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(11/02/07 1:24am)
Two Bloomington residents were arrested Wednesday evening after officers found two children living in an unsafe environment in the residents’ home.\nSamantha Lindsay, 22, and Hubert Bray, 26, each face a preliminary charge of neglect of a dependent.\nThe Bloomington Police Department investigated Lindsay, who is on probation, because officers suspected she was using drugs, said BPD Capt. Joe Qualters, reading from a police report. Lindsay’s probation officer, with the help of the BPD, did a sweep of her home and found two children.\nWhen officers arrived at her home on the 1600 block of North Willis Drive, they found Bray and two girls under two years of age in the residence. Officers noticed a gas leak in the kitchen, a large trash bag filled with copper wiring, trash debris, dirty diapers and an open outlet near a bathtub with water in it and sharp items on the floor, Qualters said.\nFurther inspection showed that the two children, Lindsay and Bray all had head lice. Both children were also found with cockroach bites and diaper rashes, Qualters said.\nChild Protective Services were called to the scene and ruled the residence unfit for children.\nBoth children were placed into foster care while Lindsay and Bray were taken into custody and transported to the Monroe County Jail.
(11/01/07 10:58pm)
The Bloomington Police Department will participate in a statewide Safe Family Travel traffic safety enforcement “blitz” right before the holiday season.\nThe campaign uses federal funding to put more officers on patrol to enforce Indiana’s impaired-driving and seat-belt laws, according to an Indiana Criminal Justice Institute press release. The blitz will begin Nov. 11 and end Nov. 24. The goal of the blitz is to ensure safety on Indiana highways during the heavy traffic of the holiday season, according to the press release.\n“Thanksgiving is one of the busiest times on Indiana highways, and we want to encourage all Hoosiers to make smart and safe decisions,” said BPD Sgt. Faron Lake in the press release. “If you buckle up and drive responsibly while traveling this holiday season, chances are, you’ll arrive alive.”\nIn 2006, between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, 87 people died in alcohol-related crashes or in crashes where safety belts were not used, according to the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute. Of those killed in alcohol-related crashes, nearly 50 percent were unrestrained, according to the press release.\nMike Cunegin, the executive director of the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute, said in the press release that many communities throughout Indiana are safer as a result of the enforcement blitz. \n“Drivers should buckle up, obey posted speed limits and drive sober to prevent unnecessary fatalities and injuries that may otherwise occur on Indiana’s roads and highways,” Cunegin said in the press release.
(10/31/07 4:41am)
An IU student was arrested Monday evening in connection with the shooting that occurred this weekend at the Econo Lodge, which sent one man to the hospital.\nAntoine A. Sims, 21, a criminal justice major, faces preliminary charges of aggravated battery and criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon. Sims is listed in the IU address book as an Residential Programs and Services employee but has not received a pay check since Aug. 31, a representative from RPS said. The representative could not verify whether Sims was still an employee.\nTwo other men, Ernest W. Holifield, 21, and Montez L. Sanders, 21, were arrested in connection with the shooting Sunday and each face preliminary charges of assisting a criminal.\nSims turned himself into the Bloomington Police Department late Monday night, said BPD Sgt. Jeff Canada, reading from a police report. He was taken into the investigation room by Officer Matt Gilmore, who read him his rights and took him into custody.\nAt about 2:50 a.m. Sunday, BPD officers were dispatched to the parking lot of the Econo Lodge, located at 2601 N. Walnut St., after witnesses say they saw Sims fire several shots into the air, Capt. Joe Qualters said, reading from a police report.\nPolice said Sims also fired one shot at a silver Honda Accord before firing another shot into the crowd, striking a man. Sims left in a vehicle with Holifield and Sanders, Qualters said. The victim was taken to Bloomington Hospital with a gunshot wound to the leg, Qualters said.\nMonroe County Sheriff’s Department officers arrested Holifield and Sanders at a BP gas station, where the officers also found a handgun in a trash can.\nBPD Det. Marty Deckard is still investigating the case.
(10/30/07 8:55pm)
An IU student was arrested Monday evening in connection with the shooting that occurred this weekend at the Econo Lodge, which sent one man to the hospital.\nAntoine A. Sims, 21, a criminal justice major, faces preliminary charges of aggravated battery and criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon. Sims is listed in the IU address book as an Residential Programs and Services employee but has not received a pay check since Aug. 31, a representative from RPS said. The representative could not verify whether Sims was still an employee.\nTwo other men, Ernest W. Holifield, 21, and Montez L. Sanders, 21, were arrested in connection with the shooting Sunday and each face preliminary charges of assisting a criminal.\nSims turned himself into the Bloomington Police Department late Monday night, said BPD Sgt. Jeff Canada, reading from a police report. He was taken into the investigation room by Officer Matt Gilmore, who read him his rights and took him into custody.\nAt about 2:50 a.m. Sunday, BPD officers were dispatched to the parking lot of the Econo Lodge, located at 2601 N. Walnut St., after witnesses say they saw Sims fire several shots into the air, Capt. Joe Qualters said, reading from a police report.\nPolice said Sims also fired one shot at a silver Honda Accord before firing another shot into the crowd, striking a man. Sims left in a vehicle with Holifield and Sanders, Qualters said. The victim was taken to Bloomington Hospital with a gunshot wound to the leg, Qualters said.\nMonroe County Sheriff’s Department officers arrested Holifield and Sanders at a BP gas station, where the officers also found a handgun in a trash can.\nBPD Det. Marty Deckard is still investigating the case.
(10/30/07 5:11am)
Those who knew IU student James “Jimmy” Mack knew him as the guy that could always light up a room.\n“(Mack) got along with everyone,” said senior Deanna Elkins. “He was the life of the party.”\nMack, an IU School of Journalism student, died early Saturday morning in his hometown of Marion, Ind., after he was shot multiple times during an altercation with another man.\nElkins, who has known Mack since middle school, said although Mack kept quiet most of the time, he was funny and exciting and could make everybody laugh. \n“(Mack) was a real honest and caring person,” Elkins said. “He cared about everybody.”\nJunior Mike Hamaker knew Mack for more than half his life and said he will remember him for his outgoing personality.\n“Everybody liked him,” Hamaker said. “He was a fun-loving guy.”\nHamaker said the one thing most people are going to remember about Mack was his ability to turn a negative situation into something positive. Although Mack was a soft-spoken person, if he had something to say, he’d say it, \nHamaker said.\n“He didn’t say a lot, but when he did everybody would listen,” Hamaker said. “He was an opinionated person, but his opinions were always rational.”\nIndianapolis resident Stephanie Lynn Russell, a friend of Mack’s since the eighth grade, said Mack was a best friend, a great son and an amazing brother. Without Mack, she said, life is going to be hard.\n“He didn’t do anything to anyone except maintain his loyalty to his many friends,” Russell said. “He will truly be loved and missed forever.”\nProfessors at the School of Journalism said although Mack was quiet, he was intelligent and attentive.\n“You could tell he was thinking about things before he said them,” said assistant professor Lesa Hatley Major. “He was a good student.”\nRadhika Parameswaran, an associate professor at the School of Journalism, said she got close with Mack because she was concerned with the amount of absences he had in her Advertising Issues and Research class.\nWhen she learned Mack had not dropped the class, she pulled him into her office to talk to him. After the meeting, she said, Mack turned himself around in the class.\n“He spoke his mind,” Parameswaran said. “He was not afraid to be different.”\nShe said although they did not keep in touch after the semester ended, she can still visualize him in her office, talking to her about the course.\nDebbie Goh, Mack’s associate instructor for his Reporting, Writing and Editing II class, said Mack would sometimes speak his mind, but he was generally laid back.\n“When I read he had gotten into a verbal disagreement (that spurred the shooting), I didn’t know how it could have gotten so out of hand,” she said.\nMajor, who was his professor last spring, said Mack would talk in class if he had a strong opinion about something they were discussing. She said Mack was an intelligent student.\n“(His death is) such a tragic loss for the School of Journalism,” Major said.
(10/30/07 5:10am)
An IU School of Journalism student died early Saturday morning after he was shot in the chest at a restaurant in Marion, Ind.\nJames “Jimmy” Mack, 22, died at Marion General Hospital. Mack’s friend, Justin T. Riddle, 22, is in critical condition at Parkview Hospital in Fort Wayne.\nThe suspect, Dennis Roberson, 33, was taken into custody and faces preliminary charges of murder and attempted murder.\nAccording to a Marion Police Department press release, at about 3 a.m. Saturday, Mack and Riddle were at the Icehouse Restaurant in Marion when they got into a verbal disagreement with Roberson.\nWitnesses indicate that Roberson drew a handgun and shot both victims several times. Mack was shot in the chest and legs while Riddle received wounds to the hand, arm, chest and abdomen. Roberson fled the scene on foot but was taken into custody a short time later, according to the \npress release.\nPolice have recovered the weapon they believe Roberson used in the shooting. There is no other evidence to suggest that any other person fired a weapon, according to the press release.\nThe Marion Police Department Criminal Investigations Division is still working on the case. \nRoberson is being held without bond at the Grant County Jail.
(10/29/07 4:44pm)
An IU School of Journalism student died early Saturday morning after he was shot in the chest at a restaurant in Marion, Ind.\nJames "Jimmy" Mack, 22, died at Marion General Hospital. Mack's friend, Justin T. Riddle, 22, is in critical condition at Parkview Hospital.\nThe suspect, Dennis Roberson, 33, was taken into custody and faces preliminary charges of murder and attempted murder.\nAccording to a Marion Police Department press release, at about 3 a.m. Saturday morning, Mack and Riddle were at the Icehouse Restaurant in Marion when they got into a verbal disagreement with Roberson.\nWitnesses indicate that Roberson drew a handgun and struck both the victims several times. Mack was shot in the chest and legs while Riddle received wounds to the hand, arm, chest and abdomen. Roberson fled the scene on foot but was taken into custody a short time later, according to the press release.\nPolice have recovered the weapon they believe was used in the shooting. There is no other evidence to suggest that any other person fired a weapon, according to the press release.\nRoberson is being held without bond at the Grant County Jail.
(10/29/07 2:39am)
An IU student was arrested early Friday morning after he allegedly got into a fight in the Arboretum.\nWilliam T. French, 18, faces preliminary charges of battery, resisting law enforcement, public intoxication and illegal consumption.\nThe IU Police Department was dispatched to the Arboretum at about 2:20 a.m. Friday in response to a victim stating he had been assaulted by two white males, IUPD Capt. Jerry Minger said, reading from a police report.\nIUPD Officer Brian Oliger arrived at the scene in his squad car, when the victim pointed to French and another suspect, who were both walking north toward 10th Street and Fee Lane, Minger said. When Oliger approached the two suspects, they began to run, according to the police report. Oliger chased and tackled French, who began to run west.\nOliger smelled alcohol on French, and noticed blood shot eyes and slurred speech, according to the police report. He tested above 0.20 in a blood alcohol test, Minger said.\nFrench told Oliger that he was walking with his friend when the victim began taunting him, Minger said. The victim told Oliger that one of the suspects was taunting him repeatedly. After the suspects continued with the threats, the victim was tackled and struck in the head, Minger said.\nThe victim sustained small cuts to his head and lip and received a swollen right eye. He was treated at the Bloomington Hospital, Minger said.\nOfficers were unable to locate the second suspect and are still investigating the case.
(10/29/07 2:15am)
During a two-day time span, Indiana State Excise Police officers issued 97 summonses and cited one Bloomington bar on mostly alcohol-related charges.\nThroughout the weekend, 34 minors were arrested on preliminary charges of illegal possession, consumption or transportation of alcoholic beverages, according to an Indiana State Excise Police press release. Another 28 minors were arrested on suspicion of possession of false identification. Six minors face preliminary charges of being in a tavern or liquor store, and five adults were arrested on suspicion of furnishing alcoholic beverages to a minor.\nTwenty-four additional arrests were made for a variety of offenses, including false statement of age, possession of marijuana and false information, according to the press release.\n“Our officers are continuing to see an increase in arrests and tickets issued this academic year over the last year,” Officer Travis Thickstun said in the press release.\nThe Bluebird, located at 216 N. Walnut St., was issued a citation for selling alcoholic beverages to a minor and allowing a minor to loiter.\nTwo other establishments, Big Red Liquors, located at 1199 College Mall Rd., and the Village Pantry at 901 N. Indiana Ave., were issued warnings, according to the press release. Big Red Liquors was warned for allowing two minors to loiter, while the Village Pantry was issued a warning for selling alcoholic beverages to a minor, according to the press release.
(10/29/07 2:11am)
A Bloomington Police Department officer driving a motorcycle was struck by another vehicle Thursday afternoon while escorting the Dalai Lama’s motorcade.\nBPD Officer Dana Cole was struck at about 3:30 p.m. Thursday on Sare Road when another vehicle attempted to make a U-turn, BPD Sgt. Jeff Canada said, reading from a police report.\nA 66-year-old woman was traveling north on Sare Road when traffic stopped. She told officers she thought there was an accident at the upcoming intersection and decided to make a U-turn, Canada said. While the woman was turning around, her car and Cole’s motorcycle collided.\nCole complained of pain to his leg and was treated at the scene. The woman was not cited for the accident, Canada said.
(10/26/07 8:08pm)
An IU student was arrested early Friday morning after he allegedly got into a fight in the Arboretum.\nWilliam T. French, 18, faces preliminary charges of battery, resisting law enforcement, public intoxication and illegal consumption.\nThe IU Police Department was dispatched to the Arboretum at about 2:20 a.m. Friday in response to a victim stating he had been assaulted by two white males, IUPD Capt. Jerry Minger said, reading from a police report.\nIUPD Officer Brian Oliger arrived at the scene in his squad car, when the victim pointed to French and another suspect, who were both walking north toward 10th Street and Fee Lane, Minger said. When Oliger approached the two suspects, they began to run, according to the police report. French, who ran west, was chased and tackled by Oliger.\nWhile talking to Oliger, French smelled of alcohol, had blood shot eyes and slurred speech, according to the police report. He tested above a 0.20 in an alcohol test, Minger said.\nFrench told Oliger that he was walking with his friend when the victim began taunting him, Minger said. The victim told Oliger that one of the suspects was taunting him repeatedly. After the suspects continued with the threats, the victim was tackled and struck in the head, Minger said.\nThe victim sustained small cuts to his head and lip and received a swollen right eye. He was treated at the Bloomington Hospital, Minger said.\nOfficers were unable to locate the second suspect and are investigating the matter further.
(10/26/07 7:03pm)
A Bloomington Police Department officer was struck by another vehicle Thursday afternoon while escorting the Dalai Lama.\nOfficer Dana Cole was struck at about 3:30 p.m. Thursday on Sare Road when another vehicle attempted to make a U-turn, BPD Sgt. Jeff Canada said, reading from a police report.\nA 66-year-old woman was traveling north on Sare Road when traffic had stopped. She told officers she thought there was an accident at the intersection and made a u-turn, Canada said. While turning around, Cole struck her vehicle. She was not cited for the accident, Canada said.
(10/25/07 2:15am)
A Bloomington man was arrested Tuesday afternoon after police say he was stealing items from an ambulance.\nJeffrey S. Nielsen, 43, faces two preliminary counts of theft and trespassing. \nThe Bloomington Police Department was dispatched to the ambulance center at Bloomington Hospital in response to a report of an emergency medical technician detaining Nielsen, BPD Sgt. Jeff Canada said, reading from a police report. The EMT told BPD Sgt. Mick Williams that he discovered Nielsen rummaging through medical bags, Canada said.\nNielsen told Williams that he was looking for blankets in the ambulance, Canada said. \nA bottle of nitroglycerine tablets was missing, according to the report.\nWhen hospital security officers arrived, they told Williams that Nielsen had also gone to Bloomington Convalescent Center for a smoking cessation class he had not enrolled in earlier that day, Canada said. \nSecurity officers told Williams that Nielsen stole nicotine patches, nicotine lozenges and two cans of V8 juice while at the class, Canada said.\nNielsen was arrested and transported to the Monroe County Jail.
(10/24/07 7:21pm)
Police arrested two Bloomington residents early Tuesday morning on suspicion of impersonating an IU Police Department officer.\nKyle J. Coppinger, 22, and Christopher D. Marshall, 21, each face two preliminary counts of impersonating a police officer and confinement.\nAt about 1:35 a.m. Tuesday, a 21-year-old woman was trying to park her car at her apartment complex when she put her hazard lights on and called her boyfriend to help her parallel park, Bloomington Police Department Sgt. Jeff Canada said, reading from a police report.\nWhile she was sitting in her car, a red Dodge Intrepid pulled up behind her and Coppinger approached her car, according to the police report. Coppinger produced an IUPD business card and asked the victim for her license and registration. While Coppinger went back to his vehicle, the victim called her boyfriend and told him to come outside, Canada said.\nMarshall approached her vehicle after Coppinger came back with her identification. Coppinger began beating on the victim’s window and asked her if she wanted a parking ticket, Canada said. The victim called 911 as her boyfriend approached the two suspects. Coppinger threw the identification cards at the victim’s boyfriend and left the scene, according to the police report.\nLater, at about 3 a.m., a 23-year-old male was pulling into his apartment complex in the 1600 block of East Hillside Drive and noticed a red Dodge Intrepid pulling up behind him. Coppinger identified himself to the victim as an IUPD officer, according to the report. The victim repeatedly asked why Coppinger was pulling him over. Coppinger and the victim were having a heated debate when a neighbor came out to help the victim, Canada said. Coppinger and Marshall then proceeded to drive away, he said.\nBPD Officer Brad Seifers believed Coppinger and Marshall were targeting college students and drove to downtown bars to see if he could spot the Red Dodge Intrepid. While patrolling on Fourth and Dunn streets, Seifers noticed the vehicle and began following it, Canada said. Coppinger pulled the vehicle into a parking spot on Fourth and Dunn streets and shut off the lights, Canada said. Seifers called for a back-up officer to perform a high-risk traffic stop.\nBoth of the victims were called to the scene to identify the suspects after Seifers pulled them over, Canada said. Both victims positively identified both Coppinger and Marshall, Canada said.\nCanada said an officer should always have his badge on him and an identification card. He also said if an officer were to pull someone over, it would be by visual means, flashing police car lights, not by physically approaching a car.
(10/24/07 3:24am)
After trekking across town in the pouring rain, I made it to the Bloomington Police Department with water-soaked sweatpants and a half broken umbrella. I changed my clothes and greeted Officer Paul Post, Officer Monica Zahasky and IU Police Department Sgt. Leslie Slone in the training room.\nOur last Rape Aggression Defense class was about to begin.\nWe warmed up for about 45 minutes. I got Slone again, and once again, she scared the crap out of me. I was literally out of breath before we finished warming up. What kind of warm up is it if you can’t feel your limbs when you’re done? Psh.\nAfter warming up, we geared up for the big fight. Post and five other RAD instructors put on full body pads to protect themselves from our kicks and punches. We applied red knee and elbow pads, gloves and a helmet. Each pad was heavy and kept weighing down my pants. The gloves made it impossible to pick my wedgie.\nWe lined up on the right side of the training room while three “attackers” awaited us in the middle of the floor. Slone was on the left side of the room, video-taping the scenarios, while Zahasky was coaching us from the right side.\nOur first task was to pace back and forth while safely protecting ourselves from the three attackers. I just kept thinking to myself, “Kick him in the groin!” \nI didn’t actually kick him where the sun doesn’t shine.\nOur second scenario dealt with being attacked from behind. I was thrown to the floor and, for a second, I didn’t know how to respond. I used some elbow strikes, hand strikes, kicks and finally escaped.\nOur third and final scenario had each of the students “blind”– we were told to keep our eyes closed until we were grabbed. As soon as an attacker grabbed me I opened my eyes, began swinging and kept an eye out for an escape. I applied a few punches and kicks and was able to slide out the door.\nI took the gloves off and picked my wedgie.\nAfter we removed our pads and wiped them down (they made us work our butts off in heavy gear and then they made us clean them!), we pulled up chairs and had a discussion about the last four weeks.\nI told them I felt more confident about protecting myself, but I had serious doubts because I thought I was a pansy. Slone stopped me in my speech right there. She told me to not think of myself as a pansy.\n“As you think is as you’ll do,” she said.\nAfter our discussion, we re-watched our scenarios on tape. Aside from completely laughing at one another, we got to critique what we did wrong throughout the scenarios. I pushed a lot, instead of punching and kicking, not to mention I picked my wedgie a lot in the background. \nAfter I packed up my shoes and extra clothes, I got ready to leave. I asked Slone to give me a goodbye hug. When she approached me, she made a punching movement but transitioned into a hug. The hug was not scary. Zahasky refused to hug me.\nWhat makes me the happiest is that I survived four weeks of physical activity.\nOverall though, the RAD class was a great experience. Not to mention, the techniques – as well as the memories of all the wonderful people in the class (even Slone)– are something I can always bring with me.
(10/23/07 11:31pm)
Police arrested two Bloomington residents, one of them an IU employee, early Tuesday morning on suspicion of impersonating an IU Police Department officer.\nKyle J. Coppinger, an IU Residential Programs and Services employee, and Christopher D. Marshall, 21, each face two preliminary counts of impersonating a police officer and confinement.\nAt about 1:35 a.m. Tuesday morning, a 21-year-old woman was trying to park her car at her apartment complex when she put her hazard lights on and called her boyfriend to help her parallel park, Bloomington Police Department Sgt. Jeff Canada said, reading from a police report.\nWhile she was sitting in her car, a red Dodge Intrepid pulled up behind her and Coppinger approached her car, according to the police report. Coppinger produced an IUPD business card and asked the victim for her license and registration. While Coppinger went back to his vehicle, the victim called her boyfriend and told him to come outside, Canada said.\nMarshall approached her vehicle after Coppinger came back with her identification. Coppinger began beating on the victim’s window and asked her if she wanted a parking ticket, Canada said. The victim called 911 as her boyfriend approached the two suspects. Coppinger threw the identification cards at the victim’s boyfriend and left the scene, according to the police report.\nLater at about 3 a.m., a 23-year-old male was pulling into his apartment complex in the 1600 block of East Hillside Drive and noticed a red Dodge Intrepid pulling up behind him. Coppinger identified himself to the victim as an IUPD officer, according to the report. The victim repeatedly asked why Coppinger was pulling him over. Coppinger and the victim were having a heated debate when a neighbor came out to help the victim, Canada said. Coppinger and Marshall then proceeded to drive away, he said.\nBPD Officer Brad Seifers believed Coppinger and Marshall were targeting college students and drove to downtown bars to see if he could spot the Red Dodge Intrepid. While patrolling on Fourth and Dunn streets, Seifers noticed the vehicle and began following it, Canada said. Coppinger pulled the vehicle into a parking spot on Fourth and Dunn Streets and shut off the lights, Canada said. Seifers called for a back-up officer to perform a high-risk traffic stop.\nBoth of the victims were called to the scene to identify the suspects after Seifers pulled them over, Canada said. Both victims positively identified both Coppinger and Marshall, Canada said.\nCanada said an officer should always have his badge on him and an identification card. He also said if an officer were to pull someone over, it would be by visual means, flashing police car lights, not by physically approaching a car.
(10/19/07 4:21am)
An IU School of Law student being held on a weapons charge after allegedly shooting an assault rifle from his balcony pleaded not guilty in court Thursday.\nJesse M. Sneed, 27, was arrested Tuesday morning after he allegedly fired several rounds into the ground from his balcony on the west side of town. He is being charged with criminal recklessness with a weapon.\nThe shots were fired from West Arch Haven Avenue, located about two miles from campus. No one was killed or injured by the shots.\nAfter investigating the crime scene, the Bloomington Police Department uncovered a law textbook underneath the balcony titled “Real Estate Transfer, Finance and Development.” The textbook contained two bullet holes, BPD Capt. Joe Qualters said. \nAuthorities are still not aware of the motives for the shootings.\nAttorney Sam Shapiro will be representing Sneed. Shapiro was not available for comment by press time.\nWitnesses called police Tuesday morning after hearing several short bursts of gunfire at Arch Haven Apartments. The Critical Incident Response Team arrived at the scene at about 7:30 a.m. in order to communicate with the suspect. \nSneed, who matched the description of the suspect, was seen trying to leave the area in a red Chevrolet Cavalier and was taken into custody at about 8:30 a.m. Tuesday morning. Believing there might be another suspect in the building, officers took extra security measures in order to ensure civilian safety. Qualters said they could not be satisfied with the suspect in custody.\nOfficers were able to evacuate seven of the apartment complex’s residents before the Critical Incident Response Team entered the apartment. BPD did not find any other suspects in the building but located an AK-47 and an AR-15, both assault rifles, in Sneed’s attic.\nHe was taken to BPD for questioning Tuesday morning but declined to comment.\nBPD is still investigating the matter.
(10/19/07 12:50am)
An Indiana man was arrested Wednesday in connection with the death of Monroe County Jail officer William Brand.\nBenjamin H. Steinberg, 28, faces a preliminary charge of murder.\nBrand was fatally shot in the head Feb. 8, 2005, while driving south on State Road 37, according to the probable cause affidavit filed Wednesday. A vehicle pulled up alongside Brand’s vehicle and fired two shots. One hit him in the back of the head.\nBefore the murder took place, Steinberg had paid $800 for an AR-15 assault rifle from Martinsville resident Lonnie Griffin. Officers confirmed the purchase with Griffin through telephone records and police statements, according to the affidavit.\nA day after the murder, Steinberg’s roommate, Kenneth Craft, contacted law enforcement, saying he had information regarding Brand’s murder. Craft told officers he was “100 percent sure” Steinberg had committed the shooting, according to the affidavit. Craft told officers that Steinberg told him there was gun powder in his vehicle and that he intended to gut the vehicle and report it stolen.\nSteinberg fled town the day after the murder and checked into a hotel in New Albany, Ind. After Steinberg was arrested in an unrelated case in Floyd County, he called his mother and told her he had given his gun, cell phone and car to an unknown masked man that framed him for the shooting, according to the affidavit.\nIn June 2005 Croydon Bowers, Steinberg’s cellmate at the Lawrence County Jail, contacted police saying Steinberg told him he had killed Brand and the police would not be able to prove it, according to the affidavit. Steinberg told Bowers he was worried about a possible videotape from a convenience store in Bedford, Ind.\nA year later, Steinberg sent a letter to his friend, Mel Mordoe, requesting Mordoe impersonate a law enforcement officer to inquire about the surveillance tape from the convenience store. Indiana State Police performed a controlled delivery of the letter and Mordoe did not reply to Steinberg’s request, according to the affidavit.\nIn February, Brand’s widow, Stacy, filed a wrongful death suit in the Monroe County Circuit Court against Steinberg, according to a press release by Shean Law Offices. The Monroe County Prosecutor’s office filed a single count of murder against Steinberg \nWednesday.\nSteinberg is being held at the Monroe County Jail without bond.
(10/18/07 4:03am)
The Bloomington Police Department is investigating an armed robbery on South Morton Street.\nOfficers were dispatched at roughly 5:30 a.m. Monday to the Kroger at 528 S. College Ave., where a victim called in reporting he was robbed at knife point, BPD Sgt. Jeff Canada said, reading from a police report. The victim told officers he was on South Morton Street when he was approached by an older man asking him for a cigarette, Canada said.\nThe suspect produced a knife and demanded the victim’s money and bicycle. The suspect fled the scene riding southbound on Morton Street, Canada said. The suspect is described as being in his late 40’s, 5-foot-9-inches tall, 185 pounds with “scraggly” brown hair, Canada said. Anyone with information is encouraged to call BPD at 339-4477.
(10/18/07 2:57am)
Since she was a child, junior Samantha Weiss has wanted to work in a museum. Now, after enrolling in IU’s new undergraduate Arts Administration Program, Weiss was granted the chance to intern next summer at the Indianapolis Museum of Art.\n“I always had an interest in museums, but wasn’t aware of how to study it in college,” she said.\nThe IU Arts Administration Program has been around since 1971 but only became available to undergraduate students this semester. \nThe program provides undergraduate students with the background and skills necessary to function in the management aspects of the arts industry, according to the program’s Web site. The program is designed to prepare students for careers in areas such as development relations, marketing, artistic direction and programming, arts education and financial management.\nSusan Sandberg, coordinator for the Arts Administration Program, said the undergraduate program finally provides an outlet for students who had to individualize a major that didn’t exist prior to the program.\n“Many students started in the Individualized Major Program, (and) now we’re able to bridge that gap,” Sandberg said.\nThe undergraduate program lured six students into it without any advertising, something that Sandberg said she’s very proud of.\n“We couldn’t do any advertising or promoting of the degree until the major was approved by the higher education commission,” she said.\nSandberg explained that because their standards are high for the program, only six students could be accepted, though more applied. She’s hoping students who were not accepted will take an interest in the 21-credit certificate program that the program offers. There are currently 20 students enrolled in the certificate program.\nThe certificate program gives the student a concentration that they might use as a minor, Sandberg said. She suggested the concentration would be appropriate for music, dance and theater majors who want to be performers, but may also want to manage their careers.\nIU alumna Meg Liffick, the senior marketing director at the museum, helped Weiss receive the internship at the Indianapolis Art Museum. Sandberg said she is happy that the graduate students from the program offer good networking for the undergraduates.\n“Our graduates are all over the place, and that’s a tremendous asset for students in the program when they’re looking for competitive internships and looking for opportunities in the arts,” Sandberg said. “We have people that we can introduce them to.”\nWith the new undergraduate program, Sandberg said the program itself has almost doubled because of the new staff hired to support the program.\nProfessor Christopher Hunt said even though he’s only been working with the Arts Administration Program since the middle of spring semester 2007, he’s been very impressed.\n“I think it works well as a preparation given that the business of actually working is different than the theory of studying,” he said.\nHunt, who spent 30 years running festivals around the world, including the Adelaide Festival of Arts in Australia, said the temptation of being a teacher and passing on his personal experience is what brought him to IU.\n“I thought I had retired,” he said laughing.\nThe IU Arts Administration Program started in the Kelley School of Business before moving to the Jacobs School of Music. Sandberg and Charles Bonser, who is director of the Arts Administration Program, helped bring the program to the School of Public and Environmental Affairs.\n“We’re very happily married to the SPEA family because of it’s non-profit management expertise,” Sandberg said.\nWeiss said she wishes the undergraduate program had been available sooner.\n“It’s unfortunate they didn’t open up the undergraduate program until this year, or I would’ve majored in it,” Weiss said.\nHowever, Sandberg is hopeful for the future of the program.\n“We’re growing and we’re looking for good students,” she said. “We’re looking for students that are going to go on and be very serious about the arts and building an arts career.”