Parents charged in death of boy accidentally shot by sibling
The parents of a 1-year-old boy who was shot to death earlier this year in South Bend by a gun accidentally fired by his 4-year-old sibling have been charged.
Child welfare
Articles
COA remands adoption to find why father’s consent not required
The Indiana Court of Appeals has remanded an adoptive mother’s granted petition to adopt her wife’s three children, finding that the trial court failed to make any findings that would support dispensing with their father’s consent.
Charges dropped against couple after 3 children die in fire
An Indiana couple will no longer face neglect charges in the deaths of their three children during a fire in an apartment which had no gas, electricity or water service.
CHINS finding reversed; mother’s marijuana use alone insufficient
The Indiana Court of Appeals has reversed a child in need of services finding after concluding that the child’s mother, while admitting to using marijuana, was not proven to have used it in the child’s presence or seriously endangered the child as a result.
COA affirms custody modification from mother to father
The Indiana Court of Appeals has affirmed the modification of a Dearborn County mother’s physical and legal custody of her child over to his father, also ruling her relocation claims moot after her request to do so was denied.
Prosecutor: South Bend 1-year-old fatally shot by 4-year-old
A young child who was fatally shot in South Bend was struck after the accidental discharge of a gun by a 4-year-old sibling, prosecutors said Friday.
DCS files multiple responses after motion to dismiss child-welfare suit denied
Less than a month after a federal court denied a motion to dismiss, the Indiana Department of Child Services is asking the judge to reconsider the original motion as well as review a second motion to dismiss in an attempt to derail a lawsuit alleging the state violated the constitutional rights of children in its care.
Remembering Judge Michael Barnes: ‘A public servant’s public servant’
Friends and colleagues are celebrating the life and legacy of the late Judge Michael Barnes, who served nearly 20 years on the Indiana Court of Appeals after an earlier 20 years serving as the prosecutor of St. Joseph County. “He was a great friend. … He was a friend to all of us,” one colleague said.
Federal judge lets suit alleging DCS failed to protect children proceed
A lawsuit alleging harm and constitutional violations by the Department of Child Services has survived a motion for summary judgment after a federal judge found the children plaintiffs have sufficiently claimed the state failed to protect them.
Fishers couple’s reconviction in toddler’s daycare death affirmed
The involuntary manslaughter conviction of a Fishers couple after a retrial over the death of a toddler at their home daycare facility has been upheld by a divided panel of the Indiana Court of Appeals.
Police: 2-year-old girl shoots man in head, injures woman
A 2-year-old girl found a handgun on a bed and accidentally fired it, shooting a man in the head at a Lafayette apartment, police said.
COA: Striking child with cord not protected parental discipline
An Indianapolis mother convicted of felony battery after striking her son with an electrical cord failed to convince the Indiana Court of Appeals that the charges against her could be defeated by the concept of parental privilege.
COA affirms admitted drug test lab results in CHINS case
The admission of positive drug test results under the business-records exception was affirmed by the Indiana Court of Appeals in a Monday child in need of services case, despite a father’s argument that admission of the evidence was erroneous.
Tougher Indiana law on under-18 marriages clears Statehouse
Anyone younger than 18 will need a judge’s permission to get married in Indiana under a law change approved by state legislators. The measure endorsed almost unanimously by lawmakers would repeal the state’s current law that allows those as young as 15 to marry if they have parental consent.
COA dismisses man’s appeal in adoption dispute
A man seeking to adopt his ex-wife’s child had his case dismissed by the Indiana Court of Appeals on Monday after it found no indication that he sought certification from the trial court or permission from the appellate court to file a discretionary interlocutory appeal, among other things.
Court dismisses suit that sought to provide attorneys to CHINS children
A lawsuit filed by 10 Hoosier children who argued Indiana should be required to provide legal counsel to youngsters involved in children in need of services proceedings was dismissed Tuesday in federal court. Attorneys who filed the case, however, indicated the matter is far from over.
Volunteers to gather Wednesday for CASA Day celebration
Hoosiers who volunteer their time and energy advocating on behalf of kids in the child welfare system will have a chance next week to celebrate more than three decades of effort.
DCS, trial court reprimanded in reversal of parental rights termination
A father will have his parental rights restored after an Indiana Court of Appeals ruling that reiterated the Department of Child Services does not have the authority to set policy inconsistent with the law.
Virginia woman accused of abducting 4 kids found in Plainfield
A Virginia woman accused of abducting her four children and leading authorities on a nationwide chase for several months was taken into custody Wednesday morning in Plainfield, authorities said.
DCS seeks to keep records sealed in class-action care suit
Lawyers for Indiana’s Department of Child Services are pushing to seal records in a federal class action lawsuit accusing the child welfare agency of inadequately protecting thousands of children in its care.