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Court Reverses Suspect’s Felony Conviction of Firearm
State Court Reverses Suspect’s Felony Conviction of Firearm
OCTOBER 3RD, 2018 
MITCH ANGLE EVANSVILLE, INDIANA
Following a jury trial, a man convicted of unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon has had his conviction reversed.
Police say Jimmy Joe Small was arrested after they received a tip that Small was in possession of a firearm in a motel. Evansville Police Department’s drug task force conducted a “knock and talk†on Small’s motel room where they found drug paraphernalia and a fireman on a bedside table.
Small was arrested and the State charged him with unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon, a Level 4 felony, two counts of possession of methamphetamine, a Level 5 felony and a Level 6 felony, maintaining a common nuisance, a Level 5 felony, and unlawful possession of a syringe, a Level 6 felony.
In a pretrial hearing, Small moved for a speedy trial which the Vanderburgh Circuit Court granted. However, six days before the trial was set to begin, the state moved for a continuance under Criminal Rule 4(D), arguing it could not proceed due to necessary forensic testing that had not been completed.
The state claimed in its motion that court staff “inexplicably†never received the judge’s order for Small’s DNA standards, which were necessary to conduct testing of DNA swabbed from the firearm. A magistrate later attributed the oversight to “a glitch in the Odyssey system,†prompting the court to grant the continuance over Small’s objection.
The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed his Level 4 felony conviction on Tuesday after finding the state failed to demonstrate its reasonable efforts to procure evidence.
Eagles cut down the Oaks, 8-0
The University of Southern Indiana women’s soccer team got back on track with a dominating 8-0 victory over Oakland City University Tuesday evening at Strassweg Field. USI goes to 5-4-2 overall, while Oakland City falls to 3-5-0 in 2018.
The Screaming Eagles got the offense started early when freshman midfielder Rachel Gray (Franklin, Tennessee) scored at 7:08 to put USI up 1-0. Gray posted her second goal of the season off an assist by freshman forward Katlyn Andres (Louisville, Kentucky).
USI increased the lead to 2-0 when junior defender Loryn Willis (Cynthiana, Indiana) recorded her first goal of the season at 10:53. Willis found the back of the net off an assist by sophomore forward Maggie Winter (St. Louis, Missouri).
Winter finished the first half scoring for the Eagles when she picked up her second goal of the season at 15:56. She slid the ball into the goal with the help of sophomore forward Taylor McCormick (Rapid City, South Dakota). USI would hold the 3-0 lead through the intermission.
In the second half, the Eagles quickly increased the lead to 4-0 when Winter defected a shot by McCormick in for her second tally of the match at 51:56. Gray made the score 5-0 five minutes later when she intercepted an Oakland City attempt to clear the ball, rocketing the ball into the top right corner at 56:08.
Winter would add her third of the match and fourth of the season at 63:26 when she partnered with Gray to make the score 6-0. USI junior forward Emilie Blomenkamp (Smithton, Illinois) and freshman midfielder Kelsey Kandil (Richmond, Kentucky) finished the goal production for USI with tallies at 65:31 and 74:57, respectively, for the 8-0 final.
Blomenkamp was assisted on her third goal of the year by sophomore midfielder Sunny Lehman(Evansville, Indiana), while Kandil posted her first goal as an Eagle off a corner kick by junior midfielder Caroline Canoy (St. Peters, Missouri).
Between the posts, USI sophomore goalkeeper Skylar Brant (Plymouth, Michigan) posted a win and a shutout in her first collegiate start. The USI defense helped out Brant by not allowing a shot in the 90 minutes.
The Eagles (3-2-1 GLVC) return to the road and the Great Lakes Valley Conference schedule Friday when they visit Quincy University for a 5 p.m. match-up. Quincy went to 5-4-1 overall and 3-2-1 in the league after falling on the road to Bellarmine University, 2-1, and tying the University of Indianapolis, 0-0 in double overtime, last weekend
Quincy leads USI all-time, 15-6-1, since the series began in 1997. The Hawks also have the advantage in the last five match-ups, winning all five. USI hopes to snap a winless streak versus Hawks that dates back to 2011 when the Eagles won in overtime, 1-0, at Strassweg Field.
“READERS FORUM” OCTOBER 3, 2018
We hope that today’s “READERS FORUMâ€Â will provoke honest and open dialogue concerning issues that we, as responsible citizens of this community, need to address in a rational and responsible way? WHATS ON YOUR MIND TODAY?Â
WHATS ON YOUR MIND TODAY?
Todays“Readers Poll†question is: Do you feel that Judge Brett Kavanaugh FBI investigation will clear him of any wrongdoing?
If you would like to advertise on the CCO please contact us City-CountyObserver@live.com
Commission Recommends Local Vote On Alcohol Permits
Commission Recommends Local Vote On Alcohol Permits
By James Polston
TheStatehouseFile.com
INDIANAPOLIS — A commission reviewing the state’s alcohol laws recommended Friday that legislatures give communities a voice on how many alcohol permits would be allowed in some areas.
The Alcohol Code Revision Commission voted on the final recommendations for lawmakers to consider in the 2019 legislative session after a two-year process of reviewing the state’s current alcohol laws. The commission’s mandate expires Nov. 1.
Commission members recommended allowing local communities to put a question on the ballot about whether the number of alcohol permits should be increased in a designated entertainment district.
State Rep. Ben Smaltz, R-Auburn, discusses revisions to Indiana alcohol laws with members of the Alcohol Code Revision Commission at the last meeting. Photo by Eddie Drews, TheStatehouseFile.com
State Rep. Ben Smaltz, R-Auburn, said the commission gives lawmakers in the 2019 legislative session a sense of issues and a direction to follow.
“We really need to have a path, a direction, on which way to go with these issues,†Smaltz said.
The commission also voted to recommend a change to the current escrow system where individuals and businesses are allowed to acquire an alcohol permit and then place it in escrow, or reserve, Â until it has been activated.
Permits to sell alcohol are allocated according to population. If too many are held in escrow, that limits the number of places permitted to sell alcohol in a community.
The commission suggested that legislators revise the current escrow law to 36 months—if a company or individual does not put the permit to use after 24 months, the fee for the third year could increase by up to 50 percent.
Smaltz noted permits can be held in escrow for up to seven years without an increase in fee or penalty, although the current code states that it is suppose to be up to five years.
“My concern is that the current escrow system is fraught with flexibility,†Smaltz said. “That is, in my opinion, being taken advantage of.â€
Lawmakers have acted on recommendations from the commission in past legislative sessions. Last year, members recommended the state approve Sunday alcohol sales, which ended up becoming law in the 2018 session.
But there was one issue the final report did not mention—cold beer sales. The issue became controversial in 2016 when a convenience store owner found a loophole in the law that allowed him to sell cold beer under a restaurant permit.
Only licensed package liquor stores are permitted to sell cold beer, which makes Indiana the only state in the nation to ban such sales in convenience stores.
The commission also recommended various changes to permit laws, population brackets, funding and violations.
James Polston is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.
Grocery Study To Be Conducted in Jacobsville
Grocery Study To Be Conducted in Jacobsville
OCTOBER 2ND, 2018 MEGAN DIVENTI EVANSVILLE, INDIANA
Jacobsville has not had a nearby grocery store since January making it a food desert. Now, Evansville City Leaders are working to re-establish a food source for the neighborhood.
“Convenience. Convenience. That sums it all up,†says Jerry Bergner, Jacobsville resident.
Right off North Main Street sits an empty grocery store. To some in the neighborhood, the store was their only source for food.
“Like say I’m in the middle of a meal and I need something and I can skip right over and get it,†says Bergner. “You know, to continue cooking.â€
For Bergner, the former IGA grocery store was where he shopped.
Now, the Evansville Redevelopment Commission approved $5,500 towards a grocery study in Jacobsville.
“The study that we’re paying for will look at the potential revenue and profit from fuel that could be gleaned from opening gas pumps at that location,†says Kelley Coures, Evansville’s Director of Metropolitan Development.
Fuel and a fast food restaurant could potentially be included as part of the business model to make it more of a full-service stop for commuters and residents. Houchens Industries has operated the IGA store there for years and holds the property lease until the end of 2019.
“Houchens has not made a commitment yet to reopen so it just gets us one more step down the road in trying to work out the reopening of that place,†says Course.
Community residents say that not having a grocery store affects their daily lives.
“It takes me over an hour to get there and back,†says Bergner. “If I need something in a hurry, I’m out of luck.â€
City leaders say as of now there aren’t enough people who walk to the grocery store to make it profitable but not having a grocery store where people need to walk makes it difficult.
Bergner agrees.
“A whole lot of people would be happy if another grocery store did come in,†says Bergner. “I mean, I’ve talked to a lot of people around the neighborhood and everybody misses it.â€
A similar model of a grocery store, fuel, and fast food service is located at Green River and Heckle Road. The study should be completed by November.
McCormick Not Seeking Re-Election In 2020
McCormick Not Seeking Re-Election In 2020
By James Polston
TheStatehouseFile.com
INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction Dr. Jennifer McCormick said she will not seek re-election in 2020.
While McCormick declared that student learning, school improvement and operational effectiveness will be her office’s priorities in 2019, it was her surprise announcement that dominated Monday’s media availability.
“I still have a passion for kids. My team has a passion for kids. We can get things done for kids,†McCormick said. “But when the governance structure is becoming a problem for kids, that’s not why I intended to get into office.â€
One source of McCormick’s frustration is the 2017 decision to make the state superintendent an appointed position rather than an elected one starting in 2025.
She said some are talking about moving that up to 2021, and the constant discussion on the topic is causing concern among educators and distracting her from helping students.
“As a parent, I would not be happy if my state superintendent were spending time on noise, and that’s simply what this has become,†McCormick said. “For that conversation to keep coming up and suck all of our energies out, to me, I’m growing very weary of that. The best way I can help shut that down is to let people know I’m not running again.â€
McCormick said she hopes there are fewer distractions now that she has gone public with her plans for 2020.
“A second term is not on my radar,†she said. “So I would hope that those who continue to keep the noise going for their sake of political reasons would tone things down.â€
The state superintendent also said the public deserves a voice in public education.
“If it’s not in my office, it should at least be looked at from the state board or other ends where citizens have a voice in public education,†McCormick said.
The State Board of Education is also appointed.
While McCormick said her family knew of her decision to not seek re-election, she didn’t speak with Gov. Eric Holcomb until after her announcement.
Holcomb’s office released a statement following the meeting that was a mix of both praise for her service and uncertainty about the superintendent’s remaining time in office.
“I reminded her that we have more time left in this term than we’ve been here, and there’s still plenty to be accomplished. Dr. McCormick has given me a lot to digest as I dig into her legislative priorities,†Holcomb said in the statement. “I thanked her and told her today I appreciate and respect her lifetime devotion to children and education, and that we’ll take the steps necessary to ensure Indiana has the best team working together to provide the highest quality education for children.â€
McCormick said she will continue to focus on her agenda even though the next two years will be her last at the Indiana Department of Education.
“We got a lot of work to do, and I promise you we are going to get a lot of impressive work done.â€
FOOTNOTE: James Polston is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.