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This Hour: Latest Indiana news, sports, business and entertainment

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INDYCAR-INDY 500-WEATHER

Indy 500 promises to be chilly - unlike last year

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - A year ago, fans at the Indianapolis 500 were searching for shade.

This year, they'll be looking for some sun.

Temperatures throughout May have been unseasonably cool at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Fans bundled up against the chill for the public drivers meeting Saturday - even the drivers appeared to be shivering - and more cool weather is likely on Sunday for the race.

The forecast calls for a high in the upper 60s, according to the National Weather Service, with a 40% chance of rain. Last year, it was 91 degrees when Dario Franchitti crossed the finish line, just one degree shy of the race-day record of 92 set in 1937. It was also 91 on race day in 1919 and 1953.

GARY-ALLEGIANT

Allegiant to end service to Gary-Chicago airport

GARY, Ind. (AP) - Allegiant Air plans to end service to Gary-Chicago International Airport in August.

The Times of Munster and the Post-Tribune of Merrillville report airport officials announced Friday night that the service started about 15 months ago is expected to end on August 10th. But officials say Allegiant remains open to discussing future opportunities at the airport.

Gary Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson said the airport's runway expansion project and a potential public-private partnership have accelerated discussions with other airlines.

Starting on June 5th, Allegiant's weekly flight service will switch to Wednesdays and Saturdays with one-way flights starting at $70.

CASINO CASH-CARBON MOTORS

Lawmakers, AG seek more oversight of casino grants

CONNERSVILLE, Ind. (AP) - Indiana officials want more oversight of a grant program that distributes riverboat casino revenue to communities for economic development.

Republican Senator Jim Banks of Columbia City and Attorney General Greg Zoeller (ZEL'-ur) say the state needs to better track how money from a Lawrenceburg program is spent. They spoke out after an Indianapolis Star investigation found that Lawrenceburg was awarding $10 million a year to startup companies that in many cases failed to deliver on their promises to create jobs.

Carbon Motors is a prime example. The company pledged in 2009 to make high-tech police cars and create more than 1,000 jobs at a shuttered Visteon Corp. plant in Connersville. It received $7 million in grants but never produced any jobs and has since pulled up stakes.

FATAL CRASH

3 E. Indiana men killed in crash near Shipshewana

SHIPSHEWANA, Ind. (AP) - Authorities say three men from eastern Indiana were killed in a head-on crash along a northern Indiana highway.

The LaGrange County Sheriff's Department says 21-year-old Dwayne Davis of Parker City, 19-year-old Frederick Petro and 26-year-old Christopher Whiteman, both of Muncie, were killed in the accident about 2:30 p.m. Friday near the Elkhart County line, about 35 miles east of South Bend. Authorities say the car driven by Davis was headed eastbound and appeared to go left of center to pass another vehicle when it struck a truck headed westbound.

The driver of the truck was taken to a Fort Wayne hospital. His condition was not known.

BLOOMINGTON SPEEDWAY DEATH

Driver dies of injuries sustained at Ind. track

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) - A 22-year-old sprint car driver died has died after a crash at the Bloomington Speedway.

Monroe County Coroner Nicole Meyer told The Herald-Times that 22-year-old Joshua Burton of Bloomington died at 11:45 a.m. Saturday at IU Health Bloomington Hospital.

He was injured in a crash at the speedway about 10:15 p.m. Friday night.

MOTORCYCLE COLLISION

Indiana man dies in motorcycle collision in DC

WASHINGTON (AP) - An Indiana man is dead after the motorcycle he was riding was struck by a car near the National Mall in Washington.

D.C. police say the collision occurred late Friday night at the intersection of 23rd Street and Constitution Avenue, NW.

Police say 66-year-old George Hillis of North Lake Village, Indiana was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Police are still investigating the collision, which occurred when a Chrysler Sebring struck Hillis's Harley-Davidson as he turned from 23rd Street onto westbound Constitution Avenue.

Bikers from across the country are in Washington this weekend for the annual Rolling Thunder tribute event to war veterans.

STAR WARS EXHIBIT

Museum hopes 'Star Wars' exhibit draws thousands

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - The force is with the Indiana State Museum.

The Indianapolis Star reports an exhibition called "Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination" opened at the museum this weekend. The exhibit lets visitors sit in the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon Interactive Experience and includes a short film narrated by Anthony Daniels, the voice of C-3PO. The exhibition compares futuristic sci-fi technology to today's real-life breakthroughs in transportation, robotics and medicine.

Organizers say it's the largest exhibition in State Museum history. The main show is on the building's third floor, while the Millennium Falcon Interactive Experience is a separate first-floor attraction.

The museum expects thousands to attend the exhibit that runs through Labor Day.

EVANSVILLE-OFFICER DISCIPLINE

S. Ind. police chief backs discipline for officer

EVANSVILLE, Ind. (AP) - The Evansville police chief is recommending an officer accused of battery against a student while working off-duty at a school be either suspended or fired.

The Evansville Courier and Press reports Chief Billy Bolin is recommending the Police Merit Commission either suspend the unidentified officer without pay for 21 days or possibly fire him.

According to a police department news release, the student's mother reported the incident to the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation, which reported it to police. A criminal investigation was ended when the mother said she did not want to press charges. But she did file a complaint with police.

Police department spokesman Sergeant Jason Cullum said the identity of the officer and an explanation of the complaint will be revealed at a June 10th hearing.

VANITY PLATE LAWSUIT

Police officer sues over BMV revoking 'OINK' plate

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - A central Indiana police officer is challenging the state Bureau of Motor Vehicles decision to revoke his license plate that read "OINK," arguing in a lawsuit that the decision was unconstitutional.

Kenneth Falk, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, is representing Greenfield police Officer Rodney Vawter in the lawsuit. He tells The Indianapolis Star it is a free speech issue. He says the state can't deny requests for plates with explanations using vague terms such as offensive or misleading. A BMV spokesman declined comment, saying the agency does not comment on pending litigation.

The lawsuit filed May 2nd is being filed as a class-action lawsuit intended to bring relief to others denied specialized plates by the BMV.

CORONER-DWI ARREST

Ex-coroner sues ex-prosecutor over legal advice

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - A former central Indiana coroner who pleaded guilty to driving drunk is suing a former prosecutor from an adjoining county, alleging he provided incompetent counsel that kept her from running for re-election.

Former Hancock County Coroner Tamara Vangundy contends in a lawsuit that her attorney, former Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi, advised her that if she pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor DUI charge and a felony official misconduct charge, she would receive misdemeanor sentencing for both counts.

But under state law, a person cannot serve in elected office if convicted of a felony. The lawsuit says Brizzi believed incorrectly that Vangundy would remain eligible if sentenced entirely under misdemeanor guidelines.

Brizzi said he could not comment because he is still bound by attorney-client privilege.

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