Indiana

Indiana lawmakers move forward with bills to ban antisemitism, expand workforce training funds – Indiana Capital Chronicle

Published

11 months ago

January 11, 2024

Indiana lawmakers move forward with bills to ban antisemitism, expand workforce training funds – Indiana Capital Chronicle

Indiana lawmakers are fast-tracking a bill they say will ban antisemitism in public educational institutions — although critics of the proposal maintain it limits free speech and conflates anti-Jewish rhetoric with criticism of a foreign government.

The legislation advanced from the House Education Committee on Wednesday in a bipartisan 12-0 vote, sending it to the full chamber.

Authored by Republican Rep. Chris Jeter, of Fishers, House Bill 1002 is a priority measure for the House GOP caucus.

Indiana law already bans discrimination on the basis of race and “creed,” which means religion. The legislation would specify that antisemitism — bias against Jewish people — is religious discrimination and is not allowed within the public education system.

The legislation uses a definition of antisemitism adopted by the U.S. State Department, U.S. Education Department and the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance. And it makes clear that “criticism of Israel similar to that leveled against any other country” is not antisemitism.

“This bill does not tell anybody what they can or cannot say, does not tell anybody what they can or cannot do. There’s no new crime. There’s no police force enforcing it. It’s simply a reflection of our values as a state when it comes to teaching our youth and our students,” Jeter said before the House Education Committee on Wednesday. “We have a long tradition of support for our Jewish community, and particularly our Jewish students. This bill reaffirms that — it makes it clear that they’re going to be safe here.”

Jeter filed an identical bill in 2023. It passed out of the House in a 97-0 vote but never received a committee hearing in the Senate, effectively killing the proposal.

Sen. Jeff Raatz, R-Richmond, who chairs the Senate Education Committee, said last month that he expects his chamber to support the bill this time around.

Antisemitism on Hoosier campuses

Some 40 people testified on the bill Wednesday at the Indiana Statehouse. Many were students or faculty at Indiana colleges, including Indiana and Purdue universities. A handful of high school students also spoke before lawmakers, sharing stories about various antisemitic incidents in their classrooms.

Rabbi Sue Silberberg, executive director at IU Hillel, said the bill is a much-needed response to a problem she has “faced and struggled with” during her tenure at Indiana University.

Since the Hamas attack in October, she said antisemitic chalkings, drawings on bridges and flyers hung around the campus have prompted an increase of scared and crying students to her office.

“I’ve seen antisemitism regularly throughout my years at IU. Thankfully, IU has tried to address it,” Silberberg said. “But the overarching problem has been that Indiana does not have a clear and strong definition of antisemitism, and it is not specifically identified or called out as a problem and something that we stand behind prohibiting or stopping in our state.”

At Purdue, public health student Honor Fuchs said she has faced antisemitism “in the form of wildly biased curriculum, hateful posters on campus and outright verbal attacks from students.”

She described an experience last fall, when she and other Jewish students were “mobbed, yelled at and insulted by fellow students” while holding a fundraiser on the campus.

“I couldn’t complain, because being called a Nazi pales in comparison to the real persecution my grandparents faced in Nazi-occupied Romania,” Fuchs said. “It is horrifying that in 2024, in the United States, I have to make these calculations of gradations of bigotry and discrimination.”

Günther Jikeli, associate director of IU’s Institute for the Study of Contemporary Antisemitism, also supported Jeter’s bill, noting that criticism of Israel is not the same as “wanting to destroy this person or this community or this state.”

But more than two-dozen critics of the bill pushed back, many emphasizing that criticism of the Israeli government does not amount to antisemitism. Some warned of witch hunts under the vague definition.

Need to get in touch?

Have a news tip?

Daniel Segal, representing Jewish Voice for Peace – Indiana, said the bill “undermines the struggle against antisemitism and would thus make me and other Jews less safe in Indiana.”

“House Bill 1002 makes it harder to fight the scourge of antisemitism, because its sole purpose is to sow confusion about antisemitism. We cannot fight what we are confused about,” he continued.

“If people want to respond to criticisms of the Israeli state, they should provide reasoned counter arguments, not fake charges of antisemitism,” Segal said. “Defenders of the Israeli state resort to these fake charges of antisemitism only when they lack such reasoned counter arguments.”

He added that the legislation would also “trample education” by making teachers and students “fearful of speaking openly, in regard to the history and current events in Israel and Palestine.”

Echoing others who testified, Anisse Adni, an Islamic studies teacher in Indianapolis, said lawmakers should take out “vague and ambiguous language” in the bill “that would restrict our constitutional right to freedom of speech.”

“If I, as an American citizen, have the right to criticize my own government’s policies — if I have the right as an American to ask my government to right its wrongs, to change its policies — and I have no fear of punishment or reprisal because free speech is enshrined in the constitution … Why would I, as an American, be okay with my right of free speech being impeded or restricted when criticizing a foreign government’s policies? It shouldn’t be wrong.”

“I’m not anti-Chinese if I criticize China’s government policies or their behaviors or whatever it may be,” he continued. “We should not conflate antisemitism with criticism of the Israeli government and its policies.”

Fixes to last year’s workforce training legislation

House lawmakers additionally advanced a bill that seeks to make fixes to a major work-based learning bill adopted during the 2023 session.

The new measure, House Bill 1001, authored by Rep. Chuck Goodrich, R-Noblesville, primarily seeks to allow money from the 21st Century Scholars program and Frank O’Bannon grants to be used by high school graduates for training by an approved intermediary, employer or labor organization — rather than for education costs at a college or university.

The bill would also permit annual career savings account (CSA) grants to be used by students to cover costs associated with obtaining drivers licenses, and extend the timeline for completing CSA applications.

Last year, Goodrich similarly authored HEA 1002, which put in motion statewide career-centered education and training programs that seek to graduate Hoosier students who are better prepared for the workforce. Paramount to that legislation was a provision to establish CSAs for students in grades 10-12 to pay for career training outside their schools.

Participating students can use the $5,000 CSAs to pay for apprenticeships, career-related coursework, or certification.

Goodrich said his 2024 bill “widens the scope” of how those funds can be used and “removes barriers” faced by some Hoosier students who tried to access technical education and work-based learning opportunities over the summer.

Democrats on the committee took issue with multiple provisions in the bill, however.

Rep. Ed DeLaney, R-Indianapolis, pointed to language that expands the use of state-sponsored scholarships, which he said leaves out spending cap stipulations or specific restrictions around what funds can and can’t be used for.

“We’re going to enter into the program without any guidance for how much we’re going to spend?” DeLaney questioned.

Committee chairman Rep. Bob Behning, R-Indianapolis, said the Indiana Commission for Higher Education (CHE) will instead have to decide when 21st Century and Frank O’Bannon funds are eligible for students post-high school.

Democratic Rep. Vernon Smith, D-Gary, also expressed concerns over the provision to fund drivers licenses.

“Are we going to start buying used cars, too? Will the next step be uniforms, or technical equipment, coming out of the scholarship accounts?” he asked.

Goodrich said in response that access to transportation “has been a huge issue for kids getting access to opportunities.”

Before voting on the bill, the committee unanimously adopted two amendments offered by Goodrich; one to clarify data reporting requirements associated with work-based learning programs, and another to add teaching to Indiana’s Next Level Jobs Employer Training Program grants.

DeLaney offered other amendments but they all failed.

The bill passed out of the committee in a 9-4 vote along party lines. DeLaney promised to call additional amendments to the bill on the House floor.

GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

Source link

Click to comment

Indiana

Child dies, 5 others injured from fatal house fire

Published

6 hours ago

December 19, 2024

Press Room

Child dies, 5 others injured from fatal house fire

FOWLER, Ind. (WISH) — A family was trapped in a house fire that killed one child and put three children and their parents into the hospital.

The Benton County Sheriff’s Office said the fire happened just before midnight Dec. 17. They were called to a report of a house fire with the family trapped at a home on 600 North, northeast of Fowler, Indiana.

Four children and their parents, Dolores Moreno-Lazo and Keyry Haro-Ortega, were taken to the hospital. Officers said that 11-year-old Yuliana Haro-Ortega was pronounced deceased at the hospital.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Source link

Indiana

Notre Dame vs. Indiana: Predictions, odds for College Football Playoff

Published

14 hours ago

December 18, 2024

Press Room

Notre Dame vs. Indiana: Predictions, odds for College Football Playoff

The first-ever first-round matchup of the 12-team College Football Playoff will be an in-state rivalry game that’s rarely played.

No. 7 seed Notre Dame is set to host No. 10 seed Indiana on Friday, Dec. 19, with the winner advancing to the CFP quarterfinals to face No. 2 seed Georgia at the Sugar Bowl. It will be the first meeting in football between the Hoosiers and Fighting Irish since 1991 and just their second game against one another in the past 65 years, despite their campuses being just about 200 miles apart.

Led by coach Marcus Freeman’s ferocious defense, a potent rushing attack and the steady play of quarterback Riley Leonard, Notre Dame is the favorite after an 11-1 regular season in which it won by double digits in all but one game. The Fighting Irish reeled off 10 wins in a row following their shocking upset loss to Northern Illinois in September.

Indiana is in the midst of the best season in program history, with only a loss to fellow CFP qualifier Ohio State on its resume this year. First-year coach Curt Cignetti has the nation’s second-highest scoring offense and the Hoosiers also rank second in the country in total defense entering Friday’s first-round game. Though Indiana’s strength of schedule was questioned during the CFP selection process, its average margin of victory this season is more than 33 points per game.

But the playoffs will be a new challenge for both teams, with a national championship just four wins away. Here’s a look at some predictions for Notre Dame vs. Indiana, as well as odds, betting lines and how to watch this highly anticipated primetime matchup to start the 12-team CFP era.

CFP first-round predictions: Notre Dame vs. Indiana

USA Today: No. 7 Notre Dame over No. 10 Indiana

Paul Myerberg writes: “A relatively weak strength of schedule has Notre Dame flying under the radar as a legitimate contender. The Fighting Irish have one of the best-balanced team from offense to defense and special teams. Likewise with Indiana, even if the Hoosiers’ chances of winning one or more playoff games is viewed with a high degree of skepticism. Look for Notre Dame to slow down Kurtis Rourke and the Hoosiers while punishing the Indiana defense with the nation’s third-ranked running game in yards per carry.”

ESPN: Notre Dame has 73.7% chance to win

According to ESPN’s Matchup Predictor, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish have a 70.4% chance to beat the Indiana Hoosiers in the first round of the College Football Playoff as of Friday, December 13.

The Sporting News: Notre Dame 28, Indiana 24

Bill Bender writes: “Indiana allowed 2.5 yards per carry this season, and that run defense will be tested by the Irish trio of Riley Leonard (721 yards, 5.8 ypc.), Jeremiyah Love (949 yards, 7.1 ypc.) and Jadarian Price (651, 7.3 ypc.). Kurtis Rourke will test an opportunistic Notre Dame secondary, and the Hoosiers will need the running game to be in order, too. It’s been a dream season for Indiana coach Curt Cignetti. Will it continue against the Irish? Notre Dame covered in each of its last seven games, but this one stays tighter.”

Fox Sports: Indiana wins

RJ Young writes: “The Fighting Irish will face the most complete team they’ve seen all year in Indiana. The Hoosiers have beaten 10 out of 12 opponents by double-digits and believe they are the best team in the state of Indiana. However, Al Golden’s defense has been outstanding, allowing only one team to score 35 points in a game this season.”

CFP first-round odds, lines: Notre Dame vs. Indiana

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are favorites to defeat the Indiana Hoosiers, according to the BetMGM college football odds.

Odds as of Wednesday, Dec. 18.

Spread: Notre Dame (-7.5)
Moneylines: Notre Dame (-300); Indiana (+230)
Over/under: 51.5

How to watch Notre Dame vs. Indiana in CFP first round

Date: Friday, Dec. 20
Time: 8 p.m. ET
TV: ABC/ESPN
Stream: Fubo (free trial for new subscribers)
Where: Notre Dame Stadium (Notre Dame, Indiana)

Watch select CFP games with Fubo

We occasionally recommend interesting products and services. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. USA TODAY Network newsrooms operate independently, and this doesn’t influence our coverage.

Source link

Indiana

US state of Indiana executes Joseph Corcoran after 27 year legal battle

Published

21 hours ago

December 18, 2024

Press Room

US state of Indiana executes Joseph Corcoran after 27 year legal battle

The state of Indiana in the United States has carried out its first execution in 15 years, putting to death a man, whose lawyers say he was mentally ill, murdering four people in 1997, including his own brother.

Joseph Corcoran, 49, was executed by lethal injection and pronounced dead early Wednesday morning at the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City, officials said.

His last words were “Not really. Let’s get this over with,” a statement by the Indiana Department of Correction said.

Corcoran’s lawyers argued in court filings that carrying out the death penalty would violate the Constitution because he had long suffered from paranoid schizophrenia, including experiencing hallucinations and delusions, making him unable to understand the severity of his crimes.

Corcoran’s “longstanding and documented mental illness continues to torment him as it did at the time of the 1997 offence,” his legal team said.

His lawyer, Larry Komp, said the question of Corcoran’s mental health was never properly evaluated.

“There has never been a hearing to determine whether he is competent to be executed,” he said in a statement to The Associated Press. “It is an absolute failure for the rule of law to have an execution when the law and proper processes were not followed.”

More than two dozen people were gathered outside the prison before his execution to protest and pray, according to the Indy Star newspaper.

The state provided limited details about the execution process, and no media witnesses were permitted under state law. However, Corcoran chose a reporter for the Indiana Capital Chronicle as one of his witnesses, the outlet’s editor posted on X early Wednesday.

Indiana and Wyoming are the only two states that do not allow members of the media to witness state executions, according to a recent report by the Death Penalty Information Center.

Corcoran was going through a stressful period in July 1997 because the upcoming marriage of his sister meant he would have to move out of the home he was sharing with her and his brother in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

After he overheard his brother, James Corcoran, 30, talking about him, he loaded his rifle and shot his brother and three other men, including his sister’s fiance, according to court filings.

Corcoran had previously been acquitted of the murders of his parents, who were found shot dead in their home in 1992.

This undated photo shows Joseph Corcoran, who was executed on December 18 [Indiana Department of Corrections via AP]

“Serves no purpose”

Corcoran’s sister, Kelly Ernst, sought to stop the execution, saying she had forgiven him.

“I believe that the death penalty does not address grief or provide true justice especially for victims, and those with mental illness,” she wrote on December 2 on Facebook.

“Instead, it is a lengthy, costly and political process,” she added. “I believe his execution serves no purpose.”

Corcoran’s execution is the 24th in the United States this year. Indiana paused executions in 2009 because it was unable to obtain the necessary drugs, with pharmaceutical companies reluctant to be associated with capital punishment.

But Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb and Attorney General Todd Rokita, both Republicans, announced earlier this year that the state had acquired the drug – pentobarbital – and that executions would resume, beginning with Corcoran’s.

Corcoran sent a letter last month to the Indiana Supreme Court, saying he no longer wanted to litigate his case.

His lawyers nonetheless filed an emergency appeal to the US Supreme Court on Tuesday to stay the execution, which was ultimately rejected.

“Joseph Corcoran’s case has been reviewed repeatedly over the last 25 years – including 7 times by the Indiana Supreme Court and 3 times by the US Supreme Court, the most recent of which was tonight,” Holcomb said in a news release after the execution was completed.

Rokita also issued a statement, saying Corcoran “finally paid his debt to society as justice was provided to his victims”.

The death penalty has been abolished in 23 of the 50 US states, while six others – Arizona, California, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Tennessee – have moratoriums in place.