Tag Archives: State: Indiana

NWI Times: The Republican leaders controlling the Indiana House and Senate schedules will continue starting legislative session days with a prayer, even as the U.S. Supreme Court reviews the constitutionality of the practice.

Indy Star: Rick Sutton and Micah Clark have opposite views on whether gays and lesbians should be allowed to marry. But both agree that the pending Supreme Court decisions on gay marriage are unlikely to stop the fight in Indiana over a constitutional amendment banning same-sex unions.

Volokh Conspiracy: After this decision, Brewington posted various items online “discussing Judge Humphrey, in which he described the judge as ‘corrupt,’ and accused him of engaging in ‘unethical/illegal behavior.’ He also repeatedly referred to the judge as a child abuser.” Brewington was then prosecuted for, among other things, violating Indiana Code § 35-45-2-1, which (in relevant part) criminalizes as “intimidation” . . .

Religion Clause Blog: In Fishers Adolescent Catholic Enrichment Society, Inc. ["FACES"] v. Bridgewater, (IN Ct. App., May 29, 2013), an Indiana appeals court affirmed most of the decision of an administrative law judge in a suit brought by the Indiana Civil Rights Commission against FACES, a non-profit group created to provide enrichment opportunities for home schooled children.

Ken Klukowski at Breitbart: The Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to take case where a federal appeals court struck down an Indiana law denying Medicaid funds to abortion provider Planned Parenthood.

SCOTUS Live Blog reports: The Indiana Planned Parenthood cases (involving a private right to sue under Medicaid) — 12-1159 and 12-039 — were both denied. The Supreme Court order list is here.

The Star Press: Ball State University is investigating a complaint that one of its assistant professors in the department of physics and astronomy is preaching rather than teaching. The Freedom From Religion Foundation, whose mission is to act as an umbrella for those who are free from religion and are committed to the principle of separation of state and church, filed an objection to Eric Hedin’s teaching.

Patheos: Alliance Defending Freedom senior counsel Gregory S. Baylor, whose organization argued for the constitutionality of the program, defended it on the grounds that “parents should be able to choose what’s best for their own children.” “The ultimate winners in the Indiana Supreme Court’s decision are Indiana families who want to provide the best education for their children, whether it is public or private,” Baylor said March 26.

DFW Catholic: Alliance Defending Freedom senior counsel Gregory S. Baylor, whose organization argued for the constitutionality of the program, defended it on the grounds that “parents should be able to choose what’s best for their own children.” “The ultimate winners in the Indiana Supreme Court’s decision are Indiana families who want to provide the best education for their children, whether it is public or private,” Baylor said March 26.

RTV6.com: A court battle between the state of Indiana and Planned Parenthood could be looming once again. The reproductive services group may sue to block a new state law that threatens to stop abortions at one of its clinics.

LifeNews: The legislature approved Senate Bill 371, a pro-life bill which introduces oversight into the chemical abortion industry by including chemical abortions in the definition of abortion in Indiana law.

National Review: I just learned that today is the national Day of Silence, sponsored by the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN). Angela Batista, dean of students at the University of Southern Indiana, explained in an e-mail to the university’s faculty and staff . . .

LifeNews: A pro-life group in Indiana is celebrating the fact that the state legislature is sending a bill that targets the dangerous RU 486 abortion drug to Governor Mike Pence. Today, Senate Bill 371 . . .

Alan Sears at the Christian Post: The fight to preserve the sanctity of life in America requires tireless prayer, vigilance, and determination – and, more and more, that your Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys take on the formidable legal and political juggernaut that is Planned Parenthood.

Charisma News: “Americans should not be forced to pay for abortions with their hard-earned taxpayer dollars,” said Alliance Defending Freedom senior counsel Steven H. Aden. “Indiana has sought to close the loophole that allows abortionists to obtain those taxpayer dollars. Any state has the freedom to make such determinations according to federal law. We trust the U.S. Supreme Court will ensure that every state retains the freedom to make this determination for its citizens.”

Indian Congressman Marlin Stutzman has issued this press release that includes this: “Regardless of any ruling, referendum, or law, marriage is the union of one man and one woman,” said Stutzman. “Washington cannot redefine marriage any more than it can govern gravity. As the cornerstone of society throughout history, marriage is a unique institution and the safest environment for raising children. My commitment to marriage is matched by my abiding commitment to the civil rights of all individuals—every American must be treated with dignity and respect. However, marriage is neither a civil right nor a political platform . . . ”

The Weekly Standard: The details of a stimulus grant awarded to Indiana University to study condom use have now been released on a government website. The study, titled “Barriers to Correct Condom Use,” is now completed, according to the website, and the university received $423,500 of stimulus funds to perform the study.

LifeNews: The Indiana state House today approved a bill supported by the state’s leading pro-life group to limit the dangerous abortion drug RU 486 and protect women’s health.

Alan Sears at Alliance Defending Freedom: One of the quieter – though equally intense – battles for religious freedom in America is being fought almost daily on behalf of young school children. This week, two cases from two different parts of the country spotlight the obstacles being placed before people of faith, like you, who want nothing more than to select a school that best meets the needs of their children and grandchildren.

Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys filed a friend-of-the-court brief with the U.S. Supreme Court last week on behalf of Americans for Tax Reform and the Susan B. Anthony List in defense of Indiana’s freedom to exclude abortionists from state funding through its Medicaid plan.

PBS: Now the debate over vouchers and school choice is heating up anew in some states — the latest, last week, the Indiana Supreme Court upheld a 2011 state law allowing tax funds to be used for private schools through tuition vouchers.

RTV6: The fight over the bill that would put new restrictions on drug-induced abortions in Indiana continued Monday, as the House argued amendments for the bill, which passed the Senate in February.

Chicago Sun Tribune: The owners of a proposed strip club are suing the city of Angola in federal court alleging their rights were violated when permits were delayed until after a new city ordinance restricting sexually oriented businesses took effect.

Wall Street Journal (via Google): “We find it inconceivable,” the justices wrote, that the framers meant to prohibit government spending from which a religious institution could ultimately benefit. Everything from police protection to city sidewalks benefit religious institutions, but “the primary beneficiary is the public,” and any benefits to religious groups are “ancillary and indirect,” said the ruling. “The direct beneficiaries under the voucher program are the families of eligible students and not the schools selected by the parents for their children to attend.”

AP: The Indiana Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the law creating the nation’s broadest school voucher program, clearing the way for a possible expansion.

JCOnline.com: Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller is the primary author of briefs submitted by states in support of California’s gay marriage ban and of a federal law defining marriage as the union between a man and a woman.

Today, the religious and associational liberty of a ten-family Catholic homeschool group, the Fishers Adolescent Catholic Enrichment Society (FACES), will be at issue in the Indiana Court of Appeals.

AP: A federal judge has refused to dismiss a lawsuit brought by an Indiana woman who says a Catholic diocese fired her from her teaching job because she had in vitro fertilization.

Religion Clause Blog: The Archdiocese attorney says that the court lacks jurisdiction over the case because deciding it would involve civil authorities in church affairs.

News & Tribune: A controversial bill that imposes new state requirements on clinics that offer the abortion pill is likely headed for a constitutional challenge if passed and signed into law, as expected.

Reuters: The Indiana state Senate on Tuesday approved Republican-backed legislation to require women seeking to end pregnancies through use of the so-called abortion pill to have an ultrasound examination.

San Francisco Chronicle: The Indiana Senate has dropped a proposed requirement that doctors must try to perform two ultrasound exams on women who receive drugs to induce abortions.

JCOnline: Cara Putman , an attorney at Bennett Boehning & Clary LLP, has been recognized by The Alliance Defending Freedom for her work in securing rights within Indiana public high schools.

USA Today: Women who want a prescription for an abortion-inducing drug would be required to undergo an ultrasound before and after taking the drug if a bill that an Indiana Senate committee approved Wednesday becomes law.

AP: – An Indiana school district reeling from the uproar over a teacher’s comments that she believes gays have no purpose in life suspended the woman Wednesday.

Courier Press: State lawmakers will wait until next year to vote on whether to put a constitutional same-sex marriage and civil union ban on Indiana’s November 2014 ballot.

Religion Clause Blog: In Ballaban v. Bloomington Jewish Community (IN App., Jan. 17, 2013), a 3-judge Indiana appellate court, with each judge writing a separate opinion, rejected a rabbi’s claim that he had been wrongfully dismissed as congregational rabbi before the end of his 3-year contract.

Education News: An Indiana state senator has introduced a bill that would give the state’s public schools the option to require recitation of the Lord’s Prayer at the beginning of each school day.

San Francisco Chronicle: A northern Indiana hospital has fired eight employees who refused to get flu shots under a new policy intended to protect patients from the potentially deadly illness.

Religion Clause Blog: Yesterday in Grote Industries, LLC v. Sebelius, (SD IN, Dec. 27, 2012), an Indiana federal district court refused to grant a preliminary injunction to a for-profit business that manufactures vehicle safety systems and its Catholic owners who claim that their religious liberty rights are infringed by the contraceptive coverage mandate under the Affordable Care Act.

Religion Clause Blog: In Indiana, state senator Dennis Kruse, chairman of the Senate Education and Career Development Committee, says he will try a new approach now that he failed last session to get legislation to allow the teaching of creationism along with evolution in the public schools.

LifeSiteNews: That means that if 2011 was an average adoption year, Planned Parenthood helped with one adoption for every 2,625 abortions they performed.

Religion Clause Blog: In Center for Inquiry v. Marion Circuit Court, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 170243 (SD IN, Nov. 30, 2012), an Indiana federal district court rejected constitutional challenges to Indiana’s marriage solemnization statute (IN Code 31-11-6-1).  Under the statute, clergy can obtain a license to solemnize marriages, but those certified as “Secular Celebrants” by the non-religious Center for Inquiry cannot.

Religion Clause Blog: In Wagler v. West Boggs Sewer District, Inc., (IN App., Nov. 29, 2012), an Indiana appeals court refused to set aside consent judgments entered into by several members of an Old Order Amish community . . .

Courier Press: A report researched by a group of Indiana University students finds that 614 laws in Indiana provide rights or responsibilities to Hoosiers based on marriage and family, which could make them unavailable to same-sex couples under a proposed constitutional amendment.

AP on One News Now: Indiana Supreme Court justices want to know whether the nation’s largest school voucher program primarily benefits students’ parents or religious institutions.

WIBC.com: The five justices heard roughly 1 1/2 hours of oral arguments on whether the state constitution allows taxpayer money to fund vouchers that pay for religious or other private schools. Chief Justice Brent Dickson gave no indication on when they would rule. “We will attempt to resolve the matter, and we’ll let you know when we do.”

LifeNews: Planned Parenthood has botched another abortion on a woman, this time in Indianapolis, Indiana. After injuring the woman, staffers at the Planned Parenthood abortion clinic attempted to hide the failed abortion from emergency dispatchers.

San Francisco Chronicle: In a frank interview with POLITICO, Cornyn ascribed part of the blame to himself and the GOP campaign committee for dropping the ball in an election that looked promising for the Republican Party at the onset. Ultimately, though, he attributed the losses in winnable states, such as Indiana and Missouri, to weak candidates with limited mainstream appeal.

Indiana Public Media: “In 2011, Justice Steven David ruled that Hoosiers have no right to reasonably resist unlawful entry by police officers into their homes,” a radio ad sponsored by the Indianapolis Tea Party says.

Steven Aden appeared with an ACLU attorney and hosts Bob Zaltsberg & Mary Catherine Carmichael on Indiana Public Media Noon Edition (WFIU) to discuss a recent 7th circuit ruling. | MP3 audio 50:42 mins

Kokomoperspective.com: Marion County voters have less influence than they may think about which judges are chosen for the Marion Superior Court. Today the ACLU of Indiana, on behalf of Common Cause Indiana, filed a lawsuit challenging state law governing that process to ensure voters of every political stripe can cast meaningful votes for all judgeships to be filled in Marion County.

Bloomberg: Abortion has been a campaign issue for decades. Rape is a more recent, and more troubling, point of political discussion. But understanding the connection between the two is essential to evaluating the controversies percolating in Senate races in Missouri and Indiana and what they entail for national politics.

ChristianNews.net: A school district in Wayne, Indiana has banned a local youth pastor from speaking to students about spiritual matters at lunchtime.

Baptist Press: A pro-life lawyer criticized the decision. “The will of Indiana taxpayers to close loopholes so that their money isn’t used to fund the operations of abortion sellers should be respected,” said Steven Aden, senior counsel for the Alliance Defending Freedom, in a written statement. “During these tough economic times, it makes no sense to contradict the will of the people of Indiana, who don’t believe abortionists deserve to receive government funding.”

AP: New Hampshire Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte has cancelled her plan to campaign with Indiana Senate candidate Richard Mourdock, who said that when a woman becomes pregnant during a rape, “that’s something God intended.”

Republicans locked in close races – from Mitt Romney to Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown – on Wednesday disavowed Indiana Senate candidate Richard Mourdock’s comment that when a woman becomes pregnant during a rape, “that’s something God intended.” . . . The Republican hopeful told reporters Wednesday that he meant only that God creates life, and that rape is evil.

LifeNews: After Indiana Senate candidate Richard Mourdock became the subject of national attention for his comments about why he opposes abortion in cases of rape, “Democrats for Life of America” issued an endorsement for his opponent.

“The will of Indiana taxpayers to close loopholes so that their money isn’t used to fund the operations of abortion sellers should be respected. During these tough economic times, it makes no sense to contradict the will of the people of Indiana, who don’t believe abortionists deserve to receive government funding.”

Washington Post (AP): A federal appeals court has ruled that Indiana can’t cut off funding for Planned Parenthood just because the organization provides abortions. | ACLU press release | Planned Parenthood of Indiana v. Indiana Dept. of Health | LifeNews: Appeals Court Says Indiana Can’t De-Fund Planned Parenthood – “Three pro-life legal groups have weighed in on the case— including the American Center for Law and Justice, Alliance Defense Fund and Thomas More Society — and they have said the law is constitutional.”

South Bend Tribune: Indiana lawmakers are talking about rewriting the definition of an abortion clinic to include facilities that perform the procedure surgically and by prescribing a pill, a conflict that arose from a wrinkle in the wording of a state law.

AP: Two national groups are supporting a discrimination lawsuit filed by a former Indiana parochial school teacher who claims she was fired for trying to get pregnant through in vitro fertilization. The American Society for Reproductive Medicine and the American Civil Liberties Union filed friends of the court briefs Monday in support of Emily Herx. Herx filed a federal lawsuit in April against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, claiming she was discriminated against for a disability when her teaching contract wasn’t renewed.

JCOnline.com: The trigger point of this latest fight is the dispensing of the RU-486 abortion pill at the Lafayette office of Planned Parenthood of Indiana. Right to Life supporters claim the facility is not licensed or regulated to perform abortions, and that pregnancies terminated by RU-486 are abortions.

Religion Clause Blog: Before accepting the job, Bewley, a Christian, had told the company that he needed to attend church at least every other Sunday. Subsequently however the company insisted that he work on consecutive Sundays. Under the consent decree, Magnetics will pay $30,000 in damages . . .

The Hill: Two polls released Thursday reveal a tight race for the Senate in Indiana, with Democratic Rep. Joe Donnelly and Republican State Treasurer Richard Mourdock essentially polling neck and neck.

Christian Post: Officials in Dugger, Ind., have decided against heading to court to challenge a claim from the Washington, D.C.-based Americans United for Separation of Church and State that a 26-foot cross reading “Jesus Saves” situated on public land is a violation of the Constitution, as it appears to endorse Christianity. Instead, the town will sell the property.

Heritage Foundation: At a Tea Party gathering last month, Indiana Schools Superintendent Tony Bennett expressed his concern with the growing federal overreach of Common Core education standards. “This administration has an insatiable appetite for federal overreach,” he said. “The federal government’s involvement in these standards is wrong.”

Pharos Tribune: The Indiana legislature appears to be marching toward a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, but a coalition of business leaders, healthcare providers and social organizations are hoping to convince lawmakers they’re out of step with public sentiment.

Steve Aden appears just after the 9 minute mark on World Magazine Radio July 14th edition.

IndyStar.com: But it’s just a little farther down Route 54 — right there behind the right field fence at the Union High School Bulldogs’ baseball field — where you find the most visible display of faith in town and the sudden source of more than a little angst. It’s a cross — 26 feet tall, white with red lettering, all caps in a serif font. Those letters spell out “Jesus saves.”

Some may wonder why the Indiana Chamber of Commerce would want to see marriage unraveled and destabilized in Indiana when strong marriages are such a key part of adult health, stable employment, successful schools, lower crime and a benefit to society in general.

LifeNews: Three pro-life legal groups have weighed in on the case— including the American Center for Law and Justice, Alliance Defense Fund and Thomas More Society — and they have said the law is constitutional.

Care2.com: A year ago, the state of Indiana attempted to block Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood because the organization offered abortions as a service. A federal hearing officer opposed this logic stating that such a law would deny women the right to choose their health care provider under Medicaid.

Washington Times: Indiana Democratic Rep. Andre Carson claimed in late May that America’s schools should be modeled after Islamic madrassas in video that recently surfaced.

Madison Courier: Joshua “Josh” Hershberger of the Madison firm Castor & Hershberger, P.C., was recently recognized by the Alliance Defense Fund, a national legal alliance dedicated to defending the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.