Latest news with #RyanMears
Indianapolis Star
6 days ago
- Politics
- Indianapolis Star
Can prosecutors be impeached? This Indiana lawmaker wants to try to change the law
The scrutiny over the Marion County Prosecutor's Office continues in response to a recent spate of gun violence in Indianapolis: this time with a Republican state representative proposing giving legislators impeachment power over the locally elected office. It's not the first hint of state intervention into this locally elected office, but it's certainly the most specific ― and would require a lengthy process of amending the state constitution. After two July weekends of back-to-back violence with multiple people killed, including teenagers, the city's police union president Rick Snyder called on state leaders to "step in," with no further details. Then Gov. Mike Braun said he'd be open to some kind of intervention ― without saying of what sort ― if Indianapolis leaders don't "make a change," specifically pointing the finger at the prosecutor's office, led by Democrat Ryan Mears. "We need to see a significant crackdown," Braun said last week. "Indianapolis' own justice system is not doing the job." Now, Indianapolis state Rep. Andrew Ireland has an idea: allow state lawmakers to impeach Mears, a power the state constitution currently vests in the Indiana Supreme Court. His key claim is that Mears doesn't do enough to keep repeat violent defenders off the streets, citing two recent examples: the case of the alleged IndyGo bus arsonist, Demarcus McCloud, who has a long rap sheet prior to the arson; and Zachary Arnold, who was charged with killing his daughter this year and previously had a violent criminal history. "I just want somebody who will hold the violent offenders accountable, and if Ryan Mears isn't up to that task, then we have to have tools to replace him," Ireland told WIBC's Tony Katz on July 23. A spokesperson for the Marion County Prosecutor's Office responded to Ireland's criticisms with data: In 2024, the office prosecuted nearly a quarter of all criminal trials in the state while maintaining trial conviction rates of 94% for murders, 84% for sex crimes, 83% for attempted murder cases, and 88% for gun cases. Of cases that go to trial, the top five most common offenses were for murder, battery, domestic battery, child molesting and possession of a firearm by serious violent felon, Michael Leffler said. "It's clear that this office is a statewide leader in taking crimes of violence, especially our most serious offenses to trial," he said. What the law says State lawmakers can impeach mayors and other state and local officers for "misdemeanors" while in office. But case law has held that prosecutors are constitutional, judicial officers who are not in the same category as state, county and township executive-branch officers, such as mayors. The constitution further outlines "crime, incapacity, or negligence" as reasons that the General Assembly could impeach a state officer. In the case of prosecutors, however, the state constitution says that the state Supreme Court may remove them, and only if they have been "convicted of corruption or other high crime." IU law professor Joel Schumm points to a Supreme Court opinion from 1914 that states the legislature doesn't have the power to name some other cause, such as "negligence," as a premise for impeachment. Where the legislature could have wiggle room, that opinion states, is in enacting changes to the procedure by which accusations against judges and prosecutors are tried. Those rules would have to be applicable to all judges and prosecutors and provide for a day in court, the court has opined. In short, Schumm said, broadening the basis for removing a prosecutor would require an amendment to the state constitution. That process requires two consecutive sessions of the General Assembly to pass identical language, which would then have to be approved by voters via ballot referendum in the following election. The constitution also enshrines the prosecutor's position as an elected one whose term lasts four years. "If people aren't happy with the work of a prosecutor, they can vote against that person in an election," Schumm said. Braun mulls special prosecutor concept Meanwhile, the governor's office is not tamping down talk of a different not-yet-allowed method of overriding Mears: Braun's appointing a special prosecutor. State law currently says the governor can recommend the state inspector general be named a special prosecutor over a particular case that the county prosecutor declines to take up, but even then, the ultimate decision lies with an appeals court judge. Judges have further powers to appoint special prosecutors in the events that there is evidence of the prosecutor having committed a crime, or to avoid an appearance of impropriety, or if the prosecutor requests one. Braun acknowledged Thursday that state lawmakers would have to pass legislation to grant him the ability to appoint a special prosecutor unilaterally. He reiterated that his preference would be that Marion County leaders "solve their own problems," but said if they don't, the state "can't just stand by doing nothing." "If (state lawmakers) choose to do it, that's fine, because that would have to be done before I have that authority to do so," he said. "I don't think we're there. I think there's going to be enough proactiveness, I'm hoping, but when the need is there before going to that, we're going to be interacting."
Indianapolis Star
07-07-2025
- Indianapolis Star
4 teens charged following downtown weekend mass shooting
Four teenagers have been charged following their alleged involvement in a mass shooting on July 5, hours after a Fourth of July fireworks celebration finished downtown. The Marion County Prosecutor's Office said it will likely pursue additional charges as investigations continue. Indianapolis Police Chief Chris Bailey said at a press conference on July 5 that he would meet with Prosecutor Ryan Mears to discuss charging parents for negligence. 'We will continue to work with IMPD and our law enforcement partners to investigate how these firearms end up in the hands of our children," Mears said. Here is a breakdown of the charges. Indianapolis crime: At least 30 people shot in Indy over holiday weekend. 5 didn't survive A 17-year-old boy is being charged as an adult for dangerous possession of a firearm, resisting law enforcement and obstruction of justice. He tried to flee when law enforcement tried to stop him, officials claim. A 16-year-old boy is being charged in Juvenile Court with dangerous possession of a firearm. A 15-year-old boy is being charged in Juvenile Court with dangerous possession of a firearm, possession of marijuana and resisting law enforcement. A 13-year-old boy is being charged in Juvenile Court with dangerous possession of a firearm, possession of marijuana and theft of a firearm.
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Editorial: Prosecutor 'compliance' bill has pros, cons
A bill under consideration in the Indiana General Assembly would tie state funding for county deputy prosecutors to 'compliance' with the Legislature's expectations for criminal prosecutions. Supporters of House Bill 1006 point out that state funding would be wasted on prosecutors who want to pick and choose what sorts of criminal cases to pursue. Opponents say the bill would undermine the discretion of county prosecutors to use resources as they see fit. Opponents also claim that the bill is an explicit attempt to target Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears. There is some logic in both arguments, though it's hardly ever advisable to establish a law that is meant to rebuke or redirect an elected official rather than to promote sound public policy. In Mears' case, partisan politics stokes the controversy. He's a Democrat, and Republicans hold a supermajority in the Legislature. He became a political target when he announced in 2019 that his office would not prosecute low-level cases of marijuana possession. Three years later, before the special legislative session in 2022, Mears said he would decline to prosecute abortion cases if new state law was written to forbid the procedure. While some Democrats say House Bill 1006 clearly targets Mears, it is backed by the Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council and does have some Democratic support. The bill would designate funding to help counties pay for deputy prosecutors and would also create a review board composed of five members of the prosecuting council to investigate complaints of 'noncompliance.' A prosecutor's office would be denied HB 1006 funding if the board finds the prosecutor noncompliant in enforcing state laws. 'We try to not touch prosecutorial discretion, but at the end of the day these are state dollars,' bill author Rep. Chris Jeter, R-Fishers, told IndyStar in early February. 'I think that it's appropriate for us to outline, sort of condition them on our expectations. And these are our laws that we want enforced.' The last sentence of Jeter's quote makes it clear that legislators, themselves, want to identify which sorts of crimes should be aggressively prosecuted. That's one troubling aspect of the bill, which is under consideration on the House floor. State representatives should take a long, hard look at this one, given the validity of arguments both for and against.
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bill tracker: Senate votes to ban DEI, House OKs anti illegal immigration bill. What else moved
Lawmakers advances several bills to limit voting in the state of Indiana, with a legislative committee moving bills that would shrink the early voting period available to Hoosiers and close Indiana's primaries so that only registered party members are able to participate instead of all voters. Those are two of the bills that advanced in the Indiana General Assembly last week. IndyStar is tracking the prominent bills that are moving through the legislative process and that would impact a wide variety of Hoosiers. Here are some of the major bills that have advanced, and what happened to them last week. Lead authors: Sen. Tyler Johnson, R-Leo, Sen. Gary Byrne, R-Byrneville What it does: This bill bans all state spending on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives — from trainings to diverse hiring initiatives — at state agencies, educational institutions and health profession licensing boards. Status: The contents of this bill were amended into a different bill, Senate Bill 289, on the Senate floor on Feb. 4. That bill then passed the Senate on Feb. 6 by a 34-13 vote. Lead author: Rep. Garrett Bascom, R-Lawrenceburg What it does: The bill requires law enforcement officers to report individuals to their county sheriff if the person is arrested for a felony or misdemeanor and the officer has probable cause to believe the person lacks permanent legal status. It then requires county sheriffs to report the person to proper authorities. Status: Passed the House on Feb. 4 by a 67-26 vote. Lead author: Sen. Gary Byrne, R-Byrneville What it does: The bill would shrink Indiana's period for early in-person voting from 28 days to 14 days. Status: Passed the Senate elections committee by a 6-3 vote Feb. 3. Voting bills: Should early voting period be shortened? Republicans OK measures to tighten voting laws Lead author: Sen. Mike Gaskill, R-Pendleton What it does: By requiring voters to register with a political party in order to vote in that party's primary, this bill would make Indiana a closed-primary state. Status: Passed the Senate elections committee Feb. 3 by a 7-2 vote. Lead author: Sen. Blake Doriot, R- Goshen What is does: The bill would ban college students from being able to use their student IDs as a form of acceptable voter identification at the ballot box. Status: Passed the full Senate Feb. 4 by a 39-11 vote. It now heads to the House. Lead author: Rep. Chris Jeter, R-Fishers What it does: It establishes a fund to help counties pay their deputy prosecutors and creates a prosecutor review board to investigate complaints against prosecutors. If the board determines the prosecutor is 'noncompliant,' their office would be denied funds available through the bill. Democrats see the measure as an attack on Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears. Status: It passed the House Committee on Courts and Criminal Code 10-3 on Feb. 5. It now heads to the House floor. More: A House GOP bill would help pay deputy prosecutors. It could also penalize Ryan Mears Lead author: Sen. Stacey Donato, R-Logansport What it does: The bill would allow public schools to hire or bring in on a volunteer basis religious chaplains, with an eye toward alleviating the burden on school counselors. Status: Passed the Senate education committee on Feb. 5 by a 9-4 vote. More: Indiana lawmakers revive bill to allow public schools to hire chaplains as councilors Lead author: Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso What it does: The bill provides a state tax credit for expenses incurred in manufacturing small modular nuclear reactors in Indiana. The bill could result in costs shifted to utility customers to pay back project expenses before construction starts. Status: Passed the House Ways and Means Committee on Feb. 5 by 16-7 vote, after earlier passing the House's utilities committee. More: Indiana's nuclear power legislation places costs on customers, advocates say Lead author: Rep. Bob Behning, R-Indianapolis What it does: The bill prohibits a public school from expelling or suspending a student because they are chronically absent or habitually truant and expands the number of days for a school to hold an attendance conference about a student's absences from five days to 10. It also requires the Department of Education to establish best practices for student discipline on chronic absenteeism. Status: Passed the House unanimously on Jan 30. A bill that similarly addresses absenteeism, Senate Bill 482, passed the Senate unanimously on Feb. 4. Lead author: Sen. Eric Koch, R-Bedford What it does: The bill prohibits the construction, operation, purchase, sale and lease of a long-haul water pipeline unless the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission signs off on it. However, the Citizens deal to provide water to the LEAP district in Lebanon is exempted from those rules. Status: Passed the Senate unanimously on Feb. 4. It now heads to the House. Lead author: Sen. Jim Tomes, R-Wadesville What it does: It makes intentional and reckless skidding while driving, known as 'spinning', a Class B misdemeanor and increases the penalties further if the spinning endangers, injures or kills another person. If the bill becomes law, a person found spinning could have their vehicle seized in a civil forfeiture. Status: Passed the Senate 48-1 on Feb. 3. More: Indiana lawmakers revive fight to combat 'dangerous' street takeovers Lead author: Rep. Bob Behning, R-Indianapolis What it does: The bill aims to loosen restrictions for Indiana schools and education systems, including by nixing the education credential requirement for the Indiana secretary of education, changing the timing of when teachers are paid and removing certain training and professional development requirements. Status: Passed the House by a 75-16 vote on Feb. 3. It now heads to the Senate. Lead author: Sen. Mike Bohacek, R-Michiana Shores What it does: The bill requires parental consent for social media use for people under age 16, and allows Indiana's attorney general to sue social media operators that don't comply. Status: Passed by the full Senate by a 42-7 vote on Jan. 23. It now goes to the House for consideration. More: Should kids need parental consent to use social media? Here's what this bill would do Lead author: Rep. Ethan Manning, R-Logansport What it does: The bill would allow people to play online poker and other casino games virtually and allow the Hoosier Lottery to operate virtually as well. Status: Passed the House Public Policy Committee on Jan. 28 by 9-2 vote. It now heads to House Ways and Means committee. More: Want to wager on poker on your phone? Indiana House committee advances online gaming bill Authors: Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle, and Sen. Scott Baldwin, R-Noblesville What it does: The bill would further decrease Indiana's individual income tax rate if state revenues grow by more than 3% compared to previous years. Status: The bill unanimously passed the Senate on Jan. 28. It now heads to the House. More: Indiana Senate approves income tax cut. Here's how much you would save. Lead Author: Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne What it does: The bill restricts government entities, including school districts and the Indiana Department of Child Services, from intruding on parental rights or keeping information from parents, unless there is a compelling governmental interest. Status: Passed the Senate by a 44-5 vote on Jan. 27. It now heads to the House. More: Should DCS, schools be able to keep information from parents? Indiana Senate bill says no Lead author: Sen. Justin Busch, R-Fort Wayne What it does: Lawmakers tried in 2023 to outlaw noncompete agreements for Indiana doctors — contracts that prevent doctors from taking jobs at competing hospitals within a certain radius. The compromise that year was to only apply this to family doctors. This year, Senate Bill 475 attempts the ban for all physicians, again, hoping it will encourage competition and reduce prices in the health care market. Status: Passed the Senate by a 47-2 vote on Jan. 28. The bill now heads to the House. Lead author: Rep. Jim Pressel, R-Rolling Prairie What it does: The bill offers a large platter of tools local governments could use to beef up their road budgets, including a tax on food deliveries and rideshares, and for Indianapolis, the ability to levy a property tax referendum. Status: Heard in the House roads committee on Jan. 27. More: Should Indianapolis raise taxes to fix poor roads? State lawmakers, mayor in talks Lead author: Sen. Ryan Mishler, R-Mishawaka What it does: The bill adds far more stringent and regular government reviews of the eligibility of Medicaid recipients and adds work requirements in order for someone to be eligible for the Healthy Indiana Plan, the state Medicaid expansion plan. In addition, it limits enrollment in the Healthy Indiana Plan. Status: Heard in committee on Jan. 16. The next step is a committee vote. Contact IndyStar state government and politics reporter Kayla Dwyer at kdwyer@ or follow her on Twitter @kayla_dwyer17. Contact senior government accountability reporter Hayleigh Colombo at hcolombo@ or follow her on X at @hayleighcolombo. Contact IndyStar state government and politics reporter Brittany Carloni at or 317-779-4468. Follow her on Twitter/X @CarloniBrittany. This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana bill tracker: Limits to voting access, DEI move forward
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bill tracker: Senate votes to ban DEI, House OKs anti-immigration bill. What else moved
Lawmakers advances several bills to limit voting in the state of Indiana, with a legislative committee moving bills that would shrink the early voting period available to Hoosiers and close Indiana's primaries so that only registered party members are able to participate instead of all voters. Those are two of the bills that advanced in the Indiana General Assembly last week. IndyStar is tracking the prominent bills that are moving through the legislative process and that would impact a wide variety of Hoosiers. Here are some of the major bills that have advanced, and what happened to them last week. Lead authors: Sen. Tyler Johnson, R-Leo, Sen. Gary Byrne, R-Byrneville What it does: This bill bans all state spending on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives — from trainings to diverse hiring initiatives — at state agencies, educational institutions and health profession licensing boards. Status: The contents of this bill were amended into a different bill, Senate Bill 289, on the Senate floor on Feb. 4. That bill then passed the Senate on Feb. 6 by a 34-13 vote. Lead author: Rep. Garrett Bascom, R-Lawrenceburg What it does: The bill requires law enforcement officers to report individuals to their county sheriff if the person is arrested for a felony or misdemeanor and the officer has probable cause to believe the person lacks permanent legal status. It then requires county sheriffs to report the person to proper authorities. Status: Passed the House on Feb. 4 by a 67-26 vote. Lead author: Sen. Gary Byrne, R-Byrneville What it does: The bill would shrink Indiana's period for early in-person voting from 28 days to 14 days. Status: Passed the Senate elections committee by a 6-3 vote Feb. 3. Voting bills: Should early voting period be shortened? Republicans OK measures to tighten voting laws Lead author: Sen. Mike Gaskill, R-Pendleton What it does: By requiring voters to register with a political party in order to vote in that party's primary, this bill would make Indiana a closed-primary state. Status: Passed the Senate elections committee Feb. 3 by a 7-2 vote. Lead author: Sen. Blake Doriot, R- Goshen What is does: The bill would ban college students from being able to use their student IDs as a form of acceptable voter identification at the ballot box. Status: Passed the full Senate Feb. 4 by a 39-11 vote. It now heads to the House. Lead author: Rep. Chris Jeter, R-Fishers What it does: It establishes a fund to help counties pay their deputy prosecutors and creates a prosecutor review board to investigate complaints against prosecutors. If the board determines the prosecutor is 'noncompliant,' their office would be denied funds available through the bill. Democrats see the measure as an attack on Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears. Status: It passed the House Committee on Courts and Criminal Code 10-3 on Feb. 5. It now heads to the House floor. More: A House GOP bill would help pay deputy prosecutors. It could also penalize Ryan Mears Lead author: Sen. Stacey Donato, R-Logansport What it does: The bill would allow public schools to hire or bring in on a volunteer basis religious chaplains, with an eye toward alleviating the burden on school counselors. Status: Passed the Senate education committee on Feb. 5 by a 9-4 vote. More: Indiana lawmakers revive bill to allow public schools to hire chaplains as councilors Lead author: Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso What it does: The bill provides a state tax credit for expenses incurred in manufacturing small modular nuclear reactors in Indiana. The bill could result in costs shifted to utility customers to pay back project expenses before construction starts. Status: Passed the House Ways and Means Committee on Feb. 5 by 16-7 vote, after earlier passing the House's utilities committee. More: Indiana's nuclear power legislation places costs on customers, advocates say Lead author: Rep. Bob Behning, R-Indianapolis What it does: The bill prohibits a public school from expelling or suspending a student because they are chronically absent or habitually truant and expands the number of days for a school to hold an attendance conference about a student's absences from five days to 10. It also requires the Department of Education to establish best practices for student discipline on chronic absenteeism. Status: Passed the House unanimously on Jan 30. A bill that similarly addresses absenteeism, Senate Bill 482, passed the Senate unanimously on Feb. 4. Lead author: Sen. Eric Koch, R-Bedford What it does: The bill prohibits the construction, operation, purchase, sale and lease of a long-haul water pipeline unless the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission signs off on it. However, the Citizens deal to provide water to the LEAP district in Lebanon is exempted from those rules. Status: Passed the Senate unanimously on Feb. 4. It now heads to the House. Lead author: Sen. Jim Tomes, R-Wadesville What it does: It makes intentional and reckless skidding while driving, known as 'spinning', a Class B misdemeanor and increases the penalties further if the spinning endangers, injures or kills another person. If the bill becomes law, a person found spinning could have their vehicle seized in a civil forfeiture. Status: Passed the Senate 48-1 on Feb. 3. More: Indiana lawmakers revive fight to combat 'dangerous' street takeovers Lead author: Rep. Bob Behning, R-Indianapolis What it does: The bill aims to loosen restrictions for Indiana schools and education systems, including by nixing the education credential requirement for the Indiana secretary of education, changing the timing of when teachers are paid and removing certain training and professional development requirements. Status: Passed the House by a 75-16 vote on Feb. 3. It now heads to the Senate. Lead author: Sen. Mike Bohacek, R-Michiana Shores What it does: The bill requires parental consent for social media use for people under age 16, and allows Indiana's attorney general to sue social media operators that don't comply. Status: Passed by the full Senate by a 42-7 vote on Jan. 23. It now goes to the House for consideration. More: Should kids need parental consent to use social media? Here's what this bill would do Lead author: Rep. Ethan Manning, R-Logansport What it does: The bill would allow people to play online poker and other casino games virtually and allow the Hoosier Lottery to operate virtually as well. Status: Passed the House Public Policy Committee on Jan. 28 by 9-2 vote. It now heads to House Ways and Means committee. More: Want to wager on poker on your phone? Indiana House committee advances online gaming bill Authors: Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle, and Sen. Scott Baldwin, R-Noblesville What it does: The bill would further decrease Indiana's individual income tax rate if state revenues grow by more than 3% compared to previous years. Status: The bill unanimously passed the Senate on Jan. 28. It now heads to the House. More: Indiana Senate approves income tax cut. Here's how much you would save. Lead Author: Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne What it does: The bill restricts government entities, including school districts and the Indiana Department of Child Services, from intruding on parental rights or keeping information from parents, unless there is a compelling governmental interest. Status: Passed the Senate by a 44-5 vote on Jan. 27. It now heads to the House. More: Should DCS, schools be able to keep information from parents? Indiana Senate bill says no Lead author: Sen. Justin Busch, R-Fort Wayne What it does: Lawmakers tried in 2023 to outlaw noncompete agreements for Indiana doctors — contracts that prevent doctors from taking jobs at competing hospitals within a certain radius. The compromise that year was to only apply this to family doctors. This year, Senate Bill 475 attempts the ban for all physicians, again, hoping it will encourage competition and reduce prices in the health care market. Status: Passed the Senate by a 47-2 vote on Jan. 28. The bill now heads to the House. Lead author: Rep. Jim Pressel, R-Rolling Prairie What it does: The bill offers a large platter of tools local governments could use to beef up their road budgets, including a tax on food deliveries and rideshares, and for Indianapolis, the ability to levy a property tax referendum. Status: Heard in the House roads committee on Jan. 27. More: Should Indianapolis raise taxes to fix poor roads? State lawmakers, mayor in talks Lead author: Sen. Ryan Mishler, R-Mishawaka What it does: The bill adds far more stringent and regular government reviews of the eligibility of Medicaid recipients and adds work requirements in order for someone to be eligible for the Healthy Indiana Plan, the state Medicaid expansion plan. In addition, it limits enrollment in the Healthy Indiana Plan. Status: Heard in committee on Jan. 16. The next step is a committee vote. Contact IndyStar state government and politics reporter Kayla Dwyer at kdwyer@ or follow her on Twitter @kayla_dwyer17. Contact senior government accountability reporter Hayleigh Colombo at hcolombo@ or follow her on X at @hayleighcolombo. Contact IndyStar state government and politics reporter Brittany Carloni at or 317-779-4468. Follow her on Twitter/X @CarloniBrittany. This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana bill tracker: Limits to voting access, DEI move forward
