Cyber threats and stalking are tools used by some people to harass others, and a victim of this form of criminal activity resides in Fishers.  The United States Attorney’s office in Indianapolis announced federal charges have been filed against Shamonique Ferguson, 21, from North Carolina, for extortionate communication, mail threats, and interstate stalking between December of 2016 and April of 2017..

U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, Josh Winkler, outlines in a news release how Ferguson allegedly made false police reports to the home of a Fishers family and threats were made to the employer of one of the family members.

According to the release from Minkler’s office, three Indiana University campuses and Ivy Tech were also victimized by these threats.

U.S. Attorney Kristina M. Korobov, who is prosecuting the case for the government, says if convicted, Ferguson faces up to 5 years of imprisonment for each count charged.

“We live in times where the Internet, cell phones, and social media allow for unlimited communication with friends, family, and even complete strangers. Sadly, we also live in times where people abuse that privilege, turning a text message, a webpage, or a keyboard into an instrument of fear by instantaneously transmitting anonymous threats,” said Minkler. “Faced with the risk of large scale violence, universities, businesses, and individuals cannot simply disregard threats.”

Fishers Police were involved in this investigation, along with the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Indiana State Police.

Here is how the U.S. Attorney’s Office described what happened:

According to the criminal complaint, Ferguson harassed her victim prior to December of 2016; however, beginning in 2017, the behavior escalated. Ferguson delivered threats to Indiana University, alleging that the victim was planning mass acts of physical violence on several of its campuses. Ferguson posted threats to send a pipe bomb to the victim’s residence and to commit violent acts at the victim’s then place of employment, a family entertainment center in Fishers, IN. Ferguson also mailed various items to the victim and her family, including an item that contained bodily waste and threats to kill the victim. Over a period of less than 4 months, Fishers police, fire, and ambulance services responded to the victim’s residence on more than 20 false reports made by Ferguson. Because many of the calls were recorded, a Fishers Police Department detective was able to recognize Ferguson’s voice as the false reporter. Facebook records for Ferguson showed that she enlisted others to make false reports against the victim as well. 

Lynda Carlino has led the local youth sports program in the Fishers area for a very long time.  Lynda has announced her intention to retire at the end of 2017. She talks about her impending retirement and many other issues in this podcast.

Saxony Hall at Saxony Lake opened during the summer of 2016, and parks department officials found few bookings for wedding events since.  It turns out that the city set its rental rates too high.  As a result, the Fishers Board of Public Works and Safety acted to immediately lower those rates.

The new rates will be $1,200 for Fishers residents and $1,500 for nonresidents, which includes 6 hours of rental and additional time for setup.  Extra hours will cost $200 an hour for residents, $250 an hour for nonresidents.  More details are available at this link.

Saxony Hall is located at Saxony Lake and Beach, contains 4,500 square feet of space and can seat up to 150 people.

As the spring season moves forward, so does the list of road construction projects around the Fishers area.

The full listing for the work week beginning Monday, April 24th, is provided below, as provided by the City of Fishers:

===================================

116TH STREET

There will be lane restrictions on 116th Street between I-69 and Cumberland Road throughout the summer in order for the contractor to make improvements to 116th Street.

USA PARKWAY

There will be periodic restrictions on USA Parkway while crews construct turn lanes for IKEA.

ALLISONVILLE ROAD

There will be lane restrictions on northbound and southbound Allisonville Road from 126th Street to 131st Street between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. all week. There will be flaggers and barrels onsite to help direct traffic. Please drive with caution.

I-69 AND CAMPUS PARKWAY

Milestone Contractors has begun mobilizing cranes and other equipment and setting a temporary concrete barrier wall along I-69 at Campus Parkway Exit 210. Work will require alternating lane closures on northbound and southbound I-69 between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. Lane closures may recur each night through the end of the week depending on weather and progress. Questions about this project should be directed to INDOT at eastcentralin@indot.in.gov or 1-855-463-6848.

126TH STREET

There will be periodic lane restrictions between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. on 126th Street between Allisonville Road and Lantern Road while the contractor installs passing blisters near Reserve at Lantern.  Flaggers will be on site to direct traffic during the restrictions.

106TH AND CUMBERLAND ROAD ROUNDABOUT

There will be possible lane restrictions around the roundabout while the contractor finishes up work.

SR37 CORRIDOR

Crews will be out along the SR37 Corridor from I-69 north to 146th Street and within 1000’ feet east and west of SR37.  Crews will be out performing survey and geotechnical work.  Please drive with caution when you see vehicles parked along the roadside.

You have likely seen the cell phone video of a man being physically forced from his airline seat and dragged off the plane.  Just what are your rights as an airline traveler?  Also, how should you go about planning you summer vacation trip?  I talked to local Travel Agent Ann Craig Cinnamon about those questions and others…

A new operator for the Nickel Plate railroad line could by chosen by July or August. However, since there is no operator at this time, there will be no Indiana State Fair Train in 2017.  The Hoosier Heritage Port Authority, which has oversight and maintenance responsibilities for the 37 miles of rail line, which extends from Tipton to downtown Indianapolis, will begin the process of legal advertising the details about requests for proposal from interested parties.

Authority President Mike Obergfell said the request for proposal will contain a scoring sheet to evaluate each submission.  The owners of the rail line – Fishers, Noblesville and Hamilton County – will then interview all the candidates.  Obergfell expects the operator will be selected at the next Authority meeting scheduled for Monday, July 10th.  However, if the interviews continue through July, a special meeting of the Authority will be scheduled in August.

“Obviously, the time is short,” said Obergfell.  “We’d like to get an operator back online as soon as possible.  Our owners have some other interests that they’re trying to work out. So, the sooner the better.”

Fishers and Noblesville have proposed transforming the Nickel Plate rail line within their city limits into a biking and hiking trail.

An independent inspection of the rail raised safety concerns about the condition of the track, resulting in the cancellation of the State Fair Train in 2016, which ran for many years between the fairgrounds and Fishers.  In response to a question from the audience, Obergfell said there will not be an operator in place in time to operate the State Fair Train in 2017.

In response to another question from the audience, Obergfell said the request for proposal includes the entire 37 mile line.

In another matter, the Authority will be losing Executive Director Rhonda Klopfenstein, who has been in that job for 17 years.  Members of the Port Authority will now be searching for a new executive director.  Klopfenstein is resigning due to her husband’s job reassignment to Tennessee.    `

The State Road 37 upgrade project is moving full speed ahead, with 40% of the design work already completed.  There may be some lane restrictions this spring and summer, but the construction will get underway in earnest during July of 2018 and should be complete by fall of 2020.

As the plans stand now, two lanes of traffic will be maintained north and south along State Road 37 in Fishers, with a few lane restrictions occasionally.  The first two interchanges to be constructed will be 141st and 131st Streets.  East-West traffic will be blocked as each bridge is constructed.  Once the first two interchanges are complete, 126th and 146th Street interchanges will be built.

One contentious issue over drainage along 141st Street was resolved by routing the drainage north to 146th Street, then routed west from SR37.

Traffic engineers say they will be watching traffic flows carefully as the construction begins.  Once officials see where the motorists are detouring, adjustments can be made. Temporary traffic signals and stop signs are just two of the tools available to handle traffic overflows during construction.

Traffic Engineer Troy Woodruff cautioned those at the Tuesday night meeting that these are the plans for now…there could be changes as design work and data are evaluated.

An environmental impact hearing will be conducted on May 16th, 6pm, at Fishers High School.  Citizens may testify and ask questions, but officials will not be able to answer those questions on the spot, the answers will come in writing later.

The State Road 37 improvement project will cost $124 million, with $100 million from the state and $12 million each from the City of Fishers and Hamilton County.  Fishers is in charge of the construction phase.   The project calls for underpasses along State Road 37, and access ramps  and roundabouts for the Fishers intersections.  The design will be much like the Keystone Avenue project in Carmel.

The Hamilton Southeastern Schools and WTHR’s investigative news team are locked in a battle over what personnel records should be made public.  This is a balancing act between the right of employees to privacy and the public’s right to know.

Here is my commentary, at this link.

The words Uber and litigation have been synonymous lately, and Hamilton County has just joined the fray.  An Uber driver in the local area has gone to federal court, arguing he is not an independent contractor.

A story posted to the Indianapolis Star Web site, written by reporter Fatima Hussein, identifies the driver filing the lawsuit as Clinton Price.  He has been an Uber driver since 2014.

Price claims he is an employee, not a contractor.  The distinction is an important one.

Minimum wage laws and other employee protections in the statutes do not apply to independent contractors, who are treated more like business owners.  The tax situation is much different for contractors, because they must pay the entire tax for Medicare and Social Security, where employees are only responsible for half the tax, which is withheld from their pay.  Employers pay the other half.

According the the Star story, Price’s attorney claims Uber treats it workers like employees, but classifies the drivers as independent contractors.  The law provides several factors to be used in determining whether someone being paid to perform work is a contractor or employee.  It is often a contentious issue and Uber has been the target of many legal actions surrounding the employee versus contractor issue.

When you are proposing to build something, you submit what is called a plat with the local government, which details how a plot of land will be developed, be it commercial or residential.  The City of Fishers is proposing to make changes in the local ordinance governing the platting process, in an attempt to simplify and clarify the whole process.

The city planning staff proposed such a plan to the Fishers City Council Monday.  The idea will now head to the Fishers Plan Commission for a public hearing and recommendation.

Here are some of the proposed changes, from the city staff proposal:

These changes include:

– Updated language for the Plat Committee.

– Language to establish an incremental platting process.

– Updates for noticing timelines to be aligned with State code.

– Adding a procedure for minor subdivisions and minor plats.

A separate set of changes to the Plan Commission rules of procedure will also be needed to facilitate these changes. The updates to the rules include:

– Updated language for the Plat Committee.

– Required elements and items for the various applications.

– Signature of secondary plats by the Mayor or Mayor’s Designee.  

The Plan Commission will consider the ordinance changes at its June 7th session.  The council could give final approval as early as August 21st