Indiana
Pornhub ‘ban’ in Indiana blocked by judge
INDIANAPOLIS (WXIN) — A judge has blocked a new Indiana law from going into effect which would have effectively cut off Hoosiers from accessing adult content websites, such as Pornhub. In his decision, the judge called the law “likely facially unconstitutional.”
Previously, Indiana lawmakers passed Senate Bill 17 which was signed into law by Governor Eric Holcomb and set to go into effect on July 1. Under the restrictive bill, websites hosting “material harmful to minors” would have required Hoosiers to upload sensitive documents, such as driver’s licenses, in order to prove their age.
While proponents of the law argued the age-verification law was meant to protect minors from accessing explicit material, such as pornography, critics pointed out that the law was not only a potential violation of the First Amendment but also opened up Hoosiers to substantial risk of having their sensitive information and documents stolen.
While Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita defended the age-verification law as a “shield” to protect children from “the psychological and emotional consequences associated with viewing porn,” the Free Speech Coalition filed a lawsuit to stop the law from going into effect.
“We will continue to fight for the rights of adults to access the internet free of shame and surveillance,” said Alison Boden, executive director of Free Speech Coalition. “While they may sound reasonable on their face, laws like SB17 have effectively functioned as state censorship.”
On Friday, a judge with the United States District Court of Southern Indiana issued a preliminary injunction blocking the law from going into effect on July 1. In his decision, the judge concluded that the law “likely violates the First Amendment” and echoed many of its critics such as pointing out how the law could be easily circumvented with technology and the broad, vague scope of the law.
The vagueness of the law was previously called out by the ACLU of Indiana who sounded the alarm against the age-verification law and its vague use of “material harmful to minors,” which the ACLU speculated could go beyond just blocking pornography and be used to also block “age-appropriate LGBTQ+” or be used to censor sex education content.
The ACLU also pointed out how the law could be easily circumvented, needlessly putting Hoosiers’ sensitive information at risk.
“The worst part, the law won’t even work,” said the ACLU of Indiana. “Minors will just go to sites that aren’t regulated by Indiana law or use technology to bypass the verification method. A @CommonSenseMedia report found 6 in 10 older teenagers already use VPNs to browse the internet.”
As part of his decision, the judge wrote in defense of his injunction by stating, “Indiana’s legislature chose an ineffective and more broad method to protect minors from harmful materials than other alternatives. The First Amendment does not allow such imprecision.”
The injunction will remain in effect until a final judgment is made or a higher court dissolves the injunction.
Indiana
Caitlin Clark Sets Indiana Fever Franchise Record in Half a Season
Caitlin Clark broke an Indiana Fever rookie record with half of the WNBA season still to go.
The No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA draft notched her 129th assist in a game against the Phoenix Mercury on Sunday, June 30. The helping hand came on a well-run pick-and-roll with center Aliyah Boston.
After Boston set a screen for a rapidly advancing Clark, the rising star found Boston as she peeled away and ran toward the basket. The end result was an easy layup for Boston and Clark’s new record.
Clark’s record is only within the Fever organization, and specifically for rookies, but she’s playing well enough to avoid needing any qualifiers. Her average of 6.6 assists per game is good for 4th-best in the entire league. She’s on pace to blow past the Fever’s all-time single-season assists record – 201, set just last year by Erica Wheeler – before the season is out.
Clark brought newfound attention to the WNBA after setting the NCAA record for points scored in basketball, men or women’s. She led her Iowa Hawkeyes to two straight NCAA championship games in 2023 and 2024, which they lost to the LSU Tigers and South Carolina Gamecocks, respectively.
At the first of those two championships, a seeming rivalry was born between Clark and her superstar counterpart on the Tigers: Angel Reese. While the pair have long denied that there’s any rivalry between them, games where Clark’s Fever play Reese’s Chicago Sky set ticket price and TV viewership records. Reese denied the rivalry in an interview in March.
“I don’t think people realize it’s not personal,” Reese said. “Once we get out between those lines, if I see you walking down the street, it’s like, ‘Hey, girl, what’s up? Let’s hang out.’ I think people just take it like we hate each other. Me and Caitlin Clark don’t hate each other. I want everybody to understand that.”
Clark agreed earlier this month, speaking during a post-game press conference.
“I’m pretty sure the only people that view this as a rivalry is all of you,” she said. “Like, to us it’s just a game of basketball.”
Reese set a rookie record on June 23 in a game against Clark when she recorded her eighth-straight double-double. She broke the single-season WNBA record for consecutive double-doubles on June 30 when she managed a 10th straight double-double. Prior to her 10-point, 16-rebound performance, she was tied with two-time WNBA MVP Candace Parker.
Indiana
Apparent fireworks malfunction leaves 7 injured, several homes damaged in Griffith, Indiana: police
Sunday, June 30, 2024 5:45PM
Live streaming newscasts, breaking news, weather & original, local programming.
GRIFFITH, Ind. (WLS) — A fireworks incident left seven people injured and several houses and vehicles damaged in Northwest Indiana on Saturday night, police said.
Griffith police said officers were dispatched to the 900-block of North Arbogast Street at about 9:30 p.m.
It appears that a private fireworks show at home there had an accidental malfunction, injuring seven people and damaging four houses and 10 vehicles, police said.
Information about the ages and conditions of those injured was not immediately available.
Police are investigating the incident and asked anyone with information to contact them at 219-924-7503. Anonymous tips can be left by calling 219-922-3085.
Copyright © 2024 WLS-TV. All Rights Reserved.
Indiana
Pleasant air moves in
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Many locations in central Indiana picked up beneficial rain with yesterday’s storms. Pleasant air will now move in following this system.
TODAY: Mostly sunny skies. Dew points will drop into the comfortable category by the afternoon. Winds will be sustained out of the north at 10 to 15 mph with gusts to 25 mph. High temperatures in the mid-70s.
TONIGHT: We will have our coolest morning since June 11. Mostly clear skies remain. Low temperatures in the low to mid-50s.
TOMORROW: Another refreshing day. The first day of July will feature plenty of sunshine with high temperatures in the mid to upper 70s.
8-DAY FORECAST: Our pleasant air is only temporary. Temperatures will build after Monday as a warm front crosses Indiana. This will also drive up our rain chances Wednesday to Friday with the frontal boundary stalling out in the Midwest. Unfortunately, the 4th of July will be included in these rain chances, but we should know more about the timing of rain as we get closer.
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