Appeals court affirms partial judgment in insurance dispute
A Marion Superior Court’s ruling granting partial summary judgment in a dispute between insurance companies was affirmed Friday by the Indiana Court of Appeals.
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Rooker-Feldman doctrine bars man’s lawsuit alleging false statements
A man challenging a garnishment order entered in state court should have challenged the order in that court system instead of filing a federal lawsuit, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday. The judges affirmed the dismissal of his suit based on the Rooker-Feldman doctrine.
Public voyeurism statute not unconstitutionally vague as applied, COA rules
A man who argued he lacked sufficient notice that the public voyeurism law prohibits his conduct because he filmed girls wearing bathing suits or a skort lost his case before the Indiana Court of Appeals Thursday.
Complaint properly dismissed for failure to comply with Trial Rule 3
Because the people suing a driver who allegedly caused a car accident sent their summons to the county clerk after the two-year statute of limitations expired, the trial court correctly granted the defendant’s motion to dismiss, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled.
Judges affirm woman who emailed racist joke not entitled to unemployment benefits
A newspaper employee who emailed a racist joke to two co-workers was correctly denied unemployment benefits after she was fired, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled.
Woman fails to prove discrimination claims after she lost counseling job
A woman who was not hired by the private company the Department of Correction contracted with to provide counseling for inmates could not prove the company’s decision was due to age or sex discrimination.
COA finds no reason to reverse man’s child molesting conviction
There was no prosecutorial misconduct or errors by the trial court that would require the Indiana Court of Appeals to reverse a Marion County man’s child molesting conviction. The man raised several claims, including he was denied the right to an impartial jury and fair trial.
Justices split over reducing meth sentence
Justices Brent Dickson and Mark Massa disagreed with their colleagues Wednesday that a Tippecanoe County man’s 40-year sentence for Class A felony dealing in methamphetamine needed to be revised.
Court affirms probation revocation, total time ordered in DOC
A Vigo County man lost his argument before the Indiana Court of Appeals that his term of informal probation should not have been revoked by the trial court after he violated terms of his placement in a home detention program.
Appeals court upholds teen’s 55-year sentence for murder
In a case of first impression, the Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed the 55-year sentence imposed on a juvenile waived into adult court for the murder of a friend. The teen claimed he should have been sentenced under the alternative sentencing scheme available for juveniles.
Reservist entitled to full longevity pay despite time away from police force
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals held Tuesday that a Plymouth, Indiana, patrolman should receive the $2,700 in longevity pay he is entitled to from the city under an ordinance. The city cut the payment by two-thirds because the man served eight months on activity duty in the U.S. Air Force.
COA reverses marijuana conviction based on illegal traffic stop
A police officer was mistaken when he pulled over a vehicle that, due to a broken tail light, emitted more white light than red light, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday. The statute only requires that some red light be visible, which occurred in this case.
Court upholds serious violent felon finding, despite not using term ‘SVF’
The Indiana Court of Appeals rejected a man’s claim that because a stipulation to being a serious violent felon did not use the term “serious violent felon,” the state didn’t establish that as his status.
COA reverses syringe possession conviction due to lack of evidence
Because the state couldn’t prove that a man intended to use a syringe to inject a legend drug, as is required by the statute to convict him of possession of a syringe, the Indiana Court of Appeals reversed the man’s conviction. The man intended to use the syringe to inject heroin, which is not covered by the statute.
DOC credit-time policy does not result in disparate treatment
The Indiana Court of Appeals rejected an inmate’s argument in his lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Department of Correction’s policy concerning the restoration of credit time for inmates. Because the policy does not result in disparate treatment, the judges affirmed the lower court ruling in favor of the DOC.
COA reverses convictions based on ineffective appellate counsel
The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed a man’s convictions of Class A felony child molesting and Class B felony sexual misconduct with a minor based on his sexual advances toward his stepdaughter when she was in junior high and high school. The judges acknowledged as a result of their decision, the stepfather won’t face any legal consequences for those actions, but the state had a duty to present sufficient evidence to support those convictions.
Clarksville Town Court judge must resign following OWI conviction in Kentucky
The Indiana Supreme Court publicly reprimanded Clarksville Town Court Judge Mickey K. Weber Friday and ordered he resign from the bench, effective Dec. 31. Weber pleaded guilty earlier this year to two charges stemming from a drunken-driving incident in Louisville, Kentucky.
7th Circuit reverses denial of benefits, blasts ALJ’s reasoning
Finding several things “wrong” with an administrative law judge’s decision denying a Fort Wayne woman’s application for Social Security Income for the years prior to her turning 55, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed and remanded for further proceedings.
Justices order adoption petitions moved to juvenile division based on local rule
The Indiana Supreme Court noted Thursday that the parties and both of the previous courts involved in an adoption matter were partly correct in their analyses as to where the petitions needed to be filed. But the Lake Superior Court, Civil Division should have transferred the petitions from its court to the juvenile division, where a local rule requires adoption petitions to be filed.
‘Disputed facts’ prevent federal judge from overturning contested abortion restrictions
Conflicting opinions from medical experts has stopped a federal judge from issuing a final summary judgment in a challenge to the Indiana statute that requires non-surgical abortion clinics to have the same equipment and adhere to the same requirements as a surgical facility.