INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — One of the Indiana House Democrats who took part in a five-week walkout in 2011 is asking the state Supreme Court to decide whether the way the state wants to collect the resulting fines violates state law.
The court will hear arguments Thursday in the lawsuit filed by then-Rep. Bill Crawford of Indianapolis.
The lawsuit against Republican House Speaker Brian Bosma and other state officials contends that deducting $3,000 in fines from Crawford's expenses stipend check instead of his salary would violate state wage laws.
State attorneys say Indiana's wage laws don't trump legislative disciplinary rules and that it's unconstitutional for the court to intervene in the House's internal business.
Crawford was one of nearly 40 Democrats who holed up at an Illinois hotel to protest several Republican initiatives.
