The Post-Tribune of Northwest Indiana reports, “VU law students make aid priority.” Students at the IU School of Law – Indy raised $1,500.03 for hurricane victims, the proceeds of which will go to the Red Cross.

The Indianapolis Star has published the statement of Sen. Evan Bayh regarding his decision to vote against the confirmation of Judge John Roberts. The Lafayette Journal & Courier has an editorial criticizing Senator Bayh for his decision. Doug Masson has more.

The Courier-Journal has an article titled, “Prosecutor, aide barred beginning next month.”

The suspensions of Washington County Prosecutor Cynthia Winkler and her chief deputy for ethical violations will begin Oct. 10, the Indiana Supreme Court said yesterday.

Winkler will be barred from practicing law for 120 days and her deputy, Blaine Goode, for 60 days under a ruling issued last week.

The high court yesterday appointed Nancy Jacobs, the former prosecutor for Jefferson and Switzerland counties, to fill Winkler’s position until she returns in February.

….

The suspensions were prompted by a 2003 complaint from Lewis Steward, whom Winkler was then prosecuting on methamphetamine charges.

In February of that year Steward’s attorney, Mark Clark, was questioning a police officer in preparation for the trial. During the questioning, Steward communicated with his lawyer by writing notes on a legal pad.

At one point Steward left the pad face down on a table while he and Clark left the room to confer in private. Goode tore the page of notes from the pad and handed it to Winkler, who placed it under her own files, according to records of the discipline case.

The prosecutors wanted a sample of Steward’s handwriting to compare to that on a methamphetamine recipe being used as evidence in the case against him.

Winkler and Goode pretended not to know where the missing notes were when Steward and Clark later asked about them and began searching for them. The notes were turned over after Steward spotted a corner of the page sticking out from under Winkler’s files and asked about it.

You can read the order of the Supreme Court for In the Matter of Blaine Goode online (pdf).

Fort Wayne’s Journal Gazette carries a story by the Associated Press headlined, “State ends contract for software system.”

State officials have terminated a software company’s contract to establish a computer network tying together courts in all 92 Indiana counties.

The decision to end the work by Computer Associates International came after court staffers found its software was unable to track the status and outcome of criminal and civil cases throughout about 400 courts around the state.

As part of the termination, Computer Associates agreed to refund $1 million, $1 million more than it had been paid by the state, said Mary DePrez, who oversees the project for the Indiana Supreme Court’s Judicial Technology and Automation Committee.

Meanwhile Newsday has a story titled, “CA, Indiana scrap court computer plan.”

Bryan Corbin reports in today’s Evansville Curier and Press on a high profile case regarding a somewhat new issue:

The publisher of Evansville Living Magazine has filed a lawsuit against an Internet proprietor, alleging the similar-sounding name of his Web site has confused and misled customers. People who booked vacations to New York on the travel service of the disputed Web site, Evansville Magazine.com, mistakenly believed they were dealing with Evansville Living and called in with complaints when their trips went awry – hurting Evansville Living’s reputation, the plaintiff’s attorney said. The Internet proprietor, Mark Alan Sunderman, acquired the domain name EvansvilleMagazine.com nearly four years ago. Saying he is within his legal rights to operate that site, which he built himself, Sunderman expressed skepticism that anyone could confuse it with Evansville Living’s much more elaborate site.

“I don’t think it was misrepresentative at all. I can’t help that their name is similar to mine,” Sunderman said. Tucker Publishing Group Inc. owns Evansville Living, a bimonthly magazine with articles about people, arts, dining and sports, and also owns its online edition, EvansvilleLiving.com. This month, Tucker Publishing filed suit in Vanderburgh Superior Court against Sunderman and his company, Internet Services International Inc. The suit alleges Sunderman created confusion so as to misrepresent EvansvilleMagazine.com as being EvansvilleLiving.com.

The issue went beyond simple confusion over Web addresses, contended Tucker’s attorney, James D. Johnson. Tucker Publishing fielded complaints from stranded customers of Sunderman’s vacation travel offers who mistakenly believed their trips were being operated by Evansville Living, he said. “People were blaming us for things going wrong on the other company’s trips. It was clear the public was being confused and we felt we had to do something to protect our name,” Johnson said. Tucker Publishing’s suit alleges unfair competition, trademark violations and interference with business relations. Sunderman said that several years ago, he discovered no one had staked claim to some obvious Evansville-related domain names. So he acquired 40 to 50 of them himself – including EvansvilleRestaurants.com and EvansvilleChurches.com, believing companies would pay to have their advertisements posted on his Web sites.

The Courier and Press offers the complaint in pdf form here. [Disclaimer: The firm representing Tucker Publishing is my past and future employer. However, I have had no involvement with the case.]

The US House Resources Committee is considering possible changes to the Endangered Species Act (pdf), which has been in effect for 32 years. Rep. Richard Pombo has introduced the bipartisan Threatened and Endangered Species Recovery Act of 2005 (TESRA) (pdf), and the House committee is expected to vote on the bill Thursday. The act would not require the government to set aside critical habitat for threatened plants and animals, which makes many environmentalists worry about taking away a key to many species’ survival. Pombo has said the bill compensates for the elimination of critical habitat by strengthening the focus on species recovery. AP has more.

The following press release was issued by the Supreme Court this morning:

Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels and Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Randall T. Shepard will be the featured speakers at the Howey Political Report 2005 Forum.

“This will be an extraordinary gathering of key leaders from the three branches of state government, plus local and economic leaders from across the state. Together we will explore how government can be most responsive and efficient for Hoosiers,” said political analyst Brian A. Howey.

Building an Indiana for the 21st Century will take place October 4, 2005 from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Hilton Indianapolis, 120 West Market Street.

Governor Daniels will speak about state government reforms he has initiated. Chief Justice Shepard will give the luncheon keynote, surveying Indiana’s 1851 Constitution and its practical application to a 21st century state in a flattened global economy.

Other participants include Michael Tackett, Washington Bureau Chief, Chicago Tribune; Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson; Fort Wayne Mayor Graham Richard; Indiana House Speaker Brian Bosma; former Lt. Governor Kathy Davis; Paul Mannweiler, BoseTreacy Associates and former Republican Speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives; and other distinguished panelists from state, legislative, municipal and county government.

For further information, visit www.howeypolitics.com.

Yesterday IB examined a suit between the Evansville Vanderburgh Library Board (EVLB) and Willard Library. Circuit Court Judge Carl Heldt has ruled in favor of EVLB. Patricia Swanson reports:

A decision by Circuit Court Judge Carl Heldt means Willard will receive about $150,000 less than it wanted from a countywide tax. Instead, it will get $674,581 in Vanderburgh County property taxes next year.

Heldt ruled that Willard, a private donation library, does not have the right to levy taxes. Only a public political entity does, he said.

In Willard’s case, that means the Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library Board, which has the responsibility for filing Willard’s tax levy, also has the right to review and set Willard’s budget and tax rate.

Willard attorney Keith Vonderahe said the library would file an appeal.

The Chronicle Tribune of Grant County reports, “Local attorney to retire from NRC.”

Marion attorney Mike Kiley announced his retirement Tuesday from the Indiana Natural Resources Commission, a post he’s had for the past 29 years.

“It was time to give the position up,” he said. “There comes a time when you have to move on. There are new individuals that want to try their hand at it, and its time they had the chance.”

The Indiana Natural Resources Commission is a board that addresses issues pertaining to the Department of Natural Resources. Kiley was chair of the 12-member board, which includes residents and officials of state agencies.

In Tuesday’s environmental law news, Judge Richard Webber of the US District Court of Eastern Missouri has ruled that the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has failed to review its health standard for lead pollution in the air, and has ordered the agency to do so. The national standard for airborne lead is to be reviewed every five years, but the EPA has not reviewed the lead standard since 1990. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch has more.