Free Republic

MOORESVILLE, Ind. -- A state investigation has been launched and more parents are coming forward with allegations of inappropriate conduct by a teacher who some feel is involved too intimately with children. The 41-second cell phone video that prompted a 6News investigation shows a Mooresville Consolidated School Corp. junior varsity softball player licking the toes of teacher Jody Monaghan, a former softball coach, 6News' Jack Rinehart reported. Angry parents called it a mere snapshot of years of inappropriate texting and touching between Monaghan and their children. Another parent, who came forward after 6News' first report but did not want to...

NEW CASTLE, Ind. -- A Henry County judge on Tuesday rejected a plea deal in the death of a 3-year-old girl who police said was beaten to death by her mother's boyfriend. Jeremiah Hoots, 31, was originally charged with felony battery in the December 2007 death of the daughter of his then-girlfriend, Krystal Pollitt, 3-year-old Kaitlynne Jennings, 6News' Derrik Thomas reported. The crime carries a maximum sentence of 50 years in prison, but in October, Hoots was offered a plea deal of 12 years in prison with six suspended, two years suspended on probation and one of those years on...

Citizens Saturday voiced their concerns with the current government and spoke about why they support the Constitution. A four-hour statewide Tea Party rally attended by approximately 1,600 Hoosiers was at Lakeview Middle School gymnasium, Warsaw. A stage was set up with red, white and blue balloons and a sign hung across the stage that said "Celebrate Our Heritage." The Tea Party and Project 912 groups who sponsored the rally included Huntington, Grant County and South Bend Tea Party organizations; Kosciusko County Silent No More; Lake County Tea Party; Hoosier Patriots, a statewide group headquartered in Warsaw; Michiana 912 Group; Wabash...

Published : Sunday, 22 Nov 2009, 10:42 PM EST Reporter: Jim Shella Editor: Jackie Carpenter KEMPTON, Ind. (WISH) - Barack Obama's family roots reach deep into central Indiana and soon an old farm house near Kempton in Tipton County may serve as a living tribute to the President's ancestors. The President's mother, Ann Dunham, was born and raised in Kansas, but her grandfather moved there from Indiana and a historic preservationist is now at work reconstructing some of the Obama family history here. Shawn Clements loves showing off the Dunham house, a 19th century farmhouse that he purchased in 2004...

In Indiana, practice for 'civilian surge' in Afghanistan State Dept. enlists Afghans to help prepare Americans for mission CAMP ATTERBURY, IND. -- Outside a scruffy, two-story building, armed and flak-jacketed U.S. soldiers stood watch under a sagging Afghan flag. Inside, the provincial governor, a Hamid Karzai look-alike in a striped robe and Karakul cap, pleaded with two tribal elders to get along. Only the Taliban would benefit from their dispute, the governor's aide said with a nervous click of his worry beads. An American at the table asked to speak. If they couldn't settle their differences over landownership, he gently...

NOBLESVILLE, INDIANA -- The real Americans were waiting in their Audis and Outbacks in the Hoosier rain. Already, the parking lot had been barricaded and the satellite trucks from the local television stations were in place and it still was going to be five hours before we would see the ex-mayor, ex-governor and existential hero of prairie patriots like all of us. I hauled up in my rented Nissan Versa, having driven from the Indianapolis airport in the downpour, and rolled down the window and talked to the people in the next space. --snip-- Jim and Lucy Roark said they...

President Obama / Judge David Hamilton Washington D.C., Nov 21, 2009 / 06:03 pm (CNA).- The U.S. Senate voted 59-39 to confirm the appointment of U.S. District Judge David Hamilton to the Chicago-based Seventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The judge has ruled against Indiana’s informed consent law and has also ordered the cessation of “sectarian prayers” in the Indiana House of Representatives.Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana was the only Republican to vote for the confirmation of Judge Hamilton, who is also from Indiana. According to Reuters, Sen. Lugar said the judge was ‘superbly qualified.”The Democrat-controlled Senate lifted a...

FORT WAYNE, Ind. — When tickets to see Sarah Palin in Michigan ran out, people drove to her appearance here, three hours away. Thousands had lined up overnight, starting nearly 24 hours before she was to begin signing books, camping out in 39-degree weather for a moment with the woman many see as the great conservative hope, a role model, “one of us.” They brought their sleeping bags, their children, homemade chocolate Cheerios bars, and balloons to twist into animal shapes and hats for the crowd. And they brought their anger — about bailouts, jobs and health care. If Sarah...

Sorry for the vanity post. I just phoned U.S. Senator Bayh's office to express my opposition to the so-called health care reform bill. What a coward. No one was in his office to answer the phone and his VM was full - at which point the automated system dropped my call. They're supposed to listen to us? Sure. What a feckless coward and self serving tool.

At least 300 people who waited in line for hours to meet former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin in Noblesville left without a signed copy of her book, Borders confirmed Friday. The former Alaska governor visited the Borders store at Hamilton Town Center Thursday evening as part of a book tour for her new memoir, "Going Rogue." The store handed out 1,000 wristbands for the event early Thursday, saying those with wristbands would have their books signed, unless "unforeseen circumstances" arose. SNIP Borders released a statement Friday evening saying they had planned carefully for the event, but that three hours...

The Senate voted 59 to 39 to confirm Judge David F. Hamilton to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Judge Hamilton, who sits on the Federal District Court in Indiana, was President Obama’s first judicial nominee. Republicans opposed the nomination, announced March 19, because of decisions Judge Hamilton made relating to abortion and prayers in the Indiana Legislature. Senator Richard G. Lugar of Indiana was the only Republican to vote for his confirmation.

By sunrise Thursday, more than 500 people had lined up here in a wet Indiana supermarket parking lot in hopes of sharing a brief moment with former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. Despite the fact that most in line had to stand outside Meijer’s, a big box grocer and retailer with 31 checkout lanes, Palin’s fans waited patiently and politely, flipping through the pages of her new memoir “Going Rogue” as they chanted “Sarah, Sarah” and took turns getting coffee and donuts. Like the conservative icon that some had driven a considerable distance to meet, the otherwise buoyant crowd harbored hard...

The wife of the most senior Republican in the Senate was arrested Wednesday night after her vehicle struck a parked car. Police said Indiana Sen. Dick Lugar's wife, Charlene, drove her car into the parked vehicle just after 6:15 p.m. Wednesday in their McLean, Va., neighborhood. No injuries were reported.

FORT WAYNE, IN (Indiana's NewsCenter) --- A Meijer's Department Store in Northeast Fort Wayne is preparing for what could be an onslaught of customers looking for a chance to meet a big star in the world of politics. Sarah Palin didn't get elected Vice-President, but she figures to be a huge hit at an event here in town on Thursday. Palin will only be in the city a short time to sign copies of her new book, but the possibility of getting to meet her up close and personal is expected to draw supporters like a magnet. The Meijer at...

Thanksgiving Dinner * 14.5 million turkeys were produced in Indiana in 2008. The Hoosier state accounted for 5.3 percent of national turkey production. This output was less than one-third of Minnesota's leading production of 48 million turkeys. * The value of Indiana's 2008 turkey production totaled $306.3 million. Indiana ranked fifth in value of turkeys raised, following Minnesota, North Carolina, Missouri and Arkansas. * The total weight of all Hoosier turkeys was 519.1 million pounds, compared to 1.3 billion pounjds in Minnesota and 1.2 billion pounds in North Carolina. * The typical whole turkey purchased at a store is a...

For the Denver-based American Right to Life, when it comes to abortion, Palin is as impure as any godless feminist. “[H]er words and actions prove that she is officially pro-choice and stands against the God-given right to life of the unborn,” they write in a new report. ARTL members plan to educate reporters about Palin’s many alleged failings as a true believer, particularly her March nomination of a former Planned Parenthood board member to the Alaska Supreme Court and her refusal to call for a ban on the morning-after pill.

An Indianapolis, IN homeowner held a burglar at gunpoint until the police arrived. Police say that the burglar, who was armed with a screwdriver, broke in to a home on the southwest side of Indianapolis late Monday night and began rummaging around. The homeowner reportedly grabbed his self defense gun, fired a shot that struck a glass door, and then held the home invader at gunpoint until police arrived. Police reportedly took 22 year old Jorge Barrera into custody, where he now faces burglary charges.

<p>Contact your Senators and let them know what you think!</p> <p>U.S. veterans or subsidies for United Nations (U.N.) bureaucracy.</p>

INDIANAPOLIS—Kerry A. Thomas, 46, Oakland City, Indiana, was charged late yesterday with Possession of unregistered machine guns and a destructive device, announced Timothy M. Morrison, U.S. Attorney, Southern District of Indiana, following an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Pike County Sheriff’s Department, and the Evansville Police Department. The complaint alleges that on March 16, 2009, Thomas unlawfully possessed three machine guns—Gladiator Automobile and Cycle Factory 8X50 mmR Caliber machine gun; Marlin, model 1917, 30-06 caliber machine gun; and a Colt, AR-15, model XM16E1, 5.56 mm caliber machine gun—which had not...

Former presidential contender's book tour stops at ND. BY ERIN BLASKO SOUTH BEND — Bob Moore was enthusiastic about Mike Huckabee long before the Republican presidential candidate arrived on the national scene in 2007, charming his party's base with his strong commitment to conservative values and moderates and even liberals with his "aw, shucks" persona. He was quick to point that out Tuesday, shortly after meeting the former Arkansas governor at a promotional event at the Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore. "I've read all of his books except the one that just came out," the Goshen man said, adding that that...

HAMMOND, IN—The United States Attorney's Office announced Dr. Adolph Yaniz, and Munir Chaudhry, d/b/a Medway Diagnostic Laboratories, were charged by an indictment unsealed today with conspiracy to commit health care fraud. Yaniz, 49, of Merrillville, Indiana, and Chaudhry, 63, of Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois, were charged with one count of conspiracy to defraud health care programs and four counts of substantive health care fraud violations. Yaniz was also charged with one count of receiving kickbacks, four counts of dispensing drugs without legitimate medical purposes, and one count of conspiracy to distribute Vicodin. Chaudhry was also charged with one count of paying...

The crispness is in the air and frost has already been on the pumpkin this fall. It's harvest time in Indiana. But for farmers, this has not been a good year. A shortened planting season because of rain is now mixed with a late harvest because of rain. Some reports have the moisture content as high as 35 percent in some areas. This has posed a problem for the wheat industry in Indiana.

-- Vote could come as early as MondayHe has been called "extreme" by some. But to others, he's beyond extreme... he's a "Radical's Radical."  Whatever he is, he could become President Obama's next choice for the federal judiciary. This radical is Judge David Hamilton, and he's been nominated for a position on the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Hamilton has made many political enemies on the right, seeing that his politics are to the far left of the political spectrum.  Oh yes, judges aren't supposed to be political, but this one has engaged in quite a bit of leftist activism....

We need to start blasting all his phones, emails , twitter account, facebooks, and writing to the newspapers. Even if you don't live in his state you need to still be active on them and tell them no business in Indiana if Bayh votes in favor of Obama's reckless Obamacare and cap n trade 131 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 (202) 224-5623 (202) 228-1377 fax 1650 Market Tower 10 West Market Street Indianapolis, IN 46204 (317) 554-0750 (317) 554-0760 fax 101 MLK, Jr. Blvd Evansville, IN 47708 (812) 465-6500 (812) 465-6503 fax 1300 S. Harrison St. Suite 3161...

Federal Bench: Yet another judicial nominee seeks to impose the "empathy" standard on the courts. He thinks judges should base rulings on a plaintiff's status, legislate from the bench and amend the Constitution. Indiana federal judge David Hamilton stands poised to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate to assume a seat on the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals serving Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin. He's a former fundraiser for Acorn and a former leader of the Indiana chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. He is also another in a series of activist judges who believe the U.S. Constitution is not...

It was an eerily warm November morning when I arrived in South Bend yesterday with my son, Gary, to attend the Notre Dame-Navy battle. "What a beautiful day for a game!" I exclaimed to my son as we listened unsuspectingly to the band's pre-game rendition of the Notre Dame Victory March. Little did we know that we were not about to witness a football game, but a funeral. For not only did the Naval Academy's efficient yet stunning 23-21 victory, their second in three years against the Irish after Notre Dame had defeated them 43 years in a row,...

Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) is planning a second anti-health care reform Tea Party at the Capitol -- this one scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday -- approximately the time when the House is due to vote on Democrats' public option bill, POLITICO's Jake Sherman reports. King and Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) organized a rally Thursday that drew thousands to the west front of the Capitol, drawing chants of “Kill the Bill.” There were a handful of arrests. “We can kill this bill and stop the government takeover of health care,” King said in a news release. “We need the help of...

INDIANAPOLIS -- A "national nuisance," as police call him, was taken off the streets Thursday night with the arrest of one of the city's most prolific purveyors of graffiti. Miguel Villanueva, 23, tagged dozens of buildings in Indianapolis with his signature symbol of "choke," which is how he refers to himself. Villanueva told 6News as he was being arrested Thursday that he hit buildings not only in Indiana but in other states...

While roaming the grounds of the US Capitol yesterday, Kristinn Taylor obtained a list of possible democrat defectors of the now infamous “Healthcare” bill. Kristinn was asked to post this list of wobbly democrats on FreeRepublic in an effort to mobilize our forces and overwhelm these members with phone calls and e-mails asking them to vote NO on the socialization of our healthcare. We also learned that Nancy Pelosi had just scheduled the vote for tomorrow; Saturday, November 7, 2009 at 6:00 PM. For all those who were unable to answer the call to surround the Capitol yesterday, here is...

No stops are planned in Seattle, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and other major cities and book-buying communities that are standard for authors on the road, but where the voters tend to be Democrats. Beyond a Nov. 16 television interview with Oprah Winfrey, nothing is scheduled for Chicago. New York will feature media appearances only. Instead, the itinerary for Palin, whose "Going Rogue" comes out Nov. 17, includes Noblesville, Ind.; Washington, Pa.; and Rochester, N.Y. "She wants to be unconventional. She is unconventional," HarperCollins spokeswoman Tina Andreadis said Wednesday....

The third-ranking Republican in the House of Representatives on Wednesday endorsed Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman for the 2010 midterm elections. House Republican Conference chairman Mike Pence (R-Ind.) offered his support to Hoffman, who was defeated at the hands of Democrat Bill Owens in a highly contested special election in upstate New York. "Well, let me say that the lesson here is that we all need to fall behind Doug Hoffman for next fall’s election," Pence told a conservative blog today. "I look forward to welcoming him to Congress a year from now. I think he ran a brilliant campaign."

INDIANAPOLIS -- Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin will make a stop in Noblesville to promote her new book. Instead of signing copies of "Going Rogue" in major cities, Palin will tour the country by bus with her family, stopping in smaller communities. She is scheduled to appear at the Border Books and Music store at 13145 Levinson Lane on Nov. 19 starting at 7 p.m., after making a stop in Fort Wayne earlier in the day....

Almost 20% of West Virginians eligible to vote are either dead or have moved. Five States with the Most Dead People Eligible to Vote: Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming. FUN TIME IN ACORN TOWN: DEAD PEOPLE RULE! Are you lonely when you go to the polling place? Want some company? Perhaps, you'd like to take along a dead "friend" to vote with you. That's a scenario that's becoming more possible across the United States. A combination of old voter registration lists that still contain the names of dead voters and voters who have moved, new "Motor Voter" legislation,...

Decades ago, the parents in Indiana would take an unruly child out behind the proverbial woodshed and give them an attitude adjustment. Many, were the children of ages past that learned discipline from a switch or the hand. Then came the progressive attitude. The attitude that placed.....

INDIANAPOLIS -- The issue of national health care reform could endanger the political future of Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh. The moderate is in hot water with liberals for his failure to endorse a reform bill, 6News' Norman Cox reported. As recently as two days ago, Bayh said he might not be able to support a motion to proceed with a floor debate on health care if it's too expensive. This week, the liberal group MoveOn.org delivered petitions to Bayh's Indiana offices signed by 244 people identified as former Bayh donors and volunteers. They said if he votes to sidetrack health...

WASHINGTON – Fifty-seven people in northeast Indiana got a job – or were spared a pink slip – so far this year because of the government’s stimulus program, the government reported Friday. It was the smallest job gain or employment preservation reported in the state’s nine congressional districts. Vice President Biden said the program created or saved an additional 400,000 jobs – the harder-to-count jobs created as a result of extra economic activity – putting the total more than 1 million. The government does not distinguish between jobs that were created because of the program and the jobs people didn’t...

Fellow Hoosiers: I submit this post on behalf of a friend of my family, who works for Sallie Mae, here in Indianapolis. I am asking for your thoughtful consideration in this matter, and if you agree with what's presented in the proposal on the http://www.protectindianajobs.com website, to please sign the electronic petition. The issue is this. There is legislation before the U.S. Senate right now, that would make all student loans government-run. If this legislation is signed into law, Sallie Mae would be severly affected, and undoubtedly hundreds of jobs would be taken from this state. Let's stop this madness,...

Nearly 40 organizations have called on Reid to schedule a vote on Dawn Johnsen, Obama’s pick to lead the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, which is tasked with providing legal advice to the president. Several members of this coalition are frustrated that Johnsen’s nomination has languished in the Senate for nearly eight months despite Democrats’ control of 60 seats. Johnsen has run into strong Republican opposition because of her statements on sensitive political issues ranging from abortion to voter ID law. But her writings on presidential powers over suspected terrorists in military custody and other national security issues may...

Senator Jeff Sessions, ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, is encouraging Republican colleagues to filibuster Barack Obama’s nominee to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, David Hamilton. Hamilton has major issues against him, including stating publicly his believe that the founders intended the judiciary to routinely amend the constitution through case law. More troubling, David Hamilton has ruled that praying to Allah does not violate the Establishment of Religion clause in the First Amendment, but praying in Jesus Christ’s name does. According to Sesions’s letter, Judge Hamilton’s most determidly activists decisions might be his series of rulings in A...

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Indiana University professor Elinor Ostrom has been awarded the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced Oct. 12. Ostrom is the Arthur F. Bentley Professor of Political Science in the College of Arts and Sciences and a professor in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University Bloomington. She is co-founder and senior research director of the Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis at IU.

The Indiana Secretary of State has a limited term. The current holder of that office, Todd Rokita, is nearing his limit in that position. Jockeying for the position....

Tuesday night the citizens of Indiana's Senate District 17 got to hear from the candidates. Huntington County Commissioner Tom Wall, Coffee D'Vine owner Ron Fusselman, and Whitley County Councilman Jim Banks faced off in a debate at Huntington University. The event was sponsored by.....

NEW CASTLE, Ind. -- The family of a 3-year-old Henry County girl who police said was beaten to death by her mother's boyfriend is upset the man is now being offered a plea deal. Jeremiah Hoots, 31, was originally charged with felony battery in the December 2007 death of the daughter of his then-girlfriend, Krystal Pollitt, 3-year-old Kaitlynne Jennings. He could have faced 50 years in prison if convicted on that charge. But earlier this week, Hoots was offered a plea deal of 12 years in prison with six suspended, two years suspended on probation and one of those years...

The Indiana Department of Health announced Tuesday that a woman from Clark County in southern Indiana has died as the result of a rabies infection. The woman's identity was not made public. Test results by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reveal the infection came from a bat. The woman had not reported exposure. This death is only the second rabies death in Indiana since 1959, and the first since 2006, according to the state Department of Health. While rabies continues to be a concern in animals, human cases are far rarer. According to the CDC, there...

magine a two-term Republican governor from a state carried by Barack Obama who turned an $800 million deficit into a $1.2 billion surplus by cutting overhead and bringing sound business principles to his state's government even as he provided new health benefits for poor citizens. Imagine no longer. Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels accomplished this and more, and he did it all while enacting the biggest tax cut in state history. Despite a long career in public service, Mr. Daniels is not nearly as well-known as some of his colleagues. He worked for several years on Capitol Hill as chief aide...

Hell of a quote, just 5 minutes ago on Greg Garrison's Radio Show! "After Obama, Republicans Won't Have To Apologize For Nixon, Anymore!" He went on to talk about how Obama needs to jettison some of the crazies around him. He was VERY frank!

Senator Marlin Stutzman has placed his name on the ballot for the race against Evan Bayh. Mr Stutzman is a Republican Senator from Howe, IN.

South Bend, Ind., Oct 19, 2009 / 04:48 pm (CNA).The Board of Trustees of the University of Notre Dame has elected Fr. John I. Jenkins, CSC, to a second five-year term as university president

Indiana trooper charged in Michigan armed robbery October 22, 2009 Sun-Times News Group Investigators say an Indiana State Police trooper was one of three armed men who broke into the home of a Lansing, Mich., couple and robbed them late Sunday night. Elton D. Jones, 28, of Valparaiso, and two other men were arraigned Tuesday on charges of armed robbery, first-degree home invasion and using a gun to commit a felony. They face up to life in prison if convicted. Indiana State Police spokesman David Bursten told the Lansing (Mich.) State Journal that Jones was fired Tuesday. Jones, who originally...

Tanker explodes on I-465 ramp Indianapolis - A semi tanker has exploded on the southbound ramp from I-69 to I-465. The fire from the vehicle is creating dark plumes of black smoke which can be seen for miles. A second alarm has been requested to the scene. Views from a tower cam show that the billboards are also on fire. The accident is causing large back-ups on I-465. The crash is before the Allisonville Road exit. Injuries are being reported. Witnesses reported hearing loud noises. Witness Danielle Smith was on 465 headed to Keystone at the Crossing. In her rear-view...