Local News

The Portage Police Department recently congratulated Lieutenant Troy Williams on his retirement from the Portage Police Department. Williams began his career with PPD on Dec. 30, 1996.  Over the next twenty-six years Williams served as a patrol supervisor, field training officer, SWAT team member, state certified instructor in less than lethal devices, drug task force officer, school resource officer, and was chief of police from 2012 through 2019. During Williams’ career he earned thirteen letters of commendation, one Exceptional Service Award, was awarded the National School Safety Award, and was elected as the Portage Police Department’s Officer of the Year

The La Porte Police Department are seeking the public’s assistance in a robbery that occurred Thursday evening at the Lincolnway Mini-Mart, located at 205 Lincolnway. The La Porte Police department stated the following: “After further investigation, it is believed that four male suspects are involved, and have also been caught on multiple surveillance cameras. “At approximately 7:16 p.m., a white male can be seen entering the store with a green Carhart sweatshirt on, while having the hood up with it tightened around his face. He is then seen purchasing a drink and is shown leaving the mini-mart moments later. “At

Portage Police are seeking the public’s assistance in identifying two people that passed counterfeit money at a local business Wednesday at approximately 7:00 p.m. If you can identify them, police ask you to contact Detective Dandurand at 219- 764-5705 or message the Portage Police Department on Facebook. Check the Portage Police Department Facebook page for updates.

A sanitation worker at the Portage Streets and Sanitation department was honored earlier this week for a heroic act, the City of Portage stated on its Facebook page. John Thurman was honored Tuesday night by Portage Fire Department Chief Randy Wilkening and presented with the department's Community Life Saving Award. Thurman, who is a 14-year employee of the department, was on his sanitation route Jan. 31 when he saw smoke coming from a structure. He stopped and heard a voice calling for help. He rushed to the door and saw an elderly man inside. Thurman pulled the man to safety

A new documentary film, The Working Hungry, will be shown on Thursday, March 30 at 9:00 a.m. in the Michigan City High School Auditorium and will be followed by a discussion about food insecurity and hunger in our community and Indiana. The Working Hungry is a 30-minute film built around the stories of three families and through them, the stories of more than 700,000 people across the state of Indiana. Most of these are working families, and their hunger is hidden from those around them. The compelling documentary asks why, in a time of low unemployment and food abundance, is

On behalf of the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD), DLZ announced that a public meeting for the South Shore Line Airport Realignment project is scheduled for April 5th, 2023, at Dickinson Intermediate Fine Arts Academy in South Bend, Indiana, located at 4404 Elwood Ave, South Bend, IN 46628. The meeting is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. EST and will end promptly at 8 p.m. EST. This project aims to provide a quicker, safer, and more efficient route for commuters to travel between South Bend and Chicago. The South Shore Line station will be moved from the South Bend

GARY, Ind. – A 6-year-old girl died in a crash that occurred early Wednesday on Interstate 80/94. At around 1:30 a.m., troopers were dispatched to a crash with occupant entrapment on the eastbound lanes of I-80/94 at the 7.5 mile-marker.  This is approximately 1.5 miles east of Burr Street.  Preliminary investigation showed that a 2016 Nissan Altima was stopped in the right lane.  A 2014 Volvo semi pulling a loaded trailer was traveling in the right lane. The truck rear-ended the Nissan “causing catastrophic damage.” The Nissan was occupied by two adults and three children.  None of the three children

An investigation into gunshots being fired is ongoing in La Porte. On Feb. 24 at around 11:48 p.m., officers were dispatched to the area of Toronado Drive and Mustang Drive in reference to a shots fired call. Responding officers found three spent round casings laying near the intersection of Toronado and Mustang. Responding officers were able to retrieve video surveillance from a nearby residence. The video surveillance showed a vehicle driving through the intersection when shots being fired could be heard. Due to the video surveillance’s quality, officers were unable to determine characteristics of the vehicle. The vehicle left the

Board-certified endocrinologist and internal medicine doctor Fatima Kazi, MD, is now part of the Franciscan Physician Network and is accepting new patients in Munster. Dr. Kazi completed her training at Aga Khan University in Karachi, Pakistan. She completed her residency in internal medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago and Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Ill. Dr. Kazi’s fellowship training was in endocrinology, diabetes and metabolism at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, Ill. Her clinical interests are thyroid disease, osteoporosis and bone metabolism, diabetes and pituitary disease. Dr. Kazi is accepting new patients at Franciscan Physician

La Porte, IN – On Tuesday, March 7th, the La Porte Economic Advancement Partnership (LEAP) Young Professionals Committee (LPYP) held a panel discussion comprised of Mayor Tom Dermody, City Council Pro Tempore Tim Franke, and City Councilwoman Julie West. Dubbed the “LPYP Mayor’s Council”, the panel discussion brought together a showing of local young professionals, high school students, and elected officials. The goal of the event was to allow and encourage young professionals and students to interact with city leaders by asking questions, suggesting improvements, and providing feedback on the direction of the City of La Porte. “For a community

Crews in Portage are repairing a sanitary sewer line on Fiesta Avenue between Fiesta Court and Marabella Avenue. The City of Portage says to expect slow traffic through Friday, March 10, weather pending. The city is asking the public to drive with caution in the area.  

MICHIGAN CITY, Ind. – Three men have been arrested in connection to an armed robbery that happened last month, the Michigan City Police Department announced Tuesday. An officer was patrolling the Eastport area of the city during the early morning hours of Feb. 21 when he heard someone yelling for help. He soon came into contact with a 22-year-old male who reported he had been the victim of an armed robbery near the intersection of Michigan Boulevard and Ridgeland Avenue. The victim was able to provide a description of the three suspects and the vehicle they were in. The officer

At an event bringing forth evidence-based prevention solutions from across Indiana, Healthcare Foundation of La Porte (HFL) hosted a Partners in Prevention (PiP) celebration at their Conference & Learning Center on Friday, March 3.  Maria Fruth, CEO, welcomed representatives from schools throughout La Porte County to celebrate their school-based prevention programming to combat substance use disorder, in collaboration with successes from schools in Indianapolis and Lafayette. Speakers from schools across Indiana shared overall learnings, student impact, and plans for sustainability.  In 2019, all schools in La Porte County were invited by HFL to apply for grant dollars to help them plan

The Michigan City Chamber of Commerce announced newly elected directors and officers to the board for 2023. The following directors and officers were unanimously approved during recent Board of Directors meetings: Approved for their first three-year terms are Blake Applegate with Applegate & Company CPAs and Jesse Baldwin with Triplex Plating. Elected officers who will serve as the executive committee to the board for 2023 are Kim Giannetti with General Insurance Services as Chair, Sandy Smith with PNC Bank as Chair-Elect, Brenda Temple with Blue Chip Casino, Hotel & Spa as Treasurer, and Bill Gertner with Horizon Bank as Secretary.

The LaPorte County Sheriff’s Office says an old scam has resurfaced in the county in which elderly citizens are being preyed upon and swindled out of large sums of money. Several citizens are reporting as to having received a phone call from someone claiming to be a relative or a representative of their relative. The caller is telling the citizen they, or whom they represent, are incarcerated, and need money. Police say an elderly citizen received one of these calls last week. Being concerned about the relative, the citizen continued to speak with the scammers throughout the day as they

The Indiana Toll Road has announced that construction has begun on their 2023 Northwest Indiana Bridge Rehabilitation Project. Construction is on six bridges on I-90 around Westpoint (Exit 1) Toll Plaza (Illinois/Indiana Stateline), followed on March 20 with 12 bridges on I-90 at Cline Avenue (Exit 10) (Gary/Chicago International Airport). In addition, guardrail improvements will take place between Cline Avenue (Exit 10) to Calumet Avenue (Exit 5) in Hammond. To expedite the overall project schedule, the majority of construction will occur Monday through Saturday between 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. CT. The Indiana Toll Road says work will last through

The Town of Chesterton is seeking an Indiana READI grant to help fund new police station, according to the Town of Chesterton Facebook page. The Town of Chesterton stated, “In 2021, the Northwest Indiana Forum (NIF) received $50 million from Gov. Eric Holcomb’s Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative (READI) program, a $500-million effort to jump-start economic development and place-making in 17 regions throughout the State of Indiana. “Now Gov. Holcomb is proposing what he’s called “a ‘READI Repeat’ or a ‘READI 2.0’ or a ‘READI Redo,’” including $500 million in his budget to make it so.” The Town of

The Michigan City High School Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (MCJROTC) earned an award at the Ft. Wayne Concordia High School military drill meet on March 4. The Wolves finished 4th out of 14 schools in the Armed Regulation category.  Most of the schools were Army JROTC units, some of whom consistently compete in the All Service Drill National Championship held in Daytona Beach, Florida.  The judges were Army recruiters from the Ft. Wayne area. The Color Guard presents to the Head Judge. “This drill meet gave the opportunity for two of our cadets to command

Franciscan Health Crown Point and Geminus Regional Health Systems are partnering to host a free car seat safety clinic in Kouts. The event will take place from 2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 18 at the Kouts Volunteer Fire Department at 108 E. Mentor St. in Kouts. Qualifying Indiana residents may receive a new car seat thanks to a generous grant from Geminus Regional Health Systems. A certified Child Passenger Safety technician will install the seats while supplies last. Caregivers must bring children to the event to allow the technicians to create a safe, proper fit. The National Highway Transportation Safety

The LaPorte County Sheriff’s Office arrested a man on Saturday they is a serious violent felon. Saturday at around  9:55 a.m., a deputy was traveling westbound on the Indiana Toll Road (I-80/90) near the 46-mile marker when they slowed and began to make a U-turn in a center-median crossover.  Officials say an eastbound passenger vehicle caught the attention of the deputy as it was traveling at an excessive speed. The deputy completed the U-turn, began traveling eastbound, and caught up to the vehicle near the 48-mile marker.  The vehicle was paced by the deputy and found to be traveling at