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Indiana House Democratic Leader Terry Goodin from Austin issued a statement after the close of the first half of the 2018 session of the Indiana General Assembly. Goodin said the first half of session was like Gilligan’s Island. The General Assembly has the tools, but still cannot get off the island. Three years ago, the Republican majority repealed the Common Construction Wage with the promise that wages would not fall and tax savings would be realized. Goodin refers to the Midwest Economic Policy Institute’s report recently issued that found that since then-Gov. Mike Pence signed the repeal into law, wages

The Future Careers Expo scheduled for today at the A. K. Smith Career Center has been cancelled. A number of factors contributed to this decision, including the school delays this week, guest speakers/interviewers/exhibitors with flu, and weather-related concerns on the part of those driving some distance to be there tomorrow. Unfortunately, there is not a makeup date. They'll try again next February.

South Shore Line service updates will be in effect to accommodate passengers wishing to attend the Chicago Auto Show taking place Feb. 10-19, 2018, at McCormick Place. An eastbound passenger extra will run on Saturday, Feb. 10, and Saturday, Feb. 17. The train will depart McCormick Place at 4:52 p.m., run non-stop to Hegewisch and make all local stops terminating at Carroll Avenue, Michigan City. This train will not serve Hudson Lake or South Bend. Additionally, several weekday trains will make flag stops at the McCormick Place Station from Feb. 12-16 and Feb. 19th. All weekend trains except Train 601

For some kids, it can be the most difficult part of the school day. We're talking about lunch time, and it's especially hard if you have to eat by yourself. To help promote inclusion in middle schools, Managed Health Services (MHS) is hosting a bullying prevention initiative at Thomas Jefferson Middle School in Valparaiso on Friday, Feb. 9th, at 10:00 a.m. CST. MHS is sponsoring an assembly in honor of National No One Eats Alone Day, created by the non-profit Beyond Differences. More than 600 students will attend a bullying prevention program in the school auditorium performed by Young Actors

The Porter County Sheriff’s Office would like to remind everyone living in the unincorporated areas of Porter County about County Ordinance 10.020,, ‘Parking after Snowfall.’ The ordinance in summary means if there is expected to be 2+ inches of snowfall, vehicles must be moved from the roadway. Failure to move your vehicle, could result in your vehicle being towed at your expense and a County Ordinance citation with fines up to $50.00. This is very important, as it speeds up County Highway’s ability to clear the roadways safely as well as widen the roadway for emergency vehicles to have access

An Indiana State Police Trooper who lives in Merrillville found that his police car, personal car, and his home had been damaged by gunfire. The trooper was awoken around 4:19 a.m., this morning, with what he thought were gunshots. He looked out his residence but saw nothing. When he came out if his home on Harrison Street this morning he saw that there was a bullet hole in his Chevrolet Aztec (personal car) and another bullet hole in his Dodge Charger (police car). Both bullet holes were on the front passenger side. The bullet that struck his police car ricocheted

The Indiana Department of Revenue (DOR) and Commissioner Adam Krupp warn customers to always be leery of any suspicious phone calls or emails that may be tax scams. Over the last week, DOR has received calls from concerned Hoosiers who have been contacted by an organization identifying themselves as a “crime investigation unit” within the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the state’s revenue agency. Hoosiers have been threatened with arrest warrants and told to provide Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers and/or bank account information in exchange for no further legal action. Even during special circumstances, taxpayers will usually receive

The victim from Tuesday morning’s homicide investigation at Patrick Metals in Mishawaka has been positively identified as Aaron Woods, Jr., 37, of South Bend. This remains an active and ongoing St. Joseph County Metro Homicide Unit (CMHU) investigation. Several individuals have been interviewed in the course of the investigation. At the issuance of this release, no arrests have been made.

Troopers at the Lowell State Police Post had a busy 24 hours from Monday into Tuesday morning. Slick roads contributed to many of the crashes along I-80/94 and I-65. Troopers covered 88 crashes, of which 75 were property damage crashes and 13 were personal injury crashes. The injuries sustained in the crashes were mostly minor injuries. Troopers also responded to 29 assistance requests which included slide offs that did not need a crash report as well as vehicles with flat tires, out of fuel or other mechanical issues.

On Saturday afternoon, the St. Joseph County Police Department was dispatched to the 59300 block of Myrtle Road regarding a welfare check. Responding officers found two individuals in a residence there deceased from apparent gunshot wounds. The deceased have been identified as husband and wife, Philip A. Wilmes, 81, and Barbara J. Wilmes, 80. Per protocol, the St. Joseph County Metro Homicide Unit (CMHU) was activated and is handling the investigation. Initial indications are that the incident is a murder/suicide, but it is an ongoing investigation. Autopsy procedures have been scheduled for today in Fort Wayne.

On Sunday morning, whiteout conditions in Northwest Indiana contributed to numerous crashes, including a 17 car pileup at the 7.2 mile marker and a 13 car pileup at the 6.2 mile marker of east bound I-80/94. Troopers Brian White and Lionel Douglas responded to each scene. Minor injuries were reported, none serious. The road closure at the 7.2 mile marker involved 4 separate crashes that included 17 vehicles. This resulted in the roadway being closed for an extended period of time. Several of the vehicles were relocated to a truck stop on Burr Street where the crash reports were taken

The Indiana State Police are investigating an incident that occurred on Friday evening on I-65 where a car was hit by gunfire.  Troopers George and Huston responded to a local car dealership in Highland who had reported that one of their cars had been hit by gunfire while on I-65.   A nineteen-year old employee had picked up a 2018 Kia Soul in Carmel, IN and was transporting the car back to the Highland dealership.   The employee was north bound on I-65, south of the US 30 exit in the left lane when a silver car pulled alongside him.   The employee

Following requests by U.S. Senators Joe Donnelly (D-IN) and Dean Heller (R-NV), Equifax has gone live with a website with tools specifically for service members who may have been impacted by the recent data breach at the company. In September 2017, Donnelly and Heller sent a letter to Equifax asking the company to detail actions being taken to protect service members’ personal information. The Senators requested specific measures to ensure the financial security of the roughly 1.3 million active-duty U.S. military personnel, including nearly 200,000 stationed overseas, some of whom serve in remote or high-conflict areas in the Middle East

Indiana Governor Eric J. Holcomb joined U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar at Sidney & Lois Eskenazi Hospital to announce that Indiana has gained approval to continue its successful alternative to traditional Medicaid—the Healthy Indiana Plan (HIP)—through December 2020, allowing the state to continue health coverage for more than 400,000 low-income adult Hoosiers. In addition to continuing HIP for nearly three years and making several administrative adjustments to help members, federal approval allows Indiana to enhance HIP with up to $80 million in annual funding to support efforts to attack the opioid epidemic. Indiana will now expand access

Track your train in real time with the new SSL train tracker feature available on mysouthshore.com for an interactive map of where your train is and ETAs. https://www.mysouthshoreline.com/tickets/maps-stations-2

The Indiana House held an event benefiting foster families all over the state. IARCA collected more than 3,800 items for foster families caring for newborns and infants. IARCA executive Director Cathleen Graham was able to meet with many legislators as they participated in the event. State Rep. Dave Heine of New Haven says spending time with foster children is a rewarding experience. Visit www.fosterhopeindiana.org for more information.

Now through February 16th, United Way of Porter County is seeking nominations for remarkable volunteers to be honored at their second annual Spirit Awards. As an initiative of the United Way Regional Volunteer Center program, the Spirit Awards recognizes amazing volunteer activities happening throughout the Region. Award recipients will be selected by a committee of volunteers and winners will be notified the week of Monday, February 26. Winners and nominees will be honored at United Way’s Annual Community Celebration on March 22 at the Spa Event Center in Porter. Celebration activities begin at 5:30pm. Tickets are $25 per person. Spirit

U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly’s office will host a series of information sessions around Indiana on February 13-15, for students interested in learning more about the nomination process for the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, the U.S. Naval Academy, the U.S. Air Force Academy, and the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. Donnelly’s staff will explain the process and answer questions on what is required for a student to be considered for a nomination from Senator Donnelly to one of these service academies. South Bend’s session will be Wednesday, February 14th, 2018 from 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM EST at Sen. Donnelly’s

On Wednesday, Governor Eric Holcomb joined Lt. Governor Suzanne Crouch to unveil Indiana’s Next Level Veterans initiative. This new statewide program brings together public and private organizations to recruit, employ and connect discharging military personnel to Indiana and retain veterans who are already in the state. A new website, www.in.gov/veterans, launched today and will be the one-stop-shop for veterans across the nation who are looking for jobs, training, housing or information about the Hoosier state. Next Level Veterans focuses on connecting military personnel, who have honed their skills during their service, with these career opportunities. Under Crouch's leadership, Next Level Veterans

The Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) has awarded $127,000 in naloxone kits to 95 first responder agencies serving 34 rural counties to help prevent fatal overdoses. The funding will be used to: Provide 3,388 naloxone kits to first responders for emergency treatment of known or suspected opioid overdoses in rural communities; Train first responders on carrying and administering naloxone; and Expand referrals to appropriate treatment and recovery communities.