The U.S. Attorney's Office in Hammond announced a five-count indictment was returned on Wednesday against two Gary residents charged with the buying/selling, production of and possession of child pornography. 39 year old Christopher Bour faces several charges, including one-count of purchase of a child for production of child pornography, while 24 year old Natisha Hillard is charged with one-count of sale of a child by a parent for production of child pornography and one count of permitting a child by a parent to participate in the production of child pornography. Both individuals were charged as the result of an investigation by the FBI, Indiana State Police, Gary Police, and the Michigan City Police Departments.
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(Photo Courtesy of the Times)
A January fire in Whiting that destroyed a dress shop and several apartments inside the 100 year old building, at the corner of 119^th and Sheridan Streets, may have been set. The Times reports the State Fire Marshals Office ruled the cause of the blaze points to an incendiary, as evidence found indicates an ignitable liquid had been poured on the floor of the dress shop prior to the fire. Published reports say the case has been forwarded to local law enforcement, and that the cause of the fire will be considered undetermined unless other evidence can be obtained.
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Lake County Coroner Merrilee Frey is thanking everyone who offered information in helping to locate family members of unidentified decedents at their facility. The Coroner issued a press released today saying they had 11 unidentified decedents in mid-September, but through information provided, all but one are now at rest and reunited with family members, which she says could not have been possible without the generous help of the people of northwest Indiana.
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Michigan City Police announced today that the arrest of two men last week has dealt a significant blow to the distribution of cocaine in the area. Police report an investigation into large quantities of cocaine being distributed lead to the arrest of a 31 year old Elkart man and a 32 year old Gary man, in the area of 6^th and Wabash Streets. Authorities say during the arrests they recovered a kilogram of cocaine, which they say equates to over two-pounds of the drug, with a street value of over 100-thousand dollars, and that additional narcotics were later recovered during the execution of a search warrant in the 23-hundred block of Crest Road in Gary, and an investigation is ongoing.
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Michigan City officials, in partnership with NIPSCO and the Indiana Plan for Equal Employment, will host two public information sessions aimed at helping northwest Indiana residents get connected with careers in the construction and building trades industry.
Attendees will learn more about construction jobs needed for NIPSCO’s upcoming environmental improvement project at the Michigan City Generating Station intended to improve local air quality. The $250 million investment involves constructing and installing an emissions-control system known as a scrubber. Construction for the multi-year project began earlier this year and is expected to continue through 2016.
A similar partnership was forged between NIPSCO and the City of Gary in 2012, when the utility was preparing for the first phase of environmental upgrades at the R.M. Schahfer Generating Station in Wheatfield, Ind.
“Civic-corporate partnerships such as this not only benefit the local economy, they help strengthen our community and workforce, said Michigan City Mayor Ron Meer.
“The upcoming construction project at the Michigan City Generating Station is not only a plus for the environment, it’s an investment in northwest Indiana’s long-term economic success,” said Mike Hooper, vice president of major projects for NIPSCO. “Once the Michigan City project is complete, NIPSCO will have among the cleanest coal fleets in the state and will have created hundreds of local jobs along the way.”
Applicant requirements:

• Must be 18 years old
  
• High School diploma/GED
  
• Valid Driver’s License
  
• Reliable transportation
  
• Mandatory drug screen
  

About Indiana Plan for Equal Employment:The Indiana Plan’s mission is to help minorities and women gain entry into the building trades by offering comprehensive training and assistance in finding employment opportunities. Visit www.IndianaPlan.org for more information.

WHEN:Session 1: Tuesday, March 12, 2013, 5 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. CT
Session 2: Wednesday March 13, 9 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

WHERE: Michigan City – City Hall
100 East Michigan Boulevard, Michigan City, IN 46360
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(Photo Courtesy of the Cook County Sheriff's Office)
Authorities in Cook County are searching for a 22 year old Homewood man suspected of severely beating his 46 year old mother Monday. The Cook County Sheriff's Office reports Blake Springsteen is a white male, approximately six-feet tall, weighing 240-pounds, and Sheriff Thomas Dart asks that you do not approach Springsteen, but does say anyone with information regarding his whereabouts is asked to please contact the Cook County Sheriff's Department. Authorities report Springsteen is suspected of beating his mother in unincorporated Homewood, then he reportedly bound her, put her in the trunk of a car and drove to Crete, where he is accused of stabbing her multiple times, and leaving her in a ditch in the nine-hundred block of Columbia Street.
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Some communities in the region are enforcing snow removal parking restrictions after Tuesday's storm. Michigan City Mayor Ron Meer declared that tomorrow, effective at 8am, traffic regulations regarding parking will begin. Police in St. John are reminding motorists that street parking is prohibited when there is snow in order to aid the clearing of streets and will be issued to vehicles in violation. Gary Police are urging residents to follow the posted signs about not parking on snow routes when accumulation is more than two inches or you could end up spending around 200-dollars to get your car back.
Michigan City Parking Restrictions:
Effective at 8:00 a.m., on Thursday, March 7, 2013.
(1) No vehicle shall be parked on a designated “snow route.”
(2) On even numbered days, no parking shall be permitted on that side of the street with even numbered addresses from 6:00 a.m. to midnight.
(3) On odd numbered days, no parking shall be permitted on that side of the street with odd numbered addresses from 6:00 a.m. to midnight.
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Preliminary snowfall totals from the National Weather Service for northwest Indiana show Valparaiso received the most snow from Tuesday's winter storm, with ten-and-a-half inches on the ground. Porter and Wheatfield also received ten or more inches of snow, Lake Village got nine-and-a-half inches, while Crown Point, Portage, Rensselaer, and St.John all had at least nine inches of snow.
NORTHWEST INDIANA SNOW
LOCATION (COUNTY): FALL(INCHES)
VALPARAISO (PORTER)..........................10.5
PORTER 1S (PORTER)...........................10.4
(W9OPR)WHEATFIELD 1ENE (JASPER)..............10.0
LAKE VILLAGE (NEWTON).........................9.5
CROWN POINT (LAKE)............................9.0
ST. JOHN (LAKE)...............................9.0
PORTAGE 1ESE (PORTER).........................9.0
RENSSELAER (JASPER)...........................9.0
VALPARAISO 2N (PORTER)........................8.8
VALPARAISO 1NE (PORTER).......................8.7
VALPARAISO 1ENE (PORTER)......................8.5
VALPARAISO 5NNE (PORTER)......................8.2
VALPARAISO 5NNE (PORTER)......................8.2
WHEATFIELD 3S (JASPER)........................8.0
DE MOTTE 1NNW (JASPER)........................8.0
DE MOTTE 1SSW (JASPER)........................8.0
VALPARAISO 1NNW (PORTER)......................8.0
DYER 1WNW (LAKE)..............................7.8
HEBRON 4NE (PORTER)...........................7.7
SCHERERVILLE 2WSW (LAKE)......................7.6
LAKES OF THE FOUR SEASONS 2NNE (PORTER).......7.6
CROWN POINT 2WSW (LAKE).......................7.5
VALPARAISO 1SE (PORTER).......................7.5
CHESTERTON 1ENE (PORTER)......................7.2
LOWELL (LAKE).................................7.2
DE MOTTE 4SW (JASPER).........................7.0
(W9MAL)MERRILLVILLE 2NNW (LAKE)...............7.0
LAKES OF THE FOUR SEASONS (PORTER)............7.0
MOROCCO (NEWTON)..............................7.0
SCHERERVILLE (LAKE)...........................6.6
DE MOTTE 6S (JASPER)..........................6.5
CROWN POINT 1N (LAKE).........................6.5
HIGHLAND (LAKE)...............................6.3
MOUNT AYR 2NNE (NEWTON).......................6.2
(WV90)HOBART 1ENE (LAKE)......................6.0
REMINGTON (JASPER)............................5.8
VALPARAISO 4SW (PORTER).......................5.7
BROOK 4W (NEWTON).............................5.5
VALPARAISO 6WSW (PORTER)......................5.5
REMINGTON (JASPER)............................5.5
KENTLAND 1NNW (NEWTON)........................5.0
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A 1981 cold case regarding the unsolved homicide of a then 31 year old LaPorte woman is being re-examined. The LaPorte County Sheriff's Office reports preserved evidence has been resubmitted to the Indiana State Police Crime Lab, with the hope that modern DNA technology can assist in identifying a potential suspect in the death of Juanita Boyd, who was found strangled and stabbed in the trunk of her vehicle, in a field just off Forrester Road, a half-mile north of the Indiana Toll Road on February 28^th, 1981. Boyd was last seen alive February 22^nd, 1981, at Snyder's Corner Tavern, which had been located at the intersection of 1^st and J Street, in LaPorte. Anyone with potential information about this unsolved death, is asked to contact the LaPorte County Sheriff's Office Detective Bureau.
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In Gary, police say a 58-year-old man was robbed and attacked in his home in the 19-hundred block of Central Drive Monday night. Gary Police Public Information Officer Corporal Gabrielle King says there was a knock on the door around 10:45, and possibly five men, armed with weapons and wearing masks, rushed inside when the door opened, demanding money and jewelry. Police say the man was struck before the men left, and the victim was treated at an area hospital.  Police urge residents who hear someone knocking, especially at that time of night, someone you don't know, to call police and not open the door. 
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