State Sen. Brent Steele (R-Bedford), chair of the Indiana Senate Judiciary Committee, was honored Thursday as a Champion of Justice by the Indiana Judges Association for his work during the 2013 legislative session.

President of the Indiana Judges Association, Judge John R. Pera, said Steele brings “a pragmatic, thoughtful approach to all matters before his committee as they relate to Indiana’s judicial system,” and the association is proud to recognize him with this award.

“Our society relies on a justice system that’s fair, balanced and dependable,” Steele said. “Upholding these values has been an important part of both my job at the Statehouse and my private law practice. It is an honor to be recognized by the Judges Association, and I’m humbled by Indiana’s strong community of lawyers, judges and other court officials who defend our justice system every day.”

Steele advanced several bills this session to improve Indiana’s justice system, including:

· House Enrolled Act 1006: Updating Indiana’s felony code for the first time in more than 30 years, making sure our state’s criminal sentencing policies are fair and consistent for both victims and offenders.

· House Enrolled Act 1016: Promoting rehabilitation in the state’s justice system by expanding problem solving courts.

· House Enrolled Act 1053: Improving Indiana’s sex offender registry.

· House Enrolled Act 1108: Establishing sentencing alternatives for young offenders.

· House Enrolled Act 1482: Giving offenders a fresh start by allowing for expungement of certain crimes if offenders demonstrate their rehabilitation.
This summer and fall, Steele is serving as chair of the Commission on Courts, which is responsible for reviewing issues involving court administration at both the state and local levels, and working to make sure all Indiana courts have balanced caseloads.

The Indiana Judges Association also honored Sen. Luke Kenley (R-Noblesville), Rep. Greg Steuerwald (R-Avon) and Rep. Steven Braun (R-Zionsville) with the Champion of Justice award at their annual meeting in Fort Wayne today.

The Indiana Beef Evaluation Program will hold its 72nd Bull Sale and Springville Feeder Auction Association’s Heifer and Cow Sale.

The sale will be on Oct. 19 at 2 p.m. at the Springville Feeder Auction.

The auction facility is 10 miles northwest of Bedford on State Road 54-58.

Thirty-eight bulls are slated to be for sale, including angus, hereford, simmental and simangus. The sale will also be online at DVAuction.com.

For more information, call Springville Feeder Auction at 279-1282, call Jerry Rusch, 849-4525 or visit www.springvillefeederauction.org.

The Indiana State Police will be joining forces with five other state police agencies in the Six State Trooper Project.

The Six State Trooper Project is a multi-state enforcement campaign designed to coordinate and combine patrol efforts focused on marijuana interdiction, eradication, and criminal patrol.

The Six State Trooper Project fosters partnerships between state police agencies while providing the public additional services in a high-visibility, criminal patrol and enforcement effort. The Indiana State Police will be participating in this effort statewide.

Indiana State Police Superintendent Doug Carter commented, “The Indiana State Police welcome the opportunity to partner with neighboring state police and highway patrol agencies as part of our continued commitment to highway safety and criminal interdiction efforts.”

The four day, multi-state operation is scheduled for September 26-29 and the focus of the enforcement efforts will be on criminal patrol and highway interdiction targeting the movement of marijuana and other illegal substances throughout Indiana and the five other participating states.

Other agencies involved in this partnership include Michigan State Police, Ohio Highway Patrol, Kentucky State Police, Pennsylvania State Police, and West Virginia State Police.

This week at Kentucky Speedway, 23-year-old Aaron Grosskopf will have an experience that would be a mere dream to most race fans.

Grosskopf, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at age 1 but works today to help the disabled get behind a wheel and race, has been named the grand marshal for Friday’s ZLOOP^TM 150 at Kentucky Speedway.

In the past year, Grosskopf has struck a friendship with ARCA rookie and ZLOOP^TM Racing competitor Justin Boston, leading to Friday’s opportunity in Kentucky.

Raised in Morehead City, N.C., Grosskopf recently moved to the Charlotte area to begin in earnest his work as the founder of DisabledRacers.com. The site aims to build awareness for the needs of disabled people who wish to get involved in simulated racing, and to provide a place where those racers can communicate and work together to find resources for equipment.

“When somebody like me wants to start sim racing, they’re going to search for equipment and there’s no affordable, disabled-ready wheel out there,” said Grosskopf. “There’s not a whole lot of equipment with the hand controls where you can be competitive. When I started, there was no way I could do it and race all day.

“I’m trying to get companies to realize that they’re leaving disabled people out of sim racing. The way I think about it, there are people my age coming back from war, losing limbs, and they’re just as bored as I am. If not for video games, I’m not sure I’d be here right now. I’d go crazy.”

Indiana State Police are looking for a man on the run from Floyd County officers and who could be spending some time in Washington County.

Captain Roger Newlon of the Washington County Sheriff’s Department, said the department received credible information that Ronald Graham was in the county Tuesday night. He said officers determined he had been at a location here, but had left.

Newlon said Graham had been spending time in the Pekin area and is wanted on a Washington County warrant for twice violating his probation.

On the third of this month, a trooper from the Indiana State Post at Sellersburg made a traffic stop on a black Jeep on Interstate 265 East at the 3.8 Mile Marker in Floyd County .

The traffic stop was for a false and fictitious license plate. The driver stopped the Jeep and immediately fled on foot into a wooded area along Interstate 265.

But, when the driver stopped the car, he did not put it in park and the trooper had to catch up with the rolling vehicle to put it in park.

By this time the male, now identified as Graham, 40, a white male, 5’5” tall, with brown hair and blue eyes had disappeared. His last known address was 222 West Market Street, New Albany, IN.

An arrest warrant for Ronald F. Graham was issued out of the Floyd County Superior Court for the charges of Possession of Methamphetamine, D Felony and Resisting/Fleeing Law Enforcement, A Misdemeanor.

After the trooper got the vehicle stopped he noticed a female, identified as Laura R. Faulkenburg, 26, from New Albany, IN, lying in the front passenger seat.

During a search of the Jeep Methamphetamine was located. The passenger, Laura Faulkenburg was arrested for Possession of Methamphetamine, Possession of a Schedule II Controlled Substance and Trafficking with an Inmate.

Anyone who knows the whereabouts or sees Ronald F. Graham should contact the
police immediately. All callers can remain anonymous.

Crime Stoppers is also offering a reward up to $1,000.00 for the capture of
Ronald F. Graham. You can contact Crime Stoppers at 502-582-CLUE, (2583).

33-year-old Jason Cockerill, of Salem, has been named Indiana’s assessor of the year by the state assessors’ association.

He was selected last month from among six top assessors.

Cockerill is the state’s second youngest county assessor. When he took the job five years ago, he was the youngest.

Cockerill succeeded fellow Republican Eugene Trueblood when that longtime public servant died. A party caucus preferred Cockerill over eight other candidates and he was unopposed for general election two years later.

Cockerill intends to run for assessor again next year and he does not rule out seeking another office – perhaps mayor of Salem – down the road. “I don’t want to be a placeholder,” Cockerill said.

Raised in Henryville, the youngest of six children, Cockerill came to Salem with his family when he was in fourth grade.

The Cockerills chose Salem because it was midway through his father’s new job in Bedford and family ties near Louisville.

Cockerill earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from IU Southeast. Before becoming assessor, he had run twice unsuccessfully for public office. He and wife Emily have two daughters, Aynslie and Brinley, with a third child due in January.

Rep. Todd Young will host a Military Academy Day on Saturday, Sept. 28, at Ivy Tech Community College in Sellersburg.

The event is open to any high school student interested in earning a college degree from a military institution and their families. Young will be on hand to meet students and offer his perspective as a Naval Academy graduate on the opportunities offered by a military education.

Beginning at 10 a.m., representatives from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, U.S. Naval Academy, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, and U.S. Air Force Academy will each give presentations on their respective schools, and will be available to answer questions.

Students and parents with questions about the event should contact the 9th District Congressional office in Jeffersonville at (812) 288-3999.

Kokomo police continue to search for the driver in a hit-and-run crash that killed a 13-year-old boy.

Police said they are looking for a 2005 to 2007 white truck, possibly a Ford or Mercury, with front-end damage.

Christian Reede and another teen were on a moped last Thursday when they were hit.  Reede died Friday from his injuries.  Doctors have released the second 13-year-old hurt in the crash.

Meanwhile, hundreds attended a memorial service for Reede on Wednesday.  Funeral services will be held this morning.

It can wait. That‘s the message the Hoosier State is working to drive home to stop the dangerous trend of texting while driving.

Governor Pence and more than 30 mayors across the state have designated today (Thurs) as ‘Drive 4 Pledges Day‘.  The goal is to get more people to take a stand against texting and driving by signing a pledge.

It‘s part of a national movement to create more of a “social stigma” against texting and driving.  Indiana lawmakers outlawed texting while driving in 2011.

Various activities are planned statewide, or you can go online and take the pledge at ItCanWait.com.