Indiana Blog Review

Coroner'd

Advance Indiana relays background allegations on the crack-up within the Marion County Coroner's Office.

The Fightin' 34th

Advance Indiana looks at the battle to replace departing Indiana State Senator from Indy's 34th District Billie Breaux.

Brain Drain

Manfred Eye:

How does a city such as Indianapolis stack up in this attempt to draw young, qualified professionals? Not very well.

Central Indiana Financial Shenanigans

Advance Indiana, "Carl Drummer's Fleecing of Center Township."

Indy Undercover has a couple of posts suggesting more of the same in the City-County Council here and here.

Black Priorities

RiShawn Biddle says the black students at IUPUI agitating for a list of demands are ignoring some larger issues in Central Indiana.

Straight and Narrow

Advance Indiana:

What I really find disturbing in the Marion County results is the number of straight-ticket voters. Over 60% of the votes cast were straight-party votes . . . Unless that trend is reversed, Marion County will soon become a one-party county ala Cook County, Illinois--and all that that implies.

The Pack of Pastors

Abdul has some juicy yet confusing gossip on behind-the-scenes politicking amoung Marion County bigwigs and a fiesty pack of demanding Black Pastors.

That Bar, Again

Advance Indiana:

The leadership of the Mapleton-Fall Creek Neighborhood Association has obviously been compromised as a result of the handy work of the proponents of the 300 East bar at the Julia Carson Government Center.

Mayor Brizzi?

Jen Wagner reacts to Tully's speculations about Marion Co. Prosecutor Carl Brizzi running for mayor of Indianpolis:

Tully proclaims Brizzi "king of the Marion County GOP." Which, when you think about it, is kinda like being elected Summer School Class President.

TDW thinks Brizzi would have a tough time running for Mayor. It's a very different job than what he's used to, and people demand things of a mayoral candidate that they don't even think about when they elect a Prosecutor. Also, Brizzi just spent $2 million taking ownership of crime in Marion County. But hey, if he wants to give Ike Randolph a run for his money in the primary, have at it. Because Republicans spending money trying to beat other Republicans is always fun to watch. (TDW's money is still on Brizzi running for Dan Burton's seat.)

CCC

RiShawn Biddle looks ahead to the future of the Indianapolis-Marion County City-County Council.

Indy Undercover reports, "Republican City-County Councilmember Scott Keller is in talks with Democra[t]s to change parties."

More:  Advance Indiana, "I find that report very hard to believe."

Elrod-o-rama

Advance Indiana:

While the clerk's office has yet to track down those missing memory cards from about 66 precincts, party workers were able to provide printouts of vote results in those missing races. In the case of the 97th District, the unofficial results put Elrod up about 60 votes, a large enough lead to survive any recount. There is a bit of irony in Elrod's victory. Mahern was the person who master-minded the House Democrats legislative map which gerrymandered the districts to heavily favor Democrats. Apparently, he didn't do a good enough job drawing the boundaries of his own district.

UPDATE:  As Elrod's lead shrinks to 9, AI ponders why one precinct decided to rely so often on two touchscreen machines, normally reserved for disabled voters, which don't have a papertrail.

The Fightin' 7th

Ruth Holladay:

I have to wonder if reporters at the Star had more consistently reported on Carson's health, mental alertness, her voting record, etc., would she have been re-elected? Tully's upclose and personal look at her, tinged with humanity, is too little, too late . . .

One has to conclude that Carson has been ill-served by her own party, which apparently prefers to prop her up in spite of everything rather than face facts ...she is old and she deserves a rest.

Advance Indiana points to new evidence that those DCCC fliers were targeted toward predominantly white areas.

RiShawn Biddle takes a look at the upcoming and agonizing battle to find Carson's successor.

Spoils of the Spoilers II

Mike Kole:

I had to think about this for a moment, but then it dawned on me that this year, Todd Rokita failed to finish first in Marion County . . .

While I'd like to take credit for the spoiler role, a look at the 2002 returns for comparison's sake is worthwhile . . .

Looks like the Dems' numbers are about the same, but Todd Rokita lost about 3,000 votes in Marion County. Maybe Todd just didn't campaign enough in Marion County. Go complain to him.

MEANWHILE, Chariman Rutherford points to three races where the spoiler effect isn't supported by the data.

Coronerd'd

Advance Indiana has the scoop on the very troubled Marion County Coroner's Office.  He quotes at length and comments upon a letter to Mayor Bart Peterson from Dr. Stephen S. Radentz, the Chief of Pathology for the office, who blasts Coroner Kenneth Ackles' inexplicable decision to terminate the contract for the forensics staff.

And some background:

Ackles, who is a chiropractor and not a medical doctor, was slated by Marion County Democrats in 2004 to run for the office being vacated by Dr. John McGoff after 8 years due to term limitations. Ackles was chosen over a much more qualified candidate and long-term employee of the office at the urging of Rep. Julia Carson (D) during the party's county slating process.

He provides more coverage as the story developes.

Wednesday Morning Quarterback

Abdul chimes in from Indianapolis, "Instead of writing some long, drawn out piece about the election and statistics and analysis on results and numbers on the Democratic sweep, I decided to give a little advice to the major players in town. Here it is."

On the Front

RiShawn Biddle is also liveblogging the election.

Needling the Election

Advance Indiana has an election thread.

Parking!

More on the Hollywood Bar & Filmworks flameout, from Advance Indiana:

It seems the Mayor was talking to Terri and the Pidge on WIBC when he suddenly started having trouble hearing after Pidge asked him about the parking question. When Terri jumped in and repeated a question the question to him, the Mayor said he couldn't hear her either and hung up, which provoked laughter and disbelief in the WIBC studio and listening audience.

Carson Being Carson

Matt Tully notes the momentous vote of Rep. Julia Carson:

I start every Election Day the same way -- by heading to 23rd and Park to watch U.S. Rep. Julia Carson vote. The reason? Something always happens.

Today, though, was slightly disappointing. No confusion over her ID and no problem with the machines, as in past elections. With the exception of a little mistake -- workers had to void her first ballot because she filled in her party's symbol and not the corresponding oval -- Carson's voting experience was smooth.

Marion County Volcano

Advance Indiana:

An hysterical Marion County Democratic Chairman Ed Treacy told reporters this morning that County Clerk Doris Ann Sadler and Republicans were guilty of criminal conduct because election workers had trouble starting voting machines this morning. He falsely claims that it was a deliberate attempt to block Democratic voters from voting. There are several problems with Treacy's "grassy knoll" theory . . .

Trouble in Hamilton County

Jen Wagner:

Word on the street is that Hamilton County Election Administrator and Republican State Rep. Kathy Richardson is now under investigation by the Hamilton County Sheriff and the State Police after the local Democratic Party requested and obtained public records showing that she has been using her taxpayer-funded office to coordinate campaign events for her re-election bid and to conduct official legislative business.

Not to distract from the newsworthiness of the post, I do have to take issue with Ms. Wagner's titling.  How is this Carmel fun?  Rep. Richardson represents Noblesville (and a smidge of Hancock County).  Noblesville, my hometown, is also the county seat for Hamilton County, so any investigations from the Sheriffs Dept. or the Prosecutor's Office will originate there.  Carmel isn't the only city on the northside of Indy.

Stewart Transcripts

Jen Wagner:

For those of you trolls out there who doubted the authenticity of the initial hearing transcript in the recent James Stewart post, TDW has received a copy of the official document from the court, which shows there was no deputy prosecutor present to object to Stewart's release.

That, if you'll recall, is contrary to Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi's statements to a City-County Council committee.

If you'd like to read the transcript, have at it: Download stewart_official_transcript.pdf

Carson Daily

Ruth Holladay reports of a grassroots anti-Carson effort among Roman Catholics in the 7th District.

Advance Indiana says Carson's latest disavowal of the DCCC is hypocrisy, abetted by the Indy Star.

Grainy Photos

Indy Undercover digs up a "racist" example.

A Late Play

Abdul, "Someone forgot to tell the Melina Kennedy Camp I'm on their e-mail list  . . . "

Upset in Indy?

Advance Indiana:

While state and Marion County Democrats have focused their attention on knocking off two long-time incumbent Republicans and saving one of their own in a tight race, a Republican upstart in another race may be poised to upset a long-time Democratic veteran . . . Flying almost undetected under radar, is local attorney Jon Elrod, who is challenging Rep. Ed Mahern (D).

The Democratic leaning House District 97 encompasses much of the downtown and nearby southside neighborhoods. The district has been represented for more than a decade by the chief architect of the 2000 Democratic-gerrymandered House district plan which gave Democrats control of the Indiana House through 2004. Little attention has been paid to what is perceived to be a safe Democratic district, but a much younger Jon Elrod has been quietly working the district in a door-to-door grassroots effort which had gone unnoticed by Democrats until the last few days.

Unlike past Republican candidates, Elrod has a philosophy that more closely represents the views of the people of the district. While he is economically conservative, Elrod has taken a much more moderate view on hot button social issues.

Another Endorsement

Ellen Anderson chooses Melina Kennedy for Marion County Prosecutor.

Fleeting Real Estate

Advance Indiana asks, "Are Marion County Democrats Trying To Supress The Republican Vote?"

Vote Early

Advance Indiana reports that absentee voting in Marion County is up from recent off-year elections.

Fishing Expedition in Marion County

Abdul has two posts (here and here) on the efforts of City-County Council Democrats to level eleventh-hour legal charges against the Republican Prosecutor and Township Assessors.

He concludes that sanctions are out-of-line:

I was able to find all this out in a couple hours. If it was this simple for me, people who specialize in local government should know this as well.

What is more disturbing in all this is that it appears partisan politics (poorly done in my humble opinion) has reared its head one week before an election. At the very least Democrats should have checked to see if they had the authority to sanction other officials before announcing an investigation. Secondly, both Monroe Gray and Ron Gibson should recuse themselves from any matter involving the Prosecutor's office as they both have connections involving the prosecutor and alleged criminal conduct in Gibson's case and possible criminal activity in the case of 300 East. At least that way, things wouldn't look so blatant.

Let's Not Go to the Movies

A well-timed blow to the Melina Kennedy, management whiz?  Hollywood Bar & Filmworks owner Ted Bulthaup posts online his polemics against the Peterson Administration's anti-small business attitude.  It makes for grim and fascinating reading.

Advance Indiana:

Parking demand after the new Conseco fieldhouse opened, Buthaup explains, drives up parking costs so much during special events that many long-time customers of businesses like Bulthaup's no longer come downtown for their entertainment and dining. Attempts to get parking concessions from the city to help these small business owners were unsuccessful, leading to the ultimate demise of Hollywood Bar & Filmworks. At the same time these small business owners were seeking relief, Mayor Peterson and Melina Kennedy awarded the Simons an $11 million taxpayer give-away so Simon employees could park for free in their new corporate tower shadowing the State House.

Chris Douglas:

Bulthaup summons some remarkable statistics, including the fact that in the first three years since the construction of Conseco fieldhouse, the sales revenues of the top ten downtown restaurants DECLINED on average 10%, before the Indianapolis Downtown Inc stopped reporting the statistic.    Bulthaup attributes this to a doubling of food and beverage taxes under Mayor Peterson and a high-cost parking situation whereby the sports franchises drive parking costs so far up that no other local downtown businesses can retain  their customer bases.

Chairman Rutherford:

Hollywood Bar and Filmworks has been in its downtown Indianapolis location for 15 years, back before downtown Indianapolis had reestablished itself. However the lesson is clear, as N.K. Hurst and Company knows, that government does not reward such loyalty. It will take taxpayer money to build monuments to big business entities, give those entities very favorable deals, and stick it to small businesses and other taxpayers.

Mike Sylvester says this should be a warning for Fort Wayne.

Jen Wagner calls Ted Bulthaup a perpetual whiner, but offers thin evidence to support her dismissive insult.

Sittin' Brizzi

I think it would be civil if we had the candidates for Marion County Prosecutor compete for the office with a paintball match.

Abdul:

Earlier this week, the Democrats instructed Council Attorney Aaron Haith to investigate whether Brizzi misled the council during hearings on jail overcrowding. I would take the "investigation" more seriously if the Democrats hadn't been sitting on this information for months. I reached that conclusion based on several factors.

First, the information used has been sitting around for months. Second, it showed up a partisan, although well done, Democratic blog just a few days before Election Day. Third, no one else in the media would pick up the story, which is ironic seeing how I did and I am the partisans' least favorite media outlet. Fourth, Council President Monroe Gray has an axe to grind with Brizzi over the jail overcrowding hearings and the fact Brizzi is investigating 300 East, a bar that Gray has a financial interest in via his wife. Fifth, the Democratic chairman of the public safety committee has a relative who is a key staffer on the Melina Kennedy campaign. Need I say more?

The Short Smear

How about that Fightin' 7th, eh?

Advance Indiana: "In a cheap, ugly display of blatant racism against her African-American opponent Eric Dickerson, Rep. Julia Carson (D) drops a negative attack ad in the mailboxes of white voters to scare them away from voting for Dickerson, playing on white people's worst stereotypes of black men. "

RiShawn Biddle, "It was definitely not an honor to see one of The Star Editorial Board's editorials reprinted by you, umm, fine fellows over at the DCCC."

Matt Tully, "The ad does not appear to be the work of a party that thinks its candidate is a sure thing on Nov. 7. One interesting note: The mailer features a grainy picture of Dickerson. Four years ago, Carson and Democrats alleged racism after Republicans sent out a mailer featuring a grainy photo of Carson. "

stAllio!, "i can't deny that the mailer is brutal. i'm not surprised that republicans are freaking out about it. but if you want to complain, at least make sure you're blaming the right person first. it's a well-known fact that independent expenditures can't legally be coordinated with individual campaigns."  He also posts a scan of the mailer.

A Trilogy of Government Reform

Abdul takes an exciting look at the plot for Indy Works, Part III.

The Hoosier Dome

Advance Indiana, "Taxpayers should be absolutely outraged by the fiscal practices of the city on the RCA Dome, but the city has no qualms about what it's doing."

More Sober

Jen Wagner posts some documents that shed new light on the Hamilton Avenue massacre:

Two weeks later, after it became apparent that a high-risk criminal had slipped through the cracks and helped commit the city's worst homicidal attack in history, Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi undertook a bizarre combination of back-pedaling, grandstanding and rewriting history.

Once Again . . .

The Marion County Prosecutor's race makes me chuckle -- or rather, Matt Tulley did.

First, "After all those TV commercials, it will be nice to see Brizzi without the smoke billowing around him."

Second, "One glaring problem with Kennedy's analysis is that her campaign included as a 'loss' cases in which suspects were convicted of much more serious charges -- such as attempted murder -- instead of domestic violence."

Passing the Bar

Abdul has a juicy rumor in Marion County:

My sources tell me Council Member Patrice Abdullah (District 15) and Angela Mansfield (District 2) are both in their party's sights. Because the two stood up against the bar at 300 East as well as the Savoy on west 86th Street, I'm told they probably won't get slated in next year's municipal elections.

And Now . . .

Back to Central Indiana, where two items about Melina Kennedy made me laugh out loud.

First, from Indy Undercover:

A couple days ago, some of our fellow LEOs made an arrest in the 4400 black of North Winthrop. Not only did the convicted felon have several outstanding warrants and was drving a stolen car, but in the back of his stolen Cadillac were Kennedy for Prosecutor signs. He was reportedly driving around, in a stolen car, putting up Kennedy for Prosecutor signs.

Second, from Jim Shella:

That ad from Democrat prosecutor candidate Melina Kennedy that accuses Republican Carl Brizzi of driving a "gas-guzzling" SUV recently underwent some changes.  Video of an America-made SUV was replaced by a cartoon depiction of an SUV.

There were complaints from the UAW.

Kennedy v. Brizzi

That poll also put Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi at a commanding lead over Democratc challenger Melina Kennedy 51-35%.

Indiana On Message comments:

But is anyone really surprised by the numbers? Kennedy's television presence has been miserable, and the ads have been an insult to the donors that have shelled out millions expecting that Kennedy, as a talented Deputy Mayor, could capitalize on rising crime, a heavily Democratic environment, and a trending-Democratic county. Thus far, even with so many strategic and structural advantages, she's failed. This poll data should only further discourage Kennedy's fundraising base, and worsen the already-growing disparity in television points...

Chris Douglas sums up why Brizzi is the candidate to vote for:

I believe that current Prosecutor Carl Brizzi is an individual whose successful re-election would, in a year of Republican defeat, send a powerful message to the Republican Party on behalf of the GLBT community of Indianapolis.

The Best They've Got?

Chris Douglas looks at the nascent dirt on Eric Dickerson:

So we have a clear dichotomy... between the intimations of more embarrassment  flowing from someone very closely associated with Carson, and the outright denial coming from Eric Dickerson, who also has said that he refuses to be drawn further into this web . . .

So which is it?  Truth or bluff?  Words in the service of the public which shed unfavorable light on the honor of Dickerson's candidacy? or words of partisan slander which shed unfavorable light on the honor of Carson's candidacy?

Advance Indiana deflects the smear that Dickerson is a failed businessman and returns the serve with a wicked backhand.

The Explosive 7th

WTHR, the local NBC affiliate in Indianapolis, commissioned  a recent poll showing Republican challenger Eric Dickerson with a 45-42% lead over Rep. Julia Carson.  And there was much sputtering in the Hoosier Blogosphere:

• Matt Tully writes:

This must be an interesting day over at county Democratic headquarters. With that party preparing for historic wins across the nation and the state, Democrats face big trouble in the two biggest races here in Marion County -- at least for now. Perhaps this is a sign that the Marion County Democratic Party should start getting serious,

• RiShawn Biddle:

If the poll turns out to be less flawed than most, it would reflect what I've been thinking for a while: The race between Dickerson and Carson is narrower than most people think.

Evidence of this can be seen in the dramatic event that has turned this race into the nastiness that it is . . .

Then there is another factor that few actually consider in any of this: That the Black vote on which Carson's success has been based no longer consist of Center Township's poor African-Americans. Now that the district consists of middle-class Blacks in Pike, Lawrence and Washington townships -- many of whom are college-educated professionals and homeowners whose interests are often more aligned with White middle-class voters -- its harder for Carson to simply play on racial bigotry, especially when voters are thinking about that good old green . . .

• Advance Indiana finds another morsel from the poll:

The poll found that by a 49%-42% margin, voters in the 7th District disapproved of her job performance. That's devastating for a 10-year veteran of Congress.

• Scott Fluhr:

Given the cash disparities, I do not think that Dickerson can survive a last-minute push by Carson's campaign. I also do not think that the undecideds will break for him given the decidedly anti-Republican character of this election year, meaning that his being ahead is probably misleading.

The character of the year is the crux of Dickerson's problem, I think. If this were a neutral or Republican year, he would have a much better chance. But this is not, and the Republicans . . . have more pressing races to focus upon . . .

Dickerson does not have the turnout operation in place that Carson does, and that is important in urban and heavily-Democratic (and minority) areas of Indianapolis.

• He also agrees with Jen Wagner that the polls don't seem to pass the smell test.
• But AI says that Amos Brown's reaction to the poll's methodology belies a less-than-sober skepticism:

If Brown's tirade this afternoon is any indication, Dickerson better be prepared for the worst two weeks of his life. It is clear that Carson and friends like Brown will do everything conceivable over the next two weeks to personally destroy him . . .

An Earful

Advance Indiana reports from the "Mapleton-Fall Creek neighborhood association met tonight to discuss the proposed 'private club/bar' known as 300 East in the Julia Carson Government Center, and many of those who attended tonight's meeting don't want it according to WISH-TV's Daniel Miller."

Turner Slaps

Advance Indiana comments on Robert Turner's endorsement of Carl Brizzi for Marion County Prosecutor.

Indy Undercover uncovers the surprise twist, "he was approached about running for the job by the Mayor's people before [Kennedy] was."

Will It Be Reintroduced?

RiShawn Biddle gives Indianpolis' proposed Second Chance Ordinance a post-mortem.

Con Prosecutor

Advance Indiana says Kennedy's latest attack ad is a new low, containing nothing "informative or truthful."  Presumably, this is lower than another low he'd spotted earlier.

Jim Shella relates an amusing footnote:

Some Kennedy staffers got an unexpected surprise while on assignment to shoot those [advertisement] photos.  Because the building also houses a federal agency, their activities aroused suspicion and they were detained until they could convince authorities they are not terrorists.

Jerame Davis comes down on the Marion County Prosecutor's race:

But let's be clear, it has been on Brizzi's watch that the recent crime wave has taken hold and I can't help but be compelled by the Kennedy campaign's slogan, "Results matter."

The Fightin' Seventh

Matt Tully recaps his interviews with Eric Dickerson and Julia Carson.

Advance Indiana comments extensively on the tapings here and here.

He also reports from their only appearance together at Robin Run Village and notes Star coverage here.

Absolut Fallacy

RiShawn Biddle looks for the middle ground:

Carson supporters are right in complaining that the Dickerson crowd continues to link their candidate to the proposed bar at the Center Township government building, which, by the way, is named after Carson. After all, her opposition to it is on record. At the same time, for supporters to deny that the players involved are also her patrons -- and that she, along with Mayor Bart Peterson -- runs the Marion County Democratic Party under which all the Typical Ghetto Crap is occurring is to strain credulity.

Meanwhile Dickerson supporters are correct in asserting that Carson and her campaign engaged in mudslinging when she mentioned the Republican standardbearer's 1991 arrest for alleged wifebeating. For them to argue that Dickerson's explanation of what happened 15 years ago shouldn't be up for voter consideration -- or that pointing out the faultiness of that explanation is some sort of a hit job -- is simply ignoring the reality that voters have a right to weigh all evidence in their decision about a candidate.

Then there is the match between incumbent Prosecutor Carl Brizzi and Melina Kennedy, which has become a nasty fight over the experience and management skills of each candidate. Kennedy may be right in pointing out that one need not be a longtime prosecutor to run for the top job, but she cannot outright dismiss the fact that being a prosecutor requires more than tip-top management skills. While Brizzi makes a good point that Kennedy's lack of experience in prosecuting cases should be at issue, this doesn't mean that her points about the management requirements of the job -- and whether Brizzi has those skills -- is invalid.

Mixing Houses

Chris Douglas, writing at Bilerico, offers a thoughtful (i.e., long) post on Eric Dickerson's candidacy.

He follows up with comments on Kathryn Densborn, State Rep. David Orentlicher's (D - N. Indy) challenger.

The Covered 7th

Last week, Advance Indiana asked, "Would The Star Please Start Covering The Candidates And Issues In District 7?"

Today, he notes Matt Tully's post announcing that Dickerson and Carson will appear this Sunday on Political Insiders, along with Kevin Rader:

Let's see if Tully and Rader ask tough questions of both candidates. I'm disappointed that WTHR has chosen to air the interview only once early on a Sunday morning when very few people watch TV. I guess they're not really interested in their viewers hearing what the candidates have to say.

Breaking Rumors

TDW:

Reliable sources say that the Indiana State Police are currently investigating Lawrence Township Assessor Paul Ricketts for a host of reasons, including possible ghost employment and mixing political activity with public service.

Apparently, Marion County Republican Chair and State Rep. Mike Murphy has been using Ricketts' taxpayer-funded office as a base to help coordinate part of Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi's re-election campaign, and, among other documentation, he's on tape taking all sorts of Brizzi materials to the office.

There's talk that the cops have enough to nab Ricketts, but they're also looking into Murphy and Brizzi. Reportedly, the Guv has been briefed on the situation.

Update: More.

Breaking News

Julia Carson can walk.

A Conspiracy of Circumstance

Advance Indiana floats the idea that Fifth-Third Bank's lawsuit earlier this year against Eric Dickerson was motivated by Julia Carson's string pulling.

"Horsepucky," responds Marla Stevens.

Mind Your Qs

RiShawn Biddle has some sharp questions about central Indiana politics.

He also reposts a great piece on the right questions to ask about the Toll Road.

Carr Go

Rob Harrington's five questions for Democratic challenger for Indiana's 5th District Katherine Carr.

300 Easy

Was that bar open this weekend?

Tough

Advance Indiana summarizes the recent decision by US District Court Judge Richard Young to set aside an Indianapolis ordinance banning sex offenders city parks and other public places.

Kennedy, Moriarty-Adams, Mayor Peterson and every city-county councilor who voted for this ordinance should be ashamed of themselves. But they won't be. Instead, they will waste tens of thousands of dollars fighting a losing case, all to prove to voters just how much they are against sex offenders.

Going to the Dogs

Abdul looks at Indy's new dangerous dog ordinance.

Rainbow Breeze

Advance Indiana reports on Carl Brizzi's recent speech before the Indy Rainbow Chamber of Commerce.

Yes, it's a Coincidence

Indy Undercover:

Don't ya' think it is kinda strange that a Mayor who just happens to have a development company has pushed policies (laying off police, raising property taxes, laissez-fair attitude to local corruption) that continually drive middle-class taxpayers OUT of Marion County and into the surrounding counties and his family's new subdivisions?

Rumors of Race

Indy Undercover reports that he hears Ron Gibson's strategy will be to play the race card, big time.

The Decay

RiShawn Biddle looks around Indy and sees a lot of broken windows.

Raggedy Ann

Advance Indiana levels an accusing finger at Ann DeLaney for a conflict of interest.

Poor Indy

Jim Shella says there will be no GOP convention in Indianapolis inthe foreseeable future.  Oh well, a Superbowl would do very nicely instead.

Ike for Mayor

Matt Tully: "By the way, my hope was to save this story for Friday's paper. But the hard-working blog Advance Indiana has posted an e-mail Randolph sent to potential campaign supporters, so the news is out."

It's like a mobius strip of blogging.

Update: AI reviews Tully's column.

WTF, Mate?

Abdul unloads:

When I came to Indianapolis a little over two years ago, I figured it's a nice town and it should be easy to manage. That was two years ago. In the past week, I've seen the coroner's office searched for the possibility of corruption and official misconduct. I've seen a group of people try to put a bar in a government building and one of their key players is arrested for DUI. The murder rate is so high that spread out there has been a killing every 2-3 days. The budget is a mess! And now I hear a prominent local official could be on the receiving end of law enforcement's reach. What the f---, people! What the f----!

When did things just get out of control! When did Indianapolis turn into Detroit, Oakland, Washington D.C?

Las Indiavegas

Indy Undercover thinks gambling is in Indianapolis' future.

Slick Ronny

Advance Indiana throws in this tidbit: "Gibson had also been touted as a possible successor to Rep. Julia Carson."

The Importance of Being Frank

Matt Tully wonders why Marion County Sheriff Frank Anderson didn't make the cut in the inaugural round for the Indianapolis Public Schools Hall of Fame Class.

Sigh

Advance Indiana on IND's new midfield terminal.  (That means Lacy Johnson is featured in the post.)

Oh Please

RiShawn Biddle says that Carl Drummer's oped in Sunday's Indianapolis Star provided some unintentional hilarity.

I agree.  In fact, am I the only one who was reminded of Smoove B?

Advance Indiana has a more sober view.

And More Still on Dickerson

The latest:

• Somewhat amusing: Indy Undercover takes a peak to see who's been checking up at his site.
• TDW posts PDFs of the original documents.
• Abdul: "It all boils down simply to who do you believe. "
• Advance Indiana unloads on the Indianapolis Star for its poor reporting and biased editorial.
• Ruth Holladay agrees but also relays Andy Jacobs, Jr's sentiment that the Indianapolis Star's coverage has been unfair to Julia Carson.  Say what?
• Finally, RiShawn Biddle really clears the air: "What I will say is that none of this would be of concern for voters in November if the two major parties actually had done their jobs and selected competent candidates for office. "  Indeed!

To Rival the Arch

Jason266, an Indianapolis-based architect, reports at length about the "Indy Gateways" project:

Fifteen design teams submitted RFQ's (Request for Qualifications) in hopes of being the designer for the I-65/West gateway. Five teams were selected to propose designs for the gateway. The teams are comprised of many talented designers and each team is headed by a local landscape architecture firm . . .

He also posts pictures and reviews. (via [I'm sorry, I forget - Z])

Dickerson Reloaded

The saga continues:

• Abdul interviewed Paula Dickerson today (audio here), and she denies being beaten.  Abdul summarizes:

And here is what we know right now. We have a 15-year old police report. We have Eric saying he did not commit the crime. We have his wife saying he did nothing. We have a case that has been dismissed. We have a case file that has since been destroyed. We have an accuser (Julia Carson) who has disappeared off the radar screen.

Draw your own conclusions.

• stAllio is skeptical:

but there's a lot of highly detailed stuff in that police report: where did it all come from if it's not true? where did the cops get all that stuff about eye-gouging and elbow biting? why did the cops say that paula told them that eric wanted to kill her? and the cops don't just say that eric bit his daughter, the police report says she had visible bite marks. this sounds awfully specific to be something they just pulled out of their asses.

something doesn't jibe here. the dickerson version of events cannot be reconciled with the police report. someone is lying. either the cops completely made up the entire report, or paula lied (either then or now).

• Both Advance Indiana and TDW noticed a disappearing-reappearing article at IndyStar.com by Mary Beth Schneider.  AI comments:

And just how did Schneider get the police report? "An Indianapolis Police Department arrest report -- which a Carson campaign volunteer obtained from IPD -- gives a different version of events," she writes. In other words, the Star didn't go searching for the record itself. Schneider reported in her earlier online report that all court records have since been purged; however, in this new report she says old files were recovered from storage in the Marion Co. Prosecutor's office. That's how she knew the case was dismissed because mother and daughter recanted statements included in the original police report. Schneider is also no longer talking about Carson's earlier claim, which she reported in her first online report, that Carson learned about the alleged domestic abuse from a neighbor of Dickerson's. And the Indiana Democratic Party, they declined to comment on the matter, although the state' party's communications director has had plenty to say about the matter at Taking Down Words. Doesn't Schneider read that site?

• Frugal Hoosiers, uh, plays the race card.

Domestic Dickerson

Wow, this Eric Dickerson story is pretty big.  Some points:

• Advance Indiana gives a sweeping narrative to catch you up to speed.
• TDW posts the Police Report.  Abdul wonders why this is the only part of the prosecutor's file to have survived.
• TDW finds it suspicious that "the case was in the court system for almost a year before the charges were dismissed."  Abdul implies that the case was refiled on technical grounds.
• TDW also notes it's a small world: "you'll note that one of the responding officers on the call was Vince Huber, now the President of the local Fraternal Order of Police."
• AI, TDW, and stAllio note that the police report contradicts Dickerson's claims on this morning's show with Abdul that "there was no physical violence."  sTDW and stAllio also astutely note that Paula Dickerson could clear this up.
• TDW says that Dickerson's preemptive appearance on Abdul in the Morning was a "decent PR move."  stAllio wonder whether the appearance gave the story fatal prominence.
• Finally, why did Julia Carson suddenly decide to go so extremely negative on such a weak challenger?  AI and Abdul offer thoughts.

Pubapalooza

A Roundup on the Julia Carson Memorial Bar and Grill:

1. RiShawn Biddle gives the details of possible charges coming out of the prosecutor's office.  Advance Indiana says the need for a special prosecutor is "a load of crap," but also pushes for the feds to get involved.
2. Abdul further notes that the Marion County Association of Neighborhood Alliances is up in arms, and politicians should take notice.  He also has extra criticisms for Monroe Gray.
3. Ruth Holladay notes one name has been absent from the who's who of involved politicos:

   I'll take it another step -- altho she was not mentioned in Tully's story, Belle T. Choate is the head of the Marion County Alcoholic Beverage Board, and she ultimately will get to hear the request for this club's liquor license. She is the wife of Sarge Visher, Rep. Julia Carson's chief of staff. Some people have argued that Rep. Carson is neither responsible for this mess nor in charge of it, but everybody involved is ultimately tied to her. These are her people.

   What's more, she has a nice history lesson to put it in perspective.

4. Advance Indiana tells the Indianapolis Star's Will Higgins to keep digging; he's missing a lot.  He also accuses Higgins of revisionist history in today's paper.  Thank goodness for blogs.

Kennedy, Kennedy, Kennedy, Kennedy

• Advance Indiana reports on Melinda Kennedy's recent speech at the Indy Rainbow Chamber.
• Abdul fact checks her recent news release attacking Brizzi.
• Chairman Rutherford says she sounds just like a Republican.
• Indy Undercover:

At the Hobnob this week Ms. Kennedy asked the profound question "Are we safer that we were four years ago?" Indyu is waiting for Melina to answer her own question after all she was sitting there when Bart decided to lay-off police officers and strip $300,000 from Brizzi's office in 2004.

IndyGlo

HoosierPlew does some sneaky sleuthing and finds that an unannounced "Green Line" may be in the works for IndyGo.

Hoping for Community Chest

Advance Indiana asks, "Is Indianapolis Teetering on Bankrupcy?"

Game on

Abdul has a roundup of local gossip.

Odd Funding

Indy Undercover dug up some history from late 1998:

NIPSCO: Energy provider for the northern part of Indiana was preparing to release a parcel of property to the City of Gary, Indiana for redevelopment. This piece of property was located on Grant Street near Interstate 80 across the street from Community Church.

Instead phone calls were made and NIPSCO suddenly stopped the deal with the City of Gary and sold the property to the Precedent for approximately $100,000. Precedent then resold the property to the City of Gary for approximately $1.1 million. In November of the same year Bart Peterson announces his bid for Mayor with a big junk of cash in the bank.

Neither Mayor Scott King or State Senator Earline Rogers were particularly pleased with the arrangement however they were forced to go along with this deal for the good of the "Party".

Marion Co. Inquest

Advance Indiana

is picking up word that Marion Co. Coroner Kenneth Ackles is nowhere near to figuring out how the county is going to perform autopsies in the near future than he was the day he recklessly terminated a contract he entered into with the