Free Republic

CARMEL, Ind. – Allegion Americas announced Monday that it plans to expand its regional headquarters in Carmel, adding 125 new high paying jobs. The company says those jobs will be created by 2020 and the salaries will average $83,000. Allegion produces around-the-doorway security products for residential and commercial markets to provide safety at the places where people live and work. The expansion comes after the purchase of a building on the southeast corner of Pennsylvania Street and College Drive, which is just south of the company’s current offices, where over 500 employees currently work. Allegion is also planning a capital...

American LandMaster, a manufacturer, designer and distributor of off-road utility vehicles, will invest more than $4 million with an expansion that could create nearly 70 jobs in Columbia City within three years. The Indiana Economic Development Corp. said in a news release Friday the company will lease and equip a 112,000-square-foot space at 2499 S. County Road 600 East near U.S. 30. The new location will become the company’s headquarters and accommodate the consolidation of American LandMaster’s manufacturing operations in Roseland, Louisiana, and Fort Wayne. Founded in 1959, American LandMaster has built and distributed more than 1 million American-made utility...

A man has been charged with fatally shooting a Marine in the drive-thru of a McDonald's in Bedford, Indiana, according to police and NBC affiliate WTHR. Justin Lampkins, 25, was in a truck with his friends in line at the fast food restaurant early Saturday morning about 1:19 a.m., police say. The Marine Corps veteran was involved in a fight after “a horn was sounded” in the line and Evan Schaffer,22, got out of his car and punched Lampkins, WTHR reports. Police say it's unclear who honked the horn.

GREENFIELD — A Chinese auto-parts manufacturer plans to build in Hancock County, bringing about 441 new jobs by 2021. BeijingWest Industries Co., which designs and builds brake and suspension systems, announced plans Wednesday to construct its first production facility in the United States in Greenfield’s Progress Park, closing a deal that’s been in the works for more than six months and marks one of the largest developments — in terms of jobs and investment — the city has seen in recent years. The facility, roughly 275,00 square feet, will be among the largestmanufacturing facilities in Greenfield. The company will invest...

A spill at a U.S. Steel plant in northern Indiana that sent wastewater containing a potentially carcinogenic chemical into a Lake Michigan tributary was apparently caused by a pipe failure, the steelmaker said Wednesday. Tuesday’s spill of an unknown amount of wastewater led to the closure of two beach areas at the scenic Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore and prompted a local water utility to stop drawing water from the lake out of “an abundance of caution,” the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said. U.S. Steel said a preliminary investigation shows an expansion joint failed Tuesday in a pipe at its Portage,...

Convicted wife-killer Drew Peterson reportedly was jumped by another inmate at an Indiana prison -- only about a month after the Illinois ex-cop moved to the new facility for security. The inmate, who was not identified, attacked Peterson with a food tray on March 29 in a dining area of the maximum-security federal facility in Terre Haute, a source told The Chicago Tribune. Peterson wasn’t seriously hurt and was separated from the prison's general population afterwards.

For some, the possibility of tolls on Interstate 70 across Indiana is going over like a flat tire. But Republican lawmakers who control the legislature say they could help fund new driving lanes and only those who use the road would pay for them. “I think it’s totally unfair,” said Judy Anderson, president of the Vigo County Board of Commissioners. “I don’t think we would be supportive at all.” Pending legislation would let the governor place toll lanes on interstates and bridges, subject to federal approval. Many Vigo County residents commute to jobs in Indianapolis and a large number of...

When you're driving, there's a good chance you've seen someone on the phone, and maybe you've even been that person. Fifty-seven percent of American drivers admit to being on their phone while driving. Indiana Toll Road construction for the 80/90 Push project is just about halfway done. They expect to be finished July fourth, but in order to do that, they need workers to stay safe. So they're trying to cut down on those numbers. It really is difficult to put a dent in those numbers because we're all on-the-go. On top of that, you probably haven't met anyone who...

LAFAYETTE, Ind. (Jiji Press) — Major Japanese automaker Subaru Corp. said Monday that it plans to hire up to 600 people at a factory in Indiana. The company will create the jobs in line with its plan to boost the factory’s annual production capacity from 394,000 units at present to 436,000 units in the summer of 2018, officials said. Indiana is the home state of U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, who once served as governor of the U.S. Midwestern state. As a good corporate citizen, Subaru hopes to contribute to the local economy in terms of employment, according to Subaru...

GARY — About 50 people gathered at the entrance to the Gary-Chicago International Airport Friday to protest the use of the airport to carry out the deportation policies implemented by the Trump administration. Frigid winds whipped banners and signs bearing the simple words "No Wall," "No Ban," "No Deportation" and "Resist." Other signs touted the need for job creation, not deportation. The protest was held at the airport, which organizers said is where people arrested as illegal immigrants are brought in buses from Northwest Indiana and the Chicago area by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office to be deported....

Good economic news just keeps on coming for New Haven in the form of a $12 million, 77-job expansion by Continental Diamond Tool Corp. According to an application for tax incentives to be considered next week by New Haven City Council, the maker of cutting and grinding products will build and equip a new 112,000-square-foot manufacturing facility at 10801 Rose Ave. The company's current facility, the application states, needs repair and "is roughly 25 years old . . . (we will) lease it to another manufacturer to whom the building is suitable (and) we will be building a new, state-of-the-art...

A third Senate Democrat has announced his intention to vote for Judge Neil Gorsuch, President Trump's Supreme Court nominee. "After meeting with Judge Gorsuch, conducting a thorough review of his record, and closely following his hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, I believe that he is a qualified jurist who will base his decisions on his understanding of the law and is well-respected among his peers," Indiana Sen. Joe Donnelly said in a statement. Donnelly joins Democratic colleagues Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, who both pledged last month to vote to confirm Gorsuch,...

MUNCIE, Ind. (WISH) — One man is facing charges after he struck an officer for attempting to restrain him following a commotion in Muncie. It happened just before 2 p.m. Saturday inside a Goodwill store when officers were responding to a call for a fight. Upon arrival, officials found 24-year-old Khalid Bilal confronting store employees. According to reports, Bilal then went on to break an officer’s hand after an attempt to place Bilal into custody. Bilal was later tased after charging another officer that arrived on scene. After the tasing, the officer was eventually able to corral Bilal into handcuffs....

An Elkhart-based manufacturer is expanding its presence in New Haven. Lippert Components Manufacturing Inc. will invest more than $15 million to build a 300,000-square-foot factory at Edgerton and Ryan roads, according to a filing with Allen County's Department of Planning Services. The company will move in about $4 million in equipment, retain 185 jobs and add 140 positions paying $15 an hour on average, according to the filing. Plans call for vacating Lippert's facility on Nelson Road as operations are consolidated. The company makes seating for pontoon boats. For more on this story, see Saturday's print edition of The Journal...

A Mexican man who entered the United States illegally almost 20 years ago is set to be deported on Friday, amid an uptick in detentions by immigration agents emboldened by President Donald Trump — whom the man’s own wife voted for. Roberto Beristain, 43, has been in the custody of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers since he was detained on Feb. 6 in Indianapolis, department spokeswoman Leticia Zamarripa told BuzzFeed News. The Mexican national, who owns a steak restaurant in the Indiana town of Granger, arrived in the country in 1998 before being detained two years later and...

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The winning Powerball numbers have been drawn for the jackpot that’s climbed above $400 million for the first time in nearly three months. The numbers are 10-13-28-52-61 and Powerball 2. The game’s website says one winning ticket was sold in Indiana. The Hoosier Lottery confirmed Thursday morning that the ticket was sold in Lafayette.

Arizona-based tech firm Levementum LLC, which opened an Indianapolis office less than a year ago, announced expansion plans Wednesday that include creating as many as 175 jobs in Indiana over the next five years. The customer-relationship management consultancy, which has 11 Indiana employees, plans to move in March to a 5,000-square-foot office space in The Union 525 building at 525 S. Meridian St. in downtown Indianapolis. The company has been housed in co-working spaces in Fountain Square and Fletcher Place with some employees working remotely. Indiana economic development officials said the company plans to hire consultants, developers and strategic account...

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials tried to hack Indiana’s state electoral system with at least 14,800 “scans” or hits between Nov. 1, 2016, to Dec. 16, 2016, The Daily Caller News Foundation Investigative Group has learned. The attacks are the second confirmed IT scanning assault by DHS officials against states that resisted then-President Barack Obama’s attempt to increase federal involvement in state and local election systems by designating them as “critical infrastructure” for national security. Members of the National Association of Secretaries of State voted Saturday at their winter meeting to oppose the designation. They are asking President Donald...

By all accounts David Kriehn, of Noblesville, Indiana was a good person. He was a gentle and caring man. “A good person,” Harry Straut told television station WTHR. “They guy you liked to hang out with as well as work with.” Mr. Kriehn was a former missionary – who managed Famous Dave’s, a popular barbecue joint near Indianapolis. “Dave was an inspirational leader,” Straut told the television station.” He was the kind of leader who put others ahead of himself – a great American. On Feb. 12th Mr. Kriehn was driving home from work in the wee hours of the...

DELPHI, Ind. (WLFI) — Indiana State Police have a large presence at a home in Delphi serving a search warrant. Sgt. Kim Riley tells News 18 state police are serving a search warrant at a home on the 11000 block of Bicycle Bridge Road in Delphi. Riley said police are taking tips and information related to the double-homicide case, and this investigation is related to leads they received through that case. No arrests have yet been made. A News 18 crew at the scene reports a majority of investigators left the scene just before 8 p.m. A few investigators still...