Free Republic

Sometimes zero tolerance makes zero sense. Take the case of former Marine Ryan Jerome, an Indiana jeweler arrested last September at the Empire State Building for carrying a .45-caliber handgun — legally purchased and licensed in his home state. It’s not as if Jerome was trying to hide the gun. He volunteered to security personnel that he was carrying it, and actually tried to check it. Nor is he a notorious gangster; he was carrying some $15,000 in jewelry, and needed the gun for protection. Yes, he did misunderstand New York’s gun laws; possessing an illegal pistol in the Empire...

A former "Teen Mom" personality was reportedly evicted from her Anderson, Ind. home last month for allegedly scamming the government. According to celebrity news site TMZ, who cited law enforcement sources, Amber Portwood was renting a home that was subsidized by Indiana’s Low Income Rental Housing Tax Credit program. However, Portwood was not qualified to live in subsidized housing, government supported accommodations for people with low incomes, because of her income. TMZ reported the reality TV star claimed she made approximately $10,000, but she actually earned $280,000 in 2010. Portwood is currently booked in the Madison County jail. She was...

NDIANAPOLIS -- An Indiana tea party group is accusing U.S. Sen. Richard Lugar of voter fraud and wants him removed from the ballot. Hoosiers for Conservative Senate is asking Gov. Mitch Daniels to act on a complaint over Lugar's residency that was filed in November. The tea party umbrella group supports state Treasurer Richard Mourdock in the GOP primary that poses Lugar's toughest election challenge in years. Mourdock held a news conference Wednesday morning in front of the northwest side home that Lugar uses as a voting residence, even though he sold the home in 1977.

How wonderful, the next time your city wants to host some big international event, think twice, now we have measles outbreak that is directly linked to the superbowl, it's already now in the schools here, spreading, uggh !!! A person from another country stopped over for a visit, they had the measles ... http://www.indystar.com/article/20120215/LOCAL/202150316/Noblesville-Schools-cancels-activities-due-measles-cases?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|IndyStar.com

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – An illegal immigrant gets 33 months behind bars for helping others like him get registration and plates for their vehicles. Paulino Ascencion-Apolino, 23, used a loophole that allows people to get vehicle registration without having to provide a valid social security number. Because businesses don’t have social security numbers, Indiana allows them to use an IRS provided Employer Identification Number (EIN) instead. The IRS allows that EIN to be assigned to people with Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITIN). That number is something the IRS typically issues people who do not have or are not eligible to...

n his New York Times bestselling book, Throw Them All Out, Breitbart editor Peter Schweizer revealed how members of Congress enrich themselves and their relatives using earmarks and insider information. Now, the Washington Post, following in Schweizer’s footsteps, has conducted a study that found 16 members of Congress have used their power of the purse to benefit companies, colleges, and community groups tied to their relatives. *snip* Among those cited in the Washington Post report were the following (below):

Twenty-five Notre Dame faculty members--led by the university’s top ethics expert, and including some of the school’s most eminent scholars--have signed a statement declaring that President Barack Obama’s latest version of his administration’s mandate that all health insurance plans in the United States must cover sterilizations and all FDA-approved contraceptives, including those that cause abortions, is “a grave violation of religious freedom and cannot stand." The statement—put out on the letterhead of the University of Notre Dame Law School--is also signed by leading scholars from other major American colleges and universities, including Princeton, Harvard, Stanford, Georgetown, Brigham Young, Yeshiva and...

INDIANAPOLIS – A state report on the Indiana State Fair stage collapse set for release Wednesday accuses a stagehands union of five workplace violations in the disaster that killed seven people, according to an attorney who said the union was being made a scapegoat. Bill Groth, attorney for the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 30, said the Indiana Occupational Health and Safety Administration found that the union, not the State Fair Commission, was the employer of the stagehands who were working Aug. 13 when the stage collapsed. "Local 30 is not an employer. They're a labor organization, a...

For the first time in decades, union power is under serious threat. Indiana is on the verge of becoming the 23rd state to enact a right-to-work law, liberating workers from being forced to join a union. New Hampshire may also adopt some form of right-to-work. Murmurs about a national right-to-work law are growing. Public sector unions continue to face efforts to curb their power and trim their lavish contracts. And now there’s a shrewd new challenge to organized labor: the Employee Rights Act. It would take labor law in a new direction. Unlike right-to-work statutes, which help businesses escape unionization,...

INDIANAPOLIS -- A Kroger manager who fatally shot a man who police said was trying to rob the store voluntarily resigned Wednesday. Elijah "Levi" Elliott, 24, shot Jeremy Atkinson, 26, at the Kroger store at 5025 W. 71st St. on Dec. 26, after Atkinson put an employee in a chokehold and charged at Elliott, police said. Reading from a statement and standing beside his attorney, Elliott said he knew of Kroger's policy banning guns in the workplace, but said he had chosen to carry a weapon for the last three years. Elliott said he feared for his life and that...

For the past two weeks, Big Labor bosses around the country have had their eyes on the Indiana capitol — watching in horror as the General Assembly passed a right-to-work bill with commanding majorities. The passage of Indiana's right-to-work law is an extraordinarily bitter defeat for the union brass. Less than a year ago, despite the fact that Hoosiers had elected substantial pro-right-to-work majorities to both chambers in 2010, union strategists remained confident they could preserve the forced-unionism status quo.

<p>Right-to-Work laws protect employees from being fired or denied a job merely because they refuse to pay dues or fees to an unwanted union.</p> <p>Indiana is poised to become the nation's 23rd right-to-work state -- and it comes just in the nick of time.</p>

Rick Santorum is on the verge of being left off the ballot in the the Indiana primary, three sources told BuzzFeed Friday. The former Pennsylvania senator is more than 30 signatures short of the 500 needed in the 7th Congressional district, which includes Marion County, where Indianapolis is located, a source close to the Santorum campaign said. The Marion County chief deputy of voter registration on the Democratic side, Scott Carr, confirmed that Santorum had not submitted 500 valid signatures. An Indiana Republican source said Santorum is "a couple dozen" signatures short, but that Newt Gingrich will be on the...

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” — The Declaration of Independence Thanks to Senator Dennis Kruse, Indiana educators may soon have the same freedom to express their beliefs about the origin of man as Thomas Jefferson did when he wrote the Declaration of Independence. This week the state Senate passed SB-89, which states, “The governing body of a school corporation may offer instruction on various theories of the origin of life....

INDIANAPOLIS -- With the controversial right-to-work legislation now law, protesters are moving ahead with plans to try to disrupt Sunday's Super Bowl. Gov. Mitch Daniels signed the bill Wednesday to make Indiana the 23rd state to prohibit labor contracts that require workers to pay union representation fees and the first to adopt such legislation in a decade. Between 3,000 and 4,000 union protesters streamed outside the Statehouse on Wednesday chanting, "No Super Bowl," and "See you at the Super Bowl!" before marching into Super Bowl Village, down to an area near the stadium and back. "We certainly had a huge...

I remember Daniels getting a lot of heat for not pushing RTW legislation last year. He and the Indiana House and Senate had a lot on their plates legislatively last year. Daniels wanted hearings on it last year and to look at RTW for this session. In December, Daniels came out in full support of RTW. Today he signed the bill into law making Indiana the 23rd RTW state in the nation. You gotta give Daniels credit. He is a man of his word. Great job Mitch!!!

Indiana Republican Sen. Richard Lugar is running for re-election in a state he has not lived in for over 30 years. Lugar sold his home at 3200 Highwoods Court in Indianapolis shortly after first assuming office in 1977. But due to a loophole in Indiana law, both he and his wife Charlene Lugar are still registered to vote at that address. Greg Wright, an Indiana tea party member and certified fraud examiner, told The Daily Caller that he has been investigating Lugar’s residency situation “for a few weeks” and has not been paid for his efforts. He just heard one...

According to Fox59 of Indianapolis, US Rep. Dan Burton is to retire. More to come.

I have exciting news. After an almost ten-year struggle involving hundreds of thousands of mobilized Hoosiers, it appears that Indiana will finally be able to enjoy all the benefits of a Right to Work law. On Wednesday, the Indiana House of Representatives passed the Right to Work bill to free nearly 200,000 Hoosiers who have been forced to pay union dues or fees for the privilege of getting up everyday and going to work so they can provide for their families. The Indiana Senate passed an identical bill earlier this week but must still approve the House version before it...

I'm a rare Republican. I really don't like guns. I have a problem with tools that have such a strong intent and prevalence of violence. I can only think of one constructive thing to do with a gun, and that's practice your aim. But what help is being able to shoot a gun well unless you're shooting a gun? It doesn't seem to me to have any outside practical purposes where other tools that could be used destructively do. Take a hammer, for example. You could probably kill someone with it, but you can also build all sorts of things....

NDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Protesters of a divisive labor measure have marched through the packed Super Bowl Village in downtown Indianapolis. A mix of union members and Occupy protesters from across Indiana led a rally Saturday that began at the Statehouse before weaving through the crowded pre-game attraction. Speakers at the rally included two state representatives, a state senator and several union workers.

— The view from inside Think City's plant here is the worst nightmare for politicians betting on electric vehicles to drive job growth: 100 cars, most of them not finished, lined up with no word on their future. Only two years ago the tiny Think cars (two can fit in a regular parking space) were expected to bring more than 400 jobs to this ailing city and a lifeline to suppliers who once made parts for gas guzzling recreational vehicles. "We've said we're out to make Indiana the electric vehicle state. It's beginning to look like the state capital will...

Ener1, an electric car battery company that the Obama administration awarded a $118 million stimulus grant to expand its operations, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Thursday after being unable to repay pressing debts. The news comes one year after Vice President Biden visited the company’s new battery plant in Indiana to highlight its progress with federal funds. Ener1 is the third company to seek bankruptcy protection among those the Energy Department backed as part of the president’s signature program to invest in clean energy. Solyndra, a California solar-panel maker, and Beacon Power, a Massachusetts energy-storage firm, entered bankruptcy court...

In the end, they just didn’t have the votes. For two legislative sessions, Indiana Democrats fought the divisive labor measure known as right-to-work. They offered amendments aimed at changing the bill. They sought to put the issue before voters in a referendum. And in their most high-profile gambit, House Democrats staged occasional boycotts to deny the Republican-dominated chamber enough members to conduct business. But that all ended Wednesday when the minority party acceded to the mathematical reality of the Republican’s 60-40 majority in the chamber. Democrats showed up, and the Indiana House voted 54-44 to make Indiana the 23rd right-to-work...

Indiana's Republican-controlled House of Representatives cleared the way Wednesday to become the first right-to-work state in a traditionally union-heavy Rust Belt increasingly targeted by non-union foes. The House voted 54-44 to make Indiana the nation's 23rd right-to-work state after Democrats ended a periodic boycott which had stalled the measure for weeks. The measure is expected to face little opposition in Indiana's Republican-controlled Senate and could reach Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels' desk shortly before the Feb. 5 Super Bowl in Indianapolis. "This announces especially in the Rust Belt, that we are open for business here," Republican House Speaker Brian Bosma said...

Rep: 'How can this bill be radical when 22 other states have right-to-work laws?' INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana State House on a 54-44 vote today passed House Bill 1001, paving the way to make Indiana the 23rd right-to-work state in the nation. The vote took place after House Democrats finally attended session Wednesday afternoon, ending their work stoppage over the issue. Under the legislation, unions would be barred from collecting mandatory representation fees. HB 1001 will now be sent to the Indiana Senate. If the Senate passes the bill without amendment, it would go the the desk of Gov. Mitch...

Many months ago, looking at the way the presidential race was shaping up, I made a prediction. I said that Mitt Romney would be the overwhelming Republican favorite—right up until the voting began. From that point forward, I said, the odds of his winning the nomination would fall steadily.Thus far that prediction looks solid. So let me make another—a short-term prediction this time—and put it on the record: Tonight President Obama will deliver his State of the Union speech.Then Indiana’s Governor Mitch Daniels will give the Republican response.And within 24 hours the Draft Mitch Daniels movement will be the biggest...

With Republican-controlled Indiana on the verge of becoming a "right to work" state, Democrats in the state House on Tuesday took the only step they have left to prevent it, if only for a bit longer. They disappeared. Again. A final vote on the measure, which would bar union contracts from requiring nonunion members to pay fees for representation, had been expected Tuesday in the House, which Republicans dominate, 60-40. But with scores of union members and supporters filling the Statehouse halls in Indianapolis in protest, most Democrats refused to turn up for floor sessions -- not once, but twice...

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana's Republican-controlled House of Representatives cleared the way Wednesday to become the first right-to-work state in a traditionally union-heavy Rust Belt increasingly targeted by non-union foes. The House voted 54-44 to make Indiana the nation's 23rd right-to-work state after Democrats ended a periodic boycott which had stalled the measure for weeks. The measure is expected to face little opposition in Indiana's Republican-controlled Senate and could reach Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels' desk shortly before the Feb. 5 Super Bowl in Indianapolis...

INDIANAPOLIS -- A controversial church and Indiana union members could find themselves sharing the same stage before the Super Bowl. The Kansas-based Westboro Baptist Church, which is known for its radical demonstrations outside soldier funerals, has announced it plans to travel to Indianapolis to picket outside the Super Bowl. Teamsters upset over the divisive right-to-work bill that passed the House on Wednesday said previously they also plan to protest outside the big game to bring national attention to their issue. The Super Bowl Host Committee has set up two so-called free speech zones at South and Illinois streets and on...

the times Employee shot and killed robber at Gary Rally's By Lauri Harvey Keagle lauri.keagle@nwi.com, (219) 852-4311 | Posted: Wednesday, January 25, 2012 8:08 am GARY | A man found dead in the parking lot of a Rally's restaurant after an armed robbery there was one of the robbers and was shot and killed by an employee fearing for his life, police said. Sgt. Nelson Otuna said released the information on the Jan. 11 shooting death Wednesday morning. "The employee feared for his life and his partner's, grabbed his weapon and shot at the offenders as they went running," Otuna...

Imagine eating at Burger King in the University Center West when a student walks through the doors with a gun holstered on his hip. Heads would turn, mouths would drop and some students would run in the opposite direction. But such a sight would not be uncommon under proposed Indiana Senate Bill No. 0181. The bill was authored by Sen. Jim Banks and Sen. Dennis Kruse, both of representatives of Indiana's northeast districts. If passed, the bill would allow anyone with a valid license to openly carry a loaded firearm on state property, including a college campus. The bill was...

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - One person died and another was hurt in a shooting Tuesday evening on the city's near northwest side. Police say the shooting happened around 9:15 p.m. in the 1800 block of East Riverside Drive and left 26-year-old Kenneth Reed dead. When officers arrived they found Reed suffering from an apparent gunshot wound to his chest and another man suffering from a gunshot wound to his foot. Investigators believe Reed may have been attempting to either rob or carjack the alleged victim. Detectives say a fight broke out between the two and several shots were fired. Both Reed...

Big Labor: Indiana unions, opposed to becoming the first right-to-work state in the Rust Belt, may disrupt Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis. Their unnecessary roughness will cost the Hoosiers needed jobs. On Friday, as the Indiana Senate was scheduled to take up legislation supported by Gov. Mitch Daniels to make Indiana the 23rd right-to-work state, Indiana unions considered copying the disruptive and coercive tactics of Occupy Wall Street to disrupt arguably America's premier sporting event, the Super Bowl, to be held in Indianapolis on Feb. 5. As in Wisconsin, where embattled GOP Gov. Scott Walker faces a recall election over...

Link onlyhttp://goo.gl/iVIlr

INDIANAPOLIS -- Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, a popular fiscal conservative who flirted with a presidential bid, will deliver the Republican response to President Barack Obama's State of the Union address on Tuesday. House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., announced the selection of Daniels in a statement Thursday in which they praised his "solid record of effective government and fiscal responsibility." Daniels provides the GOP with a one-time potential White House hopeful as a counterpoint to Obama in an election year heavily focused on the nation's economic outlook. He also governs a state that Obama...

INDIANAPOLIS | Indiana's first specialty license plate that benefits gay causes is now available for purchase. The Bureau of Motor Vehicles says the Indiana Youth Group plate has been available since Dec. 28. The plate bears a logo with hands in rainbow colors reaching up out of a circle.

The first license plate in the country to feature the logo of a lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender organization goes on sale next month in Indiana. The plates feature the logo of the Indiana Youth Group, an organization that advocates tolerance and provides training for schools and service agencies. Low-number plates are will be given as thank you gifts for those who donate to the Indiana Youth Group.

SOUTH BEND -- A daylong celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. ended when a South Bend teenager allegedly shot himself fleeing police. The 16-year-old victim, whose name was not released, was seen lying on the ground next to the Knute Rockne statue in front of the College Football Hall of Fame when police and emergency medical units arrived Monday following the days MLK events at the Century Center. South Bend Police Division Chief Gary Horvath said the teen suffered a very superficial gunshot wound to the left arm. The incident occurred at about 5:30 p.m. as a large crowd...

INDIANAPOLIS -- Indiana homeowners would have limited rights to resist police officers trying to enter their homes in a handful of instances under a bill that state legislators are considering. A state Senate committee is scheduled to hold a public hearing Tuesday on a bill that follows a public uproar over a state Supreme Court ruling in May that said homeowners cannot violently resist police officers even during an illegal entry. The bill's sponsors said it is narrowly crafted to set out the rights of homeowners.

MAYFIELD, Ky. - A group of Amish men were sent to jail in western Kentucky Thursday for refusing to pay fines for breaking a state highway law that requires their horse-drawn buggies to be marked with orange reflective triangles. The men have a religious objection to the bright orange signs, which they say are flashy and conflict with their pledge to live low-key and religious lives. ... "I totally understand your objection," the judge told Byler. "But you're in violation, and it's not up to me to change the law. It doesn't really matter what I think about any of...

ROLLING PRAIRIE — Two juveniles are in custody after allegedly breaking into a home in northern La Porte County. On Tuesday at about 2:39 p.m., the La Porte County 911 Regional Dispatch Center received a 911 telephone call from the owner of a home which is located in the 7800 north block of CR-175E (Fail Road). The homeowner reported that he had just discovered that his home had been burglarized and that the suspects were still in his home. Deputies from the La Porte County Sheriff’s Department responded and while in route, it was learned that the victim had just...

January 10, 2012: Indiana Senate’s Committee on Corrections, Criminal and Civil Matters unanimously passed Senate Bill SB06, a Knife Rights requested bill sponsored by Senators Jim Tomes and Johnny Nugent, which would overturn the state’s antiquated and irrational ban on the possession of switchblade/automatic knives. This is just the first step in this effort, but the unanimous bipartisan vote bodes well for the bill's future. If you live, work or travel in Indiana, please contact your Senator and ask them to support SB06 when it comes to the floor for a vote in the coming days. Click here to locate...

INDIANAPOLIS— Anti-smoking advocates are on the verge of success in the Indiana General Assembly but must wait out House Democrats' boycott of a divisive labor bill. A bipartisan group of lawmakers in both the Senate and House is pushing to ban smoking in most public places and workplaces, including bars. The only exemptions it includes are the gambling floors of casinos and pari-mutuel betting parlors, private clubs and cigar and hookah bars.

Three freight trains collided in Porter County, Ind. this afternoon... *** The accident involved a collision, derailment, fire and chemical spill, according to officials. No fatalities or injuries have been reported.

<p>TIPPECANOE COUNTY - Zoning officials have recommended Tippecanoe County commissioners grant approval for the Islamic Society of Greater Lafayette to build a community center and possibly a mosque in northwest Indiana.</p> <p>The Tippecanoe County Area Plan Commission last week voted 13-1 to approve the plan, which still must meet commissioners' approval.</p>

INDIANAPOLIS | As Indianapolis prepares to host the Super Bowl next month, the union of professional football players has condemned the push for an Indiana right-to-work law. The NFL Players Association said in a statement Friday that right-to-work "is a political ploy designed to destroy basic workers' rights." "It's the wrong priority for Indiana," the NFL players said. The NFLPA did not threaten to boycott the Super Bowl or take any other direct action should Indiana enact a right-to-work law. They reminded state lawmakers that success on the football field requires everyone to work together as a team. "The Super...

TIPPECANOE COUNTY, Ind. (WLFI) - The Islamic Society of Greater Lafayette has passed the first hurdle to build a community center. Tippecanoe County Commissioners approved a rezoning request Tuesday for 10 acres at the southwest corner of County Farm Road and "County Road 500 North. Commissioner David Byers said he took into consideration the few people who had concerns about the religious aspect of the project. But he said more people were worried about different issues. "They were mainly concerned about water run-off, lights shining into their houses at night, potentially extra noise," Byers said. Byers said the organization now...

INDIANAPOLIS – House Democrats stayed in the building this time but stymied the first day of the legislative session Wednesday by refusing to come to the floor to open business. Last year they spent five weeks in Urbana, Ill., caucusing. This year they are sticking to a Supreme Court consultation room down the hall from the House chambers. Either way, the House lacked the 67 members needed for a quorum. House Democratic Leader Patrick Bauer – standing with his caucus – said Democrats want statewide hearings on the right-to-work bill before it is rammed through the process. He did not,...

Bauer Hints At New Walkout Over Right To WorkRepublicans Adamant To Push Bill Through UPDATED: 1:07 pm EST January 4, 2012 INDIANAPOLIS -- The leader of Indiana's House Democrats hinted Wednesday that party lawmakers may walk out for the second year in a row to oppose the same Republican "right-to-work" bill blocked last year by their five-week boycott. But some lawmakers seemed split on whether to make such a move. House Democratic Leader Patrick Bauer told The Associated Press that his caucus planned to meet Wednesday to debate how to handle the GOP proposal that would make Indiana the 23rd...