The EPA’s Reckless Rush To ‘Go Green’ In Indiana
Unelected bureaucrats would force Hoosiers into double-digit utility increases and dependence on unreliable energy sources.
Left-wing bureaucrats at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are working hard to force states to abandon reliable, low-cost, fossil fuel-based energy in favor of unreliable, high-cost, solar, wind, and battery-based power.
The EPA’s latest scheme includes a power grab for the grid by imposing several new regulatory commandments that states must follow under the Clean Power Plan and the Clean Air Act. The intended effect of these regulations is to replace the fossil fuel-fired plants that form the backbone of America’s electric grid with renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar.
I call it Joe Biden’s plan to wreck the grid — a grid which provides the energy needed to charge our iPhones, access the internet, heat and cool our homes, and power our schools, businesses, factories, farms, and hospitals.
This reckless and radical scheme jeopardizes the safety and security of America’s electrical grid and forces all of us to pay far more for the electricity we take for granted.
Indeed, the Indiana Municipal Power Agency — which provides electricity to many rural customers — projects a double-digit rate increase under the Biden administration’s Clean Power Plan 2.0.
The EPA’s pet project to force the grid to go green is also illegal — which is why my office is fighting these regulations in court.
The Good Neighbor Rule
The first legal challenge is to the “good neighbor” rule imposed under the Clean Air Act, which requires states to reduce ozone pollution from in-state sources transported downwind into other states.
Although the EPA establishes national air quality standards, Congress has reserved to the states the authority to determine how those standards will be met — including those relating to states’ “good neighbor” obligations. This dual allocation of responsibility between the federal government and the states reflects the Clean Air Act’s “cooperative federalism” model.
As the U.S. Supreme Court noted in Union Elec. Co. v. EPA, each state enjoys “wide discretion in formulating its [air pollution] plan.” Biden bureaucrats apparently never got that memo. In 2022, the EPA arbitrarily rejected the good neighbor plans of 23 states, including Indiana’s. To make things worse, instead of allowing states to remedy any alleged deficiencies in their plans, as the Clean Air Act contemplates, the EPA imposed a one-size-fits-all plan on the states.
In truth, Biden bureaucrats aren’t interested in working with Indiana or any other state. So much for the “cooperative federalism” model; under this Administration, it’s do as you’re told. However, Hoosiers don’t bend the knee to D.C. bureaucrats, which is why my office has joined the attorneys general of Ohio and West Virginia in a legal challenge to the EPA’s “good neighbor” rule.
In addition to the dubious legality of the “good neighbor” rule, the EPA has failed to address where the energy to support the electric grid will come from after fossil fuel-based sources are forced offline.
The company managing the electrical grid for Indiana and other states, PJM, recently reported that the current pace of new energy sources, such as solar and wind, would be “insufficient” to keep up with expected retirements of fossil-fuel energy sources mandated by the EPA.
The report explains that wind and solar energy sources are “intermittent and limited duration resources”—meaning the sun doesn’t always shine and the wind doesn’t always blow. Thus, for each megawatt of electricity generated by fossil fuels lost under the EPA rule, it will take multiple megawatts of wind and solar energy to replace it.
Don’t be fooled by the Administration’s green energy gas bags touting the alleged superiority of solar and wind power. They may have a role in meeting America’s future power needs, but they are inferior when it comes to producing reliable power.
Joe Biden claims that his energy policies will make electricity more affordable, but Hoosiers know hogwash when they hear it. Great Britain and Germany live under the same mandates the Biden administration pushes here, and people there pay about three times more for electricity than Americans.
Rather than being dissuaded by these facts, Biden bureaucrats are doubling down. The EPA just unveiled the final version of a rule regulating greenhouse gas emissions from power plants. I’m proud that my office, in conjunction with West Virginia, is leading a 25-state strong coalition challenging the new rule—a rehash of the Obama-era “Clean Power Plan” found unlawful by the Supreme Court in West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency. Like its predecessor, Clean Power Plan 2.0 would shutter fossil fuel power plants, despite the Court’s rejection of the notion that federal bureaucrats can dictate “how Americans will get their energy.”
Given the advent of new technologies with an unquenchable thirst for electricity, regulations that reduce the power supply can only be called reckless. As demand for power grows and these radical green policies suppress supply, electricity prices will surge — jolting the most vulnerable Hoosiers.
Joe Biden’s energy bureaucrats are fully committed to their radical and reckless agenda to wreck the grid, despite the untold costs to Americans’ security and pocketbooks. That’s why Indiana and our partner states are committed to challenging their actions in court and pulling the plug on their illegal power grab.
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Todd Rokita is Indiana’s attorney general."
**Posted on DailyWire: https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-epas-reckless-rush-to-go-green-in-indiana
Attorney General Todd Rokita achieves $18 million settlement for Indiana with Johnson & Johnson
Indiana is set to receive $18 million as part of a settlement Attorney General Todd Rokita reached with pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson. The payout aims to resolve allegations of deceptive advertising in the company’s marketing of baby powder and body powder products that contain the mineral talc.
“Hoosiers have the right to expect honesty from businesses, particularly those making money at the potential expense of people’s health -- and the law requires exactly that,” Attorney General Rokita said. “We all want to see companies thrive and prosper, but our office will never hesitate to hold them accountable when it comes to protecting our state’s consumers. This settlement once again shows our resolve to make sure even multinational corporations are kept in check.”
Working with 42 of his peers from other states and the District of Columbia, Attorney General Rokita helped forge a $700 million nationwide settlement.
The consent judgment filed in this lawsuit addresses allegations that Johnson & Johnson deceptively promoted and misled consumers in advertisements related to the safety and purity of some of its talc powder products.
Under the consent judgment, Johnson & Johnson has agreed to permanently cease the manufacturing, marketing, promotion, sale, and distribution of all baby and body powder products and cosmetic powder products that contain talcum powder — either directly, or indirectly through any third party.
Johnson & Johnson sold such products for over 100 years. After the coalition of states began investigating, the company stopped distributing and selling these products in the United States and more recently ended global sales. While this lawsuit targeted the deceptive marketing of these products, numerous other lawsuits filed by private plaintiffs in class actions raised allegations that talc causes serious health issues including mesothelioma and ovarian cancer.
The settlement, which is pending judicial approval, is attached.
Gunman’s appeal rejected in Columbus murder-for-hire
An undocumented immigrant who was sentenced to 55 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to commiting a murder-for-hire in Columbus will remain in prison after a unanimous three-judge panel rejected his appeal.
Eliel Avelar, 35, was sentenced in October after pleading guilty in the February 2020 murder of Leobardo Rodriguez Flores. Avelar, a Mexican citizen who was living in Chicago, fatally shot Flores in the parking lot of his employer, Tool Dynamics, as Flores arrived for work.
According to court records, Avelar traveled to Columbus after learning that Abraham Cesareo was offering to pay someone to harm Flores, whom Cesareo believed was involved with his ex-girlfriend.
Cesareo also was sentenced to 28 years in prison for robbery resulting in serious bodily injury as a Level 2 felony, and 12 years for aiding, inducing or causing kidnapping while hijacking a vehicle as a Level 3 felony.
Additionally, a woman who connected Cesareo with Avelar for the attack on Flores also pleaded guilty to her role in the case. Eladia Jacabo Ortiz of Columbus was sentenced to nine years in prison in December after she pleaded guilty to aiding, inducing or causing aggravated battery as a Level 3 felony.
Avelar challenged his sentence handed down by Bartholomew Superior Court 1 Judge James Worton as inappropriate in light of the nature of the offense and his character. An Indiana Court of Appeals panel rejected Avelar’s arguments and upheld his sentence in a six-page memorandum opinion issued May 28.
“… Avelar argues that this conduct did not substantially exceed the elements of murder. We disagree,” Judge Leanna Weissmann wrote for the panel that also included judges Paul Mathias and Elizabeth Tavitas. “Avelar agreed to kill Flores — someone he had never even met — for $2,000. Despite having two weeks to back out of the deal, Avelar ultimately borrowed a handgun, travelled from Chicago to Columbus, laid in wait at Flores’s place of employment, and then murdered Flores when he arrived for work. After the murder, Avelar attempted to cover up the crime by driving Flores’s car to another location and abandoning it. Avelar also had his getaway car burned and told his friend to report it stolen.
“On the issue of character, Avelar asserts that he has a history of depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, and self-harm. But he does not explain how these mental health issues render his sentence inappropriate. Avelar also notes his significant history of substance abuse, claiming — without explanation — that ‘this crime would not have occurred had he been sober and clear headed.’
“… Additionally, Avelar emphasizes that he expressed remorse for murdering Flores. However, in making those expressions, Avelar simultaneously blamed drugs and alcohol for the crime, and the trial court ‘(did) not buy that whatsoever.’”
Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita trumpeted the opinion upholding the trial court decision that was defended by deputy attorney general Nicole Wiggins.
“Our office works hard to keep Hoosiers and their loved ones safe from a wide array of wrongdoers, ranging from white-collar crimes to outright killers,” Rokita said in a press release.
“A big part of that work includes keeping dangerous lawbreakers off the street through our handling of criminal appeals. In this case, we’re dealing with someone who broke our laws from the very start by entering our country illegally. Then, as happens far too often, this offender proceeded to commit a violent crime.”
According to Indiana Department of Correction records, Avelar is serving his sentence at the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City. His project release date is June 23, 2061.
**Posted on The Republic: https://www.therepublic.com/2024/06/11/gunmans-appeal-rejected-in-columbus-murder-for-hire/
Domestic abuser who killed girlfriend stays in prison with murder conviction thanks to Attorney General Todd Rokita and appeals team
Attorney General Todd Rokita and his appeals team have persuaded the Indiana Court of Appeals to affirm the murder conviction of a Schererville man who killed his girlfriend after years of physical violence against her.
“Criminals need to be punished,” Attorney General Rokita said. “This domestic abuser and murderer doesn’t deserve to see the outside of a jail cell, and I’m pleased that the appellate court agreed with our argument to keep him locked up and away from our communities.”
In this case, friends and neighbors of Michelle Brown for years saw the bruises on her face and body.
They saw firsthand how her boyfriend, Paul E. Jarosik, became violent during the couple's arguments. Once he allegedly slammed Brown’s head into a door. Another time he allegedly punched her. Another time he allegedly pushed her into counters and cabinets.
Then one morning the violent boyfriend called 911 to report discovering his girlfriend dead on the couple’s couch.
In the days following Brown’s death, Jarosik gave multiple explanations for how his girlfriend died, according to court documents.
He told a co-worker she fell and hit her head.
He told a neighbor she failed to take her insulin.
He told a family member she mixed blood pressure medication with alcohol.
But an autopsy showed Brown had multiple blunt force impacts from different directions caused by objects softer than tools or weapons — injuries consistent with being pummeled to death by someone’s fists.
A jury found Jarosik guilty of murder.
On appeal, the defendant raised several issues — including claiming that the trial court should have instructed the jury on the possibility of convicting Jarosik on the lesser charge of reckless homicide. At the jury trial, however, Jarosik never claimed that he unknowingly or unintentionally committed recklessness leading to his girlfriend’s death. Rather, he claimed he was not even home at the time she sustained the injuries leading to her death and therefore had nothing to do with her death at all.
“The trial court did not err in refusing to instruct the jury on reckless homicide,” the Appeals Court stated in its decision.
The full court decision and an audio soundbite from AG Rokita is attached.
Attorney General Todd Rokita sues Anderson apartment owners for allegedly abandoning tenants, forcing families to fend for themselves
Attorney General Todd Rokita is suing the owners of two Anderson apartment complexes for allegedly abandoning tenants — allowing Bingham Square Apartments and Madison Square Apartments to fall into such extreme disrepair as to render them entirely unlivable.
The defendants allegedly responsible for the abandonment are PR Bingham LLC; PR Madison LLC; Property Resource Associates LLC; and Gary Plichta.
“The way that hardworking Hoosiers are alleged to have been treated by these defendants is disgraceful,” Attorney General Rokita said. “Not every investment in real property can be successful, but it’s unconscionable to simply abandon these properties and force stranded families to figure out how to fend for themselves after they paid their rent.”
Defendants acquired Bingham Square Apartments in 2019 with a $2.7 million dollar loan from Landmark Bank and $900,000 in TIF Bonds from the Anderson Redevelopment Commission.
The lawsuit — filed by the Consumer Protection Division through its Homeowner Protection Unit — alleges that defendants thereafter walked away from the 129-unit complex and allowed its physical condition to totally deteriorate. As early as February 2021, utilities were shut off due to alleged nonpayment of utility charges to the City of Anderson.
The lawsuit likewise alleges that after being notified of at least 21 units not meeting Section 8 Housing Quality Standards by the Anderson Housing Authority, defendants cancelled their Section 8 contract and began evicting HUD-subsidized tenants from the property. Bingham Square Apartments has since been plagued by fires, flooding, utility outages, break-ins, and criminal trespassers.
The lawsuit likewise alleges that Madison Square Apartments experienced a similar fate.
After receiving $3.4 million dollars for the purchase and rehabilitation of this property, defendants allegedly abandoned tenants by the fall of 2022 — leaving behind an unsecured leasing office full of sensitive tenant information, including dozens of uncashed checks from years prior.
Trespassers are alleged to have taken hold of the property, cutting out electric meters in several buildings, stripping copper wire, and causing unsafe conditions wherein standing water was in contact with live electrical wires.
By May 2024 the defendants allegedly owed as much as $925,380 in unpaid utilities to the City of Anderson — a cost that will be borne by other ratepayers. Both properties were alleged to have been in the control of Gary Plichta and Property Resource Associates LLC, a company based out of Florida.
The lawsuit demands a jury trial, costs of prosecution, and other damages against the defendants for multiple violations of the Deceptive Consumer Sales Act, Home Loan Practices Act, and the Uniform Business Organizations Act.
“Our office intends to hold these defendants to account for the devastation they have caused to the City of Anderson and its constituents,” Attorney General Rokita said
The mission of the Homeowner Protection Unit is to protect the rights of all individuals involved in the housing market, including tenants, homeowners, and aspiring homeowners, by investigating and redressing deceptive acts in connection with mortgage lending and violations of relevant state and federal laws.
The lawsuit is attached — along with four representative photos of conditions at the properties.
Hoosiers are encouraged to contact the Office of the Indiana Attorney General about any suspected scams or scam attempts. Consumers can file a complaint by visiting indianaconsumer.com or calling 1-800-382-5516.
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