INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – The Fair Housing Center of Central Indiana has released a report outlining the growing challenges renters face in trying to secure affordable housing.

Finding from the report, State of Fair Housing Report – Rising Rental Burdens in the Indianapolis Metro:

• Half of all renters in Marion County are cost-burdened, meaning they spend 30% or more of their monthly income on rent and utilities.
• A quarter of renters spend 50% or more of their income on housing.
• Among households headed by older people, or people with disabilities, over 60% are rent-burdened, and nearly 40% are severely cost-burdened.
• Additionally, the standard definition of housing cost burden — spending 30% or more of income on housing costs — is too narrow and does not account for additional factors that renters face.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology spearheads a Living Wage Calculator that show, in Marion County, a single parent with two children would have to make $100,849 a year, with only 8.5% spent on housing, to afford other basic expenses including child care, food, medical costs, and transportation.

Comparatively, in 2025, the average asking rent for a market-rate apartment in the Indianapolis metro area was $1,339, up from $899 in 2015, a near 50% increase.

Also, rent prices for single-family homes increased by over 40% from 2019 to 2025, reaching a median high of $1,625 in Marion County and $1,800 in the Indianapolis metro area.

The report also raises alarms about the area’s rental vacancy rate, which reached a 15-year-plus low of 3.9% in 2024 in Marion County, and 4.2% in the Indianapolis metro area. That’s considered far below a healthy vacancy rate.

The report says when vacancy rates are low, renters seeking new housing may be unable to find it, forcing them to stay unhoused or in units that may be overcrowded, unaffordable, or even unsafe.

According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, the Indianapolis metro area has only 32 affordable and available rental units for every 100 households in the lowest income category of renters. That’s a deficit of 49,000 units. For renters in the second-to-lowest income category of renters, the coalition identified only 70 affordable and available rental units for every 100 households, a deficit of nearly 35,000 units.

From 2-3:30 p.m. Eastern time Dec. 16, the Fair Housing Center of Central Indiana will host a webinar review of the report’s findings.

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Ben Davis High School football head coach Russ Mann has resigned.

He had been the Giants’ head coach since the 2023 season.

Mann said the administration at Ben Davis told him that it wanted to move in a different direction.

Mann went 21-14 overall during his time as Ben Davis head coach.

He won the IHSAA 6A State Championship Game in his first season as head coach back in 2023 when his Giants beat Crown Point 38-10 in the title game.

In his second season (2024) with the Giants, he led the program to a 5-6 overall record. Their season ended in the sectional championship round of the 6A tournament when they lost to eventual state champion Brownsburg 38-35.

Ben Davis two-way player Mark Zackery IV was named 2024 Indiana Mr. Football during Mann’s second season.

This past season (2025), the Giants finished with a 3-7 overall record with a young roster.

Ben Davis is one of the most successful football programs in Indiana, winning 10 state championships in its history.

FRANKLIN, Ind. (WISH) — A police shooting happened Tuesday afternoon in this Johnson County city, and an automated dispatch system for neighboring Marion County gave an address for the Mitsubishi Turbocharger and Engine America Inc. plant.

The call of a person shot was dispatched just after 1:35 p.m. Tuesday to 1200 N. Mitsubishi Parkway. That’s north of the I-65 interchange for State Road 44 on the east side of the city of Franklin.

Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department says its officers are on the scene of a police shooting, and no officers were hurt. IMPD also said Indiana State Police will handle the investigation.

IMPD did not say if anyone was shot or injured.

Also, authorities have not yet publicly shared whether the shooting happened inside or around the Mitsubishi plant. However, photos from the scene showed police gathering outside a shipping area for the plant.

A spokesperson for state police had not yet arrived at the scene as of 2:30 p.m. Tuesday.

As of the first quarter of 2025, the Mitsubishi Turbocharger and Engine America plant employed about 85 people, according to a March memorandum of the Franklin Economic Development Commission. It’s about a half-hour drive south of downtown Indianapolis.

Franklin is the Johnson County seat, with about 26,100 residents.

News 8 has reached out to Mitsubishi headquarters in Franklin, Tennessee, for comment.

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (WISH) — Brownsburg High School was presented with The Zone Banner in their gymnasium on Tuesday.

This is Brownsburg’s second time winning The Zone Banner.

Last year, the Bulldogs were the runner-up. They used that as motivation for this year.

“We went the extra mile this year to get that Banner,” Brownsburg senior Cale Heffernan said. “After coming close last year, we finally got it home this year.”

Their football team is undefeated and headed to the state championship game for the second straight year. Brownsburg football head coach John Hart has been impressed with what he’s seen from the students.

“The biggest student body, and I’ve been coaching for a couple years, I’ve ever seen at Lucas Oil (Stadium) was us last year,” Brownsburg football head coach John Hart said. “I’d like to beat it this year.”

“Our student section really is amazing,” Heffernan said. “Obviously the football players too, they say stuff every single week about how amazing we are and how amazing it is to have our student section around them to support them.”

This is not just an award for the students but for the community of Brownsburg as well.

“They’ve put their time and efforts in to create new ideas and be as creative as possible, and most of all, they’ve included the community,” Brownsburg assistant principal Demetrius Dowler said. “As a community, it means the world to Brownsburg, and not just these kids or to the staff, but the community, and that’s what’s important to us.”

Brownsburg is now the second two-time winner (2018 and 2025) of The Zone Banner, joining Franklin Community High School.

Brownsburg is set to play Westfield in the state championship for the second straight season. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Saturday.

Related coverage

PHOTOS | The Zone banner is presented to Brownsburg

The Zone Banner winner is revealed

(INDIANA CAPITAL CHRONICLE) — Minutes after the Indiana House confirmed it will return to the Statehouse next week to redistrict, Senate Republicans reversed course and will show up Dec. 8 to “make a final decision on any redistricting proposal sent from the House.”

House Speaker Todd Huston said in a statement released Tuesday that “House Republicans will gavel in on Monday, Dec. 1, reconvening the 2026 regular session. All legislative business will be considered beginning next week, including redrawing the state’s congressional map.

No proposed maps have been released as of midday Tuesday by legislative leaders showing how the General Assembly might accede to Trump’s wish for Republican-led states to draw more GOP-friendly U.S. House districts ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

The move presents an intra-Republican Party challenge to the state Senate, where Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray has declared too few senators are in support for redistricting to pass.

But Bray confirmed Tuesday, the chamber will convene: “The issue of redrawing Indiana’s congressional maps mid-cycle has received a lot of attention and is causing strife here in our state. To resolve this issue, the Senate intends to reconvene.”

Trump and Gov. Mike Braun have made political threats against recalcitrant Republican senators — and a House vote in favor of new Indiana maps could ratchet up the pressure on those senators.

Last week, the House and Senate both set Jan. 5 as the date lawmakers would start the new legislative session — not on Dec. 1, as previously planned, to take up the redistricting debate.

But Huston instructed House members to remain prepared for a possible return to the Statehouse during the first two weeks of December. He told reporters the House had enough support to pass redistricting and that it was “prepared” to act.

Redistricting supporters want Indiana lawmakers to craft a map with all nine of the state’s congressional districts favoring Republicans. Those would be based on 2020 census data, like the current maps. 

Those were drawn by Republicans in 2021 and maintained a 7-2 GOP majority — with Democrat Frank Mrvan holding the 1st District in northwestern Indiana and Democrat André Carson holding the 7th District, which covers much of Indianapolis.

Trump started the national redistricting fight by pushing Texas Republicans to redraw its congressional map this summer. The pressure on Indiana Republicans has included trips in August and October by Vice President JD Vance to Indianapolis.

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Three Indianapolis Colts icons are semifinalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2026.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced on Tuesday that it has trimmed its list of Modern Era candidates to 26 semifinalists, including three former Colts players: defensive end Robert Mathis, wide receiver Reggie Wayne, and kicker Adam Vinatieri.

Robert Mathis has been a semifinalist in each of his five years of Hall of Fame eligibility but has not yet advanced as a finalist. Mathis, who spent his entire 14-year career with the Colts, holds the NFL record for forced fumbles (52) and strip-sacks (47).

Reggie Wayne has been a semifinalist for all seven of his years of eligibility and has been a finalist in each of the last six years. Wayne, who played 14 seasons with the Colts, is one of nine players in NFL history with at least 1,000 receptions, 14,000 yards, and 80 touchdowns.

Adam Vinatieri, in his second year of eligibility, was a finalist for the Class of 2025 and has again made the semifinalist cut this year. Vinatieri is the NFL’s all-time leader in points scored (2,673) and is widely regarded as one of the best kickers in NFL history.

Two other former Colts, running back Frank Gore and quarterback Philip Rivers, also advanced as semifinalists. Gore played for the Colts from 2015 to 2017, while Rivers was with the team in 2020.

The full list of 26 semifinalists includes:

• QB Drew Brees
• QB Eli Manning
• QB Philip Rivers
• RB Frank Gore
• RB Fred Taylor
• WR Larry Fitzgerald
• WR Torry Holt
• WR Steve Smith Jr.
• WR Hines Ward
• WR Reggie Wayne
• TE Jason Witten
• OL Willie Anderson
• OL Lomas Brown
• OL Jahri Evans
• OL Richmond Webb
• OL Steve Wisniewski
• OL Marshal Yanda
• DL Robert Mathis
• DL Vince Wilfork
• DL Kevin Williams
• LB Luke Kuechly
• LB Terrell Suggs
• DB Rodney Harrison
• DB Earl Thomas
• DB Darren Woodson
• K Adam Vinatieri

Wayne and Vinatieri are among 12 returning finalists from the Class of 2025, including Manning, Taylor, Holt, Smith, Anderson, Evans, Yanda, Kuechly, Suggs and Woodson.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame will announce 15 modern era finalists later this year to be considered for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2026. Those 15 finalists will be considered by the Pro Football Hall of Fame selection committee ahead of Super Bowl LX, and between three and five modern era finalists will be chosen for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2025.

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – A soggy start to your Tuesday morning. Scattered showers are still possible this afternoon with very mild conditions. Colder air moves in for the holiday and we are tracking several systems that could bring us snow for the first week of December.

TODAY: Steadier showers for the first part of the day today. We will see them become more scattered on and off throughout the afternoon. Look for mostly cloudy skies with slightly breezy conditions. Temperatures will be climbing close to 58 degrees for the afternoon. Despite the cloud cover and the rain it will be incredibly mild. 

TONIGHT: A few spotty showers will be possible later tonight with mostly cloudy skies. Temperatures won’t really fall all that much later tonight. We will likely see our high temperature for Wednesday after midnight.

TOMORROW: Temperatures crash throughout the day into the upper thirties and lower 40s. Look for cloudy skies. It’ll be windy with a few flurries possible. Winds may gust near 20 to 30 miles per hour. Wind chill values will be into the twenties. 

7 DAY EXTENDED FORECAST: It will be dry for Thanksgiving with sunshine. High temperatures will be near 34 degrees. Winds will be a bit breezy at times creating wind chill values into the 20s. 

For Black Friday it will be cold but dry. We will start off early in the morning with temperatures right around 20. Bundle up if you are out shopping for the day with temperatures only climbing around freezing. Look for lots of sunshine. 

A system moves in late Friday into Saturday bringing rain and snow chances to the state. Right now it looks like Northern Indiana may see some snowfall accumulation. More rain and snow chances are possible Saturday and Sunday. 

Several systems may move into the state by early December. This means we may see several more snow chances. 

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A couple from Indianapolis face felony for their roles in the death of their 1-year-old son, Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears announced Tuesday.

Angel Guadalupe Rosales Alvarado died less than 20 minutes after arriving at Eskenazi Hospital on Nov. 17, according to a probable cause affidavit obtained by News 8. His parents, 31-year-old Wendy Alvarado and 35-year-old Dunio Duarte-Rosales, had accompanied him to the hospital.

According to the PC, Alvarado had bruises and cuts all over his body and was “very malnourished and underweight.” The deputy coroner who examined Alvarado at the hospital told investigators he weighed less than 11 pounds.

Investigators at the hospital spoke with Wendy Alvarado at the hospital, who told them Duarte-Rosales went back home to take care of their other children — two toddlers and two elementary-aged children — as they were home alone. Court papers say hospital staff heard the couple “arguing in the waiting room, where Dunio stated, ‘It’s all your fault’ before leaving the hospital.”

Detectives learned the family rented a room at a home in the 3300 block of West Michigan Street and went to speak with the landlord, identified by investigators as “BE.”

BE told investigators he “usually sees the four other children…playing outside playing or going to the park” but stated that he “had not seen the youngest child.”

BE said he “once had a conversation with Duarte-Rosales where Duarte-Rosales stated the 1-year-old does not come outside due to something from when the child was born. BE stated he was not sure what Dunio meant,” Det. Robert Burns wrote in the probable cause affidavit.

Detectives got a search warrant for the family’s residence and found no one inside. Det. Burns described the apartment as being “filthy with trash and cockroaches throughout.”

Just after 3 p.m. on Nov. 17, IMPD officers located Duarte-Rosales’ vehicle, a blue Chevrolet Trailblazer. He was taken into custody and a family case manager from the Indiana Department of Child Services took custody of the two toddlers who were inside the the SUV, court papers say.

The older two children were found at school and brought to the IMPD Child Abuse Office for interviews.

Det. Burns sat down with Duarte-Rosales to talk about the child’s death. According to Burns, Duarte-Rosales said he was getting ready to leave the house when Alvarado told him “something was wrong with Angel.”

“(He) stated he went touched Angel on the cheek, and discovered that Angel was cold to the touch and observed him not breathing normally,” Det. Burns wrote in the PC. “He stated he last saw Angel normal approximately five minutes before when he outside to start the vehicle. He stated Angel was warm and smiling the last time he saw him.”

When asked about the argument overheard by hospital staff, Duarte-Rosales said his comment stating that it was “all your fault” was him being upset with Alvarado that his cell phone was lost.

Duarte-Rosales told police that Angel was born one month premature, spent one month in a coma with a nasal tube because he could not eat on his own. He said the little boy “barely eats” and that one can of baby formula would last “1-2 months,” court papers say.

Detective Burns asked Duarte-Rosales multiple times why no one took Angel to see a doctor.

“(He) stated he didn’t think Angel needed a doctor to due Angel always smiling and laughing,” Burns wrote in the PC. “When asked multiple times about Angel’s malnourished appearance, he stated he didn’t think anything was wrong due to the doctors telling him at the hospital that Angel would always be small and thin.”

When asked about the cuts and scratches on Angel’s body, Burns says Duarte-Rosales stated the child would “scratch himself.” When asked about the bruising on Angel’s body, Duarte-Rosales “didn’t have a response.”

Court papers say Duarte-Rosales later admitted to smoking methamphetamine before he took Angel and Wendy Alvarado to the emergency room.

Duarte-Rosales and Alvarado were subsequently arrested by Detective Burns for neglect of a dependent resulting in death. They made their first court appearances at 9 a.m. Tuesday.

Online jail records indicate Duarte-Rosales and Alvarado are both on a federal immigration hold.

Help is available for victims of domestic violence, child abuse, and sexual assault. Below is a list of suggested resources, both national and local:

• National Domestic Violence Hotline: 800-799-7233 or text START to 88788
• National Domestic Violence Hotline en español: 800-799-7233 o texto “START” al 88788
• Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence: 24-hour hotline available at 800-332-7385
• Indiana Coalition to End Sexual Assault and Human Trafficking
• National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
• La Plaza Indy
• The Julian Center
• Indiana Child Abuse Hotline: 800-800-5556
• National Sexual Assault Hotline: 800-656-4673

LOS ANGELES (AP) — After more than a century of munching on her favorite foods of romaine lettuce and cactus fruit, beloved Galapagos tortoise Gramma, the oldest resident of the San Diego Zoo, has died.

Gramma was born in her native habitat and was estimated to be about 141 years old, zoo officials said. She died Nov. 20.

It’s not clear exactly when the tortoise arrived at the San Diego Zoo, but zoo officials said she came from the Bronx Zoo in either 1928 or 1931 as part of their first group of Galapagos tortoises.

As the world changed around her, she delighted visitors with her sweet, shy personality. She lived through two World Wars and 20 U.S. presidents.

Her care specialists affectionately called her “the Queen of the Zoo.” She was suffering from bone conditions related to her old age that progressed recently before she was euthanized, the zoo said.

Many visitors commented on social media about getting to first visit Gramma when they were young, and being able to come back years later with their kids.

Cristina Park, 69, said one of her earliest memories from her childhood was going to the San Diego Zoo when she was 3 or 4 years old and riding on the back of a tortoise. That’s no longer allowed, but the experience inspired her to keep a small desert tortoise as a pet and learn more about tortoise conservation.

“Just how amazing it is that they managed to live through so much,” Park said. “And yet they’re still there.”

Galapagos tortoises can live for over 100 years in the wild, and close to double that in captivity.

The oldest known Galapagos tortoise was named Harriet, who lived at the Australia Zoo until the age of 175. She was collected from the Galapagos Islands in 1835, when she was just the size of a dinner plate, according to the zoo. This means that she hatched somewhere around 1830, and she died in 2006.

Galapagos tortoises include 15 subspecies of tortoises from the islands, three of which were deemed extinct. The rest are all vulnerable or critically endangered, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Concerted efforts have been made to breed these tortoises in captivity over the past several decades, with more than 10,000 juveniles released to the wild since 1965, according to the Galapagos Conservancy. Some subspecies have been brought back from the brink of extinction.

In April, four baby Galapagos tortoises were born at the Philadelphia Zoo to first-time parents that were roughly 100 years old, a first in the zoo’s history. In June, Zoo Miami resident and Galapagos tortoise Goliath became a first-time father at the age of 135.

(AP) — It’s the start of Thanksgiving week, the time when home cooks across America suddenly recognize the daunting task ahead.

More than 90% of people in the U.S. celebrate the food-centric holiday and more than 1 in 4 attend meals that include more than 10 other people, according to the Pew Research Center.

Under that kind of pressure, what host wouldn’t want the best tools to make sure the holiday dinner goes off without a hitch?

With that in mind, we asked national food safety experts which kitchen devices and aids are essential to ensure a safe and tasty Thanksgiving meal.

Here are their top four suggestions for aids that can make or break your holiday dinner, plus two bonus tips for after the meal:

Digital meat thermometer

Our panel of experts unanimously agreed that an instant-read digital thermometer is vital to making sure roast turkey and other dishes reach 165 degrees Fahrenheit (74 degrees Celsius) to eliminate the risk of food poisoning from germs like salmonella and Campylobacter.

“This is non-negotiable,” said Darin Detwiler, a Northeastern University food safety expert. “A reliable thermometer ensures you’re not guessing, because guessing is not a food safety strategy.”

Color-coded cutting boards

In the hustle of a holiday kitchen, the risk of cross-contamination is real. That’s when germs from one food, such as raw turkey, may be spread to other foods, such as fresh vegetables or fruits.

It’s best to use dedicated cutting boards for each type of food, and color-coding — red for meat, yellow for poultry, green for veggies — can help, said Barbara Kowalcyk, director of the Institute for Food Safety and Nutrition Security at George Washington University.

“I try not to use wooden cutting boards,” said Kowalcyk, noting that they can retain bacteria that thrive and grow to large enough quantities to cause illness.

Sharp knives

As an emergency medicine doctor who has stitched up many Thanksgiving injuries, Dr. Tony Cirillo urges home cooks to make sure their kitchen knives are sharp.

A sharp knife cuts cleanly, while a dull knife requires more pressure that can cause dangerous slips, said Cirillo, president of the American College of Emergency Physicians.

Sturdy roasting pans

Pulling a hot turkey out of the oven is tricky, especially if the pan you cook it in is flimsy, Cirillo added. Use a sturdy metal roasting pan or, in a pinch, stack two foil roasting pans together for strength.

“I’m a big fan of double-panning,” Cirillo said. “Dropping the turkey is generally not good on Thanksgiving.”

Cooking timer

Just as important as getting food to the table is making sure it doesn’t sit out too long, said Don Schaffner, a food safety expert at Rutgers University.

Use a cooking timer or clock alarm to make sure to pack away leftovers within two hours to prevent bacterial growth that can cause illness.

Ruler

And when you’re storing those leftovers, make sure to put them in shallow containers, Schaffner said.

Measure using a ruler — or even the short side of a credit card — to make sure that dense foods like stuffing and sweet potatoes reach a depth of no more than 2 inches (5 centimeters) to allow for quick and complete cooling in the refrigerator.