In Merrillville, a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday marked the official unveiling of Methodist Hospital Southlake's new ER. The remodeled and expanded emergency department, which is about twice as big as it used to be, will open to the public later this month. Hospital officials say the project was the first major expansion in about ten years.
Groundbreaking ceremonies were held last February 2012 at Methodist Hospitals Southlake Campus for the new eight-million dollar emergency department. Hospital officials say the number of rooms have nearly doubled, from twelve rooms in the ER department to 23.
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Read more: Methodist Southlake Unveils New ER

Daylight Saving Time starts this Sunday (March 10 2013) at 2 am – but the debate over time zones in Indiana may never end... Most of the state, including South Bend, Lafayette and Indianapolis, used to be on Eastern Standard all year long, but that changed in April 2006, when all counties in the state began observing Daylight Saving Time. Carmel Senator Mike Delph authored a resolution this session asking the US Department of Transportation to hold hearings on placing the entire state in the Central Time Zone. Twelve Indiana counties, in northwest and southwest Indiana, observe Central Time.
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Read more: Time Zone Debate Marches On

Illinois Lottery officials say one of two winning Lucky Day Lotto tickets for Wednesday night's drawing was sold at a Food 4 Less on East Sibley Boulevard in Dolton. The other was sold in Chicago. Each of the tickets is worth 87-thousand-five-hundred dollars.
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Read more: Winning Lottery Ticket Sold in Dolton

The city of Valparaiso is one of few communities in the Region to get its drinking water from deep wells... but that could change. Mayor Jon Costas says Valparaiso is having various issues with these wells, including the need to have to move some of them, and the fact that the water is very hard.   Mayor Costas says hard water can not only damage appliances but also pose difficulties for industrial users who use a lot of water. He says they've been talking about this issue for a long time, and have created focus groups to get input, and a decision could be made within the next six months or sooner.   Most Region cities and towns get their water from Lake Michigan. You can hear more from Mayor Costas on a variety of topics at Region Newsmakers at On Demand here at our website.
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Read more: Valpo Looking at Lake Water

The Lake County Traffic Safety Partnership will be conducting a Sobriety Check Point in the St. John area sometime this weekend. The goal of the check point is to remove impaired drivers from the roadways. Drivers will need to show their license and registration to the officers. Drivers will only be delayed for about two minutes unless there are signs of impairment from drug or alcohol usage.
Starting tonight you can expect to encounter sobriety checkpoints during the late evening hours around the Region as part of a safety blitz that covers St. Patrick's Day. In Lake County:, Hammond and Merrillville Police, along with the Lake County Traffic Safety Partnership, will focus on aggressive and impaired drivers using roving patrols, and will be conducting sobriety checkpoints, as part of “Operation Pull-Over Blitz” that begins today [March 8^th ] and runs through March 24^th. Indiana State Police Lowell Post, in conjunction with the Northern Porter County Traffic Safety Partnership, and Portage Police, will be conduct checkpoints in Porter County. The LaPorte County DUI Task Force has announced a sobriety checkpoint this Saturday night.
The Lake County Traffic Safety Partnership includes Cedar Lake PD, Crown Point PD, Dyer PD, East Chicago PD, Griffith PD, Highland PD, Hobart PD, Lowell PD, Munster PD, New Chicago PD, Schererville PD, and St. John PD.
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Read more: Sobriety Checkpoint for St. John Area

With school safety top-of-mind after the Connecticut school shooting tragedy, school resource officers were in the spotlight at a free legal seminar in Indianapolis. Juvenile justice, human trafficking and online crimes against children were also part of discussion at Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller's third annual Criminal and Civil Justice Summit attended by some 245 people.
More from the Indiana Attorney General's office: With school safety under a spotlight nationwide since the Newtown, Connecticut, tragedy, the first session of Thursday'’s Criminal and Civil Justice Summit focused on school resource officer (SRO) programs where specially trained law enforcement officers are stationed at schools to protect students and teachers.  One of this morning’s speakers was Mo Canady, executive director of the National School Resource Officer Association (NASRO), who addressed the role of police in school safety policies.  The approaches taken in Indiana schools were discussed by Carmel police officer D.J. Schoeff who is SRO for Carmel Middle School, and Fort Wayne police officer Chris Crapser who is SRO in the Fort Wayne Community Schools.
Last fall, prior to the Newtown tragedy, the Attorney General’s Office conducted a needs assessment study where Indiana educators and law enforcement indicated they would like to make more school resource officers available in their schools but funding is an obstacle.Zoeller reiterated his support for a bill now moving through the Legislature, Senate Bill 1, that would define school resource officers in law and provide state matching grants to help schools create or expand SRO positions through local control and decision-making.  He invited the three SRO experts to speak at today’s summit, whose theme was “Keeping Hoosier Children From Harm.”
“The increase in the dangers that are present to our children require the State of Indiana to do more to meet our obligations to the most vulnerable in our society. This justice summit brings together the three branches of state government, local school administrators, members of law enforcement and others who serve and protect the children of our state to find ways to work together collaboratively in a common effort,” Zoeller said.
As the lawyer for state government, Zoeller has organized two previous Criminal and Civil Justice Summits, or free legal seminars, to facilitate discussion among attorneys, judges, prosecutors, legislators, policymakers and the public on subjects facing the judicial system.  Past summit topics included the impact of the mortgage foreclosure crisis on homeowners, and disparities between counties in seeking the death penalty due to costs that resulted in fairness concerns.
Other session topics and speakers in Thursday'’s Criminal and Civil Justice Summit include:
Juvenile Detention Reform.  Under the leadership of Judge Marilyn Moores of Marion Superior Court Juvenile Division, Marion County became a site for the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative, a project of the Annie E. Casey Foundation.  Judge Moores led efforts to enact system-wide reforms to reduce the number of juvenile detainees while maintaining public safety.  Judge Moores today led a panel discussion on approaches to juvenile detention reform.
 
Child Victims of Human Trafficking.  Indiana’s anti-human-trafficking task force, IPATH, and the Attorney General’s Office have worked to raise awareness about children becoming victims of human trafficking and prostitution due to criminals who support the commercial sex industry.  Because of concerns about human trafficking associated with large sporting events, Indiana in 2012 passed a new trafficking law prior to Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis.  At today’s summit, attendees heard from Deputy Attorney General Abigail Kuzma, chief counsel of the Consumer Protection Division, and Marion County Deputy Prosecutor Mary Hutchison, who handles human trafficking investigations and prosecutions.
Investigating and Prosecuting Internet Sex Offenders.  Law enforcement has found that sex offenders who prey upon children typically use the Internet to lure their victims.  The Indiana Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, or ICAC, is a local, state and federal partnership that works to combat online predators.  Steven DeBrota, Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, discussed his work prosecuting such cases.
Thursday’s four summit topics were among the list of priorities Attorney General Zoeller announced in 2012 as part of his second-term agenda.
The school resource officer legislation, Senate Bill 1, recommended by the Attorney General and authored by State Senator Pete Miller, R-Avon, passed 43-7 in the full Indiana Senate on Feb. 25 and has advanced to the Indiana House.  If passed into law, SB 1 would do the following:
·         Update the statute to legally define school resource officers as being law enforcement officers who have at least 40 additional hours of certified SRO training.  Such officers could be employed directly by schools or work for law enforcement agencies and be assigned to schools under an agreement.
·         Create a Secured School Fund from which schools could apply for two-year matching grants of up to $50,000 each, to use to 1) employ a school resource officer, 2) conduct a threat assessment of school buildings, or 3) purchase equipment and technology to restrict access to school property or expedite notification of first responders.
·         Set up a five-member board that includes the Attorney General that would review grant applications and award funding to qualifying proposals.
The Indiana General Assembly is considering Senate Bill 1 even as the White House recently announced a proposal for a $150 million federal grant program to fund 1,000 resource officers and school counselors nationwide in the aftermath of the Newtown tragedy.  Zoeller said the Attorney General’s Office will closely monitor whatever federal grant program might emerge, and he will work closely with the Department of Education, the Legislature and other state agencies to make schools aware of any federal funding opportunities that could complement state grants.
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Read more: School Resource Officers in the Spotlight

Fire officials in Valparaiso say they don't know if they'll ever be able to determine what caused a blaze that destroyed a century-old building in downtown Valparaiso Monday – because they had to demolish what was left of it for safety reasons – but they say it's starting to look like it might have started in the basement, according to the Times today. What was left of the structure had to be brought down to prevent those exterior walls from collapsing onto nearby buildings or the street.
http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/porter/valpo-fire-might-have-started-in-basement/article_7fba7ba6-d86b-5eaf-a779-52693c2a8085.html
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Read more: Valpo Fire Origin Possibly Basement

Almost 200-thousand Ford Freestar and Mercury Monterey minivans., from 2004 through 2007, are being recalled in 20 states, including Indiana. Ford reported today that rust issues can cause the third-row seats to come loose. The auto maker says there have not been any crashes or injuries associated with the problem, and that those who own these vehicles will get a letter in the mail, officially notifying them of the recall later this month.
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Read more: Almost 200,000 Minivans in U.S. Being Recalled by Ford

A 34 year old man who was found guilty last year to leaving the scene of an accident that later resulted in the death of a Crown Point native was sentenced to 19 years in prison Thursday. The Times reports Delaney Jarvis drove his vehicle through the right lane to make a right-turn, causing a motorcycle driven by the Crown Point native to hit another vehicle, and that the man died three-days later. Published reports say Jarvis was driving on a suspended license when the incident occurred, in June of 2011, in south suburban Olympia Fields, Illinois.
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Read more: Man gets 19 Yrs for Crash that Killed a Crown Point Native

Attention animal lovers, a community service group for kids is conducting a fundraiser to raise some much-needed money for the Porter County Animal Shelter. 9 year old Giana Gavaller says she came up with the idea of the “Hounds About Town” program due to her love of dogs, and thought it be a great thing for the members of Kids Power to take part in.
The fundraiser works like this: Porter County businesses can purchase a 31-inch dog statue for 200-dollars by March 15^th, and the statues will be delivered by April 15^th. The business then decorates them, and puts them on display in a prominent place in or outside their business. The public has the entire month of May to view the decorated dogs, get a code listed on the statue, and vote for their favorite, which enters them into a drawing for a cash prize.
Giana says the goal is to raise ten-thousand dollars for a furnace and washer and dryer at the animal shelter. For information on how to get a dog statue, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call (219) 242-7026.  You can also visit them online at Facebook or on their website, http://kidspowerportercounty.org
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Read more: Hounds About Town Fundraiser for Porter Co Animal Shelter