Articles

Supreme Court: Summarily approved commitment orders not valid

The Indiana Supreme Court has expressly disapproved of a Marion County judge’s practice of summarily approving civil commitment orders individually reviewed by the presiding commissioner, though the justices also noted that the fact that the defendants' commitment orders have expired makes their appeals moot.

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COA tosses convictions on new charges introduced at trial

A split Indiana Court of Appeals reversed four counts of a woman’s conviction, finding the trial court abused its discretion in allowing the state to amend the charging information without giving the defendant a “reasonable opportunity” to prepare and defend against the new counts.

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Biological dad’s paternity petition dismissed

The Indiana Court of Appeals has rejected the petition of two biological parents to establish paternity for their child after the appellate court concluded the mother could not collaterally attack a previous paternity finding for another man who assumed he was the father.   

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7th Circuit rules DOC sex offender program violates Constitution

Finding the disclosures provide information that any law enforcement agent “would love to have,” the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled Indiana’s requirement that sex offender inmates give detailed accounts of their past actions violates the Constitution’s protections against self-incrimination.

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Double jeopardy principles not violated in OWI enhancement

A man with a record for driving under the influence was denied in his appeal to correct his enhanced sentence as a result of his adjudication as a habitual vehicle substance offender. An appellate court affirmed no double jeopardy violation in relying on his prior convictions to support the adjudication. 

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Supreme Court backs businesses, curbs class arbitration

An ideologically divided U.S. Supreme Court gave businesses more power to channel disputes into individual arbitration proceedings, siding with a lighting retailer trying to prevent its employees from pressing group claims stemming from a phishing attack.

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Appeals court rejects belated post-conviction appeal

A post-conviction petitioner who failed to timely file a notice of appeal has permanently extinguished his opportunity to appeal and cannot invoke Post-Conviction Rule 2(1) to file his belated notice of appeal, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Thursday.

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Trump’s threat to go to court over impeachment defies ruling

President Donald Trump tweeted Wednesday he’ll go directly to the U.S. Supreme Court “if the partisan Dems” ever try to impeach him. But Trump’s strategy could run into a roadblock: the high court itself, which said in 1993 that the framers of the U.S. Constitution didn’t intend for the courts to have the power to review impeachment proceedings.

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Conviction upheld for mom firing gun from baby bag

A woman who fired a gun into the ceiling of a hair salon after she was asked to leave for arguing with a stylist was denied an appeal of her convictions Tuesday when the Indiana Court of Appeals found there was no abuse of discretion in allowing certain witnesses to testify in her case after they violated a separation of witnesses order.

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