Latest
The newest stories from every Region N3 desk, newest first.
Crime
Michigan City teen charged in armed carjacking at Dune Park station
A 16-year-old Michigan City boy was charged July 16 after police say he pointed a handgun at a man at NICTD’s Dune Park station and fled in a stolen Ford Maverick with three other juveniles.
Community
Farmed to Fork Weekend expands SNAP match for La Porte County markets
Michigan City and La Porte Farmed & Forged markets paired chef demos and kids’ Chef Cash with a storm-recovery SNAP boost — $20 in EBT stretching to $80 — backed by a Healthcare Foundation of La Porte grant.
Crime
Gary man charged with attempted murder after alleged shooting, Jeep chase on Louisiana Street
Kenneth Cunningham, 65, is held on an $8,000 bond after police say a storm-cleanup gathering turned into a gun confrontation and an attempt to run over a neighbor.
Politics
Lake County Council urges IURC to reject NIPSCO rate hike after derecho filings
A unanimous council vote and a planned Gary protest add local pressure as consumer advocates challenge tracker filings made while hundreds of thousands were still without power.
Politics
ISP Maj. Jerry Williams wins Lake County sheriff Democratic primary
A 33-year Indiana State Police veteran tops a six-candidate field on a commissary-audit and accountability platform, with a November path that could make him the county’s first African-American sheriff.
Crime
Two men charged in Lake Station Boost Mobile armed robbery after phones sold in Indianapolis
Court filings say Milton Harvey III and Deandre Williams stole phones and cash in January; ecoATM records and a Jeep tied Harvey to the haul months later.
Community
Marquette Greenway hits about 65% complete with $30M still to raise
NIRPC’s Mitch Barloga says 10 miles are under construction toward next spring, but Portage’s Burns Ditch bridge, west Gary bridges, and Indiana Dunes National Park segments remain the hardest — and costliest — gaps.
Politics
Rokita sues Merrillville over ICE warehouse resolution after cease-and-desist
The attorney general says Resolution 26-02 and related outreach unlawfully blocked federal detention space; the Town Council says the measure was a protected opinion and tabled a July rescission.
Politics
Mrvan and Regnitz locked in for November IN-01 rematch of Region politics
The Highland Democrat and Valparaiso Republican cleared May primaries in a district Cook rates “likely Democratic,” with Trump’s July endorsement and NRCC backing sharpening the fall fight.
Crime
Hobart man charged after struggle leaves Portage officer with broken hand
Adrian Paris Jr., 58, of Hobart faces felony charges after a Sept. 4 Comfort Inn call in Portage escalated into a struggle that allegedly fractured an officer’s hand.
Crime
New Jersey man charged after axe attacks on semis along I-80 in Hammond
Indiana State Police say Ivan Savych struck two tractor-trailers with a long-handled axe Friday, then fled a pursuit that ended when Lake County deputies boxed in his Volkswagen.
Politics
Lake and Porter school board ballots carry party labels for first time
Eighteen of 45 Lake County candidates filed as Democrats or Republicans under a new state law; Porter’s uncontested slate skews nonpartisan, with empty seats in two townships.
Politics
Trump-backed challengers oust Dernulc and Niemeyer in NWI Senate primaries
De Vries and Starkey toppled incumbents who voted against mid-decade congressional maps, reshaping Lake County’s November Senate races and fueling Braun’s leadership fight in Indianapolis.
Crime
Arrest made in 1998 Gary killing of Jacqueline “Jackie” Soto
Lake County prosecutors charged Alfred Kevin Sanders with murder in Jacqueline “Jackie” Soto’s December 1998 Gary killing after DNA on decades-old evidence matched him.
Community
Gary’s Tolleston Opportunity Campus opens YMCA hub on old school site
Crossroads YMCA, Boys & Girls Club, and Methodist Hospitals’ $47 million campus begins membership signup now, with the new building set for public use in late September.
BizTech
USW extends steel contracts 30 days with U.S. Steel and Cleveland-Cliffs
Thousands of Northwest Indiana steelworkers stay on the job past the Sept. 1 deadline as wages, CapEx, and healthcare remain open in Cliffs talks.
Community
Dyer’s Central Park Commons becomes first South Shore TDD-financed project
RDA deal sends Transit Development District tax growth to Dyer’s mixed-use build near the Munster/Dyer station — grocery, hotel, townhomes, and senior housing on about 70 acres.
BizTech
I-65 warehouse buildout adds John Deere’s $125M Lowell hub to Amazon’s Merrillville box
A 1.2 million-square-foot Deere parts center — about 150 permanent jobs — is rising near Lowell as million-square-foot logistics sheds stack along the interstate.
Community
Play for Jake Foundation gives La Porte schools $26,000 for AEDs
The gift will buy or replace automated external defibrillators. Health Foundation of La Porte also lists LPCSC among 2026 AED grantees.
Crime
East Chicago man convicted of murder in 2023 apartment shooting
A Lake County jury found Robert Allison guilty of murder in the May 2023 shooting death of Christian Ogbomon; sentencing is set for Oct. 7.