Good morning! Here are a few of the stories on our radar today.
1. Marion County prosecutors are in South Bend preparing for the trial of Mark Leonard.
Leonard faces more than 50 counts in connection with the 2012 Richmond Hill explosion that damaged 80 homes and killed John and Jennifer Longworth.
Jury selection begins Thursday in the trial which is expected to last roughly six weeks. Prosecutors plan to admit more than 3,000 pieces of evidence and call 176 witnesses.
They say Leonard plotted to blow up then girlfriend Monserrate Shirley's home to collect on insurance money.
2. State police say the lapse of Patriot Act surveillance provisions has no direct impact on intelligence gathering at the state level.
The Patriot Act clarified and expanded rules for federal eavesdropping, not state and local departments.
State Police do operate a "fusion center" that receives and coordinates intel from all levels, including federal, but spokesman Dave Bursten says it's not clear how the lapse of the Patriot Act affects that.
3. A bald eagle spotted at Lake Monroe is one of the oldest on record.
State biologist Cassie Hudson located the eagle and took photos. The bird was identified from an orange color band on one wing and metal leg bands.
It was discovered it was one of the original eagles released in Monroe County when the Indiana DNR began its bald eagle restoration program in the late 1980s.