Indiana House backs tougher rules for tobacco retailers
Stores across Indiana would face tougher penalties for selling tobacco products to anyone younger than 21 under a bill endorsed Tuesday by the Indiana House.
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IBJ Podcast: Here’s why the feds are suing Community Health with help from a whistleblower
IBJ’s John Russell has written about the Community case and talks with host Mason King about the details, what it means for Community Health and how the lawsuit fits into a larger effort by the federal government to claw back what it considers “unjust enrichment” by hospital systems.
Jury awards doctor $4.75M in defamation, fraud case against St. Vincent
The doctor, an obstetrician and gynecologist, claimed she had been wrongly accused of having alcohol on her breath while on duty.
Lawsuit throws spotlight on physicians’ hospital referrals
A high-stakes suit this month by the federal government against Community Health Network is raising questions about when they are proper and when they cross the line.
Council Republicans to introduce proposal to study violent crime in Indianapolis
The proposal comes after police investigated 154 criminal homicides in 2019—five lower than the record set in 2018—and an increase in the number of non-fatal shooting victims.
Former employee pleads guilty in $4.5M Cummins fraud case
Prosecutors say the 54-year-old man diverted more than $4.5 million of money from Cummins and other companies over a nine-year period.
Buttigieg decision on police chief shadows presidential run
Pete Buttigieg’s demotion of South Bend’s first African American police chief has shadowed his presidential campaign, giving rise to complaints he has a blind spot on race and raising questions about whether he can attract the support of African Americans who are crucial to earning the Democratic nomination.
Court docs: Fired Franklin president arranged to meet officer posing as 15-year-old
According to a criminal complaint, after exchanging messages with an undercover police officer he thought to be a minor named Tyler, Thomas Minar sent multiple pornographic pictures and other sexual messages through the Grindr app.
House votes to send Trump impeachment to Senate for trial
The U.S. House voted Wednesday to send two articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump to the Senate and approve House prosecutors for only the third impeachment trial in American history.
UPDATE: Franklin College president ousted after arrest in Wisconsin
Franklin College terminated President Thomas Minar over the weekend after he was arrested in Wisconsin “for use of a computer to facilitate a sex crime, child enticement, and to expose a child to harmful materials/narrations,” the school said Monday afternoon.
Revenue chief resigning to campaign for Indiana AG, unseat Hill
Department of Revenue Commissioner Adam Krupp said he would bring “leadership, integrity and results” to the job as Indiana’s top lawyer. Incumbent and fellow Republican Curtis Hill has been accused of unethical conduct.
Revenue commissioner to seek GOP nomination for attorney general
Adam Krupp—who has served in the gubernatorial administrations of Eric Holcomb, Mike Pence and Mitch Daniels—wants to replace embattled Republican incumbent Curtis Hill.
Lawyers tangle as high-stakes Fair Finance suit nears trial
A federal judge in northern Ohio has set aside three weeks for the jury trial, which begins Feb. 24 and pits Fair Finance Co.’s bankruptcy trustee against one of Fair’s former lenders, the Fortune 500 firm Textron Inc.
Hearing set on fight over disclosure of Indianapolis’ Amazon HQ2 bid
A not-for-profit tax policy group will make its case in court next month that the public is entitled to know the financial incentives that were offered to Amazon in the city’s unsuccessful bid to lure the firm’s multibillion-dollar secondary campus.
Cook Medical wins new trial in product lawsuit after judge admits he erred
The judge vacated a $3 million jury award against Cook Medical, saying a Georgia woman who sued the Bloomington-based device maker “did not have overwhelming evidence” to show the company’s implanted blood-clot filter was defective or caused her injuries.
Feds accuse Community Health of submitting false claims to Medicare
The Justice Department said the financial arrangements were outlined in a whistleblower suit brought by Thomas Fischer, who served as Community Health’s CFO from 2005 until his sudden exit in 2013. In a separate suit, Fischer claimed he was fired in retaliation for questioning possibly illegal practices.
New Indiana rule adds risk assessments for booked inmates
A new Indiana rule requiring that booked inmates be assessed to determine risks or benefits of releasing them before trial is expected to eventually reduce overcrowding at the state’s county jails, criminal justice officials said.
Some Indiana retailers say they’re unaware of tobacco age change
It is now illegal for a retailer to sell any tobacco product—including cigarettes, cigars and e-cigarettes—to anyone under 21, according to federal law.
Bankrupt Celadon plans to sell 102-acre campus
Most of Celadon’s real estate holdings in Indianapolis are on the east side, where available industrial land is in short supply. So, observers say, the anticipated divestiture should attract plenty of attention.
Appeal set on challenge to Indiana religious objections law
Conservative religious groups are planning to appeal an Indiana judge’s ruling that canceled a trial challenging limits on the state’s religious objections law that were signed by then-Gov. Mike Pence.