Major news events of the year

December 2005

A Dec. 8 snowfall during the evening rush hour jammed up traffic in Indianapolis for hours. Matt Detrich / The Star.

Dec. 1 - Indiana University received two gifts, totaling $85 million, to be used to create scholarships for working students.

Dec. 1 - The National Association of Home Builders ranked Indianapolis first nationally for affordable housing.

Dec. 2 - Executions in North Carolina and South Carolina put the number of prisoners executed in the U.S., since capital punishment was reinstated in 1976, over 1,000.

Dec. 5 - Marion County Sheriff Frank Anderson detailed a plan to relieve jail overcrowding by moving most female prisoners to a private facility.

Dec. 5 - The State of Indiana announced that, beginning in spring 2006, it would become the first state in the nation to use debit cards exclusively instead of issuing unemployment and child support checks.

Dec. 5 - The SEPT. 11 Commission released the results of its' assessment of how well the federal government had done in complying with recommendations to combat terrorism. The results showed that little had been done to close gaping holes in U.S. security.

Dec. 6 - Two central Indiana deputies were shot. Steve Edwards, a Johnson County deputy, was responding to a domestic disturbance when he was shot in the shoulder by a former Fort Wayne police officer who later committed suicide. Gary Schuller, a Marion County deputy, was shot in the leg during an exchange of gunfire following a bank robbery.

Dec. 8 - Central Indiana was one of many areas across the Midwest coping with a major snowstorm. In Indianapolis, the fast-falling snow combined with the evening rush hour created a massive traffic jam that resulted in 3 and 4 hour commutes home for many people.

Dec. 9 - The Heartland Alliance for Human Needs and Human Rights ranked Indiana last among states in the Midwest, with the state receiving particularly low grades for its poverty policies and stand on the death penalty.

Dec. 9 - Executives of Irving Materials Inc., were sentenced to prison and given heafty fines in conjunction with concrete price-fixing.

Dec. 10 - In an interview with The Indianapolis Star, Ron Artest expressed his displeasure with Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle, and his desire to be traded.

Dec. 10 - Comedian Richard Pryer died at age 65 of a heart attack.

Dec. 10 - A plane crash in Nigeria killed 107 people, many of them schoolchildren returning home for the holidays.

Dec. 10 - Dr. Joseph E. Walther, founder of Winona Memorial Hospital in Indianapolis, died at age 93.

Dec. 12 - For the first time, President Bush acknowledged that perhaps 30,000 Iraqis had died since the U.S-led invasion began in March 2003.

Dec. 12 - Despite an outpouring of support, Stanley Tookie Williams, founder of the Crips gang, was executed in California for the 1981 murders of four people.

The official Christmas tree in the Rotunda of the Indiana Statehouse was decorated with the help of schoolchildren fro around the state on Dec. 13. Frank Espich / The Star

Dec. 12 - Pat Miller, Indiana's secretary of commerce and chief executive of the Indiana Economic Deelopment Corp., resigned to return to Vera Bradley Designs, the company she co-founded.

Dec. 13 - Marsha Evans, president of the American Red Cross, resigned amid friction with the board of governors and criticism of the organizations' response to Hurricane Katrina.

Dec. 13 - The Federal Reserve raised the interest rate another quarter to 4.25% - the 13th quarter point move since June 2004.

Dec. 14 - Indiana students' ISTEP test results show math scores up slightly but little gain in reading scores - all-in-all, a flat performance.

Dec. 15 - Iraqis turned out by the millions to elect a new parliament.

Dec. 15 - Sparking outrage in Congress, it was disclosed that, in the wake of the SEPT 11 TERORIST ATTACKS, President Bush authorized the National Security Agency to evesdrop on Americans, and others in the U.S., without the court-approved warrants usually required for domestic survellience.

Dec. 16 - The state of Indiana auctioned off Colts vanity license plates, raising more than $104,000 to help pay for the new Colts stadium. The most-coveted plate - "QB 18", went for $10,305.

Dec. 17 - President Bush admitted that he did secretly authorize domestic spying on more than 30 occasions, and would continue to do so as long as the U.S. faced the threat of terrorism.

Dec. 18 - The San Diego Chargers defeated the INDIANAPOLIS COLTS 26-17, ruining their hopes of an undefeated season.

Dec. 18 - President Bush addressed the nation, admitting mistakes had been made in the war in Iraq but asking Americans not to give up on the fight for freedom, saying the only options available were victory or defeat.

Dec. 19 - The City-County Council reconsidered failed ordinances to consoldiate the Indianapolis Police Department and the Marion County Sheriff's Department and to prohibit discrimination due to sexual orientation - this time the measures passed.

Dec. 20 - The Percussive Arts Society announced plans to relocate its headquarters and museum to Indianapolis in 2007.

Dec. 20 - Gov. MITCH DANIELS announced a 2 percent pay increase for Indiana state employees in 2006, as well as an increase in health care contributions by the state.

Dec. 20 - A federal judge in Pennsylvania ruled that the Dover Area School Board could not require that intelligent design be taught in biology classes.

Dec. 20 - Transit workers in New York City walked off the job creating major problems for commuters. The strike lasted three days.

Dec. 20 - A bomb threat, which turned out to be a hoax, caused the evacuation of about 8,000 people from the City-County Building in downtown Indianapolis.

Dec. 21 - ELI LILLY AND CO. issued a public apology and agreed to pay $36 million in fines and plead guilty to one misdemeanor charge for falsely claiming that their drug Evista treated breast cancer in addition to strengthening bones.

Dec. 22 - James Dungy, the 18-year-old son of Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy was found dead in his Florida apartment. He apparently hanged himself.

Dec. 28 - The annual Decorators' Show House, benefiting Wishard Health Services, was cancelled after a dispute between show organizers and Gov. MITCH DANIELS over what Daniels considered inappropriate decor for the govenor's residence - the site for the 2006 show.

Dec. 28 - WellPoint completed its' $6.5 billion acquisition of WellChoice Inc - parent company of Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield.

Dec. 30 - In an attempt to pre-empt legislative action that would make the use of eminent domain more difficult, the Indiana Stadium and Convention Center Building Authority filed a suit seeking to seize the N.K. Hurst bean factory which sits on land it wants for parking for the new Colts stadium.

Dec. 30 - Pvt. Jonathan Pfender, 22, of Evansville was the latest SOLDIER WITH INDIANA TIES TO DIE IN IRAQ.

Dec. 30 - Conner Prairie living history museum formally separated from Earlham College following a lengthy power struggle. The museum received a settlement of $105 million - $11 more than aniticipated.