Memorial Day weekend traditionally starts off the summer travel season, and this season is shaping up to be the busiest in years. With race weekend coming up here in Indiana, Lieutenant Tony Delello, Commander of the Pendleton State Police Post, would like to remind all motorists that there will be extra troopers on the roadways this upcoming holiday weekend.  Troopers will be working federally funded overtime during the “Click it or Ticket” Campaign and Operation CARE, or Combined Accident Reduction Effort, to help insure safe family travel.

The “AAA” Motor Club suggests leaving early if planning to travel this holiday weekend, as they are predicting that 39.3 million Americans will be traveling. The increase is expected to be the highest volume for holiday travel since 2005.

With the expected increase in traffic, it’s important that motorists follow the safety tips below:

·   Obey all speed limits and always use your turn signals.

·   Never drink and drive-If celebrating make sure to have a designated driver.

·   Make sure everyone is buckled up and children are properly restrained in child seats.

·   Always watch for and expect slowed or stopped traffic ahead, especially when approaching construction zones.

·   When stopped in traffic be watchful of traffic approaching from behind and be ready to take evasive action if it appears traffic is approaching too fast to stop.

·   If you’re planning to travel a long distance, make sure you are well rested.   A fatigued driver is as dangerous as an impaired driver.

·   Avoid tailgating.  Remember the two-second rule, and always increase following distance in construction zones.

·   Leave early, expecting heavy traffic, and give yourself extra time to reach your destination.

·   Remember to ALWAYS SLOW DOWN AND MOVE OVER for emergency, utility and highway service vehicles.

The Pendleton District covers the eight counties of Delaware, Madison, and Randolph; Henry, Wayne, Union, Rush and Fayette counties.  Motorists are encouraged to report suspected impaired drivers by calling 9-1-1. Give a vehicle description, location, and direction of travel. Never follow an impaired driver.

For summer travel safety tips please visit http://www.in.gov/isp/2968.htm

PUBLIC LAW MONITOR BY JOSHUA CLAYBOURN -ATTY WITH JACKSON-KELLY LAW FIRM

Bloomington challenges constitutionality of state law On Wednesday the City of Bloomington filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of legislation passed by the Indiana General Assembly purporting to terminate Bloomington’s annexation efforts and prohibit further annexation activities until 2022. The provision was dropped into the state budget bill just hours before the end of the legislative session. The language was designed to affect only Bloomington and the annexation effort underway there. The lawsuit, which names Governor Holcomb as the defendant, claims the legislation is unconstitutional for two reasons. First, it targets Bloomington and only Bloomington. Article IV, Section 23 of Indiana’s Constitution prohibits so-called “special legislation” that singles out individual communities for regulation. Second, the provision was inserted into the state’s budget bill, which addresses state funding and administration. Article IV, Section 19 of Indiana’s Constitution requires that legislation cover a single subject, while the provision on one community’s annexation is unrelated to state funding or administration. The City is seeking a declaratory judgment on the constitutionality of the legislation and an injunction against enforcement.

2017 Municipal Legislation Update With the conclusion of the 2017 Indiana legislative session, Jackson Kelly PLLC has compiled a comprehensive summary of enacted legislation impacting municipalities. Email jclaybourn@jacksonkelly.com for a copy of the summary.

In defense of Hoosier home rule The Indianapolis Star, Evansville Courier & Press, and several other Indiana publications carried an op-ed by me recently relating to Indiana’s home rule principle. Indiana’s Home Rule Act first passed in 1980 and generally grants municipalities the power to govern themselves as they see fit. Now state legislation places those ideals under greater attack than at any time since Hoosier home rule began. Click here to read the op-ed in full.

Commissioners withdraw proposed Vigo County jail site Residents of Terre Haute recently faced the possibility of a new county jail on prime riverfront property mere feet from parks and a children’s aquatic center. Jackson Kelly PLLC represented residents opposed to the proposed location. County Commissioners subsequently stopped the proposed rezoning and variance, helping preserve the riverfront for superior economic development opportunities. Click here for more from the Trib Star.

Joshua Claybourn Joshua is Counsel in Jackson Kelly’s Evansville office. He advises clients in matters of business and corporate law, governmental services, and public finance. Learn more here.

Purple Aces and Screaming Help In Local Community 

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – In a true effort to help the local community, the men’s soccer teams from the University of Evansville and the University of Southern Indiana teamed up to donate over $2,000 to the YMCA of Southwestern Indiana.

The Mayor’s Cup match, which featured the Purple Aces and Screaming Eagles taking to the field at Arad McCutchan Stadium on April 18, saw all proceeds directly benefit the YMCA.  ProRehab and Tri-State Orthopaedics also assisted to put on the event.

“Our program is very proud to work with Coach Santoro and USI men’s soccer to help support the YMCA and their outreach programs,” Aces head men’s soccer coach Marshall Ray said.  “A special thanks go out to to Mayor Winnecke for attending the match and all of his and his staff’s efforts to help promote the event.  We look forward to the continued growth of the Mayor’s cup and hope our community with join us again next April.”

Ray, along with USI head coach Mat Santoro, presented a check for $2,163 to the YMCA earlier this week.  The money will help in after school soccer programs throughout the city of Evansville.

Both teams are representing their city in impressive fashion.  UE is coming off of the second-largest turnaround in program history in the fall of 2016 while USI went 13-4-4 and played in the NCAA Division II Tournament.

Former Indiana Justices Reunite For Event Saluting Rucker

Olivia Covington for www.theindianalawyer.com

Members of Indiana’s legal community who have worked with now-retired Indiana Supreme Court Justice Robert Rucker gathered in Indianapolis Wednesday to celebrate the impact the long-time jurist had on the practice of law in Indiana during his quarter-century career on the appellate bench.

At Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law’s “Salute to Justice Robert D. Rucker’s Contributions to Indiana Law” event, the Wynne Courtroom was nearly packed with attorneys, judges and numerous Supreme Court justices who came together to share their thoughts on some of Rucker’s most well-known decisions during his collective 26 years on the Indiana Court of Appeals and Supreme Court.  Panel discussions on Rucker’s contributions to both criminal and civil law featured former clerks who worked either directly for the former justice, or for another justice who sat on the bench with Rucker.

The first panel on Rucker’s criminal law jurisprudence, led by Joel Schumm, an IU McKinney professor and former clerk to former Justice Theodore Boehm, featured comments from former Rucker clerks Hattie Harman, Leanna Weissmann and Deputy Attorney General Ellen Meilaender. The criminal law panel discussed what they viewed as Rucker’s most significant criminal opinions, including the case of Anglemyer v. State, 868 N.E.2d 482, 490-91 (Ind. 2007), which Meilander said has been cited roughly 7,100 times in its less than 10 years of existence, while also considering Rucker’s approach to more general legal issues, such as stare decisis.

On that issue, Weissmann pointed to Rucker’s majority opinion in the case of In Re Adoption of O.R., 16 N.E.3d 965 (2014), which she argued before the high court. The Indiana Court of Appeals had dismissed a biological parent’s appeal of an order granting a third-party adoption petition of the parent’s child, finding the untimely notice of appeal meant the appellate court lacked jurisdiction to hear the case. But Rucker’s opinion held an untimely notice of appeal is not a jurisdictional bar to appellate review, a decision allowing appellate courts to reach such cases on their merits.

That decision demonstrated Rucker’s willingness to follow stare decisis until individual constitutional rights were called into question, Weissmann said, and further showed how he considered the experience of the “everyday man” when deciding cases.

Then, a panel consisting of former Rucker clerks Abigail Rom, Tony Walker and Dino Pollock and former Justice Frank Sullivan clerk Bryan Babb discussed Rucker’s contribution to civil law jurisprudence, touching on cases such as the recently decided Goodwin, et al. v. Yeakle’s Sports Bar and Grill, Inc.

Aside from Rucker’s professional work, the clerks also reminisced on their personal relationships with their former boss. Harman, for example, recalled an instance in which Rucker played chess with her young son and encouraged him to keep playing even when he thought he could not win. And Walker, who, like Rucker, is a black legal professional, praised the retired justice for his efforts toward championing diversity and inclusion across the legal field.

But the highlight of McKinney’s event was a “conference reunion” consisting of Rucker, former Chief Justices Randall Shepard and Brent Dickson, Sullivan and Boehm. With Shepard as their chief, those five justices served together for 11 years, the longest period of stability in the high court’s history.

Rucker, who was the most-junior justice on that court, spoke first during the reunion, keeping with a tradition that the newest justice must always vote first during court conferences. Despite 11 years of holding that position, Sullivan noted Rucker never once asked for a pass on having to speak first due to a lack of preparation.

Though the “conference” discussion focused largely on the court’s memories of their time together, the former justices also discussed legal issues such as the state constitution, an area of law in which Rucker said Shepard was the leader, and summary judgment. The discussion of summary judgment led to a lively debate among the jurists about when it is appropriate, with Rucker saying his default position is to let juries decide cases and with Boehm advocating for forgoing a trial if plaintiffs cannot prove they could succeed.

The summary judgment debate was reminiscent of the actual conference debates the five justices had during their time together, they said, and they noted even after hours of conversation and disagreement, they could still leave each other with their friendships intact. The members of that court were always willing to listen to outside viewpoints, Dickson said, the trait of their court he said he admired the most.