State Officials Offer Tips to Prevent Drowning This Summer

 
 

It’s the time of the year when people love to get in the water, visiting local pools, lakes and reservoirs for recreational water activities. The Indiana Department of Child Services and the Department of Natural Resources are reminding parents and guardians to ensure they keep an eye on children playing in or near bodies of water.

In 2011, 11 Hoosier children drowned, and Mary Beth Bonaventura, director of the IDCS, said lack of supervision is mostly to blame. Children, she said, don’t usually have an awareness of the risks around water, and it’s up to adults to supervise them and ensure their safety.

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Ind. Civil Rights Commission and Dept. of Child Services Look Into Claims Against MBH

mbhc
 

An investigation is underway into the Michiana Behavioral Health Center after a number of former employees claimed the center has committed a number of employee discrimination violations and maintains an unsafe work environment through consistent understaffing. Dominique Smith, a former employee at the center between November 2010 and April 2012, said that she was witness to a number of incidents involving sexual misconduct and physical abuse and that she was discriminated against while employed at MBHC. She also claimed that the administration ignored her health issues her supervisors intentionally mistreated her specifically.

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Marshall County Community Encouraged to Report Meth, Child Abuse

 
 
Community members in Marshall County are encouraged to notify the Marshall County Sheriff’s Department and the Indiana Department of Child Services of incidents of suspected methamphetamine production and use. Marshall County ranks high in meth abusers and meth labs. There is also a rise in illegal prescription drug use in the area.

Marshall County ranked ninth in the state for most labs seized with 42.

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LaPorte Police Arrest Three on Drug-Related Charges

Sebraina Hutson
Adam Tener
Karey Swerdersky

Three people have been charged in a methamphetamine lab operation investigation in LaPorte.

LaPorte Police Department officers and investigators from the Indiana Department of Child Services were called to a mobile home park in reference to a child welfare call. When police arrived at the home, they smelled strong chemical odors which led them to believe a meth lab was in the residence.

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Wanatah Woman Jailed on 20 Counts of Child Molestation

A Wanatah woman was arrested Thursday on 20 Class B Felony counts of Child Molestation.

An ongoing criminal investigation by the Indiana State Police found that Tara Tryon, 21, allegedly molested a three-year-old child.  The Indiana State Department of Child Services and the LaPorte County Sheriff’s Department reportedly received this information which initiated the investigation.

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