Free Republic

A settlement was reached in the 2010 case of a Hispanic woman against the Evansville Catholic Diocese and others. A confidential settlement agreement was reached in the case where Silvia Gameros alleged the diocese, employees and the Catholic Community of Washington asked her to cover up the rape of her developmentally disabled daughter in 2007. The agreement, filed earlier this month in Daviess Circuit Court, was signed between Gameros and the diocese was confidential and claims against the diocese, the Catholic Community of Washington and employees Sister Karen Durliat, Kande Batz and Jorge Gomez were dismissed. A default judgment was...

"The homeowner indicated the individual, the victim had broken into his house and confronted the homeowner in the front room, living room area and the homeowner had a long gun and discharged his weapon at least one time," said IMPD homicide detective Lt. Kevin Kelly.

WESTFIELD, Ind. (WISH) - Westfield police say the double homicide that happened on Friday was a home invasion that occurred during the day. Police say they did not find evidence of forced entry at first but have since determined it to be a robbery. Police say both victims, mother Marylyn Erb, 52, and daughter Kelley Erb, 23, died from blunt force trauma. A relative arrived home, 15000 block of Oak Park Court, around 5 p.m. and found the two unresponsive. A 2011 Maroon Buick Enclave was taken from the house and found a short distance away on East 161st Street....

Legendary “Superjock” Larry Lujack, a Radio Hall of Famer and one of broadcasting’s all-time greats, has died of cancer at 73. He had been battling esophageal cancer for the last year and was in hospice care in Santa Fe, New Mexico, when he died Wednesday. More to come.

BP has turned on a key new unit to process more Canadian oil sands crude at its Whiting refinery in Indiana, the British oil giant announced Wednesday. The company has spent billions of dollars in recent years upgrading the facility, its largest. The last major milestone was the startup of the refinery’s new, 102,000 barrel-per-day coker, which began operating in November, the company said. A coker is a processing unit that makes oils and other products used in chemicals or transportation fuels. “The safe startup of this world-scale coker is the last major step in unlocking the full potential of...

NDIANAPOLIS, December 9, 2013 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Medical authorities in Indiana have asked an abortionist who violated a state law designed to catch child molesters to appear in person before renewing his license to practice. Dr. Ulrich George Klopfer must explain to the Indiana Medical Licensing Board why he failed to report performing two abortions on girls under the age of 14 in a timely manner, as required by law. Having sex with a minor 13 or younger is prosecuted as a felony, and abortionists must report performing abortions on young girls to the Department of Child Services and the Indiana...

The A Christmas Story House and Museum is not the only way fans can celebrate the film's legacy in Cleveland. Read on for a guide to all things "A Christmas Story"– just don't shoot your eye out. A Christmas Story House and Museum: Open seven days a week, year-round, at 3159 West 11th St. in Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood. Call 216-298-4919 or email info@achristmasstoryhouse.com. Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and noon-5 p.m. Sunday. Tours of the house run every 30 minutes. Regular admission is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors, $6 for children (ages 7 to 12) and free...

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) -- The University of Notre Dame is suing the Obama administration over a federal mandate that its health insurance plans for students and employees cover birth control. The university filed its lawsuit Tuesday in U.S. District Court in South Bend. It claims the mandate violates Notre Dame's freedom to practice religion without government interference. The Roman Catholic university says the birth control mandate violates the church's teaching prohibiting contraception.

ELKHART - Many stores and restaurants will be open this year on Thanksgiving Day, and one local man says he lost his job because of it. Tony Rohr worked at Pizza Hut for more than ten years, but says he was fired recently because he refused to open on Thanksgiving. He says he doesn't think people should have to work on a holiday like Thanksgiving. He started at Pizza Hut as a cook and worked his way up to being a general manager of the Jackson Boulevard Pizza Hut in Elkhart. He was told opening on Thanksgiving this year was...

INDIANAPOLIS, IN, November 26, 2013 (LifeSiteNews.com) – For Live Action, a newly released report that found Indiana abortionists are not complying with a state law designed to catch pedophiles may have brought on a sense of deja vu. The group caught one of the locations on tape covering up statutory rape five years ago. Under Indiana state law, a child 13 or younger cannot give consent for sex, and having sex with a minor that age is a felony. Abortionists must report any client under 14 to state authorities within three days, so they can promptly investigate potential child molestation....

If you live in Indiana and had your health insurance plan canceled because of new federal health care requirements, the state's insurance commissioner says your policy will remain canceled. (AUDIO-AT-LINK) Insurance Commissioner Steven Robertson will not go along with a request from President Obama to ask insurance companies to reinstate canceled policies for one year. Obama announced the request last week after facing heavy criticism from both political parties over what appeared to be his broken promise that the Affordable Care Act would allow people to keep their health plans if they wanted. "The White House's statement last Thursday was...

INDIANAPOLIS/HOUSTON – An Indiana native wants to arm law-abiding citizens in high crime areas throughout Indianapolis with free shotguns in an effort to help people protect their homes and families. Kyle Coplen was born and raised in Rochester, Indiana. He studied at Ball State University and then moved to Houston, Texas, to continue his eduction. Earlier this year, he created the Armed Citizen Project (ACP), as part of a thesis project that will provide research for his theory that firearms can deter crime. “Guns are used to stop over four million crimes a year. Ninety percent of the time that...

A Texas Republican plans to introduce a resolution of Articles of Impeachment for Attorney General Eric Holder on Thursday. Rep. Pete Olson’s (R-Texas) office said this morning that “this was not a decision made lightly,” but comes with Holder’s “pattern of disregard for the rule of law and refusal to be forthright with Congress and the American people” since being held in contempt in June 2012. That 255-67 vote on criminal contempt, which included 17 Democrats, was tied to the Fast and Furious scandal and marked the first time Congress has found an attorney general in contempt. A measure of...

Joe Thallemer has been dreading the decision since July. But that didn’t stop the official word from being handed down this week. PolyOne Designed Structures and Solutions will close a Warsaw plastics factory next year, putting 110 people out of work. As Warsaw’s mayor, Thallemer knew the Kosciusko County operation at 3454 N. Detroit St. could be affected by the Cleveland-based company’s announced consolidation. The plan eliminates 250 jobs and closes six factories. But the document he received this week from the company extinguished his last hope of escaping the cuts. “I’d like to think we’d be able to absorb...

Nashville, TN – Today, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham introduced the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. The legislation currently has 33 cosponsors – but Senator Alexander is not one of them. Conservative Senate candidate Joe Carr called on Senator Alexander to change his stance and add himself as a co-sponsor. “I’m strongly pro-life and believe it’s imperative the Senate pass this important piece of legislation. When Senator Graham announced his co-sponsors and Senator Alexander’s name was missing, I was disappointed. I am hoping Senator Alexander will change his stance and add himself as a co-sponsor. This legislation is too...

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - Court documents released Monday outlined a Tuesday home invasion on the north side. It paints a picture of a nightmarish home invasion, repeated rape, gunshots and robbery. It was early morning on Oct. 29 when, according to police, six suspects entered the family's home. Detectives said during the investigation it was discovered there was no forced entry but alluded to unsecured back doors that had structural issues. The suspects started in the parent's bedroom, yelling to give them money. That woke up the daughter and began a long, gruesome period of crime. Eventually suspects drove the mother to...

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Tim Bowers loved the outdoors. Hunting gave him the quiet time during which he could reflect on a busy life that included a new wife, a successful business and a baby on the way...

When a mom and daughter were kidnapped, forced to withdraw money from an ATM, raped, then shot last week, the Indianapolis Star played it by the book: Do not mention the suspects are black. The “book” in this case is written by the Society of Professional Journalists, headquartered just three miles from the scene of the crime. In last month’s issue of the SPJ magazine, the oldest and largest organization of journalists in America reminded its members how they should report racial violence. Don’t. The SPJ story was just repeating what dozens of chapters around the country tell its members...

Little more than a week after millions of consumers received health care cancellation notices, lawmakers in both parties are pushing legislation to redeem President Barack Obama's long-ago pledge that anyone liking their coverage will be allowed to keep it under the nation's controversial new law. The result is a stern new challenge for the White House as it struggles to fix website woes for the signup portal for those seeking to enroll under the law, and simultaneously copes with angry consumers who rightly or wrongly blame "Obamacare" for cancellation letters mailed by insurers. Democratic officials said top administration aides got...