Indiana Court Decisions — June 5-19, 2019
Read Indiana appellate court decisions from the most recent reporting period.
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Census, redistricting top remaining Supreme Court cases
The Supreme Court enters its final week of decisions with two politically charged issues unresolved: whether to rein in political line-drawing for partisan gain and allow a citizenship question on the 2020 census.
Indiana death row inmate denied SCOTUS appeal of sentence
An Indiana death row inmate whose request for a new sentencing hearing split the Indiana Supreme Court and drew a 40-page dissent from Chief Justice Loretta Rush has failed to convince the U.S. Supreme Court to review his case.
Supreme Court rejects early challenge to Trump steel tariffs
The U.S. Supreme Court is rejecting an early challenge to President Donald Trump’s authority to impose tariffs on imported steel based on national security concerns.
Justices deny transfer to 2 cases that split COA
The Indiana Supreme Court considered and denied 18 petitions for transfer last week, including two cases that drew concerns from members of the Indiana Court of Appeals.
Justices side with business, government in information fight
The Supreme Court of the United States sided with businesses and the U.S. government Monday in a ruling about the public’s access to information, telling a South Dakota newspaper it can’t get the data it was seeking.
High court strikes down ‘scandalous’ part of trademark law
The Untied States Supreme Court has struck down a section of federal law that prevented officials from registering trademarks seen as scandalous or immoral, handing a victory Monday to California fashion brand FUCT.
Appellate court reverses denial of request for third-party trustee
The Indiana Court of Appeals has reversed the denial of a woman’s request for a neutral third party to replace her brother-in-law as the personal representative and trustee of her father’s estate.
COA reverses $66K restitution order for insufficient evidence
A father will still get time behind bars for failing to pay at least a decade’s worth of child support, but questions as to how much he owes led to the reversal of his more than $66,000 restitution order on Friday.
Appellate court upholds denial of stepmother’s adoption petition
A Hendricks County stepmother cannot adopt her husband’s son because the child’s mother was justified in her failure to regularly communicate with the child for several years, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
COA allows transgender women to seal name-change records
Two transgender individuals seeking to keep private their name and gender marker change actions will be able to seal their case records after the Indiana Court of Appeals reversed trial court rulings requiring the transgender women to publish notice of the changes.
COA reduces counts in armed burglary of elderly Franklin couple
A man’s burglary conviction has been reduced from a Level 1 felony after he broke into an elderly couple’s Franklin home and bound them at gunpoint before stealing weapons, money and their car. An appellate panel concluded that injury to the elderly man’s mind did not qualify as a bodily injury.
Evidence supports convictions in Evansville auto-theft case
Auto-theft convictions have been upheld for a man who unsuccessfully argued that a vehicle he stole didn’t belong to its rightful owner. The man also failed to convince the Indiana Court of Appeals that the vehicle was worth less than the amount he was ordered to pay in restitution.
High court: Sex offender law doesn’t violate Constitution
The U.S. Supreme Court says Congress didn’t do anything improper when it gave the attorney general the ability to decide how to apply a sex offender registry law to more than 500,000 people convicted before the law was enacted.
Supreme Court upholds cross on public land in Maryland
A World War I memorial in the shape of a 40-foot-tall cross can continue to stand on public land in Maryland, the Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
Disputed South Bend abortion clinic set to open
A group says it plans to begin accepting patients at an abortion clinic in the northern Indiana city of South Bend next week.
BMV’s ‘Barney Fife’ argument wins in hurricane-damaged car title suit
Mayberry justice prevailed on appeal in a Morgan County case over whether vehicles damaged by Hurricane Harvey in 2017 and declared junk by the state of Texas ought to be issued titles in Indiana.
$240K in damages upheld in Golden Corral food poisoning
An award of damages has been upheld for a woman who alleged negligence against a Golden Corral restaurant after she consumed undercooked chicken wings from its buffet that resulted in food poisoning and injuries requiring multiple surgeries.
Reversal: Insurance company has no duty to indemnify homeowner after child’s accident
An insurance company will not have to defend a man being sued for negligence after a toddler was injured on his property because the toddler was exempt from coverage under the man’s insurance policy, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
COA upholds attempted murder conviction based on video evidence
A man convicted of attempted murder after shooting at another man also holding a gun has failed to convince the Indiana Court of Appeals that his conviction should be thrown out on self-defense grounds.