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Man gets 40 Yrs for Shooting Death

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A Valparaiso man was sentenced today in the 2009 shooting death of his mother's fiance. The Times reports 24 year old Edward Ibarra received 40 years in prison for voluntary manslaughter, but could end up only serving half or less of that term with good behavior and participating in various prison programs. Published reports say Ibarra had an altercation with 33 year old Juan Garcia on October 30^th, 2009, on the 300^th block of Morgan Boulevard in Valparaiso, and left...only to return later that...

Vale Park Rd Bridge Opens Wednesday

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Motorists are expected to be able to start using the Vale Park Road Bridge over State Road 49 this Wednesday. INDOT Spokesman Matt Deitchley says the seven-point-two million dollar project, 200-thousand of which came from the City of Valparaiso, works a “welcome” to the city, with a back-lit sign that says, “Valparaiso”, decorative lighting, and a textured side to the bridge that looks like wind-swept dunes. Deitchley says a roundabout system is used at the end of the ramps to get on and off Sta...

Valpo Vacuuming Leaves Thru Nov 30

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This reminder today from Valparaiso's Director of Public Works: Matt Evans says city residents have only a couple of weeks left to get those leaves out to the street for the leaf vacuums. Last pass for those vacuums this season in Valpo is November thirtieth. After that date, residents are asked to bag the leaves in biodegradable paper lawn bags – no plastic – and leave them out on trash day. Here's more info from the city's website:

From Valparaiso Public Works:

Leave your leaves

The city’s fleet...

Merrillville, Andrean Semi-State Football

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Merrillville has caught football fever! Both of the town's high schools are sending their football teams into semi-state action in the Indiana State Football Tournament this evening. The Merrillville Pirates are traveling across the state to visit Fort Wayne Snider in the class 5-A northern semi-state game. The game will begin at 7pm Region time tonight. Meanwhile, the Andrean 59ers will host Fort Wayne Bishop Luers in the 2-A northern semi-state game, 6:30 this evening, at Father Vincent...

Some State Park Fees Changing

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News Release (Nov 15, 2012) -- Visitors to Indiana state parks and reservoirs will see some changes in user fees in 2013, but the daily entrance rate of $5 will remain the same.

“Our goal, as always, is to provide the best state parks and facilities we can for our visitors,” DNR director Rob Carter said. “We’ve made minor fee adjustments in the past to keep pace with the costs of meeting that goal. It’s now time to make a few additional changes, while also keeping in mind family budgets and the...

Region Law Officers Graduate Today

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There's a graduation ceremony today for Northwest Indiana Law Enforcement Academy recruits. The noon ceremony today at Hobart's Police, Court and Community Center on 4^th Street celebrates a class of 14 new officers representing Lake County, Munster, Porter County, Hobart, Gary and Valparaiso University police.

State Sen. Jim Arnold, a former LaPorte County Sheriff, will be keynote speaker for the ceremony.

The graduating recruits have completed 15 weeks of training in criminal law, traffic law,...

Public Comments on BP Permit

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The Indiana Department of Environmental Management says the public comment period continues thru this Monday on a draft air permit related to building and operating new equipment at the BP Refinery in Whiting, a permit that incorporates the requirements of a consent decree. A public hearing was held at the Hammond Civic Center last night. Published reports say BP plans to install a new air monitoring system that goes beyond what's being required of the oil giant, a system that will use a light...

Hostess Brands Closing

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ABC News is reporting Hostess Brands - the maker of Twinkies and Wonder Bread - has announced it is going out of business and has asked the US Bankruptcy Court for permission to close its doors and sell its assets. The company says it couldn't resolve wage and pension disputes with striking workers. More than 18-thousand people are losing their jobs. Products already baked will be delivered, and the brands will go up for sale, ABC reports.

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Gov Daniels Visits With Times Board

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Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels was in Munster, visiting with The Times Editorial Board, discussing the economy and looking back on his two terms in office. Click here for video featuring the governor's conversation with The Times:
http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/daniels-warns-u-s-tax-hikes-would-hurt-sluggish-economy/article_df9a7af7-7bd9-5609-81fb-493ab3b3c75e.html

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Merrillville, Andrean Football

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Merrillville has caught football fever! Both of the town's high schools are sending their football teams into semi-state action in the Indiana State Football Tournament this evening. The Merrillville Pirates are traveling across the state to visit Fort Wayne Snider in the class 5-A northern semi-state game. The game will begin at 7pm Region time tonight. Meanwhile, the Andrean 59ers will host Fort Wayne Bishop Lures in the 2-A northern semi-state game, 6:30 this evening, at Father Vincent...

Bank Seeks Funds from Shuttered Company

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An emergency motion has been filed by BMO Harris Bank, a move reportedly being sought to protect and manage the remaining assets of McDaniel Fire Systems. The Times reports the bank asked the courts to appoint a receiver to take control of the Valparaiso fire protection equipment company, which owes more than two-million dollars to the bank, and additional funds to other creditors and former employees. Published reports say McDaniel Fire Systems closed its doors last month, after 75 years,...

Daniels to Get Princeton's Top Alumni Honor

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Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels has been selected by Princeton University to be this year's recipient of the Woodrow Wilson Award, the university's top alumni honor. The university made the announcement on Wednesday, and Governor Daniels will receive the award and deliver remarks during Alumni Day activities at Princeton, on February 23^rd. According to a release from the Governor's Office, the Woodrow Wilson Award is bestowed annually by the university to alumni whose career embodies the call of...

2 Charged with Dealing Drugs

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Two LaPorte County men are being held in custody as the result of a multi-jurisdictional investigation involving the sale and distribution of controlled substances in LaPorte County. The LaPorte County Metro Operations Unit announced today that 29 year old Daniel J. Cangiano, of Kingston Heights, was arrested on Wednesday, and charged with two felony counts of dealing a controlled substance, while 49 year old Kristopher A. O'Rourke, of LaPorte, was arrested back on November 8^th, and charged...

Burglary Suspect Pulled from Pine Lake

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A burglary suspect in LaPorte tried to elude police by wading through Pine Lake but eventually stopped in frigid neck-deep water, according to a story in the Times today. The LaPorte County Sheriffs Department was called to a burglary in progress at the home of the suspect's ex-girlfriend. Police say about halfway across a cove the suspect gave up. Once the suspect got onto the police paddle boat, police say the man helped the officer paddle back to shore.

LaPorte Co Sheriff Dept

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N Newton Students Back to Class

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North Newton High School students have returned to classes after being evacuated from the school after an alleged bomb threat today. Superintendent Brian Smith says someone wrote down a bomb threat in one of the bathrooms, so following protocol, officials evacuated students around 11:30 this morning. Superintendent Smith says authorities made a couple of sweeps of the school, and after deeming things to be safe, the evacuation was lifted by 1pm, and students returned to classes. Smith says...

Alleged Bomb Threat at N Newton HS

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North Newton High School students have been evacuated from the school after an alleged bomb threat today. Officials at the school report a precautionary evacuation took place, but students have not been released. According to a parent of a student at the school, the incident began just after noon today, and that students are being kept away from the school, by the bus barn. No further information is available at this time.

Breaking-News

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Water Main Break in Hammond

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Hammond Water Department crews are repairing a water main break along 179th Street this morning, and 179th is closed at Kennedy Avenue. We're told the businesses are open in that area and you can access 179th from Cline Avenue. The break is in the vicinity of 179th and Parrish, so a stretch of 179th east from Kennedy is closed at this time. 179th Street is a service road just south of the Borman Expressway (Interstate 80/94).

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Hammond Port Authority to Hold Public Meeting

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In Hammond, the city's Port Authority is holding a public meeting this afternoon to talk about the Hammond Beach Shoreline Stabilization Project. The meeting is scheduled to start at 2 pm. The Times says the port authority got a grant to look at ways of lessening erosion along the Lake Michigan shoreline just northwest of the Hammond Marina...

New Fireworks Fines in Merrillville

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Merrillville has approved big fines for big fireworks, fireworks like M-80s and cherry bombs and others banned by federal law, according to the Times today... it comes after officials heard concerns about fireworks in town. The town council has adopted a one-thousand dollar fine for a first offense, going up to two-thousand dollars for each subsequent offense. Read more about it in the Times today : http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/lake/merrillville/merrillville-approves-fireworks-law-carryi...

Train Service Restored Wednesday Night

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Afternoon rush hour Wednesday for the South Shore Line was affected by a disabled train in East Chicago, and five trains, three eastbound and two westbound, ended up being canceled last night. Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District officials say overhead wire damage caused by an earlier eastbound train temporarily suspended service east of Hammond shortly after 5 pm. NICTD says service was able to resume a little after 7-o'clock Wednesday night.

www.nictd.com

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