114 items found for your search. If no results were found please broaden your search.
(05/31/12 12:40am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>A 37-year-old Bloomington woman remains in critical condition at IU Health Bloomington Hospital after being stabbed in the torso three times early Wednesday morning.The woman’s alleged attacker, Kathleen A. Grubbs, 37, was arrested for attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon. She was booked into the Monroe County Jail at 10:50 a.m. A bond has not yet been set.Police initially responded to a reported assault at Arlington Park Apartments on North Arlington Park Drive at 2:06 a.m., BPD Detective Sgt. John Kovach said. As officers were en route to the location, they were informed of a potential stabbing.When officers arrived, Kovach said they were flagged down by a 38-year-old man, the victim’s husband, who was running down the stairs at the apartment building. He informed police the victim was upstairs, Kovach said.When police went upstairs, Kovach said they observed the victim crying on the floor outside the door of an apartment. The victim then lifted her shirt to show officers her wounds.As officers performed first aid on the victim, she told authorities Grubbs was still inside the apartment with the door locked.The victim and Grubbs had been friends and neighbors for years, both Grubbs and the victim told Detective Randy Gehlhausen. Gehlhausen said the victim told him the two got in an argument a few weeks ago, but they never reported the incident to police. Getting over the initial disagreement, the victim told Gehlhausen the two had spent all day together and had a great time.The two friends, along with the victim’s husband, continued to hang out in Grubb’s apartment between 10 and 11 p.m. Tuesday, the victim told Gehlhausen.Gehlhausen said the victim also told him she and her husband were having troubles with their marriage.When the victim’s husband left the apartment to walk his and Grubbs’ dogs, Grubbs allegedly told the victim her husband did not want to be with her and wanted to be with Grubbs instead, Kovach said.When the victim confronted her husband about what Grubbs had said, Kovach said he denied plans to leave her, saying Grubbs was jealous. The victim and her husband then decided to confront Grubbs about what she had said, which Grubbs insisted was true.The victim then demanded Grubbs return the carpet cleaner she had borrowed, and Grubbs went into her apartment, allegedly returning with a folding knife with a three- or four-inch blade.Grubbs then allegedly slapped the victim before holding the blade to the victim’s throat, Gehlhausen said.Gehlhausen said the victim’s husband then grabbed Grubbs’ arm and twisted it behind her back and pushed her into her apartment. Before he could turn around, the man told Gehlhausen that Grubbs reached over him and began stabbing the victim with the knife.The victim was stabbed twice in the upper right abdomen and once on her right side.When the victim dropped to the ground outside the apartment’s door in the building’s common area, Gehlhausen said Grubbs slammed and locked the door before calling police. Gehlhausen said the victim and her husband had consistent stories during interviews, although Gehlhausen said they did not have an opportunity to talk before the victim was transported to the hospital.Grubbs, however, told police the victim tried attacking her first and used the weapon as self defense.Gehlhausen said he last visited the victim at IU Health Bloomington Hospital at about 10 a.m. Wednesday, where she remained in critical condition. Attempted murder is a Class A felony and assault with a deadly weapon is a Class C felony.
(05/24/12 12:42am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Democratic gubernatorial candidate and former Indiana House Speaker John Gregg announced Tuesday he has selected Indiana Senate Democratic Leader Vi Simpson of Ellettsville as his running mate. Wednesday afternoon, Gregg and Simpson stopped in Bloomington as part of a statewide tour to introduce Simpson to Indiana voters as the Democratic Party’s new lieutenant governor candidate.“I want someone who believes when we do education reform, that we have school teachers sitting at the table,” Gregg said, standing on the porch of the Monroe County Democratic Headquarters on South College Avenue. “I want someone who shares my passion of keeping college affordable, and I found such a person. I want someone that connects with Indiana, someone in touch with Indiana, someone that is in Indiana.”But Simpson, who said she lives about three miles from downtown Bloomington, is already a known figure in Monroe County’s political scene. Wielding new signs supporting Gregg and Simpson for governor and small American flags, supporters stood on the lawn and sidewalk outside the white, two-story house converted into the Democratic Headquarters.As Simpson spoke on the porch, supporters chanted “Vi.”“We don’t always agree on things, and we will not always agree on things, but I believe in John Gregg because the day he talked to me about being the lieutenant governor, he said, ‘I do not want a yes-man,’ and he knows he will not get one,” Simpson told the crowd. “He wants people who believe different things, who have different perspectives and different life experiences sitting at the table when he makes decisions.”Before being elected to the Senate in 1984, Simpson served as Monroe County Auditor. In 2008, she was elected Democrat Leader by the State Democrat Caucus.While in the Senate, Simpson authored legislation creating Indiana’s Children’s Health Insurance program, which has become a national model for delivering cost-effective health service to uninsured children. Simpson said she considers that to be one of her largest accomplishments while serving in the Senate.She also initiated the debate on tax restructuring and property tax reform, leading to legislation that revamped the state’s tax code.More recently, Simpson was co-author of the Lifeline Law, which Gov. Mitch Daniels signed into law in March. The Lifeline Law gives individuals limited protection when they seek medical help for someone who is underage and intoxicated.If elected as the state’s two top-ranking government officials during November’s general election, both Gregg and Simpson said their first priority will be job creation.“(Gregg) does not want an administration that is focused on a social agenda,” Simpson said. “He wants an administration that focuses on putting Indiana back to work and raising the vote for everybody, raising the income rate for people and making sure we have affordable education opportunities, making sure we have a secure retirement for our seniors and making sure women have access to health care.”While tackling set agendas if elected, Gregg said he hopes to operate from a bipartisan stance.“If people think cooperation, collaboration and being bipartisan is a bad word, they don’t want to vote for us,” Gregg said. “We want people who can bring people together, try to find a common ground and work together, concentrate on jobs, concentrate on education. We’re about ideas not ideology.”From a democratic platform, both Gregg and Simpson said it will be a battle to win voters’ approval against Republican Candidate Mike Pence, who is currently serving in the United States House of Representatives in Indiana’s sixth district. Pence selected Sue Ellspermann as his running mate. She is a current member of the Indiana House of Representatives.Libertarian gubernatorial candidate Rupert Boneham is running in the general election with Brad Klopfenstein.“We all know Indiana is a state that is difficult for Democrats to win, but we are always contrasting ourselves,” Gregg said. “We call ourselves the Green Team against the Extreme Team. We like to show people we’re about jobs. We’re not about social issues, we’re about being inclusive and giving teachers a voice in education.”If elected in November’s general election, Simpson will have to give up her Democratic nomination for her spot in the Senate.“Some of you have been concerned about the fact that I am leaving the Senate, and I want you to know that it took a lot of thought, and I shared some of those thoughts with my dear friends before I made the decision,” Simpson said. “After I had a conversation with John, I knew this was the right thing for me to do. It was the right thing for me to do because, together, we make a complete ticket.”For Thursday, Gregg and Simpson scheduled stops in Lafayette, Fort Wayne and Hammond, Ind.“If you can give us a big margin out of Monroe County and we can win a few other counties with a big margin around this state, you are looking at the next governor of the State of Indiana,” Simpson said. “President Obama needs you, Shelli Yoder needs you, our Senate from top to bottom needs you and John Gregg and Vi Simpson need you more than ever.”
(05/22/12 7:51pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Democratic gubernatorial candidate and former Indiana House Speaker John Gregg announced Tuesday he has selected Indiana Senate Democratic Leader Vi Simpson of Ellettsville as his running mate.“Vi Simpson is an outstanding choice for lieutenant governor, one who will be a great partner in my efforts to get the state back on track and back to work,” Gregg said in a press release. “She’s not only a seasoned leader who’s ready to govern; she also has a tremendous background in business advocacy, education and finance.”Gregg said that Simpson has a vast knowledge of the state’s budget, tax structure and economic development programs.“She has been a leader in forcing the current administration to own up to their numerous financial gaffes,” Gregg said.Before being elected to the Senate in 1984, Simpson served as Monroe County Auditor. In 2008, she was elected Democrat Leader by the State Democrat Caucus.While in the Senate, Simpson authored legislation creating Indiana’s Children’s Health Insurance Program, which has become a national model for delivering cost-effective health service to uninsured children, according to a press release. She also initiated the debate on tax restructuring and property tax reform, leading to legislation that revamped the state’s tax code.“The time is right for a governor like John Gregg,” Simpson said in a press release. “He wants to get things done for Hoosiers, and he wants to do it in a bipartisan way. He not only understands the value of providing high-quality education to our young people, he knows that education is crucially important to our children’s and our state’s future success.”Simpson said attracting companies that lead to job growth for Hoosiers will be at the forefront of her agenda. Social issues, she said, should remain on the “back burner” in November’s general election.“There’s too much at stake to focus on anything other than getting our state back on track and back to work,” Simpson said.If Indiana voters select Gregg and Simpson as the state's top-elected officials in the fall, Simpson will have to give up the Democratic nomination for her spot in the House.In November, Gregg will run against Republican candidate Mike Pence, who is currently serving in the U.S. House of Representatives in Indiana’s sixth district. Pence selected Sue Ellspermann as his running mate, who is a current member of the Indiana House of Representatives.Throughout the week, Gregg will travel across the state to introduce his new running mate to Hoosier voters.“This ticket sends the clear message that experience matters,” Dan Parker, Indiana Democratic Party chair, said in a press release. “Over the past eight years, we’ve lost thousands of jobs, watched our working dollar lose value, and had assaults on public education, women and working families. We need tested leaders experienced leaders who understand Indiana government and are committed to Indiana first to get our state and our economy back on track; not those focused on the next election for the White House.”
(05/17/12 2:20am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Don Holmes’ small, white house began to shake.Standing in front of his television, from where he initially disregarded the warnings, he hurried to his old, wooden desk, grabbed a flash drive and took cover in the far left corner of his bathroom.Holmes hugged his cat Kiki so tight, he said she probably thought he would kill her.Then, the tornado hit. Several of the tall trees surrounding his home toppled onto his roof, exposing the inside to the dark, wet sky.“I don’t know if there’s anything that really goes through your mind,” Holmes said. “More than anything else, you’re just standing there wondering if you’re going to buy it or not. Is this your moment or is this not your moment, as far as dying goes?”At the rear of his house, the tornado stole his entire roof. Windows shattered and furniture was sucked out through the ceiling.“For all I know, part of the roof is laying in the bottom of Lake Monroe,” Holmes said. “I don’t know where the tornado dumped it.”Almost a year ago — May 25, 2011 — a 110 mile-per-hour tornado ripped through Bloomington, taking with it trees and homes. Holmes was one of many victims, but he was possibly the last person to receive help.Every morning for about 11 months, Holmes awoke in his bed in his dining room. Although Holmes had made his bed on Saturday, the rest of his house remained a wreck.When it rained, he tried collecting as much water as he could in buckets. With several windows missing, covered only by sheets of plastic, he said winter was miserable.For 11 months he lived in his broken home, unable to afford repairs and unwilling to leave.Three weeks ago, he was kicked out of his house. But he said he was happy to leave.Volunteers arrived to rebuild what was lost.***In October 2010, Holmes lost his job as a computer specialist when Comcast’s call center in Bloomington shut down.He tried finding a new job, but at his age, he said he did not have any luck. He said he went on unemployment, but in order for him to pay his bills, that was not enough.“The only jobs I could find while I was on unemployment paid less than what the unemployment was, so it’s not what you would call good economics,” Holmes said.Holmes got desperate. To save money, he canceled his homeowners insurance.The tornado hit a few months later.“Of course that’s when I got busted,” Holmes said.For six weeks following the disaster, Holmes and his neighbors went without power. Traffic on State Road 45, which runs directly in front of Holmes’ residence, was jammed with gawkers taking pictures, Holmes said. But none of these people, he said, stopped to offer help.“I don’t know how many people who got a picture of my house with trees all over it,” Holmes said. “They actually slowed the whole process down a tremendous amount. I understand peoples’ curiosity, but they don’t think past their own nose a lot of times.”But even more problematic, Holmes said, was the traffic noise running along his house — specifically noise from large trucks.“That’s just the way it is, but at night when they come roaring by, I jump up out of bed thinking it’s a tornado again,” he said.While FEMA approved disaster relief funding for municipalities, they did not provide funding for individual residents. However, Holmes said he did receive a $5,000 disaster relief grant from the State of Indiana through a fund established by taxes on firework sales.“It almost felt like your parents disowned you,” Holmes said. “I’ve worked, I’ve paid taxes and all of that, but the government disowned me. That’s how it feels.”Following the tornado, Holmes said about 80,000 pounds of tree limbs covered his roof. Eventually, a group of Amish men stopped and volunteered to remove the limbs. But he did not receive other help.Raised in a self-reliant family, Holmes said he did not ask his older brother or grown children for a place to live because he did not want to “impose.”So, he continued living in his damaged home. He searched for jobs and continued working on his science fiction trilogy.Holmes, who has already published one book along with a collection of training manuals, began the trilogy long before the tornado struck. The first book, which is complete and roughly 90,000 words in length, was backed up on his flash drive.Still hanging on the wall of his living room, close to the home’s entrance, is a white board covered in hand-written notes.The novel, he said, is about a girl who was abducted by an alien and is eventually adopted into an alien family.A leafy vine began growing through the window sill in his bedroom, which smelled ripe from mold. The remaining carpet was matted down from water damage.In the bathroom where he found refuge hung a small motivational poster bearing the word “Opportunity.”“If certain authorities found out I was still living in the house, they might have kicked me out,” Holmes said. “But I didn’t have anywhere else to go at that point.”***In Holmes’ back yard Saturday, Mark Pitman poured gasoline on a tall pile of tree limbs. After igniting the logs, he stood and watched the fire slowly burn.Pitman is the disaster relief coordinator at Bloomington Baptist Church, working under the umbrella of Southern Baptist Convention Disaster Relief Indiana.Pitman, along with three other volunteers from Bloomington Baptist Church and Vineyard Community Church, volunteered to rebuild Holmes’ residence. Catholic Charities of Indianapolis agreed to provide the necessary funds, Holmes said.During construction, Holmes said he is staying with his older brother, who is also helping him financially.“This is an awesome experience,” Pitman said. “It’s really rewarding. There is no other work you can do to know you’re helping someone that is more fulfilling. We need money to pay our bills. That’s the reality. But the true joy, the true fulfillment, comes from helping someone else and seeing the joy on their face. That’s worth more than any paycheck.”Holmes said he is glad the volunteers are there to help. But he admitted accepting their assistance was difficult.“Don’t get me wrong, I have tremendous appreciation for everything they’re doing, but I’ve always been one that was giving help, not getting help,” Holmes said. “It’s not a pride thing, it’s just a matter of being independent.”In order to prevent further water damage to the home, the crew first rebuilt the roof. On just one side of the roof, 39 of the 40 rafters were replaced.“This is the one that everybody said couldn’t be done,” said Susan Scales of Vineyard Community Church, who said she provides disaster relief full-time around the world. “Every single person we met said, ‘This can’t be rebuilt,’ because it was too far gone. But we’ve rebuilt ones in worse shape than this.”On Saturday, the focus of the volunteers’ work was not on Holmes’ house but on the yard.In order to prevent future damage to the home, the remaining trees towering overhead will be removed. To accomplish this, the branches and debris still covering his lawn need to be moved.After the trees are removed Thursday and Friday, volunteers will redirect their focus to the structure.Holmes will never again see the home he once had. His life will not go back to the way it was. But once the construction work is complete, he will be able to live comfortably with a “new normal.”“Sometimes,” said volunteer John Galey from Vineyard Community Church, “you’ve just got to put things aside and help somebody else out.”
(05/17/12 1:12am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The naked IU student who police say shot 32 rounds from a 9mm semi-automatic handgun at a house, parked cars and police officers in a neighborhood north of the IU campus was released Tuesday from IU Health Bloomington Hospital.He had received surgery there after being shot twice in the legs by police.Following his release from the hospital, 21-year-old Corey Joseph Hamersley was booked into the Monroe County Jail at about 12:32 p.m. Tuesday and faces preliminary charges of attempted murder, criminal recklessness, pointing a firearm, possession of a controlled substance and possession of marijuana. He currently remains in jail with a $500,000 surety bond or $5,000 cash bond.At about 7 a.m. Friday, police responded to a call from a resident in the 300 block of East 15th Street reporting that a man was shooting a gun into the back door of their residence.When police arrived, Hamersley was allegedly ordered to drop the gun but continued waving the weapon around, according to a release by BPD Cpt. Joe Qualters.When Hamersley did not obey orders by police and allegedly shot at one of the officers, Qualters said police shot him in the legs, secured the weapon and took the student into custody after a brief struggle.Hamersley sustained injuries to each of his legs from gunshot wounds, but no officers or bystanders were shot.While in the hospital, Hamersley was under 24-hour guard by police from the time he was taken there for his injuries until he was released, Qualters said in a press release.During an interview at the hospital, Hamersley allegedly acknowledged the encounter with police and was capable of identifying that he was shooting at officers because of their uniforms.“He indicated that he thought about how ‘cool’ it would be to say he shot a cop,” Qualters said in the release. “He also acknowledged pointing a loaded weapon at the first officer, pulling the trigger and trying to shoot the officer in the chest.”After obtaining a search warrant at Hamersley’s residence, police found LSD, hashish, marijuana and drug paraphernalia, which were seized from his bedroom, Qualters said.Mark Land, associate vice president of university communications, confirmed that Hamersley is an IU junior studying exercise science. In fall 2009 and spring 2010, Hamersley was recognized as a University Division Scholar of Highest Distinction for having a grade point average between 3.9 and 4.0, according to the IU website.Although never charged as a violent criminal, Monroe County Circuit Court records show Hamersley was charged for possession of marijuana and possession of paraphernalia in August 2010.Land said Hamersley is still enrolled at IU.“This was a matter for the prosecutor’s office and the Bloomington PD to handle first and foremost,” Land said.Land said the University will not decide on whether to pursue disciplinary action against Hamersley until after he is tried in court. During the incident, Land said the University did not issue an alert to students because the shooting happened so quickly. When IUPD officers arrived about 10 minutes after officers from the BPD, Land said Hamersley was already detained. Because the University’s alert system is designed to warn students of ongoing threats to people on campus, Land said issuing an alert would only have scared people. The two officers who shot Hamersley, whose names have not been released by police, are currently on administrative leave until an internal investigation is complete. Qualters said the findings of the internal investigation should be available in the next few days.
(05/16/12 12:44am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The naked IU student who police say shot 32 rounds from a 9mm semi-automatic handgun at a house, parked cars and police officers in a neighborhood north of the IU campus was released from IU Health Bloomington Hospital Tuesday.He had received surgery there after being shot twice in the legs by police.Following his release from the hospital, 21-year-old Corey Joseph Hamersley — a junior at IU studying exercise science — was booked into the Monroe County Jail and faces preliminary charges of attempted murder, criminal recklessness, pointing a firearm, possession of a controlled substance and possession of marijuana.At about 7 a.m. Friday, police responded to a call from a resident in the 300 block of East 15th Street reporting that a man was shooting a gun into the back door of their residence.When police arrived, Hamersley was allegedly ordered to drop the gun but continued waving the weapon around, according to a release by BPD Cpt. Joe Qualters.When Hamersley did not obey orders by police and allegedly shot at one of the officers, Qualters said police shot him in the legs, secured the weapon and took the student into custody after a brief struggle.Hamersley sustained injuries to each of his legs from gunshot wounds, but no officers or bystanders were shot.While in the hospital, Hamersley was under 24-hour guard by police from the time he was taken there for his injuries until he was released, Qualters said in a press release.During an interview at the hospital, Hamersley allegedly acknowledged the encounter with police and was capable of identifying that he was shooting at officers because of their uniforms.“He indicated that he thought about how ‘cool’ it would be to say he shot a cop,” Qualters said in the release. “He also acknowledged pointing a loaded weapon at the first officer, pulling the trigger and trying to shoot the officer in the chest.”After obtaining a search warrant at Hamersley’s residence, police found LSD, hashish, marijuana and drug paraphernalia, which were seized from his bedroom, Qualters said.The two officers who shot Hamersley, whose names have not been released by police, are currently on administrative leave until an internal investigation is complete. Qualters said the findings of the internal investigation should be available in the next few days.Continue checking idsnews.com for further updates.
(05/14/12 12:52am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Officers from the Bloomington Police Department confronted and shot a nude IU student who was discharging rounds from a firearm into the rear of a residence north of the IU campus early Friday.When police arrived at the scene at about 7 a.m. in the 300 block of East 15th Street, the man, later identified as Corey J. Hamersley, 21, was ordered to drop the weapon but continued waving the firearm around, according to a release by BPD Cpt. Joe Qualters.“The first officer to arrive observed him fire into the air and fire multiple rounds into the back door of a residence,” Qualters said in a release issued Friday evening. “The suspect ignored commands by the officer to drop the weapon and shot at the officer on two separate occasions. The officer did not return fire due to the house being in the background and the need to retreat to adequate cover from the gunfire directed at her.”The suspect then began walking down an alley toward East 15th Street, according to police, where another officer observed him with a firearm. The officer then shot the suspect, causing him to fall to the ground.Hamersley then sat up, still wielding the firearm. He eventually stood and allegedly pointed the gun “directly at the officer,” according to the release by Qualters.A third officer then shot Hamersley a second time. Again, Hamersley went down. Police secured his weapon and took him into custody “after a brief struggle.”Hamersley was shot in both of his legs and, according to police, does not suffer from life-threatening injuries.Hamersley was transported to IU Health Bloomington Hospital and will undergo surgery for gunshot wounds. No officers or bystanders were shot during the altercation.At the scene, police recovered 32 shell casings from a Ruger 9mm semi-automatic handgun. Police fired five rounds, according to the release. Casings from police guns were also recovered.Initial damages to three vehicles and the back door of the residence have been reported.IUPD officers also responded to the scene but did not fire shots at Hamersley, according to an IU press release.Mark Land, associate vice president of university communications, confirmed that Hamersley is an IU student.IU sophomore Justin Dunn, who lives in a house on the corner of 15th and North Lincoln streets, said he watched from his bedroom window as police shot the suspect. The police, he said, were about 20 or 30 feet away from his house when they shot the suspect.“I was sleeping, and my roommate came into my room and said, ‘Hey man, you’ve got to wake up,’” Dunn said. “I woke up to the sound of gun fire. I was a little tired and didn’t really get it, but I opened my bedroom window, I pulled the blinds open and was looking at the street, and there was just a cop shooting at a gentleman.”Dunn said that if the shooter had fired rounds “four degrees to his right,” the rounds would have been aimed at Dunn’s bedroom window.“When I first looked out I was a little nervous, but I wasn’t really shook up by that,” Dunn said. “Technically, my life was in danger at that point because a stray bullet could have hit me, but I didn’t really think that was something that was going to happen.”Dunn said paramedics arrived and hauled the Hamersley away from the scene only a few minutes after officers shot had shot him.The incident remains under investigation with pending criminal charges against Hamersley to be determined following review and consultation with the Monroe County Prosecutor’s Office.The two officers involved in the shooting are currently on administrative leave until an internal investigation is completed, according to the release.“I’m glad that no one else except the criminal got hurt,” Dunn said. “It looks like he’ll be able to make a recovery and be prosecuted, which is better, I think, than him being shot and killed.”
(05/13/12 11:32pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Four people were transported to the hospital after a Silver Toyota Rav4 and an orange Pontiac Vibe crashed in a two-vehicle accident in the intersection of West Kirkwood Avenue and North College Avenue at about 5:45 p.m. Sunday.The accident was caused after one of the vehicles disregarded a red light, but it was not immediately known which vehicle was at fault, Bloomington Police Sgt. Lucas Tate said. In the intersection, the Toyota lay upside down on its roof. Broken glass covered the pavement. The Pontiac’s front end was smashed.As firemen cleaned glass from the area, paramedics and other firemen loaded the victims on stretchers into the back of separate ambulances. Names of the individuals involved in the crash were not released, but Tate said each vehicle carried four occupants. Those taken to the hospital were from both cars. Although the condition of those injured was not immediately known, Tate said the injuries were not life-threatening. Marco Crestani said he was at the Irish Lion restaurant when he heard the accident. He said he then rushed to the scene and helped a woman out of the Pontiac. As he was helping the woman out of the vehicle, Crestani said she was complaining of pain to her rib cage and had cuts on her hands and arms from glass.But the woman, Crestani said, was able to stand and walk. Shabnam Kavousian said she was walking toward the intersection during the accident. Although she told Sgt. Tate her view of the accident was obstructed by other vehicles on the road, she said she watched the Toyota flipping in the air. After the injured individuals were hauled away from the scene in ambulances, police continued to question others involved in the accident and witnesses.A tow truck operator flipped the Toyota back onto its wheels and loaded it onto the truck’s flatbed. After securing the front of the Pontiac to the back of the tow truck, the operator hauled both vehicles away from the scene.
(05/11/12 4:14pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Officers from the Bloomington Police Department confronted and shot a nude IU student who was discharging rounds from a firearm into the rear of a residence north of the IU campus early Friday.When police arrived at the scene at about 7 a.m. in the 300 block of East 15th Street, the man, later identified as Corey J. Hamersley, 21, was ordered to drop the weapon but continued waving the firearm around, according to a release by BPD Cpt. Joe Qualters.“The first officer to arrive observed him fire into the air and fire multiple rounds into the back door of a residence,” Qualters said in a release issued Friday evening. “The suspect ignored commands by the officer to drop the weapon and shot at the officer on two separate occasions. The officer did not return fire due to the house being in the background and the need to retreat to adequate cover from the gunfire directed at her.”The suspect then began walking down an alley toward East 15th Street, according to police, where another officer observed him with a firearm. The officer then shot the suspect, causing him to fall to the ground.Hamersley then sat up, still wielding the firearm. He eventually stood and allegedly pointed the gun “directly at the officer,” according to the release by Qualters.A third officer then shot Hamersley a second time. Again, Hamersley went down. Police secured his weapon and took him into custody “after a brief struggle.”Hamersley was shot in both of his legs and, according to police, does not suffer from life-threatening injuries.Hamersley was transported to IU Health Bloomington Hospital and will undergo surgery for gunshot wounds. No officers or bystanders were shot during the altercation.At the scene, police recovered 32 shell casings from a Ruger 9mm semi-automatic handgun. Police fired five rounds, according to the release. Casings from police guns were also recovered.Initial damages to three vehicles and the back door of the residence have been reported.IUPD officers also responded to the scene but did not fire shots at Hamersley, according to an IU press release.Mark Land, associate vice president of university communications, confirmed that Hamersley is an IU student.IU sophomore Justin Dunn, who lives in a house on the corner of 15th and North Lincoln streets, said he watched from his bedroom window as police shot the suspect. The police, he said, were about 20 or 30 feet away from his house when they shot the suspect.“I was sleeping, and my roommate came into my room and said, ‘Hey man, you’ve got to wake up,’” Dunn said. “I woke up to the sound of gun fire. I was a little tired and didn’t really get it, but I opened my bedroom window, I pulled the blinds open and was looking at the street, and there was just a cop shooting at a gentleman.”Dunn said that if the shooter had fired rounds “four degrees to his right,” the rounds would have been aimed at Dunn’s bedroom window.“When I first looked out I was a little nervous, but I wasn’t really shook up by that,” Dunn said. “Technically, my life was in danger at that point because a stray bullet could have hit me, but I didn’t really think that was something that was going to happen.”Dunn said paramedics arrived and hauled the Hamersley away from the scene only a few minutes after officers shot had shot him.The incident remains under investigation with pending criminal charges against Hamersley to be determined following review and consultation with the Monroe County Prosecutor’s Office.The two officers involved in the shooting are currently on administrative leave until an internal investigation is completed, according to the release.“I’m glad that no one else except the criminal got hurt,” Dunn said. “It looks like he’ll be able to make a recovery and be prosecuted, which is better, I think, than him being shot and killed.”
(05/10/12 1:01am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>During Monroe County’s primary election Tuesday, 16.87 percent of Monroe County residents voted, casting 14,795 ballots. Receiving 64.26 percent of the votes in Monroe County, Republican presidential candidate and former governor of Massachusetts Mitt Romney will run against President Barack Obama in November’s general election. Romney received 5,325 votes in Monroe County on the GOP Ticket.Trailing Romney in second place was Ron Paul, who received 19.21 percent of the vote with 1,592 ballots cast in his favor.In Indiana’s heavily contested race for United States Senate, 36-year incumbent Richard Lugar was ousted by state Treasurer Richard Mourdock, who garnered 50.86 percent of the vote.Lugar, who was running for his sixth term as U.S. Senate, received 49.14 percent of the vote, 50 votes fewer in Monroe County than Mourdock. Mourdock is backed by the Tea Party and appealed to Indiana voters who considered themselves extremely conservative. In November’s general election, Mourdock will face Indiana’s Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, Rep. Joe Donnelly. Even before the final tally was in, news sources from across the country were reporting Lugar’s defeat. According to the Associated Press, Lugar said he hopes Mourdock wins in November’s general election. Shelli Yoder, 1992 Miss Indiana and associate director of professional development at the IU Kelley School of Business, beat four other Democrats in the primary election for southern Indiana’s 9th-District seat.Yoder, a newcomer to the political scene, will challenge Republican 9th District U.S. Rep. Todd Young in November. Even before the final results were in, members of the Monroe County Democratic Party began hanging a sign that said, “Shelli Yoder for Congress” above the doorway of a small, white, two-story house on College Ave. During the primary election, Monroe County Clerk Linda Robbins said there was light voter turnout Tuesday morning, but it picked up throughout the day. Overall, Robbins said the election was “excellent.”Prior to the primary election, Democratic candidate for County Commissioner Randy Paul raised concerns that several polling locations were not compliant with the Help America Vote Act, along with the Americans with Disabilities Act. However, he did not follow with his plans to contest the election results for County Commissioner.“I have felt nervous the past few weeks that if I contested the election results, it would turn the focus of the debate on me personally and not the broader concern on what is best for the community,” Paul said in a press release. “I think adding another election drama so soon after the problems we faced only a few months ago in the Municipal Elections, it would raise serious questions whether the Democratic Party can effectively govern and conduct a fair election. In this case, the negatives of contesting the election outweighed the positives.”Robbins said one individual did complain about the lack of handicap-accessible parking at the National Guard Armory. However, she said, the armory did have parking available for those with disabilities. It was locations at schools, she said, that were in question.For a complete list of Tuesday's primary election results, click here.
(05/10/12 12:28am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>It was Tuesday afternoon of finals week at IU, and business was bustling at Baked! of Bloomington. In fact, the local bakery, which opened in 2006, was busier than usual since Little 500 weekend, selling 2,500 or more cookies per day.In one swift motion, co-owner Jeremy Ness scooped dough of various flavors onto cookie sheets, hustled into another room, put the dough in the oven, accepted a new order and served guests a plate of hot cookies.But during the next three months, beginning graduation day at IU, Ness said the number of cookie-hungry consumers will plummet.With thousands of IU students graduating, pursuing summer internships or returning home, Ness said business at Baked! is expected to decrease by 60 to 70 percent. Ness’ T-shirt, which read “I get baked before class,” highlighted the influence the University has on his small business.“Of course we couldn’t exist without the University and its students,” Ness said. “It definitely puts a damper on the cash flow and future plans when 60 or 70 percent of your business leaves for the summer.”Baked! is not alone. During the school year, Pizza X General Manager Jesse Bloom said the local pizzeria brings in between $20,000 and $30,000 per week. But with business decreasing approximately 75 percent during the summer, those figures decrease to between $7,000 and $9,000 per week.“It impacts business in a lot of ways,” Bloom said. “We lose a lot of our staff, it’s hard for people to get hours in the summer and we just try to do as much business as we can. We make enough profit throughout the school year to offset what we lose over the summer.”To counter smaller figures during the warm months, staff members are cut at both Pizza X and Baked! Pizza X, Bloom said, gives several of its employees a leave of absence during the summer months, something employees were told would happen when hired.Among the 15 employees working for Baked!, Ness said several will be laid off during the summer with hopes to hire them again in the fall. When employees are hired, Ness said they are informed they will be let go in May, but he said most employees are understanding.Generally those laid off are university students, Ness said, and would have been leaving for the summer anyway.“This year, we’re trying really hard to keep all of our full-timers on staff,” Ness said. “They have no problem with being here, it’s just the problem of being able to afford them.”With plans to add a soft-serve ice cream machine in the next few weeks, Ness said he is looking forward to Welcome Week at IU, one of the busiest weeks of the year for Baked! Following Little 500 Week, Bloom said Welcome Week is the second busiest week of the year for Pizza X.“We’re certainly a growing business, which is exciting,” Ness said. “When summer comes around next year, hopefully we won’t be in the position to need to lay people off. Hopefully, we’ll be busy enough to where we’ll be hiring again.”
(05/07/12 12:57am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>For their last time, thousands of IU students piled onto the floor or sat in rows of seating at Assembly Hall on Saturday. About an hour and a half later, the same students joined the global network of more than 560,000 IU alumni.Divided into three ceremonies, 8,829 degrees were awarded during IU’s 183rd Commencement Ceremony. “Your IU education has allowed you to develop the skills of argument and reasoning, of analysis and discernment, of leadership and cooperation,” IU President Michael McRobbie said to the graduating class during the undergraduate ceremony. “It has given you time to explore many different worlds of knowledge that will lead you towards your passion and your life’s work.”Booker T. Jones, a Grammy Award-winning soul artist, songwriter, record producer and arranger, as well as an alumnus of the IU Jacobs School of Music, was selected as the undergraduate ceremony’s commencement speaker. He is the only IU graduate to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.During his speech, Jones recalled walking to the music school for music theory at 7:15 a.m. during his four years at IU. He credited his IU education to his success as a musician.“This commencement ceremony is, indeed, an auspicious occasion,” Jones said. “You finished the greatest school in the world, Indiana University.”When graduate Tudor Panta of Zionsville, Ind., first came to IU four years ago, he said he was nervous. He said he did not know what to expect as a university student, but that he quickly settled in and had a great time.Panta received a bachelors degree in psychology with a certificate in neuroscience Saturday. “My initial plan was to double major in neuroscience and psychology, but I kind of dropped the major in neuroscience down to a certificate, just so I can go into grad school and proceed that way,” Panta said. “I don’t regret anything because I still got what I wanted to out of it, and I just hope to further my knowledge at grad school.”Students selected to speak at the undergraduate commencement included Sunjay Gorawara, who received degrees in finance and entrepreneurship, along with a minor in public and environmental affairs; and Lauren Sedam of the IDS, who majored in journalism and English.For her speech, Sedam interviewed fellow seniors about their experiences at IU.“These four years have been turning 21 at Nick’s for the game, Hairy Bears and free breadstick day,” Sedam said. “They were Linda Xiong getting on the jumbotron at a football game, something to check off her IU bucket list. It was sitting in the stands at Little Five and getting chills listening to Straight No Chaser sing ‘Back Home Again in Indiana.’ And it was Jackie Cottrell sitting with her sisters on the deck of Kappa Alpha Theta and knowing this is exactly where she was meant to be.”Kyle Dahl of Indianapolis, who received a bachelor’s degree in informatics, said he first attended IU four years ago because he heard he could do whatever he wanted to do in terms of his education.“That’s what really intrigued me because I came in, I wasn’t 100 percent sure if I wanted to go into informatics so I spent the first year exploring my options,” Dahl said. “That’s what makes IU so great.”With his degree, Dahl landed a job within his field for JPMorgan Chase in Chicago. “Over the past few days, it’s been really overwhelming,” Dahl said. “It’s really hitting me all at once, but the football games, the basketball games, hanging out with friends, freshman year, moving into all the apartments and houses and everything, it’s all just been great and it’s been a wonderful journey.”When Sarah Kirk came to IU, Sedam said in her speech, she was looking for a school.But now, it didn’t feel like just a school. It felt like leaving home.“Today, as a class, we thank what got us here,” Sedam said. “Thank you, IU. Thanks for our story.”
(05/07/12 12:53am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Several students at the Kelley School of Business tried to make a profit off the school’s commencement ceremony.When Kelley offered a limited number of free admission tickets to Friday’s ceremony in the IU Auditorium, students used online services such as Craigslist and the classified section of IU’s OneStart to sell the free tickets for more than $100 each.While posts from sellers flooded OneStart’s “tickets & events” tab in classifieds, even more posts were made by students who needed to purchase what was intended to be free.“We don’t condone anybody trying to sell tickets they received for free,” said Mark Land, associate vice president of university communications. “That’s not the spirit in which the tickets were distributed.”But following Friday’s commencement, Land said the problem was not as effectual as anticipated.During the ceremony, Land said approximately 100 seats were left empty. Tickets were issued to anybody who did not already have them for free. IU Auditorium staff arranged standby lines and overflow seating, but neither were needed.Prior to April 9, students received multiple emails and one physical letter informing them that, for the first time, admission tickets would be required to enter the commencement ceremony. Land said the tickets were beneficial to the University because they gave organizers an idea of how many individuals planned to attend the event. With approximately 900 Kelley students walking at the ceremony, Land said the IU Auditorium’s capacity was expected to be reached or exceeded. Business students were allowed to pick up three free tickets, one student ticket and two guest tickets, at the IU Auditorium between April 9 and 20.On April 23, the University distributed the remaining tickets on a first-come, first-served basis. That is when the tickets started popping up online for purchase.Rachel Mauch, who graduated from Kelley with a degree in business economics and public policy, said she was at an interview in Chicago on April 23. She was unable to receive additional tickets. With divorced parents, she said the three tickets she initially received were not enough.“I called up there multiple times to do whatever I could to reserve just two tickets for my other parents because I was out of town for an interview,” Mauch said. “There was no way I could do that, and by the time I got there on Tuesday morning, they were all sold out.”Luckily, she said, two of her friends had one spare ticket each, and they gave her the extra tickets she needed.She said she did not initially think to check online to buy tickets until Kelley Dean Daniel Smith sent an email to students asking them to return extra tickets they were not using.“Please, if you have extra tickets, I ask that you return them to my office in Suite 3000 of the Graduate Building so we can distribute them to families who need them,” Smith said in the email. “It simply is not right for anyone to profit from tickets that were given to you in the spirit that you would use them for yourselves.”After receiving the email, Mauch said she placed an ad on OneStart asking to buy a ticket for $35 or less. She received a response, she said, but was told the highest bidder was offering $350 for three tickets.“For four years in Kelley we’re taught all about obtaining profits,” Mauch said. “It makes sense to me that some students would go and sell their tickets for as much as possible, but it doesn’t seem right to me. It doesn’t seem fair. I wouldn’t do that personally because I’m a student who needed these tickets.”Although the tickets were offered online with bids asking for hundreds of dollars per ticket, Land said he did not believe there were many buyers. The commencement ceremony went smoothly, Land said, despite the fact that many students and their families worried they would be unable to attend. He said the school plans to distribute tickets differently next year. Instead of informing students, he said tickets will be given directly to parents.“Obviously it’s a big day for the students, but the parents are a lot of times the ones who are really excited about being there for these sorts of things,” Land said. “They are the ones who get really concerned if they find they can’t get in, especially since they are making arrangements to get here.”
(05/03/12 9:23pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Five self-proclaimed anarchists were arrested and accused Tuesday of conspiring to blow up a bridge near Cleveland to send a message of dissatisfaction to corporate America and the United States government. One of the men told a confidential informant with the Federal Bureau of Investigation that he was from the Bloomington area. Members of the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force arrested Douglas L. Wright, 26, Monday evening, according to an FBI press release. During a conversation with a confidential informant at a Cleveland protest Oct. 11, 2011, Wright introduced himself as Doug from the Bloomington area and said he has been an anarchist for 12 years. Also arrested with Wright were Brandon L. Baxter, 20, Anthony Hayne, 35, Connor C. Stevens, 20, and Joshua S. Stafford, 23. Wright, Baxter and Hayne were arrested on charges of conspiracy and attempted use of explosive materials to damage physical property affecting interstate commerce. Charges against Stevens and Stafford are still pending.For months, the accused men unknowingly worked with an undercover FBI informant, a strategy federal investigators use frequently to corner alleged terrorists.Their initial plot involved using smoke grenades to distract law enforcement in order for the co-conspirators to topple financial institution signs atop high-rise buildings in downtown Cleveland, according to the release.But the plot later developed to utilize explosive materials. The defendants conspired to obtain C-4 explosives contained in two improvised explosive devices to be placed and remotely detonated. In April, Wright allegedly agreed to purchase eight bricks of C-4 explosives, vests, tear gas and masks from an undercover FBI agent. The alleged conspirators eventually chose their designated target as the Route 82 Brecksville-Northfield High Level Bridge, which crosses from Brecksville, Ohio, to Sagamore Hills, Ohio, over Cuyahoga Valley National Park.“The complaint in this case alleges that the defendants took specific and defined actions to further a terrorist plot,” U.S. Attorney Steven Dettelbach said in a press release. “The defendants stand charged based not upon any words or beliefs they might espouse, but based upon their own plans and actions.”The public was never in danger from the explosive devices sold to Wright, according to the release. The explosives the defendants allegedly purchased and attempted to use were inoperable.On Tuesday, the five men appeared in U.S. District Court in Cleveland. The men will remain in jail without bond until a Monday hearing. During his 12 years as an anarchist, Wright, who goes by the alias “Cyco,” told the informant he has broken his nose and has missing teeth from past riots. During the October protest, Wright allegedly told the informant that if he goes to jail this time, he “probably won’t get out for awhile.”Wright also allegedly told the informant he wanted to purchase a retractable baton, but he was not interested in purchasing a gun because he has a prior felony conviction and did not want to risk arrest for illegal firearm possession.Despite his claim of a past felony conviction, court records for Douglas L. Wright do not exist in Indiana. Detective Sergeant John Kovach of the Bloomington Police Department said BPD does not have any records on Wright that would confirm his residency in the Bloomington area, unless he used an alias.
(05/01/12 9:28pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Police responded to an Occupy Bloomington event Tuesday morning after receiving a complaint at 8:03 a.m. that protesters had erected an Army surplus tent on a city-owned lot near the B-Line Trail between 10th and 11th streets.Approximately 20 occupy protesters gathered in the lot to kick off their May Day celebration, the International Day of Workers Solidarity, said protester Adam Watts. When more than 25 police officers arrived, including officers from the Bloomington Police Department, Monroe County Sheriff’s Department, IU Police Department and Indiana State Police, officers began dismantling the tent. BPD Detective Sergeant John Kovach said officers did not care if the group protested, but they did not want the tent erected. BPD officer Dana Runnebohm carried a pepper ball gun, Kovach said. Once officers dismantled the tent and left it folded on the green grass, they walked toward their squad cars in a group as protesters clapped and cheered.“From Bloomington to Greece, fuck the police,” protesters yelled in unison.Watts said the surplus tent was intended to act as a central meeting location and rain shelter during their day-long May Day festivities. The Really, Really Free Market, which allowed members of the community to obtain or give away free items, was supposed to take place inside the tent, Watts said. But once officers disallowed the structure, they moved the event to a location along the B-Line Trail. As such a “mild and tame event,” Watts said he was surprised it was taken as a serious threat from various law enforcement agencies.“It just shows exactly how terrified the people in control are and how much they are beginning to realize that they are losing their power, that the people are taking the power back,” Watts said. “Although the tent was the official complaint, I think it was much larger than that.”Following the Really, Really Free Market, Occupiers hosted a “teach-in” at Boxcar Books at 408 E. 6th St.Beginning at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Watts said protesters are planning a rally at IU’s Sample Gates, followed by a march to an unknown location at 6 p.m.Between 10 p.m. and midnight, Watts said the group will then convene at IU’s Herman B Wells Library to discuss alternatives to “corporate” universities.“Even though I am a student and not in a trade union, it’s a day of solidarity to show that this is our collective fight, both yours and mine, and I’ve got your back,” Watts said.
(04/26/12 2:15am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>After Bloomington resident Jill Bolte Taylor suffered from a stroke in 1996, she could not walk, talk, read or recall any of her life. Following an eight-year recovery, the Harvard-trained neuroanatomist formed a nonprofit organization promoting brain health. This weekend, Bloomington’s landscape will be temporarily altered with 22 brain sculptures, each standing 5 feet tallthrough an event titled “Brain Extravaganza!,” according to a press release. “I think it’s great for the city, and I think it’s a great program to bring awareness to these situations,” said Brian Robinson, City of Bloomington communications director. “It’s hard to miss 22 5-foot-tall brains. I think it’s a great initiative because we do have a focus on the arts. That plays a role in it, but it brings to light a lot of new understanding around the brain.”Robinson, who said several of his family members have suffered from strokes and Alzheimer’s disease, said he hopes the event will bring awareness to brain diseases in Bloomington.The supporting nonprofit, Jill Bolte Taylor BRAINS, Inc., provides educational services and promotes programs related to the advancement of brain awareness, appreciation, exploration, education, injury prevention, neurological recovery and the value of movement on mental and physical health. According to Bolte Taylor’s website, “Brain Extravaganza!” is the first project the nonprofit has undertaken.“Healthy brains are brains that have a lot of connections between the cells in that brain, and a healthy community has a lot of connections between the people in that community,” her website says. “We are consciously contributing positively to the health and well-being of our Bloomington community by building a healthy network within the area.”Each painted, anatomically correct fiberglass brain — which is 5 feet long, 5 feet high and 4 feet wide — will include a plaque on the base of the sign with five brain facts and a question, according to the press release. The brains will be placed in various spots throughout the community, including several on Kirkwood Avenue and on the IU campus. Bolte Taylor wrote the New York Times bestselling memoir “My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist’s Personal Journey,” published in 2008, according to her website. Also in 2008, Bolte Taylor was selected as one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World. The “Brain Extravaganza!” will begin with a launch party from noon to 2 p.m. April 28 in the Bloomington High School South Auxiliary Gymnasium, where each of the 22 brains will be displayed before being distributed throughout the city. The brain sculptures will remain until October.
(04/24/12 3:08am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Wearing a green and navy-blue kilt, Darin Bagley stood on the balcony of Victoria Towers, juggling three homemade chainmail balls. As he juggled Saturday, he whistled to Flogging Molly blaring from his iPhone stereo. On his left hip was a sheath containing one of his favorite knives -- the Knight's Dagger.From East Kirkwood Avenue below, passersby stared with curiosity. Occasionally, Bagley would stop juggling to wave at the onlookers.Bagley, 40, wanted the people below to notice. If he caught their attention, he thought, they would visit his new store, Medieval Metal. Medieval Metal, a specialty store focusing primarily on novelty knives and swords, along with Bagley’s homemade chainmail trinkets, opened for business three weeks ago.Inside the store, located in a small upstairs room in Victoria Towers at 221 E. Kirkwood Ave., the walls are lined with various medieval swords. In one case is the “Dragon’s Toothbrush” — a medieval-themed toilet scrubber — and a skull candle. Another wall displays Bagley’s chainmail items, which he made with his hands, two pairs of pliers and much patience. Sitting on a stool in the corner, Bagley’s 8-year-old son Claude — the “assistant” and “apprentice” — played “The Legend of Zelda” on a Nintendo DS. Beyond opening day business has been a little slow, Bagley said. From past experiences, however, he knows there is a market in Bloomington for his company. For now, it is about making first impressions. ***When Bagley was in high school in Anderson, Ind., he played in the marching band, members of which wore kilts during performances. Through this exposure, he said, he fell in love with bagpipe music and Celtic culture. He dreamed of becoming an astronaut but chose to pursue a career as a mathematics teacher. He moved to Bloomington and sought an education degree from IU. He never graduated.In 1995, Bagley said he met several friends who were members of the Society for Creative Anachronism in town who started traveling to various medieval-themed events, comic book conventions and sci-fi conventions. To pay their way to the events, Bagley said his friends packed the back of a pickup truck with knives and swords, selling the items once they arrived. On one occasion, Bagley tagged along. Because he had loved reading medieval books for years — specifically the “Lord of the Rings” series — he already had basic knowledge about the various weapons.Eventually, two of his friends, Cindy and Shawn Haverfield, decided to open a sword shop in College Mall in 1996, titled the Dragon’s Claw. The Haverfield’s brought Bagley along as a part-time employee. During the following few years, the Dragon’s Claw moved several times, eventually into the back of Victoria Towers. Acting as the store’s manager, Bagley said he essentially ran the business as Cindy and Shawn went through a divorce. Bagley said he established his own collection of knives and swords, while working at the Dragon’s Claw. But when the Dragons’ Claw closed its doors in 2003, his interest in medieval weaponry faded. He stored his blades in a box in his closet.After going through several jobs, Bagley eventually landed a position as Best Buy’s “video game guru.” But last May, he said, he made a mistake.“I feel like they kind of overreacted to the situation, but I got fired,” Bagley said. “I was able to win my unemployment case on appeal, but before that happened, I had no idea what I was going to do for money.”Ever since the Dragon’s Claw closed, he said he aspired to open his own business. He said his girlfriend of 20 years, Sheryl Mitchell, was supportive of the idea.Purchasing products from the same suppliers as the Dragon’s Claw, Bagley established a small inventory. Also similar to the Dragon’s Claw, he started small.During the Monroe County Fair last August, he sold his merchandise from a booth. But with part of their tax return, they took a leap. When he learned Victoria Towers was under new management and looking for businesses to rent the upstairs rooms, he found something within his budget.“From the minute I saw this room, I absolutely fell in love with it,” Bagley said. “It was something I could really work with.”***“Dad, I want a knife, I’m old enough,” 8-year-old Claude said.“You are old enough to have a knife, in my opinion,” Bagley responded. “However, you spend most of your life in school or at home where you don’t really need one. We’ll talk to your mother about that at some point.”“Maybe my mother will make me wait until I’m 18, dad.”“That’s what mothers are for, you know,” Bagley said, “but I think you’re more likely to get a cell phone than a knife.”Claude has picked out several of his favorite blades, including a replica from the movie “The Dark Knight.” Claude said he enjoys spending time in Medieval Metal with his father. He has even learned how to run the cash register. But without adequate arm strength, he is unable to make his own chainmail. Bagley’s other son, 19-year-old Wesley, is most interested in the different swords. But unlike his father, he is not interested in the chainmail. Bagley loves solving puzzles. And to him, he said, making chainmail is like solving a puzzle. To his surprise, his chainmail has sold better than any other item in the last three weeks.“The chainmail items that I like to make are smaller, unusual, generally more affordable,” Bagley said. “I can make a full shirt, people come in here and ask me that all the time. The one that I have done for someone cost them $500, and it did take me about three months to make. But the downside for me to make something like that — it’s boring.”But Medieval Metal’s most impressive item, he said, is a $250 Roman Gladius, which is considered “battle ready.”“You could actually kill somebody with this,” Bagley said. “Many swords that are sold, in fact at least half of these on the wall right now, are basically wall hangers. You could hit somebody with it and it would hurt, but it’s not something you would take into a medieval- style sword fight, and most people are OK with that.”
(04/16/12 2:24am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>In Bloomington, 39 percent of residents live below the poverty line, according to U.S. Census statistics. Entering the 2011-12 school year, 228 of Bloomington’s youth were reportedly homeless, a 29-percent increase from two years ago, according to the McKinney-Vento Homeless Questionnaire distributed throughout the Monroe County Community School Corporation. “A lot of people dealing with homeless and poverty, they do have a tendency not to turn that kind of information in, so that number could be even higher,” said Kathy Mayer, the chairperson for Homeward Bound.In an effort to combat homelessness and poverty in the area, Homeward Bound had its 10th annual 5K walk Sunday to raise funds for 12 local nonprofits geared toward ending homelessness in the community. Homeward Bound, which is an effort of the Indiana Association for Community Economic Development, was sponsored by the City of Bloomington’s Community and Family Resources Department and served as the community’s link to the statewide effort to assist those in need. Prior to the start of the walk, the Vallures performed onstage at the Waldron, Hill and Buskirk Park. Then, at 1 p.m., a sea of orange T-shirts marched away from the park and began the walk. As it is the walk’s 10-year anniversary, Mayer said they set a goal of 1,000 participants, hoping to raise at least $100,000. “The goal is really a stretch, but because we feel so good about what we’re doing, we felt really good about our goals,” Mayer said. Although she did not have an official count, she estimated about 800 people supported the event. With more than $30,500 raised so far, Mayer said, individuals can donate for the next 30 days, Mayer said. Last year, $66,000 was raised. More than $500,000 has been raised in the last 10 years. She credited the decrease in involvement to competition from other local organizations asking for donations. But still, she said, local homelessness and poverty in Monroe County is increasing. “We are considered one of the highest in the state of Indiana, I think, generally due to the lack of industrial jobs,” Mayer said. “Monroe County is more of a retail service and caters to that demographic more so than it might to a business.”Before the event, Bloomington City Council President Tim Mayer took the stage, presenting a proclamation to Bloomington resident Crystal Harris from Mayor Mark Kruzan.Harris has experienced homelessness firsthand. After her husband was laid off from his job, Harris and her family were evicted from their home in 2011. After calling the organization Centerstone, she said, her family was placed in the New Hope Family Shelter. Currently, she said, her family lives in a home through the Bridges Program. “That was a true blessing,” Harris told the audience in the park. “If you are in need and you are homeless or cannot make ends meet, there is help out there for you.” Throughout Indiana, Homeward Bound sponsors 11 walks to end homelessness. “It’s not just about the homeless person and the stereotypes you might see about that,” Mayer said. “It is neighbor helping neighbor.”
(04/11/12 4:19am)
Police arrived at about 9 p.m. to the scene of an occupation staged by
about 30 members of the Occupy IU movement in Fine Arts Building 015,
the auditorium. No arrests were made as of midnight.
(04/11/12 12:57am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The Indiana Attorney General’s Office has filed a lawsuit in Monroe County Circuit Court seeking more than $47,000 from a former trustee and two former employees of Richland Township in Ellettsville, Ind. Former township Office Manager Bonnie Lake Justice of Ellettsville and former Investigator Le Anne Freeman of Stanford, Ind., were overpaid or incorrectly paid for hundreds of hours of leave time without proper documentation to explain the payments, according to a news release from the Attorney General’s Office. Former Trustee William Evans of Bloomington was also named a defendant.“It violates the public trust when government employees spend tax dollars without providing adequate documentation to justify their actions,” Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller said in the release.The civil suit is a response to the State Board of Accounts’ certified audit report from last September, which intends to recover $47,313.02 for the Richland Township public fund. The lawsuit also seeks triple damages and attorneys’ fees. “We have brought this necessary lawsuit to make these defendants reimburse the township treasury what they owe according to the audit,” Zoeller said.When the State Board of Accounts audits a local government office and certifies an audit, the attorney general is authorized to collect from the defendants on behalf of the state. Such audits on local municipalities are common, said Bryan Corbin, public information officer for the Office of the Secretary of State. The objective is to recover public funds but not to pursue criminal cases.According to court documents, Justice and Freeman requested and received payment for hundreds of hours of unused sick time and personal time accumulated prior to February 2009. Justice was paid $26,030.40 in township funds for “grandfathered leave time,” and Freeman was paid $9,448.72. Those amounts, according to the press release, could not be sufficiently verified, as they lacked proper documentation for the expenses. The audit revealed that Justice also received an overpayment of $1,496 in November 2009 without proper documentation.Despite the township board changing its policy, saying personal and sick days could no longer be cashed in, Justice and Freeman allegedly submitted payroll vouchers for additional hours accumulated for February 2009. Although the vouchers violated the new policy and were not approved by the township board, Evans signed the checks to the two employees. Merchants Bonding Company of Des Moines, Iowa, was also named as a defendant in the case. The company had a $50,000 bond on Evans as an insurance policy against misappropriation, diversion or misapplication of public funds. The lawsuit seeks to redeem the bond to cover the amounts and reimburse the township treasury. Any portion not covered by the bond would be the company’s personal responsibility, according to the Attorney General’s Office. Corbin said the Attorney General’s Office can pursue collections against defendants using the same legal tools that a creditor uses to collect debts, including garnishing wages and seizing money from bank accounts. Corbin said the Attorney General’s Office has handled 42 similar cases since January 2009. Typically, he said, defendants make arrangements to pay the money they owe. A hearing date in the Monroe County Circuit Court has not yet been set.“Most government employees are honest, but sadly, from time to time people make mistakes and they claim money that does not belong to them,” Corbin said. “It belongs to the public. If you’re misusing the public’s money, then you have to pay it back.”