow members of the Cabinet following the comments over the weekend. \n---\nA 10-year-old Nepalese girl was stripped of her title as a living goddess because she traveled overseas to promote a documentary about the centuries-old tradition, a news report said Tuesday. Sajani Shakya had her status revoked because she broke with tradition by leaving the country, the state-run National News Agency reported, quoting Narendra Prasad Joshi, chief of the Bhaktapur Taleju Temple where Sajani is based. \n---\nThe U.N. chief, the Afghan president and other top officials gather in Rome this week to discuss how to strengthen Afghanistan’s frail justice system amid the country’s violence. The conference on Monday and Tuesday will examine a legal system largely destroyed by more than 25 years of violence. From reconstructing buildings destroyed by fighting to training magistrates, the challenges to establishing the rule of law in Afghanistan are enormous, experts say.\n---\nA France-bound parcel filled with hundreds of dried beetles and spiders – including endangered species – was confiscated Monday at Thailand’s main international airport, police said. The box, destined for a collector, contained 1,500 beetles including 17 dried Long-arm Chafer beetles and 15 Ground Beetles, which are protected species under Thai law, Police Lt. Col. Thanayot Kengkasikit said. Some 240 spiders, including Tarantulas, were included in the shipment, Thanayot said.\n---\nA baby gorilla from a German zoo was treated at a children’s clinic after her mother’s neglect left her dangerously dehydrated, zoo officials said. Six-week-old Mary Two, who also was suffering from hypothermia, was admitted to the intensive care unit at the University of Muenster’s clinic on Saturday and discharged a day later.\n---\nChinese inspectors found excessive amounts of additives and preservatives in dozens of children’s snacks and seized hundreds of bottles of fake human blood protein from hospitals, officials said Tuesday. China’s dismal health and safety record, both within and outside its borders, has increasingly come under the spotlight as its goods make their way to global markets. Major buyers like the United States, Japan, and the European Union have pushed Beijing to improve inspections.\n---\nTens of thousands of Palestinian civil servants will be paid in full this week for the first time in more than a year after Israel released millions of dollars in tax funds frozen during Hamas rule, officials said Sunday. The transfer of the funds was Israel’s first concrete gesture of support for moderate President Mahmoud Abbas in his battle with Hamas, which violently seized control of the Gaza Strip last month.
(07/05/07 4:23pm)
The American Red Cross of Monroe County has canceled a blood drive that was scheduled for July 19, according to a press release.\nThe blood drive was supposed to be held at First United Church, 2420 E. Third St. Rebecca Fuller, director of communications and marketing, said she was not sure why the blood drive was canceled, but that she did not make that decision. Fuller also said she is not sure if the cancellation had anything to do with low staff or low donor participation.\nThis is not the first time the American Red Cross of Monroe County has canceled a blood drive.\nRed Cross canceled a blood drive scheduled to be at the Army Reserve Center, 520 S. Woodcrest Dr., on May 19. When it was rescheduled to take place at College Mall, 2894 E. Third St., on May 26, that too was canceled.\nIn a May 24 IDS article, Don Creek, donor representative at the American Red Cross, said it was canceled because the last time a blood drive was held at College Mall, only three donors showed up and the mall would not let them have control of sign placement.\nAccording to www.givebloodnow.org, the overall blood supply in the River Valley Region is at urgent status. All blood types are direly needed, according to the site.\nLast year about one-third of students on campus donated blood, Creek said in the May 17 article. There were more than 50 blood drives on campus alone last school year, he said.\nThere will be another scheduled blood drive on Friday, July 27 at IU's Creative Arts Building, 2735 E. 10th St., according to the release.\nPeople at least 17 years old who weigh a minimum of 110 pounds and are in good general health may be eligible to donate blood to the American Red Cross.\nTo schedule a blood donation appointment, call (800) 448-3543. All donors need to present proper identification.
(07/05/07 4:22pm)
ELKHART, Ind. – A Michigan woman whose husband was one of eight people killed when a semitrailer slammed into stopped traffic on the Indiana Toll Road is outraged that no charges will be filed against the truck driver.\n"How can you kill eight people and nothing happen?" said Michele Repp of Sturgis, whose husband, Mark Repp, was killed. "I think he should be held responsible."\nThe semi driver, Leonardo Cooksey, 32, of Mount Prospect, Ill., told state police that he was distracted when his cell phone beeped that the battery was low. He was trying to plug it in and didn't see traffic stopped on the highway before the April 26 crash, Elkhart County Prosecutor Curtis T. Hill Jr. said at a news conference Tuesday.\n"Inadvertence alone, while an indication of negligent conduct, does not rise to the level of criminal liability, notwithstanding a catastrophic result," Hill said.\nA message seeking comment was left Tuesday for Cooksey at his home. A message also was left for a spokesman at New England Motor Freight of Elizabeth, N.J., where the truck was registered.\nRepp, who has four children ages 6 through 21, said she does not understand why Hill did not file charges, since Cooksey told police he wasn't paying attention as he traveled the northern Indiana east-west tollway, which also is Interstates 80 and 90.\n"Why are so many states making laws that you cannot be on the cell phone while driving? Because of this reason alone," she said.\nHill said he had not talked to family members of those killed about his decision, but he knew some would be upset.\n"We have family members out here who want to be able to say ‘Uh-huh, that's why it happened,’ and they don't want to accept that it was an accident – and it was an accident with horrific results," he said.\nHill said Cooksey's actions aren't a crime in Indiana.\n"In Indiana, we don't have negligent homicide, so mere negligence is not going to sustain a criminal accusation," he said.\nHe said if there were extenuating circumstances – such as if Cooksey was driving under the influence, speeding, in a construction zone or if he had driven too many hours – he might have arrived at a different conclusion.\nCooksey was traveling 62 mph in a 65 mph zone at the time of the crash about 25 miles east of South Bend near Bristol. He was eight-tenths of a mile from the start of the construction zone, was not under the influence of alcohol or drugs and had been on the road for less than three hours when the accident occurred, Hill said.\n"Inadvertence on its own is something people do all the time. It's basically a human flaw," he said.\nTwo of the vehicles were crushed beyond recognition – a pickup truck carrying six people, five of whom died, and a Jeep Cherokee in which two were killed. Mark Repp was the driver of another pickup truck that was knocked off the road. He was not wearing a seat belt and was thrown from the pickup, Hill said.\nAlso killed were Douglas and Mary Helen George of Springfield, N.H., who were in the Cherokee, and Merle Miller, 44, of Ligonier; Lester Yoder, 36, of Topeka; and Vernon Miller, 38; Samuel Yoder, 46, and his son, Anthony Yoder, 17, all of Wolcottville, who were in another pickup.\nRepp said she plans to talk to a lawyer about a possible lawsuit.\n"Because something has to happen," she said.
(07/02/07 1:19am)
Pilot error was the likely cause of a late-night plane crash last year that killed five IU students, federal investigators have said.\nAccording to a National Transportation Safety Board report, no mechanical problems were found with the plane that would have caused the April 20, 2006, crash after it clipped trees about half a mile short of the Monroe County Airport.\nThose killed were the pilot, Georgina Joshi, 24, of South Bend, and passengers Zachary Novak, 25, of Anderson; Robert Clayton Samels, 24, of Medina, Ohio; Garth Eppley, 25, of Wabash, Ind. and Chris Bates Carducci, 28, of Monroe, Mich.\nAll were graduate students at the IU Jacobs School of Music and were returning to Bloomington after a concert rehearsal in West Lafayette.\nThe NTSB report released Wednesday blamed the crash on "the pilot's continued descent below decision height and not maintaining adequate altitude/clearance from the trees while on approach."\nA review of the single-engine Cessna's engine monitor found a reduction in fuel flow consistent with slowing for a descent, followed by an increase to full power before the crash, the report said.\nOther factors for the crash cited by investigators were the nighttime lighting conditions and mist as the Bloomington airport reported visibility of one mile and overcast conditions at 100 feet.\nGeorgina Joshi, the pilot, was certified for instrument flight and had nearly 380 hours of flight time, the report said. Toxicology tests on Joshi returned negative.\nThe NTSB report said the pilot made a radio call at 11:43 p.m., telling flight controllers at the Terre Haute airport that the plane was about six miles from the Bloomington airport and approaching land.\nA flight controller told the pilot the radio frequency for flights at the Bloomington airport, after which the pilot responded, "Thank you, sir." That was the last communication controllers had with the plane, the report said.\nThe Monroe County Sheriff's Department received its first calls of a possible plane crash about 11:45 p.m., and the wreckage was found some four hours later.
(07/02/07 12:05am)
FRENCH LICK, Ind. – The French Lick Resort and Casino – hailed as a key to a potential economy recovery for Southern Indiana – continues to wage an uphill financial struggle eight months after opening.\nFrench Lick continues to lag Indiana's 10 other casinos in every significant category – including admissions, gross revenues and the average amount it wins from patrons at each slot machine and table game chair, state figures show.\n"Even based on published data and public data from the Indiana Gaming Commission, they weren't doing quite as well as originally anticipated," Standard & Poor's analyst Ariel Silverberg said.\nFrench Lick ranked last in the amount of money won per admission and per gambling position, state figures from last November and May showed.\nThe casino averaged $69 per admission, compared with the statewide average of $97. Its average winnings from each gambling position – $6,784 per month – compared with a statewide average of $11,563.\nFrench Lick executives met last week with Indiana Gaming Commission staff to discuss ways to improve the figures. Neither the owners nor state officials would elaborate on the discussions.\n"As of right now, we're obviously being very observant," Ernie Yelton, the gaming commission's executive director, said. \nBut he added, "We have no grave concerns about future success."\nFrench Lick faces competition from established casinos, and its remote location about 60 miles northeast of Evansville doesn't help, said Dennis J. Farrell Jr., a gaming analyst with Wachovia Securities who follows the Ohio River casino market.\n"It's definitely been a difficult ramp-up period," he said.\nCasino executives counted on longer stays by visitors, even during the week, which gaming analysts say is crucial for boosting gambling revenue.\n"I think there was a higher expectation that people who came to game would probably stay overnight," Cook chairman Steve Ferguson acknowledged.\nNow, the remote casino faces more potential competition from slot machines lawmakers have approved for central Indiana's two horse racing tracks.\nFrench Lick's startup has been closely watched by analysts who advise bond investors who are due to receive financial reports this month.\nBloomington-based medical device maker Cook Group and Lauth Property Group of Indianapolis partnered two years ago to build the casino. French Lick and West Baden – with a combined population of about 2,100 – counted on the development and related restoration of two historic hotels for a much-needed economic revitalization.\nThe plan was to repay debt for a $270 million bond and $25 million in bank loans with casino proceeds while creating a destination that would draw customers for the spa, golf and gambling.\nStandard & Poor's, a bond-rating service, recently downgraded French Lick's bond from B- to CCC+ amid concerns over delays in financial reporting. They assigned the initial B- rating because the casino was still under construction last year and was set to open in a competitive market.\nThe casino's ongoing performance is another concern, Silverberg said.\n"But in terms of drawing customer traffic and the levels of gaming play, those are things that the property has to perform on its own," she said.\nYelton, the gaming official, said French Lick officials discussed several ideas for overcoming the challenges.\n"It's going to take a little time to mature," Yelton said, but added, "we got a strong sense of a commitment to make this financially solid going forward"
(07/01/07 11:56pm)
COLUMBUS, Ind. – Police were seeking clues Saturday in the slaying of a 14-year-old girl who was found stabbed to death in an apartment.\nInvestigators did not believe that eighth-grader Chelsea Porter was the victim of a random attack. A day after her death, police said there were no suspects and no arrests had been made.\nPorter was found dead shortly after 3 a.m. Friday in an apartment on the east side of the city of about 39,000 people 40 miles south of Indianapolis. Bartholomew County Coroner Larry Fisher said the girl died of massive bleeding from several stab wounds.\nA preliminary autopsy found no other noticeable injuries, Fisher said. The coroner said he did not know what type of sharp instrument was used to stab Porter. A forensic pathologist was scheduled to perform a detailed examination, but results might not be available for several weeks.\nThe killing was the first in nearly a year in Bartholomew County.\n"We're not going to rest easy until we have the person or persons responsible and we know what happened," said Columbus police Capt. Matt Myers. "This is upsetting to the community. We've got a lot of other people who want this solved besides the police."\nHe urged anyone with information to contact police, saying they could remain anonymous.\nPorter, who attended Central Middle School, did not live in the apartment where her body was found but was staying with a family friend to help prepare for a birthday party, family members said.\nShe had moved to Alabama earlier this year but returned to Columbus following the deaths of her great-grandmother and grandfather. She was the third person in her family to die within a month.\n"We're drained," said her father, Ray Porter.\nRelatives and neighbors described Chelsea Porter as a "good girl" who loved small children and makeup.\n"She was a good girl," said Christy Hibbs, who lives two houses south of the apartment building. "She'd come over, play with my kids, spend the night at my house."\nHibbs said her son is close to the girl's age and knew her.\n"He said, 'Mom, she didn't even drive,'" Hibbs said. "This was a 14-year-old kid. She hasn't even lived her life yet"
(06/27/07 11:16pm)
Editor's note: Mike Abrams is a junior majoring in business. His weekly sports column 'Straight Bidness' is featured every Thursday in the sports section.
(06/24/07 11:42pm)
EVANSVILLE – Bethel Temple Community Church plans to end a unique challenge Sunday that aimed to stop its congregation from complaining for 21 days.\nThe church pastor, Rev. Steve Schwambach passed out 1,900 purple wristbands sporting the phrase "No complaining! Php 2:14." to his congregation. Band wearers are supposed to switch it from wrist to wrist every time they caught themselves complaining.\nThe Bible reference (Philippians 2:14-15) says, "Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault ..."\nSchwambach said he passed out the wrist bands after taking the challenge himself. He broke his first bracelet from switching wrists so often.\nThe no-complaints campaign started last summer at Christ Church Unity in Kansas, City, Mo., where the Rev. Will Bowen came up with the idea of using a wristband memory aid.\nOnce you stop voicing complaints, Bowen said, you tend to stop thinking negatively.\n"When you're complaining, you're focusing on what you don't want," Bowen said. "If you stop complaining, then you're open to the blessing."\nBowen and his church have shipped more than 5 million "no complaints" bracelets around the world to churches, sports teams, teachers, substance-abuse recovery groups and others. Demand has been so great that the wait for a bracelet is about 12 weeks.\nIt worked with at least one Bethel Temple participant. The first day of the challenge, Cheryl LeClaire caught herself complaining about five times. By earlier this week, she'd made it for three days without a complaint.
(06/24/07 11:30pm)
INDIANAPOLIS – The first statewide convention of Indiana Muslims concluded Sunday.\nThe three-day event, which began Friday, is the product of a relatively new organization called the Muslim Alliance of Indiana. The group's greatest previous efforts were landing an invitation for Muslims to stage Ramadan suppers in the governor's mansion and starting "Muslim Days" with legislators in the Statehouse.\nFor a diverse community under great scrutiny since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, some Muslims say it represents a sign of staying power and their desire to become fuller participants in their state's future.\n"I would say this is a coming of age," Louay Safi, a staffer with the Plainfield-based Islamic Society of North America told the Indianapolis Star. "This is a very significant threshold."\nThe weekend's agenda includes serious discussions about the need for greater Muslim political activism. There will be sessions for Muslim youth, including one on how to balance the faith's strict rules on gender relations in a modern society.\nThe convention comes on the heels of the debut of a quarterly magazine, The Muslim Hoosier, and the establishment of a Muslim chamber of commerce.\n"It is the idea that Muslims are realizing themselves as being Hoosiers just like any other individual or group," said Shehzad Qazi, a 19-year-old Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis student who manages the magazine.
(06/24/07 11:19pm)
HUNTINGTON, Ind.– Huntington County Sheriff Ken Farthing could find himself in trouble if he misinterpreted a sex offender residency law.\nLast August, Farthing sent letters to 18 sex offenders declared sexually violent predators or offenders against children and told them they couldn't live within 1,000 feet of a school, child-care center or public park.\nBut after speaking with his legal counsel, Farthing said the wording of the law does not make it clear if the law applies to offenders convicted before July 1, 2006. Other counties agree that the law isn't clear and aren't enforcing it until Indiana's courts or legislature makes that determination.\n"I'm the only one in this chain of events that's liable," Farthing said. "I'll be the first one to be sued over this."\nEleven offenders had already moved by late October, but Farthing then sent another letter to the remaining seven offenders saying that until the law has been defined more clearly, they have permission to remain at their addresses.\nMeanwhile, Huntington County Prosecutor Amy Richison received complaints from city of Huntington residents that the law wasn't being enforced, so she is trying to enforce it. She informed those who stayed put that they would have to move within 30 days, despite Farthing's second set of letters.\nRichison argues there's a difference between Farthing not enforcing the law and giving offenders written permission to stay.\nThe Indiana Sheriffs' Association has not taken an official stance on the sex offender residency law.
(06/24/07 11:18pm)
LAFAYETTE – A man grabbed an attorney near a fourth-floor courthouse rotunda railing, after which some witnesses said they feared he was about to push her over the rail.\nThe attack happened Friday soon after a judge ordered Russell Timmons, 48, of Lafayette to pay more than $4,000 in attorney fees in a court case over a traffic crash, officials said.\nOthers present on the fourth floor of the Tippecanoe County Courthouse intervened and separated attorney Linda Polley of Fort Wayne from Timmons, who was arrested and jailed on a preliminary charge of battery.\n"He was trying to grab her, and all I could do is start screaming," Jan Ermel, a court staffer who saw the attack, said. "He was trying to put her over that railing. Oh my god, I thought she was going to go over!"\nPolley had redness around her neck but declined medical treatment after the attack.\nTimmons was at the courthouse for a session with a judge after turning down a $42,000 payment a mediator decided he should receive for damages caused by the other driver in the crash. The judge upheld the mediator's decision but ordered Timmons to pay the attorney fees to the other driver, who was represented by Polley.\nMarcel Katz, Timmons' attorney in the civil case, said he was standing with Timmons' wife when the attack on Polley happened. He said he grabbed Timmons' arm and asked what he was doing.\n"He looked at me and looked off," Katz said. "He just let go of her and put his hands on his head"
(06/24/07 11:15pm)
INDIANAPOLIS – Smokers will pay more to puff and almost everyone will be required to wear seat belts under dozens of new state laws that take effect Sunday.\nLawmakers raised the cigarette tax for the second time in five years, this time from 55.5 cents per pack to 99.5 cents. Smokers might not like the hike, but Gov. Mitch Daniels does. The state plans to use the extra money – and hopefully matching federal dollars – to provide health insurance to more than 100,000 low-income Hoosiers and fund other health initiatives.\n"Today we are taking a long step toward the dream of a healthier Indiana," Daniels said when he signed the bill. "We are taking the longest single step Indiana has ever taken in this direction."\nMore people will have to buckle up under a law that some legislators spent years trying to enact.\nCurrent law doesn't require back-seat passengers age 16 or older or occupants in vehicles plated as trucks, which can include pickups, SUVs and minivans, to be restrained. That will change July 1, but the new law will no longer allow police to use check points to enforce seat-belt compliance.\nDemocratic Rep. Peggy Welch of Bloomington said federal experts believe the new law will prevent 20 deaths, 330 hospitalizations and more than $65 million in injury-related costs each year.\n"Those cold numbers don't tell the real story of the hundreds of Hoosiers who have lost friends and family members because seat belts were not used," she said.\nThe change will leave Georgia as the only state with a primary seat belt law that does not apply to vehicles with truck plates.\nStudents and some parents will notice new laws when school starts in a couple of months.\nAll high schools will be required to include a study of the Holocaust in each U.S. history course. Schools must give parents of girls entering the sixth grade information about the link between human papillomavirus and cervical cancer and the availability of an immunization.\nAnd all schools must hold a tornado drill and manmade disaster drill once a semester.\nThose who install mobile homes after June 30 must equip them with special radios that alert people to pending dangerous weather.\nThe bill stems from a Nov. 6, 2005, tornado that wiped out a mobile home park in Evansville and killed 25 people in Southwestern Indiana. It was initiated by Kathryn Martin, whose 2-year-old son, C.J, and two other family members died in the tornado. Daniels phoned Martin as he signed the bill so she would know it was law.\nCongressman Brad Ellsworth, D-Ind., who led storm-relief efforts after the tornado as Vanderburgh County sheriff, introduced a national version of the bill on Thursday.\nA case of mistaken identity led to a new law that requires coroners to use one of four methods to identify a dead person: fingerprints, DNA analysis, dental records or positive identification by an immediate family member.\nNone of those methods were used after a crash in April 2006 that killed four students and a staff member from Taylor University. After the wreck, the Grant County coroner's office said Whitney Cerak had died and that classmate Laura VanRyn was severely injured. VanRyn's parents sat by the injured woman's hospital bed for five weeks, only realizing that she was not their daughter when Cerak emerged from her coma.\nRenters tired of landlords letting themselves in unannounced also will get some relief. A new law will now require landlords to give tenants reasonable notice before entering a rental unit, except \nin emergencies.\n"There is a tendency to think that renters deserve to have the same kind of rights that property owners have, but the old saying about your home being a castle should be true whether you write a monthly check to a mortgage company or a landlord," said Rep. Matt Pierce, D-Bloomington.\nIn all, the Indiana General Assembly enacted more than 230 laws during the session that ended April 29.
(06/22/07 4:13pm)
The Monroe Bank in Highland Village, 4191 West Third Street, was reportedly robbed again today at around 2:15 p.m. \nIn a June 11 IDS article, the same Monroe Bank was robbed on June 7 around noon. The suspect was described as a black male, around six-feet-tall wearing a blue and white baseball cap. He may have fled on a bike, police said at the time.\nThe suspect was said to be wearing the same blue and white baseball cap, in his mid 30s or 40s, weighing around 150-170 pounds and was said to be either light-skinned or black.\nScot Davidson, senior vice president of Monroe Bank, said they will be releasing a statement through the BPD when they have more details.\nIf any information on the suspect is known, please contact BPD at 339-4477.\nKeep checking idsnews.com for more information.
(06/21/07 4:00am)
Nicolas Cage sold his soul all right. But it wasn't in exchange for a good movie.\n"Ghost Rider" is based on the story of Marvel comic character Johnny Blaze (Cage), who strikes a deal with the devil in order to save his dying father. But when the the devil doublecrosses Johnny, and his father dies in a motorcycle exhibition accident, Johnny devotes his efforts to young sweetheart Roxanne Simpson (Eva Mendes). With the help of the Caretaker (Sam Elliott), Blaze tries to win his soul back so he can spend he rest of his life with Roxanne.\nIt's a shame that such an undeniably interesting story was turned into a butchered movie. "Ghost Rider" was too long (about 2 hours) and the plot didn't unfold fast enough. It took over an hour for Cage to realize he was the ghost rider, and Mendes didn't have nearly a big enough role. She appeared in scattered scenes throughout the movie, which is not enough for someone of her caliber. The movie also lacked enough good action sequences.\nWhat saved "Ghost Rider" from being a complete waste were the Caretaker and the overall message of the story. Sam Elliott gave a beautiful performance, playing the insightful cowboy who occasionally throws in a good joke or two. And you can't knock Blaze for trying to save his dad. Selling a soul for love instead of greed is different from the norm, and and the ending put the story together beautifully. But it was way too dragged out, and keeping the movie playing until the end is a challenge.\nAlso, you would think that a DVD with a second disc devoted entirely to extras would be worth checking out -- but don't waste your time. There are three "making of the movie" segments, but one of them is just the animation with music and no insight from the director or producer. The director's commentary was fairly insightful, but watching the movie once was painful enough, let alone watching it again with a discussion of how the ideas came about.\nDon't waste your time on this Marvel mistake.
(06/20/07 11:12pm)
Two soldiers with Indiana ties were killed overseas – one in Iraq and one if Afghanistan.\nArmy Spc. David Wilkey Jr., 22, was in a Humvee convoy when he was killed by a roadside bomb Monday in Iraq, his family in Elkhart, Ind., said. Army Staff Sgt. Roy P. Lewsader Jr., 36, died Saturday in Afghanistan when his vehicle was struck by enemy fire, the Department of Defense announced in a Monday news release.\nThe department said in a news release that Lewsader, who died in Tarin Kowt, was from Belleville, Ill. But the soldier’s wife called to say he was from Clinton, Ind., said April Blackmon, a spokeswoman for Fort Riley, where Lewsader was based.\nWilkey, who spent his younger years in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, graduated from Elkhart’s Jimtown High School and worked with his father at Plastic Components in that city for several years before joining the military and being deployed to the Baghdad area, his family said.\nWilkey was married to Melinda Wilkey and had two children, stepson Christian, 4, and son Blayke, 1. A third child was due in October, Margaret Wilkey said. The soldier had been based out of Fort Riley, Kan., and nearby Clay Center was his most recent home.\nA memorial service is planned at Fort Riley, and Wilkey will be buried in the Upper Peninsula, where his mother lives.\nBlackmon said U.S. Army records showed Belleville as Lewsader’s “home of record,” but family said the soldier had no known ties to Illinois, the Belleville News-Democrat reported.\n“This hasn’t ever happened to us before,” Blackmon told the newspaper. “Right now, the Army is looking into it.”\nLewsader was assigned to 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division based at Fort Riley.