CROWN POINT — The Hoosier state's highest-ranking judge told legislators Wednesday afternoon that the progress made by Indiana's judiciary is rooted in maintaining a balance between "accountability and liberty" in the justice system to ensure every resident can live in fairness and peace.
Indiana Supreme Court Justice Chief Loretta Rush addressed lawmakers during the annual State of the Judiciary speech at the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis. Rush highlighted the work of local justice teams striving to reduce recidivism, reminded attendees of her continuing promise to implement technology in the legal system to "accelerate justice" and recognized the work of prosecutors and public defenders, including Porter County public defender Mitch Peters.
Rush, in her 12th State of the Judiciary speech, titled it "Justice in the Heartland." She was joined by her fellow Supreme Court justices and Indiana Court of Appeals justices while judges and attorneys from counties around the state sat in the audience, as well as Rush's husband, children and grandchildren.
As attendees entered the statehouse, they were greeted with a display of paintings of all 92 courthouses curated by central Indiana-based attorney Douglas Church and the Indiana State Bar Association. Rush said the artwork served as reminders that laws are not only written, but they are put into practice in the physical space of a courthouse where justice-affected individuals seek rectification.
"Justice is a public promise that is both visible and tangible," Rush said.
Many programs implemented by the Supreme Court by way of legislation take an approach that encourages both rehabilitation and accountability for those who commit crimes while prioritizing public safety. Rush touted Cass County's pretrial program, which takes a variety of elements into account following an arrest before bail is set, including criminal history, housing, stability, employment and more. From there, a judge sets their bail amount and defendant is offered a variety of services to address what might have contributed to the alleged criminal behavior. The goal is to give the individual the support they need to be successful out of jail.
In Dearborn County, prosecutors, public defenders and a judge are part of the Family and Social Services Administration's pilot program, Integrated Reentry and Correctional Support. It puts mental health and peer recovery specialists in five county jails to help incarcerated people secure mental health and substance use services, and develop a plan for their release.
Rush quoted Dearborn County Circuit Court Judge Aaron Negengard, who said "people are going to get out of jail. We want them to come out better."
In 2024, Rush asked for funds from the General Assembly to develop a statewide jail management system to connect the operations of jurisdictions across the state. Most jails have systems that are unique to their own county, but with a unified mechanism, users across the state can easily look up an individual and see the status of their incarceration.
The system, called INjail, includes nine counties in the state with 12 more in the works and 29 others interested, Rush said. Northwest Indiana counties are not currently participating in the INjail system.
Prosecutors have formed 10 high tech crime units as a part of a $6 million budget authorized for the effort in 2021. One of the units was established in 2022 in Lake County with Deputy Prosecutor Edgar Rodriguez at the helm. The unit focuses on extracting evidence from computers, cameras, laptops, tablets, cell phones and other electronic devices for use in criminal cases.
Across the state, the units return evidence to investigators in an average of 17 days, Rush said.
Rush said the Justice Reinvestment Advisory Council, created in 2015, continue to use state resources to review policies, promote state and local collaboration, and pursue community-based alternatives and recidivism reduction programs. This includes work release programs, probation and problem solving courts that help those who have mental health diagnoses or substance abuse disorders.
She also reminded audiences of how leaders investment in communities can be a necessary use of resources, such as Madison County Prosecutor Rodney Cummings' focus on truancy courts or Tippecanoe County Prosecutor Elyse Madigan's service on the Statewide Child Fatality Review Committee, which aims to understand what leads to a child's death and what could have been done to prevent it.
In Rush's acknowledgement of public defenders, she identified Peters, who has opened a series of halfway houses throughout Porter County for those who are recovering from substance abuse. Many individuals who stay in the houses were his clients.
"His efforts have saved taxpayer money by ensuring that expensive state-funded institutions are not filled with people who can be safely supervised and rehabilitated in their community," Rush said. "Mitch helps people find a pathway out of the system and into a peaceful and productive life."
Rush thanked the legislators who have worked to pass laws to help the statewide attorney shortage, including the state's first public-service scholarship program for future prosecutors and public defenders, she said, and a law that increased the scope of who is eligible to serve as municipal legal counsel. Approximately 8,000 lawyers completed nearly 250,000 hours of legal work at no charge last year to make sure "courthouse doors remain open to all."
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