Indiana Court Decisions – Jan. 14-27, 2021
Read Indiana appellate court decisions from the most recent reporting period.
Court opinions
Articles
Opinions Feb. 1, 2021
Indiana Court of Appeals
Lorenzo Carlos Pfeifer v. State of Indiana
20A-CR-00417
Criminal. Affirms Lorenzo C. Pfeifer’s conviction of two counts of murder. Finds Pfeifer’s rights of confrontation under the Sixth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States and Article 1, Section 13 of the Constitution of Indiana were not violated when the St. Joseph Circuit Court admitted certain deposition testimony into evidence. Finds sufficient evidence to support the conviction.
Opinions Jan. 29, 2021
Indiana Court of Appeals
The Residences at Ivy Quad Unit Owners Association, Inc. v. Ivy Quad Development, LLC, et al.
19A-PL-2974
Civil. Reverses the dismissal of Ivy Quad Unit Owners Association’s implied warranty and negligence claims over crumbling concrete and water infiltration at the Ivy Quad condominium complex in South Bend. Finds the St. Joseph Superior Court’s application of the economic loss doctrine as a complete bar to the association’s negligence claims against the defendants was premature and unwarranted. Remands for proceedings.
COA dismisses as premature appeal in breach-of-contract suit
The Indiana Court of Appeals on Friday dismissed as premature an appeal filed by a southern Indiana man who challenged a trial court order dismissing three of four defendants that he sued, claiming breach of contract in a real estate sales dispute.
Faulty translation voids man’s guilty plea in PCR appeal
The Indiana Court of Appeals vacated a man’s guilty plea in a child molestation case Friday, granting post-conviction relief on the basis that he did not receive the assistance of an interpreter to help him understand his rights.
Ruling on appeal reinstates condo owners’ suit alleging faulty construction
Condominium owners in a South Bend complex that they allege was shoddily constructed may pursue their claims against the insolvent developer, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled, reversing the dismissal of the condo owners’ claims.
Justices uphold life without parole in toddler’s brutalization, murder
A man’s sentence to life in prison without parole in the murder of an 18-month-old whose body bore the marks of torture and sexual abuse has been affirmed on direct appeal to the Indiana Supreme Court.
Opinions Jan. 28, 2020
Indiana Supreme Court
Blake B. Hartman v. BigInch Fabricators & Construction Holding Company, Inc.
20S-PL-618
Civil plenary. Affirms the grant of summary judgment in Parke Circuit Court to BigInch Fabricators & Construction Holding Company Inc. Finds there is no blanket rule prohibiting agreements that call for open-market concepts to apply to compulsory, closed-market transactions. Also finds that the shareholder’s agreement’s valuation term clearly contemplates a fair market valuation of Blake Hartman’s shares in BigInch, so a third-party appraiser could apply minority and marketability discounts.
Woman’s PI suit against state after hydroplane crash divides appeals panel
A woman who sued the Indiana Department of Transportation after she was injured in a crash resulting from her vehicle hydroplaning on a northern Indiana highway cannot pursue her lawsuit against the state, a majority of the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday. A dissenting judge, however, would reverse and send the matter back to the trial court to hear her claims.
Opinions Jan. 27, 2020
The following Indiana Supreme Court opinion was posted after IL deadline Tuesday: Rodriquez Anderson v. State of Indiana
21S-CR-28
Criminal. Grants transfer and summarily affirms the Indiana Court of Appeals’ decision remanding Rodriquez Anderson’s sentence to the Clark Circuit Court to correct the improper one-year sentence imposed for his conviction of Class B misdemeanor possession of marijuana, concurrent to his 25-year sentence for conviction of Level 2 felony conspiracy to deal methamphetamine. Rejects Anderson’s claim that he was improperly denied a speedy trial because counsel had been appointed at the time Anderson made his pro se request, so the trial court acted within its discretion in denying the request.
Reversal: Court erred in CHINS findings, placing kids in foster care
An out-of-state father whose children were placed in foster care after one of them was injured during a domestic dispute between their mother and her boyfriend was wrongly denied an opportunity to parent his children, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday.
Supreme Court adopts COA ruling, remands to correct improper sentence
The Indiana Supreme Court on Tuesday summarily affirmed a Court of Appeals decision remanding an improper sentence imposed in a drug case but rejected a convict’s argument that he was wrongly denied his request for a speedy trial.
Opinions Jan. 26, 2020
Indiana Court of Appeals
Jeffrey Thomas Maxwell v. Shirley Sue Maxwell
20A-DR-869
Domestic relations. Reverses in part the order dividing marital property between Jeffrey and Shirley Maxwell. Finds that assigning the tax burden related to Jeffrey’s pension to Jeffrey alone has the result of significantly altering the Hancock Circuit Court’s intended 60/40 apportionment. Also finds Jeffrey is free to pay off the equalization payment more quickly than the $500 per month order and thereby incur less in interest. Remands for clarification regarding the division of Jeffrey’s military pension, and for the trial court to consider the tax consequences of its disposition and to redetermine the amount of the equalization payment. Judge Nancy Vaidik concurs and dissents in part with separate opinion.
Appeals court orders second remand of divorce dispute
A ex-husband will again take his challenge of the final judgment in his divorce case back to the trial court after the Indiana Court of Appeals ordered a second remand to address the division of marital property.
Opinions Jan. 25, 2020
The following 7th Circuit Court of Appeals opinion was posted after IL deadline Friday:
United States of America v. Michael Thomas
19-2969
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, South Bend Division. Chief Judge Jon E. DeGuilio.
Criminal. Affirms Michael Thomas’ conviction of mail fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 1341. Finds the district court properly decided that six fires set by Thomas were part of his insurance fraud scheme and not “other acts.” Also finds the district court properly admitted evidence of a seventh fire that, although too far removed in time to be part of the fraud scheme, was evidence of Thomas’ modus operandi.
Fired neonatal doctor loses age discrimination appeal against St. Vincent’s
A veteran neonatal doctor who claimed she was discriminated against when she was terminated from her longtime position did not prove that she was unlawfully terminated and passed over for a new position based on her age, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals held Friday, upholding summary judgment for St. Vincent Hospital.
Opinions Jan. 22, 2020
The following 7th Circuit Court of Appeals opinion was posted after IL deadline Thursday:
Francina Smith v. GC Services Limited Partnership and ORG GC GP Buyer, LLC
19-3494
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Indianapolis Division. Judge Richard L. Young.
Civil. Affirms the dismissal of Francina Smith’s complaint against GC Services under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act for lack of Article III standing. Finds Smith has not alleged how a need to dispute the debt in writing deterred her from disputing the debt, or what good a dispute would have done her.
Father wins PCR on two counts of child molesting
A father convicted of three felony counts of molesting his daughter has successfully secured post-conviction relief from two of those counts. A Class A felony conviction, however, will stand. The ruling will cut the southern Indiana man’s 100-year sentence in half.
Opinions Jan. 21, 2020
Indiana Court of Appeals
20A-PL-1502
Civil plenary. Affirms the Morgan Circuit Court’s order appropriating land for the improvement of Interstate 69 in which Herbert and Alice Haggard had interest in an easement over the property. Finds the trial court did not err when it overruled the Haggards’ objections to the state’s complaint and their motion to vacate the order of appropriation.
Opinions Jan. 20, 2020
Indiana Court of Appeals
Steven P. Smith v. State of Indiana
20A-CR-1014
Criminal. Affirms Steven P. Smith’s conviction of Level 6 felony operating while intoxicated and the finding that he was a habitual vehicular substance offender. Finds the Elkhart Superior Court did not abuse its discretion when it held the jury trial in Smith’s absence because Smith knowingly and voluntarily waived his right to be present. Also finds the trial court did not commit fundamental error when it informed prospective jurors that the court has personally advised Smith of the trial date a few weeks prior.