IndyStar.com: Crime & Courts
Indiana's leading news source for all the top stories, local news, sports and weather.
Driver arrested in fatal Indianapolis crash had 4 DUIs
An Avon man convicted four times on drunken-driving charges was arrested again Tuesday, this time after police say he slammed into the car of a 70-year-old woman, killing her.It's a case that is raising questions about Indiana's drunken-driving...
Indiana firm's tour bus recovered
ALBION, Ind. -- Police have found a 45-foot tour bus stolen from a northern Indiana garage in southeastern Michigan and have arrested a man they think was responsible for its theft.Noble County Sheriff Gary Leatherman says the $450,000 bus was...
Feds hunt fugitive Indiana doctor
CHICAGO -- Federal agents are searching for an Indiana doctor who went on the lam after his trial on charges of bilking insurance companies and patients through a bogus allergy testing scheme.Hartley Thomas, Valparaiso, was absent Monday when a...
Noblesville doctor sentenced in drug case
A Noblesville doctor was sentenced to prison Wednesday for dispensing medication without a prescription.Timothy M. Morrison, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, said Broad Ripple psychiatrist Adolfo P. Hernandez, 67, was sentenced...
Martinsville student dies from crash injuries
MARTINSVILLE, Ind. — A Martinsville High School student died this afternoon from injuries suffered in a head-on crash in Morgan County.Alexander Boyd, 16, was fatally injured in the crash about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday on Ind. 44 about two miles east...
Avon driver charged in fatal DUI case
The Marion County prosecutor filed charges this afternoon against an Avon man in a drunken driving crash that killed a 70-year-old woman.If convicted, John Ferrell Jr., 44, could face up to 20 years in prison. Before the crash Tuesday, Ferrell had...
False mileage claims result in prison time
CROWN POINT, Ind. -- A former state worker whose job was to drive children to and from foster care has been sentenced to nine months in prison for falsifying mileage and overtime claims.Tannette Kinnon, 47, of Hammond also must pay $30,306 in...
Makeshift grave in cemetery held fetus
Police say a fetus was buried in a makeshift grave found by University of Indianapolis students who were researching an old cemetery on the south side of Indianapolis.The small grave included a marker with "Baby Wheeler" written on it.Southport...
Speedway man killed crossing street
Employees and customers at Charlie Brown's restaurant in Speedway today mourned the death of Ean Glover, husband of owner Elizabeth Glover.Glover, 77, died Thursday after being hit by a truck on Lynhurst Drive while walking his dog."It has been...
Home invasion terrifies Lawrence couple
The one-story, three-bedroom sided house in a recently built Lawrence addition was Carl Holcomb's dream home.But today, the 72-year-old two-war veteran is afraid to stay at his residence in the 4400 block of Clingstone Court after four men...
Guard, suspect struggle for gun outside courtroom
NOBLESVILLE — An Indianapolis man could be charged with attempted murder after grabbing a guard’s gun Friday before a noon court hearing.Joshua P. Lindsey, 31, was walking through a secure holding area to a hearing in Superior Court 2 at...
Prosecutor ordered to repay legal fees
MUNCIE, Ind. -- A judge has ordered Delaware County Prosecutor Mark McKinney to repay $18,395 in legal fees he received as an attorney for a drug task force in cases where he used confidential agreements to seize money and property.Delaware County...
Suspect in Indianapolis deaths arrested in California
A man wanted on a warrant in connection with a double slaying in Indianapolis has been arrested in California, according to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.Michael Brown, 56, was arrested Saturday in San Diego, according to a...
Elderly couple shot in home in Brown Co.
MORGANTOWN, Ind. — An 84-year-old man died of gunshot wounds and his wife remained in the hospital Sunday night after both were shot when a pair of teenagers invaded their Brown County home, police said.Richard W. Voland, 84, died at Methodist...
Cop's lawyer says informant recanted before he died
Soon after an Indianapolis narcotics detective stood accused of selling a handgun to a confidential informant with a felony record, the informant approached the officer's defense attorney.He reportedly recanted his account and said detectives had...
Carmel man held in check kiting case
MARION, Ind. — A Carmel man was arrested today at a behavioral health center in connection with a check kiting scheme totaling more than $6 million, state police said.Kem E. Linn, 55, is a director for Cubberley’s Inc., a Marion wholesaler of...
Officer: Subduing prisoner might have saved lives
NOBLESVILLE, Ind. — Quick action by court security officers to subdue a prisoner grappling for a gun possibly saved court officials from a threat to their lives, a spokeswoman said.As veteran officer Dan Trowbridge recovered Monday from cuts...
Charges dropped in girl's death; fall might have caused injuries
Marion County prosecutors have dropped murder charges against an Indianapolis man accused last year of repeatedly striking a 2-year-old girl's head.Now forensic experts agree the girl's fatal injuries might have been caused by an accidental fall....
Indy family learns mother was killed
DALLAS -- Skeletal remains found near Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport are those of an elderly woman who disappeared in 2001 during a layover while traveling from Indianapolis, and her death has been ruled a homicide, police said...
1 dies in 4-vehicle Hamilton Co. crash
A four-vehicle crash this afternoon on U.S. 31 at Ind. 38 in northern Hamilton County killed one driver and sent the other three to area hospitals.The crash happened shortly after 2 p.m. when a tractor-trailer rear-ended two other tractor-trailers...
Ex-Elkhart teacher charged in child seduction
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — A former Elkhart Central High School teacher and boys soccer coach accused of having sex with a 17-year-old female student was charged Tuesday with three counts of child seduction.Dennis Michael Jay, 36, Mishawaka, faces six...
Protest over prayer ban leads to man's arrest
At 70 years old — and after a night behind bars — Charles Lynch says he’ll continue his fight to return prayer to City Council meetings in the small Southside community of Southport.He spent about 10 hours in the Marion County Jail...
Ex-teacher charged with child seduction
SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- A former Elkhart Central High School teacher and boys soccer coach accused of having sex with a 17-year-old female student was charged Tuesday with three counts of child seduction.Dennis Michael Jay, 36, of Mishawaka faces six...
Southern Ind. couple forfeit $1.7 million
A Harrison County couple forfeited more than $1.7 million and were sentenced to four years of probation after pleading guilty to charges of federal tax evasion.Gregory Gurtz, 50, and Donna Gurtz, 41, were charged with three counts of tax evasion...
Student killed after being hit by pickup
A 15-year-old died this morning after a pickup truck struck him while he was crossing the street on the city's Southeastside.Robert Raymond Kirby Jr., a student at the Indiana Math and Science Academy on the Westside, was walking east on the...
Noblesville police investigate rape case
Noblesville police are investigating a rape reported this weekend by a stranded motorist.The alleged incident occurred early Sunday near 156th Street and Boden Road, according to a news release from Lt. Bruce A. Barnes, a spokesman for the...
Indianapolis woman convicted in murder-for-hire case
A jury Wednesday convicted an Indianapolis woman of conspiracy to commit murder in a case brought after she paid an undercover police officer to kill her ex-husband.D'Antonette Burns, 35, was locked in a custody dispute over the couple's son....
Indianapolis woman convicted in murder-for-hire case
A jury Wednesday convicted an Indianapolis woman of conspiracy to commit murder in a case brought after she paid an undercover police officer to kill her ex-husband.D'Antonette Burns, 35, was locked in a custody dispute over the couple's son....
Appeal is denied in girl's '92 slaying
MADISON, Ind. -- A woman who was 16 when she pleaded guilty to murder in the 1992 torture slaying of a 12-year-old has lost another bid to have her deal with prosecutors thrown out.The Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed a Jefferson County judge's...
Two gunmen kill man in Eastside house
A 19-year-old man was fatally shot late Wednesday night at his home on the city's Eastside.Police responded to a call of shots fired in the 3800 block of East Michigan Street about 11:30 p.m., Sgt. Paul Thompson, an Indianapolis Metropolitan...
