Opinions Oct. 26, 2017

Indiana Court of Appeals
Matthew Edmonds v. State of Indiana
49A05-1703-CR-400
Criminal. Affirms Matthew Edmonds’ convictions of resisting law enforcement resulting in the death of another person as a Level 3 felony and leaving the scene of an accident as a Level 5 felony. Vacates Edmonds’ two lesser charges of resisting law enforcement and three lesser charges of leaving the scene of an accident. Finds Edmonds may be convicted of only one count of resisting law enforcement, as that is a conduct-based, rather than result-based, crime. Also finds the state provided sufficient evidence to support Edmonds’ conviction of resisting law enforcement resulting in the death of another person. Remands to the Marion Superior Court for resentencing.

Mark Leonard v. State of Indiana
49A02-1703-CR-443
Criminal. Affirms Mark Leonard’s conviction of Class A felony conspiracy to commit murder. Finds the Marion Superior Court did not commit fundamental error when it admitted jail phone calls because they were not obtained in violation of Leonard’s right to counsel under Article 1, Section 13 of the Indiana Constitution. Also finds any error in the admission of a letter was harmless because the information contained therein was merely cumulative of other properly admitted evidence.

Christopher Betts v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
71A05-1705-CR-1154
Criminal. Affirms Christopher Betts’ conviction of Class A misdemeanor invasion of privacy. Finds the evidence was sufficient to support Betts’ conviction.

Jeremy C. Watkins v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
71A04-1706-CR-1405
Criminal. Affirms Jeremy Watkins’ conviction of Level 4 felony unlawful possession of a firearm. Finds the St. Joseph Superior Court acted within its discretion when it admitted two photographs of Watkins holding a firearm after concluding they were relevant. Also finds the danger of unfair prejudice did not substantially outweigh its probative value.

Vassil Marinov v. Review Board of the Department of Workforce Development (mem. dec.)
93A02-1701-EX-125
Agency. Affirms the Indiana Department of Workforce Development Review Board’s denial of Vassil Marinov’s claims for unemployment benefits for two weeks. Finds the board did not err in determining Marinov was not unemployed for purposes of determining his eligibility for unemployment benefits during a two-week shutdown period, and, thus, that employee is not entitled to benefits attributable to those weeks.

Candelario Cruz-Trujillo v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
41A01-1612-CR-2723
Criminal. Affirms Candelario Cruz-Trujillo’s conviction of murder. Finds the Johnson Circuit Court did not abuse its discretion when it refused to instruct the jury on involuntary manslaughter, voluntary manslaughter and reckless homicide.

Shemata Chatman v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
49A02-1705-CR-1148
Criminal. Affirms Shemata Chatman’s conviction of criminal trespass as a Class A misdemeanor. Finds the state presented sufficient evidence of a probative nature from which a reasonable trier of fact could find beyond a reasonable doubt that Chatman committed trespass as a Class A misdemeanor.

In the Matter of the Termination of the Parent-Child Relationship of B.J., J.J., (Children) and M.R. (Mother); M.R. (Mother) v. The Indiana Department of Child Services (mem. dec.)
25A03-1705-JT-993
Juvenile termination of parental rights. Affirms the involuntary termination of M.R.’s parental rights to B.J. and J.J. Finds the Department of Child Services presented sufficient evidence there was a reasonable probability the conditions under which the children were removed from M.R.’s care would not be remedied and that termination of M.R.’s parental rights was in the children’s best interests. Also finds any error in the admission of family case manager Bryan Holcomb’s testimony regarding a former family case manager’s observations about M.R.’s housing situation was harmless.

In Re the Matter of Patricia Rumfelt v. Alicia Hollars and Harry Arndt (mem. dec.)
20A03-1703-MI-536
Miscellaneous. Affirms the denial of Patricia Rumfelt’s petition for grandparent visitation. Finds the Elkhart Superior Court did not abuse its discretion in denying Rumfelt’s petition. Denies mother, A.B.’s, request for attorney fees.

Ryan Remling v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
82A01-1705-CR-1063
Criminal. Affirms Ryan A. Remling’s convictions of four counts of Level 1 felony child molesting. Finds the Vanderburgh Circuit Court properly allowed the state to amend the charging information after trial had commenced. Also finds Remling knowingly, intelligently and voluntarily waived his right to counsel.

Gregory A. Rose v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)
20A03-1705-PC-1181
Post-conviction. Reverses the denial of Gregory A. Rose’s motion to compel production of documents by Richard Mehl. Finds that because Rose filed his motion to compel in the Elkhart Circuit Court as an ancillary proceeding to the criminal cause in which he was represented by Mehl, the trial court “should have caused reasonable notice to be given to (Mehl), held a hearing thereon, and then ruled on the motion.” Remands for the trial court to hold a hearing to determine whether Mehl is in possession of documents to which Rose is entitled.