Overhaul of sentencing laws heading to governor
The Senate voted 34-15 on Friday in favor of the bill aimed at sending fewer nonviolent offenders to prison.
Courts
Articles
Sheridan businessman gets 8-year term for fraud
U.S. District Judge Mark Bennett issued the 97-month prison term to Lowell Hancher of Hamilton County. The Sheridan businessman pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of securities fraud.
Indiana Supreme Court asked to review Rockport gas deal
A Court of Appeals ruling upheld the 30-year contract between developers of the $2.6 billion synthetic gas plant and the Indiana Finance Authority. The agency would buy gas at a pre-negotiated rate and resell it to customers at a fixed rate.
White blames Brizzi for his voter fraud conviction
Former Indiana Secretary of State Charlie White said in court documents Thursday that his attorney didn't mount any defense to protect him from the conviction that forced him from office.
Marsh Supermarkets asking former CEO to pay $5.6M
A company lawyer itemized the expenses Marsh Supermarkets believes it is owed during closing arguments Friday. A lawyer for Don Marsh argued that he neither committed fraud nor breached his contract.
Jury to begin deliberating in Don Marsh trial
The panel of nine will begin closed-door discussions Friday afternoon following closing arguments from attorneys representing Marsh Supermarkets Inc. and the former CEO of the company accused of spending $3.3 million of company funds on personal expenses.
Witnesses: Don Marsh’s expenses never questioned
Lawyers for the former CEO of Marsh Supermarkets on Thursday hammered home their claims his expenses were widely accepted in the company as normal business costs, while witness testimony revealed a corporate culture that passed the buck on evaluating those costs.
Prosecutor seeking life sentences in Richmond Hill blast
Marion County Prosecutor Terry Curry says he won’t seek the death penalty for three people charged in the deadly Indianapolis house explosion, because a jury is unlikely to choose that option.
Don Marsh says he owes more than $500,000 in back taxes
The disclosure came during the fourth day of Don Marsh’s civil trial. The locally based supermarket chain is alleging he used company funds to pay more than $3 million in personal expenses.
Bales trial in jury’s hands after colorful closings
During three hours of closing arguments Wednesday in the federal fraud trial of real estate broker John M. Bales and William E. Spencer, a federal prosecutor and two top-tier Indianapolis defense attorneys delivered a series of memorable one-liners and rhetorical flourishes designed to stick with jurors.
Defense rests in Bales trial after flurry of witnesses
Closing arguments are expected to begin Wednesday afternoon in the federal fraud trial of Indianapolis real estate broker John M. Bales and partner William E. Spencer after the defense raced through seven witnesses Tuesday and early Wednesday.
UPDATE: Jet trips during affairs were also for business, Marsh testifies
In a day on the witness stand, former Marsh Supermarkets Inc. CEO Don Marsh told jurors during his fraud trial Tuesday that he’s not proud of his extramarital affairs, but he insisted the private jet trips he took to visit his mistresses were business-related.
FBI agent references Brizzi in Bales trial testimony
Federal prosecutors rested their fraud case against John M. Bales and partner William E. Spencer on Monday after a full day of testimony from FBI Special Agent Brian Percival that included several references to former Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi.
Marsh to call former CEO as first witness
The lead lawyer for Marsh Supermarkets Inc. expects to call Don Marsh as its first witness when the civil trial against him reconvenes Tuesday. The grocery chain alleges that the former CEO used company funds to pay more than $3 million in personal expenses.
Defense attorneys turn tough in Bales trial
The legal team representing real estate broker John M. Bales and partner William E. Spencer haven't called their first witness and already they're putting up a spirited fight as federal prosecutors seek to prove 13 charges including bank, mail and wire fraud.
Former Venture employee turns on Bales during testimony
An FBI investigation into Venture Real Estate Services and principals John Bales and Bill Spencer had already begun when Matthew Dyer signed on as the company's controller in December 2009. Bales told him the company had done nothing illegal, Dyer testified Wednesday.
Defense attorneys in Bales case trash former co-defendant
Attorney and developer Paul J. Page is no longer a co-defendant in the fraud trial of real estate broker John M. Bales and partner Bill Spencer. But you wouldn’t know it from the action Tuesday in U.S. District Court. Only now, rather than federal prosecutors, it’s defense attorneys for Bales and Spencer who are targeting Page.
Bales defense: Elkhart deal was a ‘scheme to help’
Facing a looming deadline to find suitable office space for the state Department of Child Services, Indianapolis real estate broker John M. Bales and partner Bill Spencer in 2008 dipped into their own pockets to help close a difficult lease deal, their defense attorneys contend.
Bales’ trial could turn on definition of ownership
The jury trial in South Bend for real estate developer John Bales and his general counsel, William E. Spencer, is scheduled to begin Jan. 28 and last up to two weeks. Bales and Spencer, both 45, are facing 13 counts, including wire and mail fraud.
Vectren digs in to fight gas plant
A synthetic natural gas plant proposed downstate need only tweak its contract with would-be gas purchaser Indiana Finance Authority to comply with an October court ruling and to proceed with the project, Indiana Gasification said in a recent filing with the Indiana Court of Appeals. But opponents of the plant, led by Evansville-based gas and electric utility Vectren, immediately objected.